business as usual for RP-U.S. relations

A routine rotation of American forces stationed in the island of Mindanao, in the Philippines, is set to take place. There have been denials of a dramatic troop increase, with officials claiming that these forces are simply being rotated.

What started as a Visiting Force has evolved into a military exercise, and now, more specifically, a Joint Special Operations Task Force. President Arroyo's hard line stance on the country's domestic and international terrorist involvement perfectly complemented her (and predecessors' Ramos and Estrada) policy: bring in Uncle Sam to teach his little Asian comrade to fight.

The international image of the Philippines as an island haven for international terrorists, its link to transnational terrorist network al-Qaeda, and the extensive knowledge its radical Islam followers have of bomb-making/detonating/acquiring/kidnapping-for-ransom and the like, will not land unnoticed in the lap of this American administration. Clearly for Bush, it hasn't.

To America, the Philippines, I believe, is like an annoying sibling that cannot seem to stand on its own. Perpetually seeking favor with America, Arroyo has steered foreign policy towards staying on Uncle Sam's good side. America, on the other hand, cannot wait for the Philippines to deal with its own problems, and grow up. Like a younger brother that cannot teach himself to use the computer.

But similes aside, the Philippines is in no way capable of handling its terrorist problem. While citizens are arguably numbed to the gravity of situation, as these groups continue to align themselves with more intricately linked goals (separatist, terrorist or otherwise), the government will soon find itself in the epitome of a Third World crisis: poverty, terrorism, poor institutional infrastructure, and capital flight.

Arguments against the U.S. involvement in counterterrorism efforts should be completely ignored. Next time the Armed Forces or the intelligence agencies can efficiently coordinate a response to a terrorist attack, maybe I'll open up my ears again. If the local government can't even handle an efficienct flashflood response, then who are we to shut the door in America's face. For something as globally-oriented as terrorism, it is not possible to go at it alone.