The Arroyo Gov't in ASEAN: More Deaths Than Health!

Health Alliance for Democracy (HEAD)
2/F Doñ a Rosita Bldg, E. Rodriguez Ave. , Quezon City
Email: headphil@gmail.com
Press Release
13 January 2007

Leaders of Health Alliance for Democracy (HEAD) and local representatives of health workers and health professionals joined mass actions being held in Cebu City today to protest Arroyo government's callousness and utter negligence of basic health services, while spending billions in hosting the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) summit.

"Again, the Arroyo regime is shamelessly promoting its mendicant agenda in the ASEAN while lying outright to the Filipino people." Decried Dr. Geneve E. Rivera, HEAD deputy secretary-general and leader of the health delegation. "Two of its principal agenda - the Mutual Recognition Agreement (MRA) and regional "anti-terrorism" - will cause more hardships for Filipinos in the long run."

According to HEAD, the MRA will open new doors for the overseas employment of licensed Filipino nurses by allowing them to work in other ASEAN countries without the need to acquire licenses from these countries. However, because the Arroyo government has done nothing to improve the status of Filipino nurses locally, the MRA will spur rather than stem the exodus of health professionals.

"Almost 90% of those who pass the Nursing Licensure Examination will seek employment abroad. That is roughly 30,000 nurses for 2006 alone." Stated Dr. Rivera. "With the MRA, Mrs. Arroyo is facilitating the exodus of Filipino nurses rather than offering viable alternatives for them to stay. Even if the MRA may provide some benefit for individual nurses, its negative impact on the Philippine health care delivery system is tremendous. And Mrs. Arroyo could hardly care less for as long as the remittances keep coming."

Also, the Arroyo regime wants to be at the forefront of the United States-led "War on Terror" in the region. Thus, it is pushing for regional "anti-terrorism", which is its favorite euphemism for its militarist and repressive programs that have led to the unabated killings and abductions of activists by its own armed security forces. Mrs. Arroyo has even allocated P10B for the so-called modernization of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP).

But as Dr. Rivera pointed out, "That amount (P10B) is already the equivalent of the entire annual national health budget, which has not changed considerably over the last six years under the Arroyo regime. With Mrs. Arroyo, there is money for killing and harming Filipinos, but not for their health care and well-being!"

In fact, the spending on the ASEAN summit is about one-fourth of the entire Department of Health budget for 2006 and is even bigger than the entire budget allocated for parallel importation, the program meant to provide cheaper medicine for Filipinos. It is also bigger than the combined annual budget of the six biggest public hospitals under the DOH.

"What is obvious here is that the motive force behind Mrs. Arroyo's programs is not the welfare of the Filipino people but her own selfish needs as well as those of her neocolonial patron: US imperialism. Mrs. Arroyo wants to show to the Bush administration that contrary to their initial impression that she is an "unreliable ally", she will do everything to get their good graces." Concluded Dr. Rivera. "And everything means sacrificing the lives of Filipinos."

References: Dr. Geneve E. Rivera (Deputy Secretary-General – 0920 4603712)
Dr. Gene Alzona Nisperos (Secretary General - 0916 2145724)