Zambales fishermen hail SC ruling on Edca

OLONGAPO CITY—Fishermen caught in the maritime disputes between China and the Philippines and other Asian countries said the Supreme Court decision to legitimize the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (Edca) ended their sleepless nights.

Adriano Pascasio, 70, a resident of Castillejos town in Zambales province, said the presence of American troops in the country would give Filipino fishermen security when they venture out to sea.

The Chinese Coast Guard has aggressively driven away Filipino fishermen from the West Philippine Sea, which China is also claiming. “Having American troops here will send a clear signal to China that they can no longer drive our fishermen away from our territories,” he said.

Pascasio went to the Subic Bay Freeport on Tuesday to see the USS Topeka, a Los Angeles-class attack submarine that docked at the Alava Pier on the same day the Supreme Court ruled Edca was constitutional.

The Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA) Wednesday said former US military bases such as Clark and Subic would not necessarily host returning American troops.

The BCDA president, Arnel Paciano Casanova, said the agency and the Department of National Defense had not discussed opening up former US-controlled lands to help in peacekeeping efforts in Southeast Asia.

Casanova said Edca “covers the existing military bases, not the former ones.”

In its Official Gazette, the government said Edca promoted interoperability, allowed capacity building toward the modernization of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, and strengthened the military’s skills in external defense, maritime security, and humanitarian assistance and disaster response.

Roberto Garcia, chair of the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA), said the Subic Bay Freeport remained civilian but would be available to the military during emergencies.

According to Garcia, the government would proceed with the rehabilitation of old military and naval facilities in the free port to house a squadron of combat planes of the Philippine Air Force (PAF). Part of the expansion of the AFP in Subic is the restoration of a 13-hectare section of Subic Bay International Airport (SBIA). The new PAF facility will operate at the former Federal Express (FedEx) terminal inside the SBIA, Garcia said.

War games covered by the 1999 Visiting Forces Agreement were held in former US bases and facilities such as Clark Air Base in Pampanga and Tarlac provinces, O’ Donnel Firing Range in Tarlac, Subic Naval Base and Loran Station in Zambales, and Sangley Point Naval Base in Cavite province.

Clark and Subic as well as Camp Wallace (Poro Point) in La Union province and Camp John Hay in Baguio City have been converted by the government into economic hubs through Republic Act No. 7227 (the BCDA law).

“We look at Edca as a positive development to ensure regional security that would further enhance the economic growth of the Philippines. The former bases are now economic centers that will benefit greatly from the foreign investments that we foresee to come to the Philippines,” Casanova said.

Olongapo City Mayor Rolen Paulino expressed hopes that US troops would be allowed rest and recreation in Olongapo.

He said the business sector had been losing about P54 million in potential daily revenues since liberty activities were canceled after US Marine Lance Cpl. Joseph Scott Pemberton was accused of killing transgender woman Jeffrey “Jennifer” Laude in 2014. The Olongapo trial court has sentenced Pemberton to six to 12 years in prison for homicide.