PGMA's Speech before the Joint Session of the Diet |
House of Councillors, National Diet of Japan Tokyo, Japan (03 Dec 2002) |
| THANK YOU VERY
MUCH. FIRST OF ALL, I WOULD LIKE TO THANK PRIME MINISTER KOIZUMI FOR BEING HERE TODAY TO LISTEN TO ME. THANK YOU, MR. PRIME MINISTER, YOU HONOR ME. PRESIDENT KURATA, SPEAKER WATANUKI, HONORABLE MEMBERS OF PARLIAMENT, MEMBERS OF THE PHILIPPINE DELEGATION, LADIES AND GENTLEMEN. IT'S AN HONOR FOR ME TO BE IN THIS AUGUST ASSEMBLY TO EXPRESS TO THE JAPANESE PEOPLE, THROUGH THEIR DISTINGUISHED REPRESENTATIVES, THE APPRECIATION OF THE FILIPINO PEOPLE FOR WHAT JAPAN HAS BEEN TO US -- A RELIABLE ALLY, A SINCERE PARTNER, A COMPASSIONATE FRIEND. I UNDERTAKE THE FIRST STATE VISIT BETWEEN OUR TWO COUNTRIES IN THE NEW CENTURY. PRESIDENT RAMOS WAS THE LAST STATE VISITOR TO JAPAN FROM MY COUNTRY ALMOST A DECADE AGO. SINCE THEN, IN THE LAST 10 YEARS, SO MUCH HAS TAKEN PLACE WITHIN OUR TWO NATIONS, OUR REGION AND THE WORLD. IN MY COUNTRY, THE PAST DECADE SAW EFFORTS TO DEEPEN THE ROOTS OF DEMOCRACY AND PRIVATE ENTERPRISE, RESTRUCTURE THE ECONOMY AND MAKE PHILIPPINE INDUSTRY MORE GLOBALLY COMPETITIVE. IT ALSO SAW FILIPINOS RISE AS ONE TO MANIFEST THEIR ABHORRENCE OF CORRUPT GOVERNMENT, THEIR YEARNING FOR GENUINE SOCIAL JUSTICE AND FOR FREEDOM FROM THE SHACKLES OF PATRONAGE. AFTER 10 YEARS, EAST ASIA -- OUR COMMON HOME -- IS ALSO A DEEPLY CHANGED PLACE. WITH PEACE REGAINED IN CAMBODIA, STABILITY HAS BEEN RESTORED TO INDOCHINA. THE THREE DECADE-OLD DREAM OF A SOUTHEAST ASIA UNITED UNDER ASEAN HAS BEEN REALIZED. HONG KONG AND MACAO HAVE PEACEFULLY REJOINED THE SOVEREIGNTY OF CHINA. EAST TIMOR HAS BECOME THE NEWEST MEMBER OF THE COMMUNITY OF NATIONS. YET, THE LUSTER AND EXUBERANCE OF THE BOOM YEARS ARE GONE, MUTED BY THE CRISIS FEW THOUGHT COULD HAPPEN. AND JUST AS COUNTRIES IN THE REGION WERE AGAIN GETTING BACK TO THE RHYTHM OF NORMALCY, TERROR STRUCK IN BALI. ON THE GLOBAL SCALE, INTERDEPENDENCE IS SO MUCH TRUER NOW THAN TEN YEARS AGO. MULTILATERALISM IN PURSUIT OF WORLD SECURITY AND ECONOMIC GOALS IS TAKING A FIRMER HOLD. BUT DIFFICULT GLOBAL CHALLENGES HAVE LIKEWISE MULTIPLIED OR DEEPENED. HUNDREDS OF MILLIONS STILL GO HUNGRY AND UNSCHOOLED AGAINST THEIR WILL. AS THE NEW CENTURY ROLED IN, WE AWAKENED TO THE FACT THAT NO COUNTRY, NOT EVEN THE MOST POWERFUL IS IMMUNE TO TRAGEDIES INFLICTED BY AGENTS OF DISCORD AND