MILITANT group Bayan Muna raised a howl on Thursday over the deployment of US drones in the country, saying it violates the 1987 Constitution which bars the posting of foreign military forces in Philippine territory without a treaty concurred to by the Senate.
The US has deployed MQ-9A Reaper drones in the Philippines at its behest to 鈥減rovide reconnaissance and surveillance鈥 support to intelligence sharing operations between the two nations, a United States Marine Expeditionary Force spokesperson told US-based defense forum US Naval Institute News.
鈥淭he deployment of US Reaper drones in the Philippines is a blatant violation of our sovereignty and territorial integrity,鈥 Bayan Muna Executive Vice President Carlos Isagani T. Zarate said in a statement.
It scored the government for skirting the Constitution by permitting US military deployments under the two nations鈥 Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA).
The US military did not specify the command detail and the number of drones currently deployed on a rotational basis.
Mr. Zarate said the government should 鈥渋mmediately withdraw its request for the deployment of drones鈥 to assert the country鈥檚 independence and sovereignty.
The entry of Reaper drones shows the country鈥檚 susceptibility to being dictated upon by other countries, he added. 鈥淭his is a clear example of the neocolonial relationship between the US and the Philippines鈥 with our government allowing foreign powers to dictate our foreign and defense policies,鈥 he said. 鈥 Kenneth Christiane L. Basilio
