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RELEVANCE AND CHANGE: FOREIGN POLICY UNDER THE ARROYO ADMINISTRATION Lecture by the Hon. DELIA
DOMINGO ALBERT, Secretary of Foreign Affairs, for the Third University
of the Philippines Public Lecture Series on the Philippine Presidency and
Administration: UP Faculty Center Conference Hall, 23 February 2004
In a way, breaking these traditions serves as a metaphor for the foreign policy of President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. The President’s foreign policy has been driven by a desire to bring about change, change for what is truly better for our people, change that makes foreign policy work directly for the benefit of the Filipino people. Of Direct Benefit to the People Simultaneous raids against drug lords in Bulacan and Beijing. A safer Middle East for a million and a half Filipinos. Cutting off support for local terrorists by helping in the liberation of Afghanistan from the hands of a terrorist government. Making our region a hostile place for terrorists by initiating a regional counterterrorism agreement. Laying the basis for a lasting solution to conflicting claims in the South China Sea by initiating and adopting a historic regional code of conduct. Regional economic integration that fortifies our part of the world against another financial crisis. Standing fast on fair trade. Better protection for the environment. Preventing the trafficking of persons, particularly of women and children. A Basilan freed from fear. A brighter future for our peace process. Overseas Filipinos whose votes will be counted. A direct hand in helping maintain the peace and security of mankind. These are some of the direct results of the President’s foreign policy. These are changes that were brought about by mobilizing our diplomatic forces, harnessing the full potentials of our relations with other countries and responding to the potent challenges of an ever-changing global environment. What Foreign Policy Should Be For the President, foreign policy is not a luxury but a tool. For the President, foreign policy has little meaning unless it brings change that is relevant. Foreign policy is most relevant when it works for the people. It is most relevant when it is shorn of its mystique and is better understood. And when it is better understood, when there is greater national support and consensus behind it, Philippine foreign policy is at its most effective. And we need a foreign policy that is effective. The Philippines as a nation can no longer be exclusively defined by conventional notions of territorial metes and bounds. Dramatic progress and developments in trade and technology, commerce and communication, have created a smaller world. It may be a smaller world but it is a world that is infinitely more complex. Our vital interests lie wherever there are Filipinos. Our 7 million overseas Filipinos are in over 165 countries and on ships on all the world’s oceans. Events in other countries and regions impact our own. Our vital interests lie wherever events in the rest of the world impact on our nation. In today’s globalized world, developments in other parts of our shrinking planet cause not only ripples but massive waves that hit our shores with the speed of thought and the ferocity of a storm. Today, world peace and global stability are no longer political abstractions. The need to preserve and maintain the peace and security of mankind is a harsh reality that lays bare the clear and pressing demands on our diplomacy. The importance of harnessing our foreign policy to bring about change was made even more stark by the fact that the Arroyo presidency came in the wake of a political crisis. The economy was in shambles, trust in the government machinery was low, peace and order challenged and foreign policy was marked by serious credibility problems. Fundamental Policy Framework I will be the first to admit that controversy and criticisms have come our way in pursuing our foreign policy in the way that we have. Our policies have been challenged in political and judicial arenas. But we have been upheld at every instance. The Arroyo Administration foreign policy placed emphasis on results, on benefits for our people, over any need to pander to what might be popular. For the Arroyo Administration, foreign policy is to be pursued based on three important and main pillars: first – the preservation and enhancement of national security; second – the promotion and attainment of economic security through the mobilization of external resources for economic advancement and social development; and third – the protection of the rights, and the promotion of the welfare and interests, of Filipinos overseas. These pillars overlap and cannot be considered apart from each other. To make sure that Philippine foreign policy would not only be truly relevant but also focused, President Arroyo also identified specific realities of the regional and international environment that would guide Philippine foreign policy under her leadership. These realities acknowledge the new and emerging roles of certain countries and groups of countries and pinpoint the issues that directly bear on our interests. The Elusive Search for Peace Lasting and meaningful peace seemed elusive before President Arroyo came to office. Force was used to address the communist rebels and the Muslim secessionists. The absence of peace has brought misery to the Filipino people. Many lives had been lost as well as opportunities for growth and development. The President decided to open a diplomatic front in our quest for peace. The first step was to isolate the armed groups from international support. The next step was to bring international support entirely on our side in support of the peace process. This was to be followed by focused efforts to enlist the assistance of specific countries as effective third party facilitators. Today we stand on the verge of peace. Informal talks have just been concluded with the MILF in Kuala Lumpur and preliminary