The Philippine Coup attempt

February 24th, 2006 at 17:15 Björn Hallberg

Is reality on the march in the Philippines or has the U.S just found a new and better hand puppet to replace Gloria Arroyo? Ironically, Arroyo has now clamped down on celebrations of “people power” and the revolt that toppled dictator Ferdinand Marcos in 1986. Some, like Benito Lim, Professor of Political Science, noted that the wielding of martial law started a lot like the infamous despot and U.S. darling in 1972: “This is suppression of all freedom. It is in violation of the constitution and the bill of rights. This is the beginning of using stronger measures of all dissent against the government. Their justification is reminiscent of Marcos when he proclaimed martial law.”
Of course, it seems unlikely that America would have found a more loyal servant than Gloria Arroyo. Admittedly, it is not easy sorting the good guys from the bad guys in Philippine politics, but seeing who has shaken hands with George W. Bush usually helps.

Despite the colossal death toll inflicted by the U.S. during the Philippine-American War, the Philippines remains one of America’s most loyal pseudo-colonies. Just as the Philippines remains a darling guinea pig for neoliberal reforms and the “white man’s burden” or as aptly put by Renato Redentor Constantino …

For years, the Philippines offered its best sons and daughters to blond-haired priests and their brown-skinned acolytes who sang hosannas about the paradise that awaited those who opened their economies. Curiously, while the Philippines faithfully worshipped at the altar of free trade, members of the developed world — along with the ranks of rapidly developing nations that were clear about where their national interests lay — continued to nourish, even cosset, their local agriculture and industries.

Entry 462 filed under: Asia. This entry was posted 2 years, 9 months ago. RSS feed for comments on this post.