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Teodoro: Government studying hosting of Afghan refugees

Alexis Romero - The Philippine Star
Teodoro: Government studying hosting of Afghan refugees
Gilberto "Gibo" Teodoro Jr. holds his first press briefing as the newly appointed secretary of the Department of National Defense (DND) in Camp Aguinaldo, Quezon City on June 07, 2023.
STAR / Ernie Penaredondo

MANILA, Philippines — The US government’s request for the Philippines to temporarily host 50,000 former Afghan employees and their families has not reached President Marcos yet and is still being studied by the Department of Justice (DOJ), the defense department said yesterday.

Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro said while the government would study all the implications of the request, it has to determine first whether it is allowed under the law, particularly the Immigration Act.

“This issue has not reached him (Marcos) yet because we are still studying it. We are still waiting for the opinion of the DOJ on whether it is legal because if it is not allowed under the law of the republic, what else will we talk about?” Teodoro told reporters after the celebration of the 160th anniversary of the Philippine Forestry Service in Quezon City.

He said no specific timeframe has been set for the DOJ to finish its opinion on the matter.

“As soon as possible, but there is a need to scrutinize all issues,” the defense chief said in Filipino.

Teodoro said officials have not looked into the security aspects of the issue, reiterating that there is nothing to discuss if the request is not permitted under the law.

“We have not gone that far. With regard to claims that there is an agreement already, we are not yet there,” he said. “All our actions should have a legal basis.”

Earlier this month, Sen. Imee Marcos, sister of the President, questioned why the US wanted to house the Afghans in the Philippines instead of the American mainland or countries closer to Afghanistan.

According to the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), the Afghans are not refugees but people “who have worked with the US government and their qualified members.”

The Afghans worked for the American government before the Taliban took over Afghanistan in 2021 and are in the final stage of their US special immigration visa application.

Some sectors and personalities, including Vice President Sara Duterte, are against the request, fearing the arrangement might worsen the situation as regards the local terrorists in some places and violate Philippine sovereignty.

Meanwhile, Teodoro said yesterday that proposals to bring the West Philippine Sea issue before the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) have to be carefully studied first, even as he stressed that the Philippines’ rights under international law must be asserted.

Some senators have backed retired Supreme Court justice Antonio Carpio’s suggestion for the government to elevate the WPS issue to the UNGA, the highest policymaking body of the UN, as China continues to ignore the 2016 ruling of the Permanent Court of Arbitration in favor of the Philippines.

Teodoro agreed that the WPS issue must be brought before the international community to reassert the rights of the country under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).

“We must bring to the consciousness of the entire world the right of the Republic of the Philippines under the UNCLOS. We really need to transfer the debate on the WPS from our country to the rest of the world so they know our cause and if this should be done through the UNGA, the DFA has to weigh on that and study the matter,” he said.

In Senate Resolution 659, Sen. Risa Hontiveros called on the Philippine government through the DFA to sponsor a resolution before the UNGA that will call on China to stop its harassment of Filipino vessels in the WPS.

“Despite the Hague ruling, China continues to harass our navy, remain hostile to our fisherfolk and put the fishing industry in the area in jeopardy. This is nothing but a constant rejection of the basic tenets of international law. Beijing’s blunt refusal to accept her legal fate should have serious consequences. The UN General Assembly should be able to tell China to behave,” Hontiveros said. — Helen Flores, Cecille Suerte Felipe

DOJ

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