issues have been resolved. Formal peace talks are set to begin in April. Formal talks with the CPP/NPA/NDF have resumed after many difficulties, although we still need to address a fundamental difference of opinion on a particular issue. The Search for Peace : MILF An important factor in our search for peace in Mindanao was our heightened engagement with the Organization of Islamic Conference. The OIC threw its support for our efforts at finding peace and for the territorial integrity of our country. This not only meant that the MILF could not expect material or political support from outside. This also meant that any body else that might be hoping for external support to fulfill dreams of secession needed a serious reality check. The support of the OIC for our peace process also meant that our 1996 peace agreement with the MNLF would remain on track. We owe this to the OIC Committee of the Eight and to Indonesia’s leadership of this Committee. But perhaps the key factor has been the active involvement of Malaysia as a partner for peace. Malaysia remains crucial to the search for peace in the Southern Philippines. Malaysia has categorically asked the MILF to abandon violence and pursue peace. Malaysia is willing to provide peace monitors to help maintain the ceasefire while we negotiate the terms of peace. Malaysia is also committed to continue its engagement in the post-conflict phase. In helping address the root causes of internal conflict in Mindanao and to ensure that peace takes hold, we mobilized our diplomatic forces to obtain development assistance and investments for conflict and post-conflict areas. We are also succeeding in mainstreaming our relations with the members of the OIC. We have made major inroads with our historic participation in OIC meetings at the ministerial and summit levels. Our Search for Peace : CPP/NPA/NDF By opening a diplomatic front, formal peace talks with the CPP/NPA/NDF have resumed. The role of the Royal Norwegian Government has been crucial in bringing the parties together and in helping talks to move forward. On 14 February 2004 the Philippine Government and the NDF signed the Oslo Joint Statement and agreed to continue with formal talks. But controversy continues to dog these talks over the issue of terrorist listing. The NDF assumes that the Philippine Government was instrumental in getting the international community to consider them as international terrorists. Even assuming that this were true, it does not necessarily follow that the Philippines can cause their delisting even in the absence of objective basis. We did not and could not promise to have them removed from the list, for this is something that we do not have and therefore cannot give. The CPP/NPA were put on that list by discerning and sovereign governments based on the actions of the CPP/NPA and its leaders. It will also be their own categorical act that will bring about their removal from lists that label them as international terrorists; and this act is to cast their lot for true and meaningful peace, this act is the signing of a final peace agreement. We certainly understand the concern of CPP/NPA leaders over the terrorist listing. On 1 May 2004, when the European Union expands and adds ten more members, ten more countries will place them on their lists of international terrorists. We anticipate that when peace is achieved, when violence becomes a thing of the past, when our political and ideological differences are settled in the public arena and not in the battlefield, the countries of the world will welcome this achievement and it would be most difficult for them to maintain the position that the CPP/NPA is an international terrorist organization. The War Against Terror At the same time that the President was determined to achieve peace with the communist rebels and Muslim secessionists, she was determined to fight those who refuse to renounce terror. When the Arroyo Administration came to office, it inherited a grave domestic terrorism problem, compounded by a lack of modern tools to contain and eliminate terrorism. A few months later, terrorism would change the face of the world forever and would highlight the vile and complex tapestry of international terror. The threat that domestic terrorists would continue to receive support, direction and inspiration from international terrorists had to be dealt with. The Arroyo Administration’s foreign policy was marked by its categorical support for the war against terror. The attack on the Twin Towers brought home the realization that terrorism had to be stopped completely. Terrorism was a threat not only to the values that we held dear but also a threat to the two million Filipinos living in the United States. In what may be the most controversial foreign policy decision of the Administration, after establishing clear rules and guidelines, consistent with the Constitution and existing international legal obligations, we held Balikatan 02-1 in Basilan in 2002. We received training, aid and assistance from the United States. Our soldiers did the fighting. While our soldiers fought bravely, we overcame criticisms and a Supreme Court challenge. A year later, on the 12th of June 2003, the President raised the Philippine flag over Basilan. And raised with that flag were the hopes and dreams of the people of Basilan and Mindanao. Leading the Regional Consensus Against Terrorism To ensure that terrorism is rooted out from our region, we needed to establish a clear consensus on the need to fight terrorism. We worked for this and consensus was reached with the adoption of the ASEAN Declaration on Joint Action to Counter Terrorism at the 7th ASEAN Summit, held in Brunei Darussalam on 5-6 November 2001. Armed with this consensus, the Philippines
initiated a regional counter-terrorism Agreement on Information Exchange
and Establishment of Communications Procedures. This was signed by the
Philippines, Indonesia and Malaysia on 22 February 2002. Brunei,
Cambodia and Thailand have since acceded to this agreement.
