‘Senate nod needed to end treaties’

MANILA, Philippines - Lawmakers yesterday expressed apprehension over President Duterte’s foreign policy statements, particularly on cutting ties with long-time ally the United States.

Senators Franklin Drilon, Paolo Benigno Aquino IV, Leila de Lima and Francis Pangilinan said Duterte cannot unilaterally change the country’s foreign policy without consultation and referring to the Constitution.

They said the shift in foreign policy should be shared with the Senate, in relation to the ratification of treaties made with other countries, including the US.

Duterte’s statement literally entails an
 abrogation of the 1951 Mutual Defense Treaty (MDT) with the US, which is a binding security and military agreement, they said.

The four senators from the Liberal Party said the Senate needs to be clarified if Duterte intends to terminate the MDT.

Moreover, the Constitution and laws dictate the general direction and tone of the country’s foreign policy, one that adheres to peace, equality, justice; considers national sovereignty, territorial integrity, national interest and the right to self-determination, and promotes the welfare and interest of Filipinos overseas, they said.

“This means we don’t start a fight. At the same time, we don’t back out of a fight for our sovereignty and territory,” the senators said.

“We fight using the diplomatic and legal instruments and stages available to us, such as taking the battle over the West Philippine Sea to the international arbitral tribunal where we were able to win our case without any gunshots fired,” they said.

They said they were in agreement that the Philippines needs an independent foreign policy or one that protects and champions the interests of the Filipino people, and one that is not pro-American and not pro-China but pro-Filipino, ensuring the conventions and agreements the government signs will benefit Filipinos.

Lawmakers supported Aquino’s resolution, urging the government to clarify the country’s stand on different foreign policy issues.

Aquino said he welcomes the renewed economic ties with China but it should not mean Duterte should quarrel with the US and the European Union to make that happen.

De Lima, for her part, said Duterte’s statements in Beijing were totally unexpected and uncalled for.

She said it was shocking that he announced the drastic shift in foreign policy abroad.

“It’s one thing to keep your Cabinet members in the dark – which is deeply troubling in itself – but it’s a whole level of betrayal to keep that from the Filipino people, and to announce it for the first time in front of foreigners,” De Lima said.

“And, by saying that he has ‘realigned himself’ with the ‘ideological flow’ of China, is the President saying that he’s going to sponsor a change in our democratic setup of government into something that approximates or resembles the communist or totalitarian system of mainland China?” she asked.

De Lima said it was “saddening, frightening and highly incensing” that Duterte put his bitterness and dislike of the US ahead of the people’s interests.

“If he thinks like a communist, talks like a communist, frees the communists and appoints the communists, then he must be a communist,” Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV added.

Possible backlash

Sen. Joseph Victor Ejercito also expressed concern over the possible economic backlash of Duterte’s statements against the US.

He said the US is still the biggest trading partner of the Philippines.

Ejercito also pointed out the local business process outsourcing (BPO) industry, which employs about a million Filipinos, is dominated by US firms.

“This matter should have been studied thoroughly. We could pursue an independent foreign policy without necessarily cutting ties with the US,” he said.

Sen. Ralph Recto also pointed out the possible effects on the BPO industry.

He said the US is home to the largest number of Filipinos abroad, the biggest source of foreign exchange remittances, one of the biggest official development assistance donors “and a major market of our products and services, like the BPO.”

Recto expressed deep disappointment, saying foreign policy rebalancing “should not mean that we swing the pendulum to the other extreme, that we dump old friends for new suitors.”

“Yes, our relations with the United States may not be perfect. But a country which has illegally built a great wall of sand in our seas is not, and far from, the epitome of a good friend either,” Recto said, referring to the Chinese reclamation activities in Philippine-claimed areas in the South China Sea.

“Crafting an independent foreign policy requires introspection, not impetuousness,” he said.

Recto said Duterte should practice “big-tent diplomacy” where the national interest is served by extending amity to all, and hostility to none.

“As to our joining Russia and China in a new axis, let us fix our traffic first before we insert ourselves in the power games of nuclear states,” he said.

Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian, who accompanied Duterte to China, was himself not impressed and sought clarification from the Cabinet.  – With Evelyn Macairan, Delon Porcalla