VFA pact in itself is already a form of aggression

The USS Guardian, a minesweeper swept off balance by big waves, ripped a huge portion of our treasured Tubbataha Reef. The US Navy claimed that the accident was due to its “wrong map navigational data.” (Maybe it’s made in China.)

Environmentalists rightfully seek adequate reparation for the damage. A supercomputer will be needed to compute the monetary value of more than a thousand square meters of damaged reefs, homeland of thousands of marine species, that will take more than a thousand years to recover. When it comes to technology, we look up to the United States as the supreme model. Ironic.

Referring to the disaster, President Aquino asked: “What were they doing there in the first place?” Mr. President, US forces are allowed to stay anywhere in Philippine territory, at any time, by virtue of the Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA), sir!

The USS Guardian had diplomatic clearance to pass through our waters. Because of the VFA, we cannot complain if the computation for reparation of the accident sums up to “We apologize.”

Directly and indirectly, the rationalization given for the P-Noy administration’s hospitality toward US military forces is to guard our country against aggression from China. The threat could be real or imagined, but the point here is that the VFA is aggression in itself, as it transgresses the sovereignty of our country.

The USS Guardian’s map may have been flawed, but the VFA is the fundamental instrument that caused this monstrous disaster. It may not be the only one. The VFA should be

abrogated ASAP.

 —JULIE L. PO, Linangan ng Kulturang Pilipino, [email protected]