Does pact allowing more US troops conform with Charter? Angara says Senate should check

From InterAksyon (Mar 16): Does pact allowing more US troops conform with Charter? Angara says Senate should check

The vice chairperson of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee is requesting the Department of Foreign Affairs and the Department of National Defense to brief the Upper House on the framework agreement between the Philippines and the United States that would allow greater presence of US troops in the country.

Sen. Juan Edgardo Angara said the Senate should know the details of the pact so that lawmakers would be able to determine if the agreement would need to be ratified by the Upper House and conform with the Philippine Constitution.

Angara said the pact should have a "solid legal footing" that can stand questioning before the high court “(S)ila rin ang matatamaan n'yan sakaling may pinasukan silang alangananin. Pero sa aming panig, siyempre gusto din namin na malaman bilang independent branch ng gobyerno kung ano ang nilalaman nya dahil kung saka-saling may mag-kuwestiyon sa Supreme Court, kailangan solid ang legal footing ng isang executive agreement,” Angara said in a radio interview.

[They will be the ones affected if ever they get into something doubtful. But from our part, we as independent branch of the government will of course like to know the contents of the pact so that it will have solid legal footing if ever it is questioned before the Supreme Court.]

Angara said the Senate should not take at face value the Palace's pronouncement that the pact is an executive agreement that does not need the Upper House's approval.
"Mahirap 'yong gano'n na tatanggapin mo lang. Kailangan talaga makita 'yong kasulatan at ano talaga...iyong obligasyon na legal ng ating pamahalaan [It's hard to just accept it like that. We should really see the documents and know the legal obligation of our government],” the neophyte senator said.

The 1987 Charter clearly states that agreements on the permanent structure of foreign troops in the Philippine should have the Senate's nod otherwise, it will be deemed illegal, according to Angara.

“Well, klaro naman ang Saligang Batas natin d'yan. Kapag may bases na o kaya kapag may troops na permanently stationed dito, kailangan ng Senate approval. Nasa Article 18 po ng ating Saligang Batas ‘yon [Our Constitution is clear on that. If there are already bases or there are troops that are permanently stationed here, it needs Senate approval. Its on Article 18 of our Constitution], ” he said.

Angara supports the position of Senator Miriam Defensor-Santiago, chairperson of the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations.

Santiago was quoted in news reports as saying that the deal had to be approved by the Senate first because “it cannot be classified as an executive agreement but as a treaty to which the Philippine Senate must give its concurrence.”

Pact to respect PH sovereignty 

On Sunday, the state-run Philippine News Agency (PNA) quoted Malacañang as saying that the Philippines' granting of greater access to U.S. military shall respect Philippine sovereignty.

“The proposed agreement will allow the sharing of defined areas within certain AFP (Armed Forces of the Philippines) facilities with elements of the US military on a rotational basis within parameters consistent with the Philippine Constitution and laws," said Presidential Communications Operations Office secretary Herminio Coloma, Jr.

At the instance of the Philippine panel, the United States panel agreed to the inclusion of provisions on environment and safety, and opportunities for potential Philippine suppliers of goods, products and services,” Coloma told Radyo ng Bayan.

Coloma said the aspects of humanitarian assistance and disaster response in this agreement are significant given the country’s experiences following the onslaught of super typhoon "Yolanda" (Haiyan) last year.

“Mahalaga po ‘yong aspeto ng humanitarian assistance and disaster response. Nakita po natin ito noong tayo ay tinamaan ng super typhoon ‘Yolanda’ at naging hayag po ang suporta ng Estados Unidos sa pamamagitan ng pagpapadala ng mga modernong kagamitan na malaki ang naiambag sa pagtugon sa emergency situation,” he said.

Quoting Defense Undersecretary Pio Batino, who heads the Philippines’ negotiating panel, Coloma said the agreement remains “guided by the principles of full respect for Philippine sovereignty, non-permanence of US troops, and no US basing in the Philippines, mutuality of benefits and respect for the Philippine Constitution, including the prohibition against nuclear weapons.”

Coloma added that while he he respected the opinions of the critics of the agreement, he advised them to wait for the completion of the deal first so that they could have a better grasp of all the issues at hand.

“Ang aking panukala ay hintayin na lamang natin na maging pinal at matapos nang ganap (ang pag-uusap) dahil ongoing pa naman, hindi pa naman po completed, at hindi pa finalized. Hintayin po natin ang magiging final and complete form nitong kasunduang ito para po masuri ang mga isyung tinatalakay sa kasalukuyan,” he said.

http://www.interaksyon.com/article/82826/does-pact-allowing-more-us-troops-conform-with-charter-angara-says-senate-should-check