Few societies are truly independent

A LETTER in the INQUIRER recently posited that Philippine Independence Day should be celebrated on July 4 since true independence came only after the United States granted it on July 4, 1946 (“June 12 independence day celebration upholds a lie,” Opinion, 6/12/15).

As an American living in the Philippines and one who served on a US warship with Filipinos during the Vietnam War, I disagree. The United States celebrates its independence on the day (July 4) the Americans declared independence, not on the day the British “granted” the colony independence after their defeat at the hands of the Americans.

If July 4, 1946, is to be celebrated, it should be to call to mind the respect the United States regarded the Filipinos with after they fought side by side against the Japanese during World War II and succeeded to beat them. It was this brotherhood in combat that led to the final independence from colonization. Americans could not imagine fighting against our fellow warriors after we shed blood together.

Few societies are truly independent and neither my homeland nor the Philippines is an exception. My homeland, the United States, is dependent on foreign countries to finance its debt, primarily that which it owes China, and this would be good to remember. The Philippines is dependent on remittances coming from other countries. How does this dependence affect population, poverty and pollution? Perhaps, as an outsider, I can share some perspectives.

My missions here in the Philippines have kept me in close contact with rural families engaged in small farming. I have lived in all of the larger islands of the Philippines—Luzon, Mindanao, Negros, Leyte, Cebu, Samar, Masbate, Palawan, Mindoro, Guimaras and Bohol. In all of these places, many families are dependent on a family member working in a foreign country. For this reason, having a large family is considered an asset. This is also one reason the Philippines has the fastest-growing population in Asia.

But aside from providing income for the country and family, this fast-growing population has a less desirable effect: Because of the so-called law of supply and demand, wages in the Philippines are so low that workers would rather go abroad to earn a decent salary. If this sounds like a vicious cycle, indeed it is! With so many people seeking work, employers have little incentive to offer good wages. This drives more workers to seek employment abroad. That is how a large population leads to dependence on foreign jobs, aside from resulting in poverty.

For the United States to be truly independent, it must end its status as a debtor-nation and balance its budget. For the Philippines to become independent it must stabilize its population so that there will be enough good jobs for all.