Calizar, Jenny Pearl D.

PoS 1204 March 21, 2020

BA-PoS 1/ Block A TTh; 9:00 – 10:30 EH402MC

The Dependency of the Philippine Government to the United States of America during the
Marcos Regime
Philippines back in the day wasn’t able to stand on its own, which paved the way for
several countries including the United States of America to capture the home of the Filipino
people. The colonizers may have contributed to the country’s political culture, socioeconomic
structures, and institutions which are specifically relevant to the contemporary political system but
while they were influencing the country in many aspects, the use of violence, coercion, and
physical force to fully capture the Filipinos left the Philippines in a vulnerable condition. This
historical legacy led the Philippines and the United States to meet with one another. Relationship
between two countries wasn’t established diplomatically until the year of 1946.
The United States-Philippine relations are based on strong historical and cultural linkages and
a shared commitment to democracy and human rights. The 1951 United States-Philippines Mutual
Defense Treaty provides a strong foundation for our robust security partnership, which began during
World War II. Strong people-to-people ties and economic cooperation provide additional avenues to
engage on a range of bilateral, regional, and global issues. The U.S. government’s goals in the
Philippines are to strengthen democratic governance and support Philippine government efforts to
promote inclusive development and contribute to security and development cooperation in the Indo-
Pacific. The U.S. assistance to the Philippines fosters broad-based economic growth; improves the
health and education of Filipinos; promotes peace and security; advances democratic values, good
governance, and human rights; and strengthens regional and global partnerships. While these
agreements were in the process of being put into practice, the Philippines, not being aware, were also
in the process of developing their dependency to the U.S.
Years before martial law some 800 U.S.-controlled firms in the Philippines had cumulative
holdings of about two (2) billion dollars, four-fifths of total foreign investment and American-owned
corporations had a leading role in the Philippine economy which also came to a point where decision
making was based in the United States. During the 1960s the United States provided more than two-
thirds of all bilateral development loans to the Philippines, thought it surrendered that leading role to
Japan in the early 1970s. In trade, the United States was also the major partner until 1969. But in the
early 1970s, the rapidly growing private foreign debt was still overwhelmingly owed to the Americans.
These powerful linkages with the United States, whether in trade, investment, or credit, helped define
subdivisions within the Filipino economic elite. As stated above, the years before the term of our
former Philippine president Ferdinand Marcos, dependency was already introduced but this tool
became very dominant during the Marcos regime.
In 1972, Ferdinand Marcos became the tenth (10th) president of the Republic of the
Philippines. During his first years, he initiated ambitious public work projects, such as roads, bridges,
schools, health centers, irrigation facilities, urban beautification projects, and also provided generous
pork barrel benefits for his friends and improved the quality of life of the Filipino people. But on
September 21, 1972, he place the Philippines under Martial Law. It suspended the civil rights and
imposed military authority in the country. His reason of declaration was because of the rising wave of
violence allegedly caused by communists, eradicate the roots of rebellion, promote a rapid trend for
national development, and to have a control over civil disobedience that displays lawlessness. Lastly,
it is to protect the welfare of the Filipino people from the dangerous threats posed by Muslim rebel
groups and Christian vigilantes that places national security at risk during the time. This declaration
wouldn’t be made possible without the help of our beloved friend, the United States. U.S. supported
Marcos, even though he was a brutal dictator, because he furthered the interests of the Americans in
Asia. With the continued backing of the U.S., Marcos ruthlessly moved to declare Martial Law.
Dependency was so evident because one of the major sources of legitimation of the Marcos regime
was the initial support of the U.S., thus explains that he would stay loyal to the Americans as long as
he was kept in power. Hence the statement, “Marcos, diktador, tuta”. With him in power the U.S. could
keep the military bases and be at ease of an ally right at the heart of Asia.
Dependency or the Neocolonialism tool emphasizes the influence or even the control of the
foreign interests over Philippine politics and we can clearly see this in the time of Ferdinand Marcos.
Foreign businesses and American military interests dominate much of the Philippines, including the
elites, who are in effect of their clients, thus the relevance of another tool which is the patron-client
relations. Ferdinand Marcos may be the super patron but if we look at it in the lenses of the
neocolonialism approach, it was him being the client to the Americans. Filipino elites became the
lower status and offered services. Our very own elites became sub-elites/clients of the foreign elites
because of the dominant power that they have injected in our economy.
This kind of dependency and patron-client relationship still exists up until now, in the
administration of our beloved president, President Rodrigo Duterte. Our historical legacies with our
relationship towards the Unites States only shows that we truly need their help/assistance. But we
shouldn’t let them dominate us, especially now that we have learned and saw the outcomes of what
might happen if they will dominate us again, because if it weren’t for the colonizers, we might have
our own identity. And in terms of economy, they may be helping us but we are also doing the same
for them. Today, we should promote more of our own Filipino products and businesses, especially
with the advancement of technologies, it would now be easier for us to make and produce our own.
Live and love local should be within us. Let us be more passionate in expressing our concern and
love for the country.
References:
Ateneo de Manila University Press (1991) David Wurfel’s Filipino Politics: Development
and Decay.
U.S. Department of State (2020, January 21) U.S. Relations with the Philippines – United
States Department of State. Retrieved from https://www.state.gov/u-s-relations-with-the-
philippines/
U.S Library of Congress. Philippines – Marcos and the Road to Martial Law. Retrieved
from http://countrystudies.us/philippines/27.htm
Philippine History.Org (2005) The Philippines During Martial Law. Retrieved from
https://www.philippine-history.org/martial-law-philippines.htm
Robin Jakobsen (2017, July 14) Why did the U.S. support the Philippine President
Ferdinand Marcos? Retrieved from https://www.quora.com/Why-did-the-U-S-support-the-
Philippine-President-Ferdinand-Marcos