Fil-Ams protest China role in Spratlys
by Rodney Jaleco, ABS-CBN North America Bureau
Posted at 06/27/2011 11:16 PM | Updated as of 06/27/2011 11:16 PM
WASHINGTON DC – Filipino-Americans are organizing protests against alleged Chinese intrusions in the disputed Spratlys Islands that the Philippines claim as theirs.
They are holding a lunch-break picket in front of the sprawling Chinese Embassy at 3505 International Place NW, adjacent to the University of District of Columbia, according to a message from Eric Lachica. Lachica is a community leader who has been active in promoting Filipino World War II veterans and the proposed medical portability bill in Congress.
This comes after growing United States support for the Philippines that has complained about recent Chinese aggression in what it calls "West Philippine Sea" (South China Sea).
Vising Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario revealed at least nine Chinese intrusions in Philippine territory since the recent tensions started, when a Philippine oceanographic research ship was forced to flee from what was considered as Philippine waters.
National Director for Intelligence (NDI) James Clapper reported promised Del Rosario of their assistance to boost Philippine intelligence capabilities in the South China Sea.
Defense Secretary Robert Gates, meanwhile, assured US support to upgrade the Philippine military’s outdated weapons.
Del Rosario had earlier proposed to lease US military equipment that the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) needs to patrol and defend the country’s western frontiers.
The Philippines has the only airstrip in the Spratlys Islands, located on Pag-Asa Island that is part of the Kalayaan Islands in the Palawan province.
The AFP has drawn up a long list of equipment it needs to operate effectively in the country’s Exclusive Economic Zone that encompasses the Philippine claims in the Spratlys.
They include long-range maritime surveillance aircraft, bigger ships and anti-aircraft radars and weapons.
According to a statement from the Philippine Embassy, the NDI had "pledged to enhance intelligence sharing with the Philippines to heighten the latter's maritime situational awareness and surveillance in the West Philippine Sea."
Clapper’s assurance is especially significant because the Chinese are suspected to be building new structures near Recto Bank, which is part of Zambales. The Chinese had earlier planted markers that were later removed by Filipino troops.
China had also surreptitiously built semi-permanent structures in Mischief Reef near Palawan in the late 1990s.
The NDI is the umbrella for US intelligence organizations including the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), Defense Intelligence Agency and the National Security Agency (NSA), among others.
Defense Undersecretary for Policy Michelle Flournoy assured Sec. Del Rosario they will look "into the full range of requirements" of the Philippine military.
"We should not allow this perception that you are alone and we're not behind you," she stressed.
State Secretary Hillary Clinton became the highest US official to assure the Philippines that America will honor its obligations under the 60-year-old Mutual Defense Treaty (MDT). That treaty states that an attack on either the US or Philippines in the Pacific Area would be considered as an attack on both, that in theory, suggest military counter-attack.
She explained that while the US will not take sides in the South China Sea, territorial dispute, it will not tolerate the use of force to enforce any claims there.
"We are determined and committed to supporting the defense of the Philippines, and that means trying to find ways of providing affordable material and equipment that will assist the Philippine military to take the steps necessary to defend itself," Sec. Clinton said.
Nguồn: http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/global-filipino/06/27/11/fil-ams-protest-china-role-spratlys
Nguyễn Xuân Diện: Theo tin chúng tôi nhận được, sắp tới sẽ có một số anh chị em người Việt Nam tình nguyện từ Việt Nam sang Philippines để hiệp thông cùng những người biểu tình Philippines tổ chức tiếp các cuộc biểu tình chung tại thủ đô Mannila để phản đối nhà cầm quyền Trung Quốc gây hấn tại Biển Đông, thách thức du luận khu vực và quốc tế.
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