Our diplomatic efforts continued on all levels to strengthen international cooperation against terror. We worked closely with Congress to have 12 important conventions on counter-terrorism ratified. Have We Made Ourselves Targets of Terror? Amidst all these, the question has been asked, have we made ourselves a target for terror because of our actions? While there are no direct threats against us, I would like to quote what the late Secretary of Foreign Affairs Blas F. Ople said when asked that same question. He said: “If terrorists seek to hit us because
we are a strong democracy, if terrorists cannot stand us because we are
a liberal and pluralistic society, if terrorists wish to strike at us because
we revere freedom and we choose our leaders freely, because we are tolerant
and because we value human life, if terrorists target us because they cannot
accept that we have done much to achieve peace in our country and that
we are able to live peacefully with others of different faiths, then by
all that is decent, we are the target of terrorists. We are targets
for we are their enemy.”
Terrorism was not the only threat to Philippine society. The President also decided to bring our foreign policy to bear on the war against crime, particularly the serious threat of illicit drugs. In the beginning, I mentioned simultaneous raids against drug lords in Bulacan and Beijing as an achievement of foreign policy. These major victories in the war against illicit drugs are a direct result of the goodwill that has been established between the leaders of the Philippines and China and their common desire to vigorously address the international drug problem. This goodwill and common objective were enshrined in the Memorandum of Understanding between the Philippines and the People’s Republic of China on Cooperation Against the Illicit Traffic and Abuse of Narcotic Drugs, Psychotropic Substances and Precursor Chemicals, which was signed during the visit of President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo to China in October 2001. We intensified cooperation with our partners to improve the capability of our law enforcement agencies. We negotiated and signed agreements that provide assistance in enhancing the policing, supervisory and management skills of our law enforcement agencies. Our strengthened strategic relationship with the United States has given our armed forces the much needed tools to carry out their job. Regional Security and Stability At the same time that we were addressing the country’s security and stability needs, we were also exerting every effort to ensure that our region is safe and stable. For these are indispensable requirements for regional growth and progress. In other parts of the world, the diversity that we have in the region would have been a formula for conflict. Some of the major flashpoints in the world are in or near the region. And these flashpoints have a decidedly nuclear dimension. The Arroyo Administration believed that
our foreign policy had to address this situation.
