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graphic frontpage
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raised hopes, dashed dreams: correcting an injustice to filipino veterans |
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The passing of US Senate Bill 1315 raised the hopes of the few thousand surviving Filipino veterans of World War II that they will finally receive their long overdue pension benefits. However, many of these veterans, who are mostly in their 80s and 90s, might not live to see their dream of getting their benefits fulfilled.
Better late than never. This was the general sentiment of many Filipino veterans upon learning that the US Senate passed Senate Bill 1315, which provides a pension for Filipinos who served under the US military during World War II. Out of the roughly 250,000 Filipinos who were under US military command, only 18,000 are still alive.
The bill, known as the "Veterans Benefits Enhancement Act of 2007," was passed (96-1) despite the objections of some Republicans and US President George Bush. The lone holdout was Senator David Vitter (Louisiana-Republican).
Contested provision The Republicans who opposed the inclusion of the pension provision for Filipino veterans in the bill claimed the $221 million would be better spent on US soldiers serving in Iraq and Afghanistan.
"This legislation would correct an injustice," countered US Sen. Daniel Akaka (Democrat-Hawaii), who sponsored the bill. Under the contested provision of the bill, an estimated total of 18,000 Filipino veterans whose names appear in the Revised Reconstructed Guerilla Roster (RRGR) in Missouri would be eligible to receive roughly $300 monthly pension. Those who are single would receive $300, married veterans would get $375, while $200 would go to widows of veterans. About 12,000 of the veterans in the RRGR, which is also known as the Missouri List, live in the Philippines. Filipino veterans from World War II were stripped of their eligibility for US pensions after the US Congress passed the US Rescission Act of 1946.
Those opposed to giving pension benefits to Filipino veterans justified their position by saying that these veterans don’t need an additional pension because they are already receiving one from the Philippine government.
Akaka, who is also chair of the Senate veterans affairs committee, staunchly defended the provision, saying Filipinos "fought bravely under the US military command, helping us win the war only to lose their veteran status by an Act of Congress."
US Sen. Richard Burr (Republican-North Carolina), a ranking Senate veterans committee member, attempted to amend the bill by proposing that the money should be spent on new housing, education and burial assistance for American veterans. In a press release from his office, Burr said the money would be better used for modifying the automobiles and homes of disabled American veterans. Under Burr’s provision, instead of giving the $221 million to Filipino veterans, the money would be better used for the following needs:
• To help severely disabled veterans modify their home to better accommodate their disabilities, such as wheelchair ramps and accessible bathrooms. Burr’s amendment increases this benefit by 10% and indexes future benefits to the residential cost-of-construction index, so payments keep up with inflation automatically.
• Increase auto grants for severely disabled veterans from $11,000 to $15,000. Like the housing benefit, this program helps veterans by giving them mobility to help them live independently and provides an automatic annual increase in benefits.
• Provide an automatic annual increase in burial benefits for the families of veterans who die due to service or service-related injury.
Burr also noted that the US government never made a promise to give financial benefits to Filipinos who were ordered to serve in the US military during the 2nd World War. Burr’s allies said the pension plan for Filipino veterans were "too generous." This forced the senators to discuss which group of veterans are more deserving of US aid at this time.
"The creation of a new foreign pension benefit is unacceptable when the needs of our disabled veterans are so great," Burr said. "My amendment is a fair compromise that honors the service of Filipino veterans but ensures veterans from the United States remain our top priority. I respect the Filipinos who served during World War II, but this special pension is the wrong priority at the wrong time. We must focus on the needs of American veterans, including those who fought in Iraq and Afghanistan," Burr added. At one point, Burr pointed out that it was foolish to "take money away from helping veterans of the war on terror and instead send the money overseas."
"A matter of honor" US Sen. Daniel Inouye (Democrat-Hawaii), who supported the bill, answered Burr’s challenge: "It’s not a matter of money, it’s a matter of honor. It’s the American thing to do. If they (Filipinos) were willing to stand in harm’s way for us, the least we can do is to recognize this and to salute them as fellow Americans," he said.
After the debate, Burr’s amendment failed, 56-41. In the end, Burr ended up voting for the bill’s approval, which is intended to expand benefits for US military veterans.
Inouye said the inclusion of the pension provision in the bill is "the first step in removing a more than 60-year-old stain on our national honor."
The next step would be for the bill to hurdle the US House of Representatives. The supporters of the pension plan believe the measure would pass the House easily.
In Manila, Malacañang welcomed the passage in the US Senate of the veterans’ benefits enhancement bill and hoped to see its enactment into law very soon. Press Secretary Ignacio Bunye said the bill has been pending before the US Congress for a long time and a lot of Filipino war veterans are eagerly awaiting its passage.
In the Philippines, Department of National Defense officials assured veterans that Filipino World War II veterans will continue to receive their monthly P5,000 pension from the government even if the US Congress restores their pension benefits. Officials explained that continuing the local monthly pension was a key requirement of US lawmakers in passing the contested pension provision.
If the US bill is signed into law, Filipino veterans must secure certificates from the US Army Archives in St. Louis, Missouri, which maintains the Missouri list. Those who don’t have the certificate would not receive the US pension. (With AP report)
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