Dark clouds on open skies

The term sounds heavenly, but some people in the local aviation industry are not happy about the Philippine government’s “open skies” policy. At  yesterday’s Bulong Pulungan sa Sofitel, Robert Joseph, president of National Association of Independent Travel Agencies and Rolando  Estabillo, vice president for corporate communications, Philippine Airlines, talked about it like it was dark, cloudy skies.

Open skies, they told the media forum, is a declaration by a government of unlimited access to international routes to and from its airports by all foreign carriers, with no restraint on frequency or capacity, with or without reciprocal access for the airlines of the grantee state.

There’s nothing wrong with an open skies policy — provided that it is not lopsided and grants the country reciprocal rights, they said. Under the present policy, what the foreign carriers can do in the Philippines, Philippine carriers cannot do in countries with whom they are supposed to have reciprocal rights.

What is happening is that foreign carriers are allowed to land in Philippine airports with no limit on frequencies and number of carriers. The carriers can stop by the Philippines, pick up passengers, and fly on to other destinations.

But Philippine commercial airlines like PAL and  Cebu Pacific  do not enjoy reciprocal rights in foreign countries, notably the United States. They can only fly a limited number of carriers, and they can stop in San Francisco, but not pick up passengers on onward flights to Chicago or New York. This is why PAL had to cancel its flights to those Midwest and eastern cities as continuing flights with only a handful of passengers from Manila could be cripplingly expensive. On the other hand, foreign carriers with landing rights in Manila are allowed to pick up passengers bound for Boracay then head back to Manila.

The liberalization in the domestic air transport industry has proved beneficial as it has resulted in more people flying to local destinations because of lower air fares. But giving foreign airlines unlimited access to local airports have not been advantageous to local airline operators.

The two resource persons also touched on the downgrading of Philippine aviation safety standards by international agencies. According to Rollie, the Philippines has been given a Category 2 standing which means “we are perceived to be unsafe.” Category 1, which was removed from the Philippines, means one is complying with internationally-approved safety standards. Category 2 implies that the Philippine airlines, said Rollie, will have to pay for additional expenses for foreign pilots, and maintenance and insurance fees while negotiating or waiting for an upgrade into Category 1 — a process that can take three years.

Because of this, Rollie said PAL is facing a dilemma, as it has ordered on a leased basis more than 20 modern aircraft costing billions of dollars. “If Category 2 is not lifted by 2009,” Rollie said, “What will we do with these aircraft?”

Robert and Rollie said that foreign countries subsidize their carriers while the  Philippine government does not. Whether it is by design or lack of financial wherewithal, it was not explained. The bottom line however shows that the present open skies policy that the Philippine government signed  does not advance the interest of the Philippine industry, but rather, is perceived as unfair, if not, detrimental to the local aviation industry.

They said the local aviation industry’s plea to the Philippine government to exercise a much stronger and determined effort to negotiate for open skies reciprocity is falling on deaf ears.

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When Sharif Madzmir Ali Hasim and Dr. Anna Marlesa Hofer Tamano exchanged marriage vows the other evening, two clans were wed and a fusion made of different races and origins. The bridegroom’s father, Sharif Madsmo H. Hasim of Zamboanga City is a Tausug, and descended from the Sultanate of Sulu, and his mother, Hadja Sharifa Mariam A. Hasim, traces her roots to Egyptian, Iranon, and Maranao ancestors. The bride’s father, Prof. Salipada S. Tamano, is a Maranao, from Marawi City, and her mother, Prof. Marlene H. Tamano, has German, Spanish and Maranao blood. 

Let me say at the outset that having written many articles about Islam, Muslims and the Mindanao peace process over the years, this marriage ‑ or inter-marriage of two prominent families from two major Mindanao Muslim tribes — I see as a good positive sign that could greatly contribute towards the promotion of a lasting peace in the region.

The rites were held at the Manila Polo Club main lounge that was colorfully and tastefully decked with Muslim decor. The bridegroom’s father, Sharif Madsmo, a civil engineer who is in public works in Zamboanga City, told me, “I have mixed feelings, this marriage is out of my expectation. I never imagined that my family will become related to the family of the Hofers and Tamanos, whom I had heard of for more than 20 years.”

Marlene’s grandparents were the first Christian settlers in Balabagan, Lanao del Sur. Marlene obtained a doctorate in education, became dean of Mindanao State University’s college of business and is now executive director of the Center for Women’s Studies. Husband Salipada, also a Ph.D., is a former secretary of education in the Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao.

The bridegroom, a graduate of Cebu Institute of Technology, owns a construction firm in Zamboanga city and a review center in accountancy in Davao City. The bride is a graduate of the UP College of Medicine and runs OB-Gyn clinics at the Asia Mall and on Taft avenue in Manila.

Traditional Muslim wedding practices were observed at the rites. Justice Saaduddin Alauya Sr., delivered remarks on marriage in Islam; Prof. Shariff M. Julabbi gave a sermon, and  Marawi Shariah Judge Abu Ali Qadhi solemnized the marriage. The couple’s relatives “negotiated” the betrothal while the bride stayed out of sight (she would be given away by her older brother Shalimar.) Then they looked and found her, and rings were exchanged, and their marriage sealed.

Vice-President and principal sponsor Noli de Castro’s sermon lasting 2 minutes said the couple should always have love and respect for each other for their marriage to survive.

Among the many sponsors were Secretaries Hermogenes Ebdane, Joseph “Ace” Durano, and Sergio “Serge” Apostol, Cong. Abdullah D. Dimaporo, Usec. Zamzamin I. Ampatuan, Dr. Ricardo de Leon,  SPDA Chairman Saeed A. Daof, Dr. Pacita Trinidad Gonzalez, and Usec. Carissa C. Evangelista.

My email: [email protected]