Early on, the Arroyo Administration decided that there was an urgent need to address the issue of the conflicting claims in the South China Sea, a major security issue in the Asia-Pacific region and that it was time for a major confidence building exercise. She took this idea directly to the leaders of China during her visit on 28-31 October 2001. This bold move led to the adoption of a Regional Code of Conduct in the South China Sea. The Code of Conduct involves China and all the ASEAN members, even the non-claimants. It lays the basis for the prevention of conflict and for the eventual achievement of a peaceful, meaningful and lasting resolution. Political Regional Integration After containing the potential conflict in the South China Sea, the foreign policy of the Arroyo Administration focused on putting the region firmly on the road to political and security integration. The ten ASEAN Leaders signed in Bali last October the Declaration of ASEAN Concord, otherwise known as the Bali Concord II. The Declaration is intended to be the blueprint for the development of a dynamic, cohesive, resilient and integrated ASEAN Community based on three pillars – the ASEAN Security Community, the ASEAN Economic Community, and the ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community. The Philippine initiative to incorporate a socio-cultural pillar manifests our desire to ensure that ASEAN remains people-oriented and develops a regional community of caring societies as envisioned under ASEAN Vision 2020. As a maritime country, the Philippines sought to include cooperation on maritime issues in the agenda of the various fora in which we participate – particularly in ASEAN, APEC and the Asia-Europe Meeting or ASEM. Inter-Regional Cooperation Last month, we hosted the Second Foreign Ministers Meeting of the Forum for East Asia Latin America Cooperation. At this meeting, we agreed on a plan of action to ensure the continued viability of FEALAC as a bridge between the governments and peoples of the two regions.
Our policy on Iraq was based on our belief that a stable and pluralistic Iraq, at peace with its neighbors and the world, was the key, an important key to the peace and stability of the Middle East and thus critical to the safety and security of our one and a half million Filipinos there. Today we have the rare opportunity to be part of the future of a new Iraq by helping the brave Iraqi people build a country free from the oppressive regime that ruled them for so long. Our humanitarian contingent remains in Iraq and is making a difference to the people of Iraq and to the future of that nation. The Philippines and Peacekeeping The Philippines maintained its active role in sending peacekeeping missions in conflict-ridden areas. In 2002, the Department signed the Policy Framework and Guidelines for Philippine participation in UN peace operations, which would enable the Philippines to rationalize its participation in peacekeeping operations. The Philippines has kept its presence in two major UN peacekeeping operations, East Timor and Kosovo. The Armed Forces of the Philippines has committed a company-size unit to the UN Stand-by Arrangement System (UNSAS), which is to be utilized as part of the UN’s proposed rapid deployment force to emerging trouble spots, or “flashpoints,” to maintain peace and order in those areas. The Philippines is also engaged in peacekeeping operations in Liberia, and we will continue to contribute to the reconstruction and rehabilitation of Iraq. The Philippines and the Security Council We expect the UN Security Council to provide a new platform from which we can continue to contribute to regional and global peace stability. The Philippines is fully prepared to face the challenges of being a member of the Council and we are ready to fulfill the mandate that was given to us by the members of the United Nations. In all our actions as a member of the Security Council, we will be guided by our national interests. These interests coincide with the common desire of all nations to maintain peace and stability, prevent conflict, and promote the rule of law. Major divisions remain in the Security Council and the Philippines will join all efforts towards bridging these differences. Consensus building, particularly on the more difficult areas, will characterize the term of the Philippines on the Security Council. The war against terrorism will also be a priority of the Philippines in the Security Council. Promoting Trade, Investments and Tourism Major thrusts of the Arroyo Administration within the framework of strengthening bilateral relations were to open world markets for Philippine products, promote investments and tourism and tap sources of official development assistance. While the world’s economy was stagnant and the rest of the world was not buying, the Philippines was able to increase exports by nine percent. In our foreign policy, we applied the momentum