TERROR. DURING THE LAST TEN YEARS, WE SAW FREEDOM MARCH ON. BUT WE ALSO SAW THE RISE OF NEW FORCES RANGED AGAINST IT. WE SAW PEOPLES YEARNING TO CHART THEIR OWN DESTINY AND ACHIEVE NATIONHOOD. BUT WE ALSO WITNESSED PEOPLE LOSE CONTROL OF THEIR NATIONS TO THE THUGS OF RADICALISM. WE SAW KINDNESS MOBILIZED TO COMFORT THE AFFLICTED. BUT WE ALSO SAW FEAR AND INTOLERANCE CREEP UPON MANY NATIONS. THE CHALLENGES ARE ENORMOUS; THE THREATS ARE MANY. WE JUST HAVE TO KEEP CARRYING ON WITH COURAGE AND A SINGLENESS OF AIM. FOR THE LARGER TRUTH IS THAT FREE PEOPLE HAVE IN THEIR OWN HANDS THE CAPACITY TO OVERCOME ADVERSITY, TO PROSPER AND TO STAY FREE. MY COUNTRY WAS FORTUNATE TO BE SPARED THE FULL BRUNT OF THE ASIAN CRISIS. THOUGH BARELY, THE PHILIPPINE ECONOMY MANAGED TO GROW EVEN WHILE THE FINANCIAL STORM WAS CUTTING A WIDE SWATH OF DEVASTATION IN THE REGION. THIS ENCOURAGED MANY ANALYSTS TO EXPECT OUR ECONOMY TO REBOUND FAST AND STRONGLY AS THE STORM PASSED. BUT REGRETFULLY, IT ALSO ENCOURAGED COMPLACENCY. THUS, MY ADMINISTRATION WAS TO INHERIT AN ECONOMY THAT HAD LOST MOMENTUM, HAD LOST STEAM. WITH CONFIDENCE IN THE PAST LEADERSHIP FAST EBBING, AND CAPITAL FLIGHT AND FIERCE COMPETITION PUMMELING ITS ECONOMY, THE COUNTRY WAS CAST ADRIFT JUST ABOUT WHEN IT NEEDED MOST A FIRM MOORING. WHEN I ASSUMED OFFICE IN JANUARY 2001, LAST YEAR, MY MOST IMMEDIATE TASKS WERE TO RALLY MY NATION OUT OF DESPAIR AND TO RESTORE BUSINESS CONFIDENCE. WE REINED IN THE RISING INTEREST RATES THAT STUNTED BUSINESS. WE STEMMED THE RISING PRICES THAT DENIED THE POOR ACCESS TO MANY OF THEIR BASIC NEEDS. WE RESTORED THE PEOPLE'S TRUST IN THE INTEGRITY OF THE HIGHEST LEADERSHIP OF GOVERNMENT. PRIVATE ANALYSTS FORECASTED PHILIPPINE GROWTH IN 2001 TO BE BELOW THREE PERCENT BUT GDP ACTUALLY GREW BY 3.4 PERCENT AND GNP BY 3.7 PERCENT IN THE FIRST YEAR OF MY ADMINISTRATION. NOW, IN THE FIRST THREE QUARTERS OF THIS YEAR, GDP GREW BY 4.1 PERCENT AND GNP BY 5 PERCENT. GDP WAS POWERED BY THE RECOVERY OF INDUSTRY AND CONTINUED STRENGTHENING OF SERVICES. INDUSTRY GREW BY 3.8 PERCENT BECAUSE EXPORTS GREW BY 9.5 PERCENT. AND PRIVATE CONSTRUCTION IS ON THE REBOUND. SERVICES GREW BY 5.1 PERCENT BECAUSE OF THE EXPANSION IN TELECOMMUNICATIONS, TRADE AND PRIVATE SERVICES INCLUDING TOURISM. AND WITH CONTINUED RESPONSIBLE FISCAL MONETARY AND SUPPLY SIDE POLICIES, INFLATION AND INTEREST RATES ARE THE LOWEST IN