AKBAYAN Chair Emeritus Etta Rosales urged the Philippine government today to officially communicate to the Burmese junta and appeal against the use of force to stop the growing pro-democracy protest in the country. "Before the junta resorts to a violent crackdown, the Philippine government, through the Department of Foreign Affairs, should immediately convey to the Burmese junta our concern over the possibility of violence and further human rights violations in the country," Rosales said.
"They should allow the protests to continue and seriously reflect on the demands of thousands of civilians and monks marching all over the country. The march has been peaceful and we warn the junta against using force to silence renewed demands for democracy in the country," Rosales added.
Meanwhile, deputy minority leader and AKBAYAN Rep. Risa Hontiveros, a member of the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Myanmar Caucus (AIPMC), urged the UN Security Council to pass a resolution on Burma to pave the way for a UN-led intervention in the beleaguered country.
"We cannot trust the junta to exercise restraint forever. The growing protest rallies could lead to violence once the junta begins dispersing the rallies," Rep. Hontiveros said, adding that a repeat of the killing of 3,000 rallyists during the 1988 uprising is not remote.
"We fear that a crackdown would lead to a civil war, which would only worsen the suffering of Burmese civilians. What the Burmese junta should do instead is recognize the failure of its roadmap to democracy and cede political power to civilians," Rosales said.
Rep. Hontiveros also announced that fifteen members of the House of Representatives signed a letter urging the leaders of China, India, and ASEAN countries to pressure the Burmese junta to deliver genuine political and economic reforms.
"More than the West, ASEAN, China and India are in a position to exert diplomatic pressure on the Burmese junta. We call on their leaders to push the junta to stop military hostilities, the release of political prisoners, including Aung San Suu Kyi, and the commencement of genuine democratization in the country," Rep. Hontiveros said.
The letter was signed by Representatives Risa Hontiveros, Ronaldo Zamora, Roilo Golez, Salvador Escudero, Ferdinand Marcos Jr., Rufus Rodriguez, Teodulo Coquilla, Mer-len Abigail Binay, Benjamin Asilo, Cinchona Cruz-Gonzales, Satur Ocampo, Liza Maza, Luzviminda Ilagan, Lani Cayetano, Joel Villanueva, and Dan Fernandez.
Tuesday, September 25, 2007
Wednesday, September 19, 2007
GMA challenged: tell First Gentleman to attend congressional inquiries, too
AKBAYAN Rep. Risa Hontiveros said today that GMA's decision to allow Cabinet secretaries to attend the Senate blue ribbon inquiry on the ZTE deal should be taken with a grain of salt.
"Telling them to attend the hearings is not enough. We have to wait for the Cabinet officials' statements under oath before we can judge the sincerity of her action. Furthermore, if she is really serious about being transparent on the deal, she should ask First Gentleman Mike Arroyo to come back, attend the hearings, and clear his name," Rep. Hontiveros said.
Rep. Hontiveros also dared the President to revoke E.O. 464 and MC 108, which have been repeatedly invoked by Cabinet officials to avoid congressional inquiries. "Allow Congress to perform its oversight functions without Malacañang hiding behind excessive legalism," Rep. Hontiveros challenged the President. "Congressional inquiries only become political circuses when the President allows Cabinet members to attend hearings but prevents them from saying anything."
"The explosive testimony of Jose de Venecia III demands nothing less than full disclosure from those who were obviously involved in the deal, including the First Gentleman," Rep. Hontiveros stressed.
She also lashed out at the President for dismissing the issue as a vaudeville act and a tale of conspiracy.
"There is indeed a conspiracy taking place, but it is not coming from within the opposition. What the ZTE deal shows is that the real conspiracy involves hoodlums in government using their power to bag kickbacks from onerous deals," Rep. Hontiveros said, adding that the First Gentleman, COMELEC Chair Abalos and certain Cabinet secretaries should be blamed for the controversy.
The attempt to get into the truth behind the controversial ZTE deal should not be portrayed as an act of economic destabilization. "It is corruption involving public officials that's blocking confidence in the economy. Why would people invest in the country if government officials themselves violate anti-corruption procedures? Instead of hiding behind the smokescreen of excessive legalism and destabilization scare, President GMA should come clean about controversies like the ZTE deal," Rep. Hontiveros said.
"Telling them to attend the hearings is not enough. We have to wait for the Cabinet officials' statements under oath before we can judge the sincerity of her action. Furthermore, if she is really serious about being transparent on the deal, she should ask First Gentleman Mike Arroyo to come back, attend the hearings, and clear his name," Rep. Hontiveros said.
Rep. Hontiveros also dared the President to revoke E.O. 464 and MC 108, which have been repeatedly invoked by Cabinet officials to avoid congressional inquiries. "Allow Congress to perform its oversight functions without Malacañang hiding behind excessive legalism," Rep. Hontiveros challenged the President. "Congressional inquiries only become political circuses when the President allows Cabinet members to attend hearings but prevents them from saying anything."
"The explosive testimony of Jose de Venecia III demands nothing less than full disclosure from those who were obviously involved in the deal, including the First Gentleman," Rep. Hontiveros stressed.
She also lashed out at the President for dismissing the issue as a vaudeville act and a tale of conspiracy.
"There is indeed a conspiracy taking place, but it is not coming from within the opposition. What the ZTE deal shows is that the real conspiracy involves hoodlums in government using their power to bag kickbacks from onerous deals," Rep. Hontiveros said, adding that the First Gentleman, COMELEC Chair Abalos and certain Cabinet secretaries should be blamed for the controversy.
The attempt to get into the truth behind the controversial ZTE deal should not be portrayed as an act of economic destabilization. "It is corruption involving public officials that's blocking confidence in the economy. Why would people invest in the country if government officials themselves violate anti-corruption procedures? Instead of hiding behind the smokescreen of excessive legalism and destabilization scare, President GMA should come clean about controversies like the ZTE deal," Rep. Hontiveros said.
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