Don’t forget our socio-economic rights
IBON Foundation, a progressive think-tank founded in 1987 which focuses on socioeconomic issues, came out with a piercing commentary this past weekend in time for International Human Rights Day.
According to Ibon, “authoritarianism is growing astride neoliberalism.”
“Big business- and foreign investor-biased neoliberal policies cause economy-wide violations of people’s economic, social, and cultural rights while creating prosperity for a few. This will only worsen with the neoliberal tax reforms and wholesale liberalization being pushed by the Duterte government,” the group said.
Governments from the time of Fidel Ramos to Noynoy Aquino have loudly boasted about economic figures. And the boasting continues under Rodrigo Duterte, with sycophants proclaiming the Philippine economy supposedly besting even China’s!
Ibon points out what the Duterte administration wishes us to forget: “Recent economic growth has not resulted in the attainment of the rights to work, to just wages, to land, to adequate standard of living, and to health, housing and education – in many instances the situation has become even worse. Promises to end contractualization and of free land distribution, education and housing are still unmet. The abrupt termination of peace talks with the National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP) betrays the government’s lack of interest in, among others, the basic social and economic reforms” – referring to the next substantive agenda in the now-terminated peace talks.
And just like past presidents, Duterte boasts of empty, jobless growth.
Referring to government’s own data, Ibon reminds us: “11.5 million Filipinos are jobless or underemployed – counting the unemployed that official statistics have stopped reporting but still excluding the over 10 million forced to find work abroad. Of those employed, 31.6 million or nearly eight out of 10 are in the informal sector with poor quality work. Some 5,800 Filipinos leave the country every day to work overseas. As it is, the latest labor force survey data for July 2017 reported 784,000 jobs lost from the same period last year, including a million agricultural jobs lost that were not replaced by new jobs elsewhere in the economy.”
“Around 22 million Filipinos live in extreme poverty at 160 per person or much less per day, and almost two-thirds of the population live on just 1125 or less per day,” Ibon adds.
The fundamental problem with any claim of economic progress is that such gains benefit only the oligarchs who have clung tightly to Duterte because of his prooligarchy policies on the economy. “The combined wealth of the 15 wealthiest individuals amounting to 12.6 trillion is equivalent to the combined income of the 77 million poorest Filipinos. Wages meanwhile are still less than half the family living wage,” Ibon stressed.
Taking advantage of the demand of the middle class for tax relief, Duterte has summoned his supermajorities in Congress to prioritize tax relief for oligarchs. Under TRAIN, the wealthiest and most privileged are going to get tax cuts: The elite will get reductions in their income, estate, donor and other taxes – even corporate income taxes. This will be paid for by the poor and the middle class through new taxes on oil products, sweetened beverages, coal and others.
This pro-elite TRAIN can only make income inequality even worse.
Another problematic area where Duterte is proposing pro-oligarchy measures? Public services and utilities. Duterte seeks to further liberalize telecommunications, transportation, water, and electricity.
“More than ever, these will become commodities to profit from rather than vital services that all Filipinos have a right to. Their affordability and accessibility will be compromised,” Ibon stressed.
This weekend, the Palace formally announced the entry of China Telecom into the telecommunications industry. Just like that. It is assumed that Congress would instantly grant franchise to China Telecom and the NTC would just hand over frequencies that in other countries are bidded out to raise revenues, to finance public infrastructure, and to lower taxes. No word as to the extent of China Telecom’s planned investments, and if there will be protections to state and commercial secrets and to the confidentiality of communications, an outright ban on surveillance and a perpetual ban on the setting up of a Great Firewall, Philippine style.
The government cannot be too desperate, as to blindly give to China the keys to telecommunications – which could make or break our national security, economy, governance, education, health and other fields that are now dependent on IT. There are reasons why most nations have strict rules on the entry of foreign investors into the telecommunications sector, and why in our laws, Filipino industrialists take precedence and majority stake.
Which pro-Duterte oligarch would be China Telecom’s dummy? And how would the situation be different in the long run when the same rules that allowed the rise of a duopoly remain in force? Panandaliang aliw, panghabambuhay na pag- kawala ng kontrol sa telekomunikasyon? First, Duterte sold our territory. Now, our telecommunications.
Elsewhere, Duterte has embraced Trump who views the Philippines as nothing more than “prime real estate” for positioning US military forces and as market for surplus US goods and soft capital. Duterte has upheld onerous treaties that make the country a US neocolony: MDT, VFA, EDCA, and the economic agreements too.
Aside from civil and political rights, we also have social, economic and cultural rights. Aside from individual rights, we also have rights as a nation. Duterte is positioning himself as No. 1 enemy of our rights, quite firmly and comprehensively. Follow me on Twitter @ tonyocruz