MORE THAN A DECADE. GIVEN THE HURDLES THAT THE PHILIPPINE ECONOMY HAD TO OVERCOME, THE ONLY EXPLANATION TO OUR ECONOMIC PERFORMANCE HAS BEEN THE RESOURCEFULNESS AND INDUSTRY OF THE GREAT FILIPINO WORKERS, AS WELL AS THEIR SUPPORT FOR THE POLICIES OF THE NEW GOVERNMENT. MY ECONOMIC TEAM AND I ARE DETERMINED TO FULLY RESTORE THE ECONOMY'S FINANCIAL HEALTH AND TO FURTHER IMPROVE BUSINESS CONDITIONS FOR INVESTMENT. WE HAVE INITIATED A BUDGET DEFICIT REDUCTION PROGRAM TO PREVENT GOVERNMENT FROM CROWDING OUT THE PRIVATE SECTOR FOR INVESTMENT FUNDS. WE ARE ALSO FOCUSED ON CONTINUED PRICE STABILITY. TO FURTHER STRENGTHEN THE FINANCIAL SECTOR, MY URGENT PROPOSAL TO CREATE A SPECIAL ASSET MANAGEMENT COMPANY SECTOR, DESIGNED TO EFFICIENTLY ADDRESS THE NON-PERFORMING LOAN PROBLEMS OF THE BANKING SYSTEM, HAS ALREADY PASSED BOTH HOUSES OF THE PHILIPPINE CONGRESS. OUR OVERRIDING VISION IS TO CONQUER POVERTY WITHIN THE FIRST DECADE OF THIS CENTURY BY BUILDING A STRONG PHILIPPINE REPUBLIC. DEVELOPMENT IS AN ENORMOUS TASK. IN THIS GLOBALIZED WORLD, IT IS ALSO PRACTICALLY IMPOSSIBLE TO GO IT ALONE. WE KNOW THIS WELL: "FORTRESS ECONOMIES WITHER, CLOSED ECONOMIES DIE." THAT IS THE REASON WHY SINCE THE EDSA REVOLUTION THAT REINSTALLED DEMOCRACY IN MY COUNTRY IN 1986, SUCCESSIVE ADMINISTRATIONS HAVE PURSUED A CONTINUOUS PATH OF ENGAGING WITH THE WORLD. WE NEED ASEAN. WE NEED APEC. WE NEED EAST ASIA. WE NEED JAPAN. FOR THE PHILIPPINES, COOPERATION IS BEST ACHIEVED THROUGH ONE EAST ASIA. EAST ASIA'S ECONOMIC MIRACLE IS FIRST AND FOREMOST ABOUT PEOPLE. THE MIRACLE IS THAT, FOR THE FIRST TIME, THE MAJORITY OF CHILDREN IN THE REGION HAVE BECOME BETTER SCHOOLED FOR LIFE IN AN ERA OF FAST, FLEETING AND PROFOUND CHANGE. THIS HAS PERMITTED FAMILIES TO ATTAIN THE HIGHEST SAVINGS RATES IN THE WORLD, NOT SIMPLY, AS IN THE PAST, TO HEDGE AGAINST HARD TIMES, BUT INCREASINGLY TO INVEST IN A BRIGHTER AND MORE BRILLIANT NEXT GENERATION. IT HAS MEANT, FOR THE FIRST TIME IN THE REGION'S HISTORY, THAT A MIDDLE CLASS COULD BE RAISED, NURTURED AND POISED TO BECOME LEADERS IN TRANSFORMING THEIR SOCIETIES. OUR REDEMPTION AND OUR FUTURE ARE ALREADY HERE, ALREADY IN OUR HANDS -- THEY LIE IN OUR PEOPLE. WE MUST NOT WASTE THIS MOST VALUABLE, THIS MOST PRECIOUS RESOURCE. THAT WAS WHY WHEN THE 1997 CRISIS VERY NEARLY DID, TO LAY THE HUMAN RESOURCES TO WASTE WAS TRULY UNFORTUNATE. ALMOST