Filipinos Back Withdrawal in the Name of Peace: President Arroyo saves hostage and protects 8 million overseas workers
July 30, 2004
Bay Area Filipinos gathered outside the Philippine Consulate in San Francisco on July 19, vigorously rejecting accusations of premature capitulation, and speaking out for the safety of overseas Filipino laborers and withdrawal from Iraq.
“We urge the Philippine government to stand firm in [its] decision to put protection above aggression,” said Angelica Cabande of Filipinos for Global Justice, Not War. “Withdrawing the troops is a courageous act of peace which we hope will save the lives of the more than 1 million Filipino workers in the Middle East.”
Among the 50-person crowd outside of the consulate were members of Asian Pacific Islander Coalitions Against War, as well as senior citizens and children who came to show their support for freedom.
“We wanted to let people [see] our solidarity, and we went out into the streets, knowing that the Philippines was successful in pulling out its troops swiftly, ensuring the safety of [freed hostage] Angelo de la Cruz,” said Jen Soriano of Filipinos for Global Justice, Not War. “This rally also showed that the Bay Area Filipino community is behind the Philippine president’s decision, and that many Filipinos believe that we shouldn’t have even been in Iraq in the first place.”
Philippine President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo ordered the troops to leave Iraq much to the chagrin of U.S. State Department officials, who criticized her actions, saying it would encourage further attacks and not ensure the safety of the remaining civilian workers.
De la Cruz, 46, became the symbol of the 8 million Filipinos working overseas, many in Saudi Arabia and an estimated 4,100 still in Iraq.
“It’s easy for the Bush administration to point fingers at Arroyo, saying her capitulation would encourage others to take more hostages,” Soriano said, “but the U.S. military at the same time is bombing Fallujah. How can withdrawal of troops encourage violence?”
Soriano said the United States has relied on the Philippines to be its sidekick, and it’s been a personal blow to America’s unilateral agenda for the Philippines to decide to pull out its troops.
“The Philippines is the fifth nation to withdraw its troops, and it’s part of a growing trend of countries realizing that this war is not of interest to them,” Soriano said.
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