PHILIPPINES : Aquino’s Right on Bases
This is the debut of a new Opinion feature--excerpts of editorials and commentary from around the Pacific Rim.
Except during coups or earthquakes, the only time the American media deigns to mention the Philippines is when the issue of the U.S. military facilities in the country crops up.
Such a focus has given the impression that the bases lie at the heart of the U.S.-Philippine relationship. (But) as President Corazon Aquino put it: “The (bases) . . . are not the heart of our economy nor the soul of our political well-being.”
We support Aquino in her avowed determination that . . . the two governments shall “craft a new relationship--one more equitable, mutually beneficial and respectful of each other’s sovereignty.” We hail, too, her declaration that “it is now necessary for our government to work with the United States for arrangements regarding the orderly withdrawal of their forces from our country.”
These are . . . not sugarcoated terms of surrender to U.S. demands to extend the bases’ lease.
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