MANILA, Philippines—Is the Philippines now a brothel for Uncle Sam?
Sen. Francis Pangilinan Thursday expressed concern over reports that American soldiers involved in the Balikatan joint military exercise with Filipino troops in Bicol were supplied with women nightly.
“This is yet more proof the Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA) is doing us more harm than good. The VFA has turned us into a whorehouse for US soldiers,” said Pangilinan in a phone interview.
Pangilinan said he was drafting a Senate resolution to inquire into the “prostitution aspect” of the annual military exercise between Philippine and US forces.
The VFA governs the conduct of US troops visiting the country. It has been under fire lately for favoring US military personnel who run afoul of Philippine laws, particularly in the case of a Marine convicted of raping a Filipino woman but who has been allowed to remain under US, not Philippine, custody while the verdict is on appeal.
“I will file a resolution seeking an investigation of the social cost of the presence of foreign troops, particularly with respect to the rise in prostitution and other illegal activities, and its negative impact on the community,” Pangilinan said.
The congressional oversight committee on the VFA is the proper venue for the investigation, he said.
Pangilinan said he was approached by concerned citizens of Legazpi City on Wednesday, during the celebration of Bicol’s Magayon festival.
“They claimed that at least two batches of 8 to 10 women were given nightly to US soldiers, checking in at 10 p.m. and out by 4 a.m.,” the senator said.
“If the [pimp] brings 10 women, all of them are taken. Then another batch would arrive, which is also instantly hired,” Pangilinan said.
US servicemen were also seen by locals in hotels and bars with very young Filipino women, he said.
“This needs to be investigated and exposed. This is condemnable. We worked so hard to get rid of prostitution and clean up our reputation when the US military bases finally left our shores. The Philippines is not a whorehouse for US soldiers,” he said.
No war games
The month-long 2009 RP-US Balikatan military exercise is going on in three Bicol provinces—Albay, Masbate and Sorsogon.
Capt. Kelly Schmader, commander of the 30th Naval Construction Regiment, had said the US would deploy an engineering battalion and medical missions composed of 400 engineers, doctors and nurses to provide humanitarian aid to depressed areas in the three provinces.
Although the provinces are considered hotbeds of the communist insurgency in Bicol, the Philippine Army’s 901st Infantry Brigade had said there would be no war games in the exercises but humanitarian projects.
