Republican bet vows aid for Filipino WWII vets

Saying the US government’s renege of its promise to the Philippines needs to be corrected, Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul vowed to help Filipino World War II veterans get recognition.

Paul, who is representative of the 14^th district of Texas, assured veterans he will support House Resolution 210 (HR 210) or the Filipino Veterans Fairness Act of 2011 which is currently pending in Congress.

“As congressman and if to be elected president, I will be a strong advocate of HR 210 to make sure there is fairness and that full benefits are given to those (veterans) of World War II,” he told a public rally in Las Vegas last February 3.

“The point is that the government did not make good on its promise to these Filipino veterans. That clearly needs to be rectified,” Paul, who also served in the military in the 1960s as medical officer in the US Air Force, added.

Six Filipino veterans of World War II, who are now living in Las Vegas, graced the event organized by the Filipino American Veterans of Nevada (FAVN) to gather support for HR 210.

The six former soldiers are among the 24,000 Filipino veterans whose claims for compensation were turned down because their names were not on a roster used by the US government to determine who served in World War II.

While these veterans had proof of US military service from the Philippine government, their names were not included in the National Records Center list also known as the Missouri List.

HR 210, filed last January 6 by CA Representative Jackie Spier, directs the Department of Veterans Affairs “to take into account any relevant service documentation, including documentation other than the Missouri List or the list of all discharged and deceased veterans from the 20th century.”

While campaigning in Las Vegas for the February 4 Republican caucus, Paul visited the public rally for Filipino veterans and HR 210.

“My staff brought (the issue) to my attention rather recently within the last few weeks. It gave me incentive to study and I was delighted I can support it,” he told Asian Journal at the sidelines of the rally.

“I am pleased that I can support this position. I will definitely work hard on it regardless of what office I hold but I know that I can definitely do more as president to move this along,” he said later in his speech.

Paul finished third in the February 4 Nevada Republican caucus, behind former House Speaker Newt Gingrich. Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney won the state caucus.

Meanwhile, Justice for Filipino-American Veterans (JFAV) representative Ago Pedelizo urged Las Vegas residents at the rally to contact elected officials who can support HR 210.

“My point of coming here is to try to coordinate efforts in different cities as to how we can push for HR 210,” Pedelizo said.

He noted that groups in California, New York, Virginia and Washington DC, and Florida will be organized to gather support for the pending legislation.

“We simply have to work hard. In Nevada, please do your best effort to convince your senator to support this,” he said while gathering signatures for a petition to be presented to US Sen. Dean Heller.

“The bill must be passed this year. We all should make it happen. If we are to rebuild America we need to recognize and honor the very people who gave their all to give us peace and liberty,” Pedelizo said.

“There is no other issue where timing is of the highest consideration. The average age (of veterans) is 90. Their widows’ average age is 85. An average of ten veterans dies every day,” Pedelizo noted.

It was in 1941 years ago, when US President Franklin Roosevelt promised benefits to Filipinos who fought with the American military against the Japanese in World War II. Five years after that, however, the US Congress passed the Rescission Act which stripped Filipinos of benefits they were promised. Of the 66 countries allied with the US during the war, only Filipinos were denied military benefits.

Since then, several bills have been introduced in Congress in an attempt to give full equity to these Filipino war veterans. It was only through the Obama administration’s American Recovery and Reinvestment Act in 2008, that the US government finally set aside $198 million for benefits of Filipino veterans. Still, thousands of veterans remain uncompensated given the documentation required from these former soldiers. Dymphna Calica-La Putt and Robert Macabagdal/AJPress