generated by our dynamic political and security relations with the United States to our trade. As a result, economic ties remain strong and we are receiving continued support for our country’s development priorities, particularly in the areas of agriculture modernization, financial sector reform and the development of SMEs; and concrete US support for accelerating the economic transformation of Mindanao as a foundation for durable peace in that region. During the President’s state visit to the U.S. in May 2003, the Philippines received US$1.1 billion GSP benefits for new RP products. Also during her visit to the U.S., an RP-US Agreement on Cooperation in Science and Technology was signed. With Japan, another major trading partner, we have begun negotiations on a prospective Japan-Philippines Economic Partnership Agreement (JPEPA), covering a broad range of areas to deepen and expand bilateral ties. President Arroyo visited the Republic of Korea in June 2003, during which an Economic Development Cooperation Fund (ECDF) Agreement was signed. The Agreement is expected to finance infrastructure projects like the Manila South Railways Project and the Laguindingan Airport Project. The visit to South Korea also yielded a US$10 million grant for the establishment of the Korea-Philippines Information Technology Center in Luzon and the Korea-Philippines Vocational Training Center in Davao. During the President’s visit to Bahrain last December, we concluded negotiations on air services allowing for multiple destinations and secured unrestricted frequencies for RP carriers. In addition, Bahrain offered favorable fuel prices, free landing and a 50% discount on handling fees for RP-designated carriers for the next two years. The Philippines also received a US$1 million grant from King Sheikh Hamad bin Isa bin Salman Al Khalifa for the development of Muslim communities in the Philippines. Indeed, steering development assistance to Mindanao has been a major thrust of the Arroyo Administration. For example, more than 60% of Canada’s ODA commitments of C$25 million to RP are for projects in Mindanao. And two projects – with a combined value of 6.1 billion Yen – approved under the 26th Yen Loan Package of Japan seek to support the rehabilitation of Mindanao. Regional Economic Integration Our efforts at the bilateral front are complemented by regional approaches to economic issues, which continue to increase in importance – specifically in the Asia Pacific region, as the East Asian economies are growing rapidly. The Philippine policy to continue to strengthen its ties with the Asian and Asia-Pacific region is substantiated by our close and highly interactive cooperation with both the ASEAN member countries and APEC member economies. In our concentric circles of regional relationships, ASEAN comes at the core circle followed by APEC. The Philippines’ involvement in regional trade has primarily and historically been with the ASEAN Free Trade Area or AFTA, which was conceived in 1992 with the ultimate objective of increasing ASEAN’s competitive edge as a production base geared for the world market. Through the progressive elimination of intra-regional tariff (i.e., by 2010 for the ASEAN 6 and 2015-2018 for the new members) and non-tariff barriers, ASEAN’s manufacturing sectors hope to be more efficient and competitive. A multiplier effect then is expected to ensue – economies of scale in production, influx of foreign direct investments, stimulation of growth of local support industries, job creation and lowering of business costs. As of 2002, intra-ASEAN trade stood at US$159.4 billion while ASEAN trade with the world stood at US$706.7 billion. Fair Global Trade A fair and equitable multilateral trading system is what we want. Sharing the sentiments of other similarly situated countries, we ask for better market access, fight barriers to trade, the abolition of all forms of export subsidies and unjustifiable export prohibitions and restrictions, and differential treatment for products of export interest to developing countries. These remain the basic guiding posts for our participation in the WTO. These are also the reasons the Philippines joined the WTO group of 20. In APEC, a major initiative of the Philippines was the co-hosting of a High-Level Meeting on Maritime Security Cooperation in September 2003. Given that about 80% of world trade is transported by sea, the meeting highlighted the vulnerability of the maritime supply chain to terrorist attacks and the need for collective international action that would improve trade efficiency, reduce costs and ensure trade security in the Asia-Pacific region. We also succeeded to locate the Asian regional office of the IMO in the Philippines. In relation to the European Union (EU),
we have mounted a concerted and successful lobby to (1) lift the EU ban
on Philippine aquaculture exports and to (2) reduce the tariff rate on
RP canned tuna exports.