OVERNIGHT, AS GOOD JOBS VANISHED, AS SAVINGS WERE DECIMATED, AS PURCHASING POWER ERODED AND AS CONSUMER AND INVESTOR CONFIDENCE EVAPORATED, THE NASCENT MIDDLE CLASS WAS BESIEGED. FAMILIES WERE BEING SWALLOWED UP AGAIN INTO THE RANKS OF THE POOR. FOR THE FIRST TIME IN TWO OR THREE DECADES, THE WAR AGAINST POVERTY WAS IN DANGER OF BEING LOST IN MANY PARTS OF THE REGION. THE DANGER CAME AND PASSED. WE WERE BRUISED BY IT BUT NOT COMPLETELY MAIMED, BECAUSE WE WERE NOT ALONE. WE HAD FRIENDS AND PARTNERS TO ASSIST US. ONE OF THEM, AND WE WILL ALWAYS REMEMBER THIS -- IS JAPAN. WITH THE COUNSEL OF HINDSIGHT, LET'S LOOK TO THE FUTURE. THE CONTINUING CHALLENGE IS TO BUILD, THROUGH OUR JOINT EFFORTS, THE CAPACITY IN THE REGION TO PREVENT THE RECURRENCE OF ECONOMIC SHOCKS LIKE THE ONE THAT HIT US IN 1997. THE ASEAN+3 CHIANG MAI INITIATIVE IS A LANDMARK AGREEMENT FOR, AMONG OTHER THINGS, HARNESSING REGIONAL COORDINATION OF ECONOMIC AND MONETARY POLICIES TO ENSURE STABILITY OF CURRENCY AND FINANCIAL MARKETS. IN SOUTHEAST ASIA, WE ARE FORGING TOWARDS FULL IMPLEMENTATION OF AFTA. BARELY A MONTH AGO, ASEAN AND CHINA SIGNED THE FRAMEWORK FOR THE ESTABLISHMENT OF THE ASEAN-CHINA FREE TRADE AREA, WHILE ASEAN AND JAPAN AGREED ON THE FRAMEWORK FOR THE ESTABLISHMENT OF A COMPREHENSIVE ECONOMIC PARTNERSHIP. EXPECTEDLY, NOT EVERYONE IS AGREED ON THE SIGNIFICANCE OR DESIRABILITY OF THESE REGIONWIDE DEVELOPMENTS. FOR INSTANCE, SOME SEE THE SLIDE OF ASEAN's INTO IRRELEVANCE. SOME WARN THAT SMALLER SOUTHEAST ASIAN NATIONS RISK NEEDING TO DEFER, ONCE AGAIN, TO THE LARGER POWERS. BUT THE FACT THAT ASEAN HAS MANY "SUITORS" SHOWS ITS ATTRACTIVENESS, ITS "RELEVANCE" HERE AND NOW. BUT DOES ONE NECESSARILY BECOME IRRELEVANT BY MARRYING INTO A FAMILY, EVEN A BIGGER FAMILY? I DO NOT BELIEVE SO. THE EMERGENCE OF CHINA AS A MARKET ECONOMY IS INTEGRAL TO THE FURTHER GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT OF EAST ASIA. THE PHILIPPINES REGARDS IT AS A CATALYST FOR MORE RAPID EXPANSION AND GREATER STABILITY IN ASIA. BUT FOR NOW AND THE FORESEEABLE FUTURE, ASEAN's NEED FOR JAPAN AND ITS CONTINUED COOPERATION IS FAR MORE ESSENTIAL. THE REVIVAL OF THE JAPANESE ECONOMY, THE RESUMPTION OF ITS TRADITIONAL ROLE AS A GROWTH ENGINE IS OF UTMOST IMPORTANCE TO THE PHILIPPINES, TO EAST ASIA, TO THE WORLD. ON THE BILATERAL PLANE, THE RECENT ENTRY INTO FORCE OF THE JAPAN-SINGAPORE COMPREHENSIVE