A group of Filipino-American leaders have appealed to President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to allocate a portion of recently announced U.S. humanitarian funds to support an estimated 50,000 Filipino Amerasians, who are children and descendants of American military personnel once stationed in the Philippines.
In an open letter dated Friday, October 10, the Filipino Amerasian Coalition urged Marcos to recognize the decades-old plight of Amerasians who were left behind after the withdrawal of American bases in the Philippines in 1992.
The group called for education, healthcare and job programs to be funded through the humanitarian and defense cooperation frameworks between the Philippines and the United States.
“We respectfully appeal for your leadership in addressing the long-neglected plight of an estimated 50,000 Filipino Amerasians,” the letter read.
“These men and women were left behind following the end of the U.S.-Philippine Military Bases Agreement in 1992, marking a painful chapter in our shared history.”
The advocates are proposing main actions for the Philippine government:
First is an executive order recognizing Filipino Amerasians and including them under the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement’s (EDCA) humanitarian provisions, with access to training and jobs at U.S.-supported bases.
The other is the allocation of 10% of the $250-million U.S. humanitarian assistance package announced in September to fund education, health and vocational programs through the Department of Social Welfare and Development.
Open letter. The letter, signed by Filipino and Fil-American leaders including Filipino-American philanthropist Loida Nicolas Lewis, former U.S. Consul General Santiago “Sonny” Busa, and advocate Eric Lachica, described the proposal as both “a humanitarian act” and a “moral obligation” that could strengthen the U.S.-Philippine alliance.
The coalition noted that the Philippines, despite being the United States’ oldest ally in Asia, was excluded from the Amerasian Act of 1982, which granted benefits to Amerasian children in other countries such as Vietnam, Korea and Thailand.
“Addressing this issue would show that our partnership is grounded not only in strategic and military cooperation, but also in shared humanity and moral responsibility,” the group said.
“It was profoundly unfair that the Philippines-the oldest U.S. ally in Asia and home to the largest number of Amerasians-was excluded from the Amerasian Act of 1982, which extended benefits to Amerasians in other countries,” they added.