Buencamino does foreign and political affairs analysis for Action for Economic Reforms. This piece was published in the newspaper Today, 17 July 2004 edition, page 9.
” Old soldiers never die, they just smell that way” – Unknown
Fidel Ramos was a policeman and Max Soliven is a newspaper publisher so only half of the quotation applies to them.
Fidel Ramos loves to give unsolicited opinions. Recently he said hebelieves the head of Angelo de la Cruz is a fair price to pay forinternational credibility. Once upon a time, the price of credibilitywas punishing soldiers with push-ups for attempting to overthrow thegovernment of Corazon Aquino. Now that he doesn’t have to foot the billanymore, he feels free to raise the price of credibility.
Rasti Delizo of the Iraq Solidarity Campaign is wasting his moneyawarding Ramos a “one-way first-class all-expense paid trip to Iraq inorder to take the place of Angelo de la Cruz.” The Iraqis know a thingor two about value so they won’t exchange Angelo for the head of Ramos.
Meanwhile, an enraged Max Soliven was not satisfied with calling Arroyo“craven and wishy-washy ” and her decision, “shameful”. He needed toinsult each and every Filipino by calling them cowards. He wrote,“Snatch one Filipino and threaten to behead him, and all the Filipinosturn tail and run away.” I speak on behalf of all Filipinos when I say– “Fuck you, Max.”
The Filipino people are proud to have a government that holds aFilipino life more important than lending credibility to a war based onlies. Only Unsolicited Fidel and Mad Max think otherwise.
Bush and his posse are angry because Arroyo’s decision marks a cleardistinction between the war on terror and the war of false pretenses.Their credibility rests on blurring that difference and maintaining theillusion that the war on Iraq is the same as the war on terror. That’swhy they are framing Arroyo’s decision in the worst possible way.
The White House spokesman said, “We believe that a decision by thePhilippine government to withdraw their 51 troops ahead of schedulewould send the wrong signal to terrorists” and the US State Departmentsaid, the decision “sends the wrong message” to hostage takers “at atime when Iraq is fighting for stability and peace.”
The Australian Foreign Minister followed suit and telephoned thePhilippines Embassy in Canberra to reiterate, “countries cannot give into the demands of terrorists because we would all pay the price.”
CNN is piling it on and using words like “capitulation” but itunwittingly praised Arroyo when it said that the Philippine Governmentprioritized the saving of one Filipino’s life over its internationalcommitments.
And we don’t have to repeat what their choir boys, Fidel and Max, were singing.
President Arroyo’s decision to walk out of Iraq in order to save aFilipino despite its profound consequences on bilateral relations withthe US is what makes her decision so admirable and praiseworthy.
If Angelo de la Cruz is beheaded despite Arroyo’s decision, it will not be because she failed to do what’s right.
Arroyo was fooled by Bush into doing the wrong thing but now she isdoing the right thing. I think Arroyo smells sweet and I hope she staysthat way for the next six years.
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