The Arroyo Administration placed a heavy emphasis on protecting overseas Filipinos. We used our diplomacy to convince host states to treat our overseas Filipinos fairly and with dignity and to punish those who harm our workers. We have adopted measures to address possible crisis situations, even to the point of mapping out how to move masses of overseas Filipinos out of harm’s way. The President never hesitated to move the bureaucracy at the slightest hint of a crisis, for the lives and safety of Filipinos depended on it. This phenomenon of labor migration has become so widespread that out of every ten Filipinos, one is a migrant somewhere in the world. Almost half of the total Filipino population depends in some way on the earnings of a migrant worker relative or kin. Faithful to its mandate of keeping watch over the Filipino worker wherever he may be employed, the Department, in cooperation with other agencies through the country team approach, handles cases as varied as the repatriation of Filipinos, mass amnesty, location of the whereabouts of a missing OFW and an array of other services vital to assisting our nationals abroad, including employment related issues such as maltreatment, unpaid salaries, and a host of others. We have mobilized our diplomacy to rally the international community and to create structures that will protect overseas Filipinos and migrant workers in general. We were a driving force behind the negotiation and adoption of the United Nations Convention on the Protection of the Rights of Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families. We have been elected to the United Nations Committee under this Convention. We have not limited ourselves to rallying governments. We are a founding member of the Global Commission on Migration, an organization that brings together all the players in international migration. One of our most prominent battles today is the struggle to stem the flow of people-smuggling or trafficking in persons, across national boundaries. In conjunction with other Government agencies and private sector groups, we have instituted nationwide information campaigns targeting the masses for them to become aware of the ramifications of human trafficking, illegal recruitment and migration concerns, and how every Filipino is affected. Migrant labor is not merely about numbers; it is about a unique, individual experience lived by the thousands of Filipino families. Our mission is to protect them and protect them we shall. Service to the Traveling Public The effective delivery of consular services is another important component of the country’s foreign policy. The Department has actively pursued and instituted programs, plans and other activities to strengthen DFA capabilities for assistance to nationals and other consular services. In order to further bring consular services closer to the people, the Department established the DFA-Passport Extension Office (DFA-PEO) at the Philippine Seafarer’s One-Stop Processing Center (PSOC) on 31 May 2003. The DFA-PEO extends the DFA’s passport services to sea-based workers and other returning OFWs. Assistance to nationals cases are also being dealt with at this office. In addition to this, another Regional Consular Office (RCO) has been opened to serve the people of Region VIII and nearby provinces. The Tacloban City RCO was opened on 11 July 2003. These developments boost the DFA’s outreach program bringing the total number of RCOs to 11, with one (1) PEO and the DFA Mindanao. Furthermore, The Department and its RCOs conduct Mobile Passport Services in different cities and provinces in order to reach out to the distant areas of the country. It has reached as far as Basco, Batanes in the north and Bongao, Tawi-Tawi in the south. To fast track and further improve efficient delivery of services, the Department, in partnership with FedEx-Air21 introduced the expanded fast passport delivery service. This program allows the delivery of passport ready for release to be delivered right at the doorstep of the applicants. Moreover, the Department also implemented the non-quota system in passport application allowing all applicants to go to the DFA for their application any time during weekdays from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. Choosing their Leaders - The Overseas Absentee Voting Law The Administration places a high value on democracy and the right of the people to freely choose their leaders. This value has been put into action through the Overseas Absentee Voting law. We welcome this historic opportunity to take part in this upcoming political exercise, fully cognizant of its importance to our nation’s future and our role in ensuring the integrity of the overseas absentee voting process. So far 364,187 Filipinos overseas have registered to vote in 81 posts and 3 MECO Offices. Seafarers have been given from 12 March to 10 May to vote while land-based voters will vote on 11 April to 10 May. All votes cast at the posts will be counted simultaneously on 10 May 2004 at 3:00 PM (RP time). Public Diplomacy In doing our work, we value the importance of keeping the public informed of our actions and our policies. A nation’s diplomacy is made more effective when it is better understood by the people and when there is greater public consensus behind it. We therefore welcome U.P.’s initiative in convening the Public Lecture Series – and look forward to the UP as a partner as we actively pursue our public diplomacy. In Pursuit of Foreign Policy The Department will continue to pursue a foreign policy that is responsive to the needs and circumstances of our country and its people while being attuned to the realities of our external environment. The leadership of President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo has been crucial to the effective pursuit of our foreign policy. The President’s vision and credibility made things happen for us in the global fora. Her sincere desire to be of service to the people ensured that everything we did would bring changes for the better and would be relevant to the people. We have gained valuable experience in dealing with nations, in addressing international crisis and, in pursuing our interests in the world. Thank you.
The “realities” of
Philippine foreign policy were first articulated by the President in her
vin d’honneur for the diplomatic community short after the change of leadership
in January 2001. These realities are:
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