Gloria should take US warning seriously

‘The possibility of a cut in US aid is real.’

The Arroyo administration is deluding itself if it believes its close alliance with the US in the global war against terror would excuse itself from accountability in the eyes of Americans and their leaders for the surge in extra-judicial killings.

We are not exactly supporters of the United States’ renewed heavy presence after it abandoned its military bases in 1991. We have been critical of the thinly disguised deployment of American soldiers in the South. The American forces are engaged in combat operations in violation of the Constitution.

Our fear is that US participation in the pursuit of Abu Sayyaf terrorists could lead into involvement in the campaign against the Islamic secessionists. If that happens, our long festering problem revolving around the demand – justified, we believe – of Muslim Filipinos for self-government could take the added dimension of a clash between two apparently warring cultures.

The presence of American soldiers in Mindanao, nonetheless, should not detract from the invaluable US contribution to development efforts in formerly war-ravaged areas. The US is the biggest foreign sponsor of social and economic projects for former Moro National Liberation Front combatants. Without these US projects, the peace agreement with the MNLF would have long collapsed because of Manila’s failure to keep its side of the bargain.

The possibility of a cut in US aid is real. The US cannot allow itself to be seen as the supplier and trainer of an AFP tagged as responsible for executing rebels and their suspected supporters.