Full benefits for Filipino veterans
I ask the Philippine government to be more insistent on its demand that Filipino World War II veterans get the full benefits due them from the US Government and to assist them in whatever way they can.
On the occasion of the observance of Araw ng Kagitingan, I urge President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo to speak with a loud voice, to denounce if necessary the continuing inaction of the US Congress if only to draw attention to the grave injustice done to the Filipino fighting men.
The time for diplomatic nicety is over. The veterans are already in their late 70s and early 80s. It won’t be long before they join their comrades, who died without getting the benefits promised them.
The sacrifices and determination of Filipino officers and men in the US Armed Forces in the Far East (USAFFE) delayed the landing of the Japanese Imperial Forces in the Philippines and allowed the Allies to regroup in Australia. It is for that reason, that US and British forces were able eventually to rally their human and material resources to defeat Japan.
The US concentrated war materiel in Europe, leaving the Filipinos to fend for themselves, first as regular soldiers and later as guerillas. In all those dark years, these gallant men fought the enemy with unflagging zeal. It is regrettable that 61 years after the war ended, the US Government has yet to redeem its promise to these soldiers.
The Veterans Health Care Authorities Extension and Improvement Act of 2003, unanimously passed by the US Senate, provides medical benefits to approximately 9,500 Filipino veterans residing in the US.
The same benefits should be given to veterans who for some reason or another chose to remain in the country of their birth. There are about 70,000 Filipino veterans residing in the Philippines, and making the artificial distinction is grossly unfair.
The veterans, whether they live in the US or the Philippines, have made the same sacrifices. They must be treated equally.
But the biggest injustice started when the US Congress, with the passage of the US Supplementary Appropriation Rescission Act of 1946, fixed the pension and other benefits for Filipino veteran at one half that of American veteran.
The US Congress should repeal that law. It is a slur against the Filipino people, who demonstrated courage and devotion to the ideals of liberty and freedom when they rose in revolt against Spain, the first national struggle against colonization in Asia.
April 18th, 2007 at 7:55 pm
Sana ma approve na un benefits ng mga veterans. Di umabot un dad ko na mabigyan ng pension kc umuwi n sya sa Pilipinas kc nagkasakit un anak ko.