The Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (BAYAN), an umbrella organization of various progressive Filipino organizations, opposes in no uncertain terms the incursions and aggressive behavior of China towards Philippine territory. We strongly reject the latest pronouncements of the Chinese government telling the Philippines to get out of Scarborough Shoal.
As a matter of principle, the Filipino people must assert Philippine sovereignty against any move to undermine it. We support all diplomatic efforts that seek to defend our territorial integrity from foreign incursions. The matter of China’s incursions must be brought to the attention of the ASEAN, the United Nations General Assembly and the International Tribunal on the Law of the Sea.
In the same spirit of asserting sovereignty, we staunchly oppose both the Aquino regime and the United States when they use the dispute with China as justification for the expanded and increased presence of US troops in the Philippines. US intervention is also a violation of our national sovereignty. In fact, it is the US who has the worst track record in undermining Philippine sovereignty. In another display of mendicancy and puppetry, the Aquino government is set to take up the China dispute in its talks with Washington on April 30 together with the plans to station more US troops in the Philippines. Aquino promotes the illusion that by hanging on the coat-tails of Uncle Sam, the Philippine armed forces will be able to modernize and stand up against China. Aquino also clings on to the myth that the US will aid the Philippines against China in the event of armed confrontation even if no such provision is found in the RP-US Mutual Defense Treaty and even if China is a bigger trade partner of the US compared to the Philippines.
China’s aggressive moves on Philippine territory are the undeniable results of China’s bourgeois leadership who now appear to have imperialist ambitions in the region. It bears noting that China’s state has long ceased to be socialist, and is now unabashedly capitalist.
We express solidarity with the oppressed peoples of China in their struggle against China’s capitalist ruling class as well as US imperialist exploitation. We should be reminded that China’s bourgeois ruling elite and US imperialism, despite their contradictions, are united in advancing the interests of the capitalist class against the interests of the Chinese and Filipino working classes. The oppressed peoples of China and the Philippines meanwhile should stand united in the pursuit of genuine development, respect for sovereignty and regional peace. ###
