A higher hurdle for the Filipino veterans

LAST Friday, February 18, marked the 59th anniversary of the infamous Rescission Act which rescinded and nullified the military benefits previously awarded to Filipino WWII veterans who served under the United States Army Forces in the Far East (USAFFE).

In the words of Representative Bob Filner (D-San Diego), "the brave Filipino soldiers of World War II, soldiers who were drafted into our Armed Forces by Roosevelt, soldiers who exhibited great courage at the battles of Bataan and Corregidor, were unceremoniously deprived of all their veterans' benefits by the Congress of 1946."

It was a Pearl Harbor type of sneak attack on the Filipino veterans as the "Act" consisted of a single provision rider in an otherwise nondescript appropriations measure that was routinely presented to the US Senate without any fanfare or debate in February of 1946.

It also came during the small window of time between the end of four years of Japanese occupation and the beginning of self-government when there was no Philippine ambassador to the US and the press and the public's attention was focused on rebuilding the nation, which was the Filipino people's main preoccupation.

More than 200,000 Filipino veterans were affected by the Pearl Harbor attack of February 1946. Of that number, according to US Department of Veterans Affairs (DVA) statistics, there are just barely 25,000 WWII veterans remaining -- 7,000 in the US and 18,000 in the Philippines.

The number is dwindling down at the death rate of 10 veterans per day -- two in the US and eight in the Philippines. Because most of these veterans are in their 80s now, the death rate will increase exponentially in the next few years.

Each year for the last 14 years, the Filipino American community has resolved to make it the year that the Filipino Veterans Equity Act will pass the US Congress. But, each year, the community has fallen short of its goal.

Last year, the community obtained the endorsements of 198 US Representatives as co-sponsors of HR 677, the Filipino Veterans Equity Bill whose main sponsors were San Diego Congressmen Randy "Duke" Cunningham (R-Escondido) and Bob Filner (D- Chula Vista).

But the magic number was 218 (as there are 435 members of the US Congress) and the Filipino community fell 19 votes short of its goal.

This year, the difficult high hurdle will be made even higher by the recent pronouncement of House Speaker Dennis Hastert (R-Illinois) decreeing that no bill will be released by an House committee for a floor vote unless a majority of the bill's sponsors or supporters are Republicans.

Out of the 198 sponsors of HR 677 last year, 179 were Democrats and only 19 were Republicans. If the community succeeds in obtaining the endorsement of 100 Republican co-sponsors, there would be enough to pass the bill with 279 for it. But, as there are more than 220 Republican members of the US Congress, 100 Republican co-sponsors would not be enough for HR 677 to be released from its Veterans Committee for a floor vote.

[This is an aspect of American democracy that the Iraqis may find difficult to understand. The majority can only rule if the leadership of the majority party allows it.]

An additional complication for the Filipino veterans is that Representative Chris Smith (R-New Jersey), the Republican chairperson of the House committee on veterans affairs in 2004, has been replaced by Speaker Hastert with Representative Steve Buyer (R-Indiana). Smith, according to insiders, was removed as chairperson as punishment for his failure to hold the line when he supported passage of a number of veterans legislation not favored by the White House and the Republican leadership (Hastert and Majority Whip Representative Tom deLay).

On January 25 this year, Representative Randy Cunningham, together with Representative Filner, reintroduced HR 677 as HR 302, the "Filipino Veterans Equity Act of 2005" which seeks "to deem certain service in the organized military forces of the Government of the Commonwealth of the Philippines and the Philippine Scouts to have been active service for purposes of benefits under programs administered by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs." The bill was referred to the House Committee on Veterans Affairs.

Representative Juanita Millender-MacDonald (D- Los Angeles), together with Representative Darrell Issa (R-Los Angeles) also introduced HR 170 ("Filipino Fairness Act") which seeks to improve benefits for Filipino veterans of World War II. The MacDonald-Issa bill was also referred to the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs.

The difference between the two bills is about $137 M. The Cunningham-Filner bill (HR 302) seeks to award $800 a month in non-war related disability benefits to all 25,000 surviving Filipino WWII veterans -- the 7,000 in the US and the 18,000 in the Philippines. The MacDonald-Issa bill, on the other hand, seeks to provide $800 per month to the 7,000 Filvets in the US but only $100 per month to the 18,000 Filvets in the Philippines.

According to the US Congressional Budget Office (CBO) report released in November of 2004, the Cunningham-Filner Bill will cost $159 M while the MacDonald-Issa bill will cost $22 M.

Backers of the Cunningham-Filner bill argue that it is important to support the "principle" of the issue and not to make distinctions between those veterans in the Philippines and those in the US. In the controversy, this side has been described as the "all or nothing" position.

Supporters of the MacDonald-Issa bill contend that it is unrealistic to expect the White House and the Republican-dominated Congress to pass a $159-M bill in the face a trillion dollar deficit and wholesale cuts to veterans programs. Their side has been labeled the "take what you can get" position.

When I met with representatives of the Philippine government in Manila last month to discuss this issue, I was told that the position of the Philippine government is "all or nothing but we'll take what we can get."

In Washington DC last week, a representative of the "all or nothing" position told me that it's important for the whole Filipino community to back the Cunningham-Filner bill so that the Republicans who come to the table can see that the Filipino community is united on this issue. "After we're united," he said, "we can then talk about making compromises."

A supporter of the other position criticized this approach by saying that the Republicans won't even come to the table if they see that our demand is unrealistic. "To the Republicans," he said, "the bottom line is the bottom line."

So where do we go from here?

Quickly now. Another veteran just died.

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