Speech

of

His Excellency Fidel V. Ramos

President of the Philippines

At the Subic Turnover

[Delivered at the Subic Naval Base, Olongapo, November 24, 1992]

Let us make history!

SINCE Miguel López de Legazpi took possession of the Philippine archipelago in the name of the Spanish crown in 1571, there has been no single day that foreign troops—Spanish, British, American—have not been based on Philippine soil. After 421 uninterrupted years, that epoch is about to be transformed. We can be sure that this day will forever be engraved in our memories.

Today’s simple but moving ceremonies bring down the curtain on that long and storied era in Philippine history.

Preserver of the regional balance of power

For close to a century, American military facilities and forces in Subic Naval Base helped preserve the balance of power in this highly strategic area of the world. And up to the Persian Gulf war, Subic Naval Base served as a pivotal unit in the scheme of free-world defense in Asia and the Pacific.

In a real and profound sense, Subic Naval Base was a beacon to the parts of the globe which had not been illumined by the beneficent light of freedom. It also stood as a monument to the comradeship in arms of a developing nation, the Philippines, and a superpower, the United States of America, born out of a common commitment to democracy and freedom, nurtured by mutual respect and regard, and sustained by shared experience and a similar vision.

From the welter of varied views on the future of U.S. involvement in regional affairs, our region of Asia and the Pacific, one portentous reality emerges, and that is, that the member nations of ASEAN uniformly hold the view that American power and influence remain essential to the preservation of peace and stability in the Asian and Pacific region.

The future of Philippine-American relations

Turning to Philippine-American relations, let me say in plain, unmistakable terms that we have a continuing community of strategic and economic interests with the United States. This central fact of life transcends fluctuations in the political and psychological climate of Philippine-American relations. It denotes invariable constants in bilateral affairs, which either country can ill afford to subordinate to transient considerations and ephemeral exigencies.

Many of our eminent leaders have urged that the United States and the Philippines fashion a new framework for Philippine-American relations away “from the stultifying atmosphere of the bases issue.” I subscribe to that view.

History has a way of validating ideas. We all can see how the result of the recent American presidential elections lends validity and urgency to the proposition that our two countries must now fashion a new framework for their relationship in keeping with the geopolitical realities prevailing in their common areas of concern and interest.

As one contemplates the picture of Philippine-American affairs, two massive and compelling facts instantly obtrude in one’s mind: first, the United States market remains our biggest and most profitable. And second, the United States remains the undisputed leader of the free world.

At a time when the Philippines’ export trade has continuously been in the doldrums, we have uninterruptedly enjoyed a whopping trade surplus with the United States, which was registered at $1.2 billion last year.

On the other hand, it should be pointed out that the Mutual Defense Treaty, which lies at the core of the security arrangements between the Philippines and the United States, cries for a new, bracing breath of life. Framed and adopted at the height of the Cold War, when American and free-world straegy was based on the idea of surrounding the Soviet empire with bases of military and economic strength, the Mutual Defense Treaty has now to be re-examined in the context of the post-Cold War era. Its concept, its thrust and its scope have to be attuned to the realities of a world tormented by new conflicts and rivalries and faced with new trials and challenges.

Two irritants

Two matters, in particular, have to be clarified: when and where an attack on one party is to be regarded as an attack on the other party as well, and the precise point at which retaliation to attack is to be waged. It is well to bear in mind that these two matters have tended to be irritants in the relationship over the years between the Philippines and the United States.

The scope and the composition of bilateral trade and economic cooperation have to be reviewed and updated. The mechanism of bilateral economic affairs has to be re-engineered with a view to the progressive realization of expanding mutual progress.

At this time, the Philippines and the United States are called upon to improve the structure of their historical and traditional relationship. They must reinforce its foundation, buttress its ramparts and shore up its weak spots.

And so as an earnest of their common desire to serve the ends of mutual defense, the Philippines and the U.S. governments through the R.P.-U.S. Mutual Defense Board have agreed to review, so that it can be revitalized, the Philippine-American Mutual Defense Treaty under the auspices of which various programs and projects would be undertaken encompassing customary ship visits, joint military exercises and similar cooperative arrangements. These activities are to be undertaken within the accord of the Mutual Defense Treaty and do not entail the necessity of concluding any new and separate agreement.

Our plans for Subic

What is reverted to the Filipino people today is certainly more than just a piece of real estate. It is part of the nation’s patrimony which we hope to consecrate to peaceful use and for the benefit of the Filipino people. The blueprint for transforming this military complex envisions both preservation and development. To be precise, we aim to maintain and secure its natural attributes—the pristine beauty of its forest cover and the clear, deep waters of the bay.

This complex shall become the centerpiece of a conversion program that encompasses all the facilities and base lands relinquished by the United States. While its historical significance to our two countries will be deeply etched in the touchstone of our long-standing friendship, the Subic of tomorrow will acquire a universal identity as a major gateway for the world to our shores.

The Subic of tomorrow shall be the best manifestation of our primary focus on the economic concerns of the nation. Subic shall be a showcase of economic growth activities, from industries turning out quality products for exports to resorts offering tourists nature’s bounty and our renowned hospitality.

I confirm what Mayor Dick Gordon, who is also the chairman of the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority, has said here today that your President shall be your one-man oversight committee over the Cabinet, over the SBMA Council, and over the Local Government executives, as well as your one-man public relations man toward our own people and our foreign friends so that indeed the promise of Subic and our vision for it will be fulfilled not too long from now.

Attention to social concerns

But while our plans are given priority for the economic potential of this reverted territory, we shall not neglect the social concerns that have arisen from Subic’s existence as a military base.

Foremost among these is the welfare of what the people of Olongapo call “the throw-away children,” or the Amerasians, in our midst. The Philippine Government will do everything it can, not only to ensure them of enough opportunities to become educated, productive and useful citizens. And I will not allow them to end up in poverty, much less in street gangs. As Subic develops economically, we hope we can provide these young children with the means for gainful employment.

In the final analysis, however, the welfare of these young Filipino-Americans remains the joint responsibility of both countries, which does not terminate with the withdrawal of U.S. forces from the Philippines.

This and other social concerns must be discussed in future talks on Philippine-American relations. We will rely on the Americans’ sense of civil responsibility so that the social effects of their stay are addressed to the mutual satisfaction of both parties.

As friends and allies, the Philippines and the United States stand on a promontory from which they have a commanding view of the past, the present and the future. Behind them lies a long mountain range of shared experience in mankind’s unending quest to expand freedom and progress. And ahead of them lies an entrancing vista of new promise, new frontiers, new horizons, new opportunities.

I, for one, have high hopes that the leaders, the statesmen, the diplomats, the defense managers and the economic strategists of the Philippines and the United States, fired with a common inspiration and vision, will seize the opportunity before them to reinforce the bonds of friendship and mutual cooperation that unite them, to contribute to the enrichment of man’s heritage of democracy and freedom, and to build a fortress of human liberty and well-being in this corner of the globe.

In sum, we bid “bon voyage” to the American servicemen represented here by their highest commanders and their ambassadors. As we do this we ask the U.S. government and the American people for the strengthening of our partnership on the basis of economic cooperation, social concern, mutual support and democratic commitment.

Let us not simply glory in history. Let us move on and make history!

Source: Presidential Museum and Library