Philippine
President Benigno Aquino III on Tuesday night secured Japanese Prime Minister
Yoshihiko Noda’s support for a peaceful resolution of the six-nation dispute
over the potentially oil-rich Spratly islands.
The maritime issue in the South China Sea,
which Manila calls the West Philippine Sea, ranked high in the agenda of the
two leaders’ meeting that sought to elevate their country’s bilateral relations
to a more meaningful "strategic partnership."
In a joint statement, Aquino and Noda
"confirmed that the South China Sea is vital, as it connects the world and
the Asia Pacific region, and that peace and stability therein is of common
interest to the international community."
Aquino reiterated the Philippines’
"commitment to the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South
China Sea and to the peaceful resolution of maritime disputes over the South
China Sea."
He also emphasized the importance of "a
rules-based regime for addressing and resolving disputes and promoting
cooperation."
Following the meeting, the President and Noda
"confirmed that freedom of navigation, unimpeded commerce, and compliance
with established international law including the UNCLOS and the peaceful
settlement of disputes serve the interests of the two countries and the whole
region." UNCLOS refers to the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea.
"They shared the recognition that these
same interests should also be advanced and protected in the South China
Sea," according to the statement.
Though not a claimant to the Spratlys islands,
Japan came into the picture, saying vessels that deliver oil it imports from
the Middle East pass by that vital sea lane.
Japan promised to assist the Philippine Coast
Guard so it could better patrol the country’s vast coast line. It will dispatch
patrol vessels of the Japan Coast Guard to train its Filipino counterparts.
Both countries also agreed to "promote exchanges and cooperation between
their defense authorities."
The Philippines and China, along with Brunei,
Malaysia, Taiwan and Vietnam, have conflicting claims to the Spratlys. Tensions
spiked this year after the Philippines and Vietnam said China had become
increassingly aggressive in staking its claims to the area, believed to hold
vast deposits of oil and gas.
Deal for Filipino nurses
Aquino and Noda tackled the 3-year-old
Japan-Philippine Economic Partnership Agreement (JPEPA), specifically
addressing claims Filipino health workers are not getting a fair treatment from
Japanese employers.
The two leaders agreed "to continue
consultations in order to further improve the current situation, including the
smooth dispatch and acceptance of Filipino candidates for qualified nurses and
certified workers."
The President thanked Japan for agreeing to conduct
Japanese language training before nurses are sent to Japan. He also "emphasized the importance of
increasing the passing rates of Filipino nurses in the Japanese National
Examination for nurses."
"We agreed to sustain our active economic
cooperation founded on the framework of the JPEPA," Aquino said after the
meeting. "Our governments will be working closely for its effective
implementation and for the success of its first general review this year, so
that we can maximize its prospective benefits."
During his four-day Japan visit, the President
travelled to the tsunami-hit Ishinomaki in the north and will meet with Emperor
Akihito before returning home on Wednesday.
Before the start of the bilateral meeting at
his official residence, Noda expressed his sympathy for the battering the
Philippines was getting from Typhoon "Pedring."
"We hope the threats would be minimized
as soon as possible," Noda told Aquino.
Development aid
The two leaders witnessed an exchange of notes
on a package of development assistance from Japan, specifically on disaster
preparedness and mitigation projects.
Topping the list was a forest management
project worth 9.22 billion yen (US$120 million), which was part of the overall
official development assistance by Japan to the Philippines.
Aquino said the project would “help preserve
critical river basins” in four regions of the country.
The President "renewed his appreciation
for Japan’s continuous assistance for the climate change mitigation and
adaptation measures" in the Philippines and promised the "steady
implementation" of other projects made possible by Japan loans.
Earlier, the President offered a
"win-win" opportunity for Japanese investors in the Philippines and
received pledges of potential fresh
investments worth at least US$1.1 billion, according to spokesperson Herminio
Coloma.
Japan is already the Philippines’ top trading
partner, with bilateral trade reaching US$14.4 billion last year, according to
government data.
Culture of transparency
The President sat down with more than 30
Japanese businessmen at the Tokyo Kaikan Hotel, presenting investment
opportunities in the Philippines. Mr. Aquino also engaged in a round-table
discussion members of the Japan-Philippine Economic Coordinating Committee and
the Philippine-Japan Economic Coordinating Committee.
Coloma said Toyota Motor Corp. alone would
invest P3.6 billion, which would create some 5,000 jobs. He said the top
car-maker was also looking to put up a US$170-million “next generation”
manufacturing plant in the Philippines.
Murato Manufacturing Co. Ltd., one of the
world’s top producers of digital components, was also planning to establish a
factory for its cutting-edge "monolithic ceramic capacitor" in a
23-hectare property in Laguna by October next year.
Coloma said Marubeni Corp. would engage in at
least four power projects: the expansion of the Pagbilao coal power plant by
2015, expansion of the Sual facility, a 600-megawatt coal power plant in Subic,
and the Leyte-Mindanao interconnection project.
"This is a good time to invest in the
Philippines because this culture of transparency we are cultivasting will lead
to a win-win situation for all stakeholders involved," he told the Japan
Chamber of Commerce and Industry during lunch at the Tokyo Kaikan Hotel.
Rule of law
A palpable change, Aquino said, was the
streamlining of business applications, which was part of a larger effort to
"eliminate the preponderance of under-the-table transactions with bloated
commissions secretly pocketed by corrupt officials."
Aquino noted that efforts to review previous
government contracts led the Department of Public and Works and Highways to
save 4.652 billion pesos (US$105
million) worth of supposedly "questionable projects."
Critics blamed his cautious approach to public
spending to the country’s 3.4-per cent economic growth rate in the second
quarter this year. A recent Senate budget hearing showed that the DPWH spent
only 16 billion pesos (US$367 million) out of its 90-billion-peso (US$2,1
billion) budget for infrastructure as of last month.
But in his meetings here, the President said
it was better to have a problem with "underspending" than to worry
about lost money due to corruption. "All our efforts are governed by an
overarching principle: an end to corruption means an end to poverty," he
said.
Christian V. Esguerra
Philippine Daily Inquirer
Business & Investment Opportunities
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