Obama skips Philippines; wary of toxic waste issue?

ALLIES. President Obama and Philippine President Simeon Benigno "Noynoy" Aquino III. Right photo, President Obama shares light moments with former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo. 

By Alex P. Vidal

LOS ANGELES, California – Filipinos are among the minorities in the United States that recently gave President Barack Obama overwhelming support to thwart Gov. Mitt Romney in the November 6 presidential election.

But in his first tour of Asia after securing his reelection, the 51-year-old first African American to hold the top office in White House, skipped the Philippines to prioritize Thailand, Burma, and Cambodia.  

White House did not explain why the United States’ 44^th president did not include Philippines, its closest ally in the Asia pacific region, in the tour but assured critics that his landmark trip to Burma (now Myanmar) “was not a premature reward for a long-isolated nation still easing its way toward democracy.”

"This is not an endorsement of the government," Obama said November 18 in Thailand as he opened a three-county dash through Asia. "This is an acknowledgement that there is a process under way inside that country that even a year and a half, two years ago, nobody foresaw."

Was the American president aware of the stimulated environmental issue currently brewing in the Philippine?

TOXIC WASTE

Obama’s Asia tour coincided with reports that a US naval ship dumped toxic waste in Subic Bay in Olongapo, Philippines. 
The hazardous waste materials were allegedly dumped by Glenn Defense Marine Asia, a US naval ship service contractor. 
The waste materials were reportedly taken from US naval ships in the area.

The furor prompted Senator Miriam Defensor-Santiago to call for termination of the Philippines-US Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA) “for non-compliance of international norms and customs on the protection and preservation of the environment.”

An expert in constitutional and international law, Defensor- Santiago, in a speech delivered November 16 at the annual convention of the Philippine Academy of Medical Specialists, said she would file a resolution with the Senate directing the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) secretary to give notice of termination of the VFA to the US.

“I charge the United States for failing to comply with, and for violating, Philippine law, as well as international norms and customs on the protection and preservation of the environment as these obligations are now codified respectively in articles 192 and 211 of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS),” boomed Defensor-Santiago.

CIVILIAN

The feisty lady senator stressed that Glenn Defense Marine Asia could be characterized as civilian personnel employed by the United States armed forces under Article I (2) of the VFA.

She explained that “the illegality of Glenn Marine Asia’s acts in toxic dumping ceases to be an individual act but is actually a breach of obligation in international law attributable to its principal, namely, the United States Government. It is thus an act of State.”

Defensor-Santiago added: “The reason why toxic wastes are being dumped in Subic Bay is because of the existence of these US Navy ships; thus, the act of pollution by dumping is within the concern of the VFA. Clearly it is a breach of obligation under Philippine law against pollution from ship.”

“One party will simply notify the other in writing that it desires to terminate the agreement. Just like a bill, this resolution can be vetoed by the President; otherwise, it shall become a law as if he has signed it. But even so, I hope that this resolution will become a historic compulsive force among the Filipino youth, particularly in our universities. I call on students throughout the country to demand that the VFA should be scrapped,” Santiago added.

FIRST US PRESIDENT

Obama became the first U.S. president to visit Myanmar with Air Force One touched down in Yangon morning on November 18. 
Obama spent just six hours in the country, and the much-anticipated stop came as the result of a remarkable turnaround in the countries' relationship.

The president's Asia tour also marks his formal return to the world stage after months mired in a bruising re-election campaign, reported AP’s Julie Pace. 
For his first post-election trip, he tellingly settled on Asia, a region he has deemed the region as crucial to U.S. prosperity and security.

Aides say Asia will factor heavily in Obama's second term as the U.S. seeks to expand its influence in an attempt to counter China.

‘TAKING ADVANTAGE’

China's rise is also at play in Myanmar, which long has aligned itself with Beijing. 
But some in Myanmar fear that China is taking advantage of its wealth of natural resources, so the country is looking for other partners to help build its nascent economy.

According to Pace, Obama has rewarded Myanmar's rapid adoption of democratic reforms by lifting some economic penalties. 
The president has appointed a permanent ambassador to the country, also known as Burma, and pledged greater investment if Myanmar continues to progress following a half-century of military rule.

But some human rights groups say Myanmar's government, which continues to hold hundreds of political prisoners and is struggling to contain ethnic violence, hasn't done enough to earn a personal visit from Obama.

The largest port of the United States for its naval forces in Southeast Asia was formerly based in Subic Bay.

The military based was closed down in 1992 when the Philippine Senate voted to reject a US request to extend the term of its naval station at Subic and Air Force Base at Clark Air Force Base in Pampanga province.