“This is our government’s worst kind of Filipino hospitality—that it should demolish the houses of the poor people just because we have foreign visitors coming by December. By doing so, the Philippines betrays the vision of the ASEAN which is to build a sharing and caring Asean community,”said Gus Miclat, executive director of the Initiatives for International Dialogue (IID), in reaction to the reports of demolition of houses in Cebu City in preparation for the 12th Asean Summit in December.
“This is our government’s worst kind of Filipino hospitality—that it should demolish the houses of the poor people just because we have foreign visitors coming by December. By doing so, the Philippines betrays the vision of the ASEAN which is to build a sharing and caring Asean community,”said Gus Miclat, executive director of the Initiatives for International Dialogue (IID), in reaction to the reports of demolition of houses in Cebu City in preparation for the 12th Asean Summit in December.
The head of states of the 10-nation Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) will convene in December for the summit. Preparations for the gathering of Asean leaders and their guests have forced Cebu officials to confront the problem of informal settlers in the city. ASEAN membership includes Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar (Burma) and Vietnam.
Reports said that last Oct. 2 despite the presence of children, at least 30 policemen, 20 members of the elite SWAT and one firetruck accompanied the 15-man demolition crew in demolishing 50 shanties located infront of the Shangrila Mactan Island Resort in Bgy. Mactan, Lapu Lapu City. Parents and children were reportedly injured when the police used “water cannons” against the residents during the demolition.
“The ASEAN aims to build a sharing and caring community but what’s happening in Cebu is a complete paradox. Women and innocent children were injured because of the demolition and many people became homeless. Why draw blood for the Asean summit? ” Miclat pointed out, adding “Let us not hide the dusts under the rags. Let the visitors see for themselves the best and the worst in the Philippines. Let them witness the poverty in the streets. In that way, the ASEAN would realize why
they should build a sharing and caring community.”
At the same time, IID assailed the reports of the arrests of some activists in Cebu who are also preparing for the Asean summit. The human rights group said people’s legitimate rights for peaceful assembly and expression should not be curtailed but should, in fact, be included in the agenda of the summit to strengthen and protect the civil and political rights of the Asean citizens.
“When people exercise their rights to free speech and peaceful assembly, it is a sign of a healthy democracy. To suppress it would mean dictatorship. The Asean summit would become a dismal failure if it would suppress these universal rights,” he explained.
“There is no way we can ignore the truth. There are political crises in Thailand, Burma and also in the Philippines. People in these countries cry for genuine democracy and the challenge now for the ASEAN is to address these issues during the summit,” Miclat concluded.
Recent Comments