West Side Story
See Page 4A
Career Guide
See Page 1B
Oregon daily
emerald
Friday, May 18, 1984
Eugene, Oregon
Volume 85, Number 158
--
U.S. denies Filipinos' freedom, say exiles
By Costas Christ
Of the Emerald
After nearly a century of
American involvement and an
almost continuous U.S.
military presence, the Philip
pines is a nation still struggling
to attain democracy, according
to Charito Planas, a Filipino
exile.
On Monday, the govern
ment of Pres. Ferdinand Mar
cos held parliamentary elec
tions. To make sure that the
elections would be "free and
fair," Pres. Marcos put 300,000
soldiers and police on alert for
possible rebel attempts to
disrupt the voting, according
to Planas.
"There has been no such
thing as free and fair elections
under the Marcos dictator
ship,” says Planas, who
escaped from her homeland in
1978 after being jailed for 14
months without charges.
Planas is not the only
Filipino to question the out
come of elections under Mar
cos. Sister Aida Velasquez,
who spoke at the University on
May 9, claims that as long as
Marcos stays in power, the
chances for economic justice
and democracy in the Philip
pines are slim.
Glen May, a Philippine
scholar and history professor
at the University, says “it is im
portant to understand that
these elections are fake. The
Parliament has no power in
the Philippines. The purpose
of the elections is to appease
the World Bank and to make
life easier for (Pres.) Reagan so
that he can visit the
Philippines."
The issues of democracy in
the Philippines and U.S. sup
port for the Marcos govern
ment are directly linked
together, according to Planas
Sister Aida Velasqe
and Velasquez. Both believe
that U.S. military support has
been the major reason the
Marcos dictatorship has been
able to stay in power.
"The American public is told
that military aid to the Philip
pines is supposed to prevent
communism from taking over
our country. The truth is that
the aid, in the form of
weapons and communications
equipment, is used to oppress
the Filipino people," Velas
quez says.
"The Philippine military gets
training from the United States
in torture techniques, jungle
survival, and psycological war
fare," she adds.
Velasquez, a Benedictine
nun, says that while-she is not
a supporter of Marxism or
communism, "the fact is that
the leftists in the Phlippines
have been more sensitive to
the needs of the poor than the
government. As long as the
United States continues to
support Marcos then the peo
ple will turn to the left."
Planas agrees, saying that
the United States, in suppor
ting Marcos, is actually pro
moting communism in the
Philippines.
"President Kennedy spoke
the truth when he said, 'Those
who make peaceful revolution
impossible make violent
revolution inevitable.' For this
reason a peoples' revolution in
the Philippines can no longer
be discounted," Planas says.
"As in El Salvador, we are
faced with a situation where
attempts by the opposition to
bring about political and
economic change has been
met with repression from the
military," she says.
Planas wants to let
Americans know that the main
problem in the Third World is
poverty and not communism.
She claims that what is now
happening in Central America,
Africa and in the Philippines is
a struggle for economic
justice.
"The problem is that the
United States often chooses to
n * Mnss fmmmm ■.
Photos by Mit hael (Kipp
Charito Planas
support dictatorships simply
because they are anti
communist. The best way for
America to protect its national
security is to make friends.
You lose friends when you
support dictators like Mar
cos,” Planas says.
A growing concern to many
Filipinos, according to Vela
quez, is the presence of U.S.
military bases in the islands.
"The bases have made us a
part of the power struggle bet
ween the United States and
the Soviet Union," Velaquez
says.
"We have also become more
aware of the danger of nuclear
weapons being stored in the
Philippines on U.S. ships and
submarines," she . says. "We
feel that the presence of these
weapons threatens our sur
vival and security as a nation."
While Velaquez admits that
getting the bases removed
from the Philippines is a big
task, Prof. May considers it to
be nearly impossible.
“There is no way that the
United States is going to pull
out the bases. All of the
scenarios that we are pro
moting in the Philippines lead
to keeping the bases there,"
May says.
"The problem is that when
Reagan is long dead, we'll be
paying the consequences for
our government's Philippine
policies. As far as I'm concern
ed nothing short of disaster
will result from our continued
support of Marcos," he says.
Those interested in an up
date on events in the Philip
pines can hear Charito Planas
speak tonight at 7 in Room 221
of the Law School.
Bay says serious problems await successor
By Doug Nash
Of the Emerald
In between the interviews and the calls
of congratulation Thursday, University
Athletic Director Rick Bay was able to
reflect on the bright future ahead of him
as Ohio State University's new athletic
director.
And though he was equally as op
timistic about the University's athletic
prospects, he could not overlook the
serious problems that await his
successor.
"We're slowly — maybe even rapidly —
getting to the point where it's going to be
next to impossible to fund ourselves ade
quately," Bay said. "Rallying all the
forces necessary to get state aid for inter
collegiate athletics — that's going to be
essential in the long run."
Oregon is the only state in the Pacific
10 Conference that does not provide fun
ding for intercollegiate athletics. And
without state support, Bay has been
unable to reduce the department's
$600,000 to $700,000 carry-over deficit —
a problem the next athletic director will
have to grapple with.
"To reduce that, you have to produce a
surplus," Bay said. "We've just been sort
of hanging on year after year.
"I think we've been responsible and
up front about our financial situation.
But the new person coming in will still
have that battle to fight," he added.
Bay said he has mixed emotions about
leaving Eugene, about leaving the
athletes, coaches and staff around him.
The honor is not only his, he said, as it
reflects on the quality of the University
as a whole.
And just three days after the Incidental
Fees Committee decided to give $722,439
to the athletic department, he had
nothing but good words to say about the
students: "The students have been ex
tremely supportive of the program. It's
getting to the point where it's unfair to
ask them for much more."
Despite the financial problems, Bay
said things have improved since he came
to the University. He said he instilled
some credibility and integrity in the
department that did not exist under the
beleagured former administration.
Above all else, Bay said he does not
want people to get the idea that he's jum
ping off a sinking ship.
"It would be wrong for anyone to
believe I'm bailing out," he said. "I think
we have a bright future. I would not be
leaving if it weren't for a job of this
magnitude.”
A job of that magnitude, however, will
bring its own unique set of problems, he
said. Bay will have to deal with alumni
and boosters of a $14 million program
that has come to expect success.
Indeed, these are the same fans who
almost had the football coach lynched
for losing three games last season.
"It's going to be difficult to keep things
in perspective,” he said. "Sooner or
later, the boosters have to be convinced
that the days of the dynasties are pretty
much over, that it's not a disaster to not
go to the Rose Bowl."
Missing out on the Rose Bowl, at least,
should be something Bay is already well
prepared for.