PARTNERSHIP AGREEMENT INSPIRES OUR EFFORTS TO CONCLUDE AN APPROPRIATE AGREEMENT BETWEEN OUR TWO COUNTRIES -- THE PHILIPPINES AND JAPAN. IN OUR VIEW, AN IDEAL FOR THE PROPOSED AGREEMENT IS TO MAXIMIZE THE MANY AREAS OF COMPLEMENTARITY BETWEEN OUR TWO ECONOMIES. ONE SUCH AREA IS HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT. ONE FACET OF OUR HRD COMPLEMENTARITY INVOLVES THE DEMOGRAPHIC REALITIES IN OUR TWO COUNTRIES. JAPAN HAS AN AGING POPULATION WHILE THE PHILIPPINES HAS A YOUNG POPULATION WHICH SUPPLIES SOME OF THE BEST-TRAINED AND MOST COMPASSIONATE HEALTH CARE WORKERS IN THE WORLD. A GROWING NUMBER OF COUNTRIES IN NORTH AMERICA, EUROPE AND THE MIDDLE EAST NOW HOST THIS FILIPINO HEALTH CARE GIVERS. IN SIMILAR VEIN, JAPAN IS THE ACKNOWLEDGED LEADER IN THE REGION IN THE FIELD OF ADVANCED TECHNOLOGY INCLUDING ICT AND CAPITAL-INTENSIVE INDUSTRY. THE PHILIPPINES, ON THE OTHER HAND, IS WELL-ACKNOWLEDGED INTERNATIONALLY FOR ITS TOP-QUALITY KNOWLEDGE WORKERS. WE CAN DEVISE THE RIGHT ARRANGEMENTS TO TAKE FULLER ADVANTAGE OF THESE REALITIES. BUT ALL THESE PROSPECTS, ALL THE EXCITING POSSIBILITIES FOR ECONOMIC REVIVAL OR ADVANCEMENT IN MY COUNTRY OR IN JAPAN, OR IN THE REGION MAY NOT SEE THE LIGHT OF DAY WITHOUT A PEACEFUL AND STABLE POLITICAL AND SECURITY ENVIRONMENT. SOME PARTS OF OUR REGION ARE A TINDERBOX OF INTER-ETHNIC TENSION, AND LONG BEFORE THIS A BATTLEFIELD OF IDEOLOGICAL RIVALRY AND A FOCAL POINT OF GEO-STRATEGIC COMPETITION IN THE COLD WAR. NO ONE CAN OR SHOULD SAY, TOO THAT THERE IS NO IMMEDIATE DANGER OF HOSTILITIES. BECAUSE, AS SEPTEMBER 11 HAS TAUGHT US, AS BALI HAS TAUGHT US, WE SOMETIMES DO NOT KNOW WHERE THE ENEMY LURKS, MUCH LESS WHERE OR WHEN IT WILL STRIKE NEXT. THERE ARE SERIOUS SECURITY FAULT LINES IN EAST ASIA. WE BOTH KNOW THEM SO WELL. OUR TWO COUNTRIES HAVE BEEN VERY CLOSE ALLIES FOR SO LONG AND, EVEN AS I SPEAK, WE CONTINUE TO WORK TOGETHER IN ADDRESSING SOME OF THESE. BUT WHEN OR HOW ANY OF THESE FAULT LINES WILL SNAP, NO ONE CAN TELL FOR CERTAIN. ALL WE CAN DO IS PREPARE. AND WHERE WE CAN, PROVIDE THE SAFETY NETS, THE SAFETY VENTS TO RELIEVE THE BUILD UP OF PRESSURE AND AVOID SUDDEN, MASSIVE EXPLOSIONS. UNDER CONDITIONS OF UNCERTAINTY, PRUDENCE IS THE BEST POLICY. VENTING PRESSURE IS PRUDENT AND OFTEN VERY EFFECTIVE. OPEN AND ACTIVE DIALOGUE, THROUGH THE ASEAN REGIONAL FORUM, THE ASEAN+3 PROCESSES AND ALL