Posted on 04/05/2002 10:26:49 AM PST by gubamyster
Michelle Malkin April 5, 2002
On Bataan and Balikatan
To your average Howard Stern fan, the Philippines is nothing more than a carnival land of shoe-crazy, dog-eating jungle dwellers who are a perennial source of cheap jokes.
Some Americans know better. Just ask the thousands of surviving U.S. soldiers who fought in the trenches with Filipinos against the Japanese during World War II. Many have returned to the Philippines to mark the 60th anniversary of the fall of Bataan and the commencement of the Bataan Death March. "Despite our bittersweet memories, we still see the Philippines as our second home," writes death march survivor Steve Raymond in a series on his return to the country for The Tampa Tribune.
Veterans from both countries, says retired Maj. Richard M. Gordon, another death march survivor, share a common belief that "Freedom is not free." Gordon is a member of the "Battling Bastards of Bataan," an organization that reminds us "that the precepts of courage, devotion to duty and sacrifice displayed by the men and women of Bataan, both Filipino and American, have not and will not become outmoded."
As many of our so-called allies go wobbly in the continuing War on Terror, it's worth remembering who in the world has stood shoulder to shoulder with us in the past -- and who walks the talk today.
Over 100,000 Filipino soldiers joined the battle against the Japanese under the command of General Douglas MacArthur, including my maternal grandfather. Thousands of other Filipinos took up arms as guerrillas, providing intelligence to Gen. MacArthur's forces and rescuing downed American airmen. On April 9, 1942, some 76,000 Filipino and American soldiers were forced to surrender to Japanese troops at Bataan, located on the main island of Luzon. For the next 10 days, in insufferable heat, the Japanese marched the prisoners 65 miles through the jungles and on to concentration camps at Cabanatuan.
Japanese soldiers committed merciless atrocities against their white and brown captives -- from cigarette burns to water and food deprivation, bayonet stabbings, fatal beatings, and decapitation with samurai swords. Some 25,000 Filipinos and 2,500 Americans died behind barbed wire. When the war ended, more than 1.1 million Filipinos -- soldiers and civilians alike -- had sacrificed their lives.
"In the defense of Bataan from February to April 1942, the cause to which you were called was the defense of the freedom of the United States and the Philippines," U.S. Ambassador Francis Ricciardo noted in a speech last week to march survivors. "Sixty years later, our governments, our two peoples and our soldiers once again stand shoulder to shoulder in that same cause. This time the enemy is not a racist, militarist aggressor empire, but international terrorism born of hate, ignorance, fanaticism, corruption and poverty."
In Tagalog, the native language of the Philippines, there is a word for that willingness to bear a shared burden, side by side: "Balikatan." It describes the spirit that united American and Filipino heroes who suffered and died together six decades ago. And it is also the codename of the joint military exercise now being held in the southern Philippines where Abu Sayyaf rebels tied to Osama bin Laden's al Qaeda network have been holding American missionaries Gracia and Martin Burnham hostage for more than 10 months.
Both countries have their naysayers and nitpickers -- intellectual elites, media critics, politicians and celebrities who oppose any semblance of military intervention. But among ordinary citizens, there is overwhelming support for Operation Balikatan. Polls show 85 percent of Filipinos support U.S. assistance to defeat Abu Sayyaf. Recently, an almost disbelieving New York Times report described a scene in the southern city of Zamboanga that bears repeating:
"Under a hot morning sun, nearly 2,000 residents turned out -- grandmothers, students, government employees, the unemployed. They sang and prayed, waving Philippine and American flags and placards. It was the largest rally here in many years, residents said. ... After two hours, the rally was over. It ended with a long line of men and women on the platform, many in baseball caps, including one with the New York Yankees logo, leading the demonstrators in a song. With their arms in the air, swaying, the demonstrators sang 'America the Beautiful.' All the verses."
That's balikatan. Would that we knew more of it here at home.
While on what passed as a stop to rest during the march, a young philippino nearby was bayonet-ed for some infraction. He lay in close proximity to an American soldier who was so weak he didn't move.
The dying young man made a dam out of the sand to pool his own blood so that it would not stain the american's blouse.
It's too bad many are looked down upon due to their willingness to work menial jobs (they consider it shameful to be unemployed - thus are willing to take anything just as long as they are employed (basta may trabaho, kahit na ano).
It's also too bad that some nationalists have hijacked their political system whereby the US bases were expulsed - but they are vastly in the minority. Sure, many tend to believe their own propaganda of their superiority, but really, which race doesn't? At least, they show what they truly believe by their actions of loyalty to the States rather than by their words.
Finally, the Filipinos are always willing to help the US whenever it needs troops. This can be seen by the Filipino troops sent to Korea and Vietnam - and most recently by the Balikatan exercises.
The US must NEVER overlook the importance of the Philippines. All the Filipinos need are training, equipment, weapons and funding. They'll put all the bodies needed to get the job done. Furthermore, America will never need to worry about their loyalty or whether they will use the training against US interests (unlike the forces the US is currently supporting - e.g., Egypt, Yemen, Pakistan, Afghanistan, etc.).
They already have first-hand experience dealing with Islamic terrorists and aren't hobbled by the political correctness that shackles the US from facing the truth that Sept 11 was the opening shots of WWIII between us and Islam.
I sincerely hope America doesn't squander the benefits Filipinos can bring in pursuing and triumphing over the war. After all, if Americans are terrified of suffering heavy casualties, why not get several hundred thousand Filipinos to do the fighting for the US? Filipinos won't think of themselves as cannon fodder but actually consider it an honor to serve America. Just train and support them as you support your own troops, and promise them and their families citizenship after their tour is completed. Let's face facts, it's a heck of a lot safer for the States to have Filipino immigrants than have Middle Eastern immigrants.
Oh, for anyone who disagrees, try visiting the Philippines and tell Filipinos you encounter you're an American. See their reaction (Always POSITIVE unlike almost anywhere else). You will also count on one hand the number of times you WON'T get invited for dinner or snacks, even among people you just met for the first time.
I strongly disagree with her cheap shot at Howard Stern fans. This one has had a long interest in the Pacific Theater of World War II.
My father returned with MacArthur in '44. (OK, a month after MacArthur.) He went MIA on Leyte before Christmas, and was finally found and hospitalized on 3 Jan 45. I understand he was one of a very few survivors from his company (F Co., 128th reg, 32nd inf. div, as I recall). He never fully recovered from the effects of combat and died before his time in 1958.
That whole U.S. bases treaty lease cancellation thing passed the Philippine Senate by only one vote over 12 years ago. Nationalistic fervor was at an all time high during that period of time, only a few years after the 1986 EDSA revolution that deposed that dictator Marcos. Unfortunately, one too many liberals got elected to their Senate and that bill passed. Which is just as well for us Americans, since the eruption of Mount Pinatubo after the U.S. military withdrawal destroyed the remains of Clark Air Base anyway. :-(
P.S. Subic Bay is doing fine now as an international port and free trade zone!
Polls show 85 percent of Filipinos support U.S. assistance to defeat Abu Sayyaf. Recently, an almost disbelieving New York Times report described a scene in the southern city of Zamboanga that bears repeating:
... After two hours, the rally was over. It ended with a long line of men and women on the platform, many in baseball caps, including one with the New York Yankees logo, leading the demonstrators in a song. With their arms in the air, swaying, the demonstrators sang 'America the Beautiful.' All the verses."
Beautiful.
God Bless our Filipino allies and God Bless The Philippines.
Very attractive!
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