OTHER CHANNELS, MUST BE THE ENDURING MEANS FOR CLARIFYING THE SECURITY CONCERNS AND ASSESSMENTS OF COUNTRIES, FOR EXPLAINING NATIONAL DEFENSE DOCTRINES AND PLANS, AND FOR CONTAINING AND REMOVING TENSION. WE IN EAST ASIA MUST REINFORCE ALL ELEMENTS OF PREDICTABILITY, STABILITY AND BALANCE IN THE SECURITY FIELD. ON CERTAIN FRONTS, WE ARE MAKING TREMENDOUS PROGRESS. THE AGREEMENT SIGNED IN PHNOM PENH ON THE REGIONAL CONDUCT IN THE SOUTH CHINA SEA IS AN IMPORTANT BREAKTHROUGH. NOT ONLY FOR THE PHILIPPINES AND OTHER COUNTRIES IN THE IMMEDIATE VICINITY, BUT ALSO FOR COUNTRIES SERVED BY THAT MARITIME AREA. BUT ON OTHER FRONTS, RECENT DEVELOPMENTS ARE CAUSE FOR CONCERN. THE REVELATIONS ABOUT NUCLEAR WEAPONS DEVELOPMENT IN THE KOREAN PENINSULA ARE A BIG ISSUE. WE OPPOSE NUCLEAR WEAPONS PROLIFERATION AND WE WILL RESIST A NUCLEAR ARMS RACE IN EAST ASIA. APART FROM INTERNATIONAL TERRORISM, NEW TRANSNATIONAL THREATS TO PEACE, FREEDOM AND PROGRESS REQUIRE OUR JOINT ATTENTION AND ACTION. TRANSNATIONAL CRIME, INCLUDING THE ILLICIT TRADE IN NARCOTICS AND WEAPONS, TRAFFICKING IN HUMAN BEINGS, MONEY LAUNDERING, AND PIRACY IN THE HIGH SEAS, AS WELL AS TRANS-BOUNDARY ENVIRONMENTAL THREATS, ARE FIELDS FOR URGENT COOPERATION. ALL COUNTRIES IN OUR REGION, ESPECIALLY THOSE FOR WHOM FREEDOM IS A MATTER OF NATIONAL HONOR ARE WITHOUT A DOUBT DETERMINED TO DO MORE TO CONTRIBUTE TO THE STABILITY, SECURITY AND PEACE IN EAST ASIA. BUT ACTING SINGLY GREATLY LIMITS THEIR OPTIONS FOR POSITIVE ACTION. FOR SO LONG, JAPAN HAS BEEN ABLE TO CONTRIBUTE SO MUCH. YOUR PIVOTAL ROLE IN THE STABILIZATION OF CAMBODIA, IN THE TRANSITION TO NATIONHOOD OF EAST TIMOR, IN PROMOTING PEACEFUL DIALOGUES AS THE MEDIUM FOR SETTLING THE THORNY ISSUES IN THE KOREAN PENINSULA, AND IN SO MANY MORE ARENAS, THESE ACHIEVEMENTS OF JAPAN ARE NOT LOST ON US. AND WE CONGRATULATE YOU. THE LONG HISTORY OF COOPERATION BETWEEN OUR TWO COUNTRIES -- AS PARTNERS, AS FRIENDS, AS ALLIES -- IS SOLID BASIS FOR FURTHER AND MORE INTENSE COLLABORATION. WE BOTH MUST BE READY TO ACT AND OPERATE, WHERE NEEDED AND WHEN NECESSARY, AS ONE FORCE FOR REGIONAL SECURITY. TO FACE THE THREATS JOINTLY AND TO TRIUMPH -- THIS IS OUR COMMON MISSION. TO SHOW THE WORLD WHAT INTERDEPENDENCE MEANS FOR US: TO PRESERVE FREEDOM, TO WIN PROSPERITY IN THE 21st CENTURY AND FOR ALL TIME. THANK YOU, MR. SPEAKER, MR. PRESIDENT, MR. PRIME MINISTER. |