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State of national emergency lifted

President Arroyo lifted Friday her declaration of a state of national emergency following assurances from security officials that the danger from a coup plot had receded. ABS-CBN News

Red Herring:

• in detective work, mystery fiction, and puzzle-solving, a false clue which leads investigators, readers, or solvers towards an incorrect solution.
• in politics, a minor or even phony issue trumped up as being of great importance, in order distract from more important issues that might help the opposing party.

With the emergency lifted, policement detailed to the Daily Tribune offices have been pulled out. Philippine Daily Inquirer. However, according to Press Secretary and concurrent presidential spokesman Ignacio Bunye, they would check if the media reports are already committing libelous or seditious statements against the President. The Daily Tribune

Anakpawis Representative Rafael Mariano noted [however] that the President did not make any categorical statement that warrantless arrests, media muzzling, and the “no permit-no rally” policy would also disappear, along with the lifting of the emergency declaration. ‘Detained’ solons want Arroyo’s clear statement on plight

Press Secretary Ignacio Bunye Friday said rebellion charges filed against suspected coup plotters will remain despite the lifting of the state of national emergency. ABS-CBN News

It’s curious because, as one blogger points out, the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) is still conducting its investigation into the alleged coup plot. The real masterminds have not been named. The financiers have yet to be discovered. The nature of donations amounting to millions of pesos made by Joseph Estrada’s foundation to groups of the Armed Forces of the Philippines has not yet been determined… [it’s like saying] we still can’t prove that the situation ever happened – but we are sure it did and we are sure that it is over.

I’ve mentioned more than once that GMA has been VERY successful at staying glued to her position and crushing any opposition. While oppression does stoke the fires of rebellion, it can keep it in check too… for a while anyway, and only if the flames aren’t a full-blown conflagration yet. Calculated doses of oppression can keep people guessing long enough that in the confusion, no one will be able to come up with sufficient resistance. GMA’s tack so far has been to do something, then recant, then do something again, just enough to keep everybody guessing and thinking, and not acting.

The lifting of her controversial declaration is a move along those lines, and it’s very Marcosian. You’ll remember that when Marcos lifted Martial Law in 1981, it was met with a collective sigh of relief - only to be replaced by Proclamation 2045: some controls were loosened, but the ensuing New Republic proved to be a superficially liberalized version of the crony-dominated New Society, and the abuses made norm by Martial Law were still perpetuated. Proc 2045 served it’s purpose for Marcos though: it appeased the US enough to look the other way, and lulled many into thinking that the worst was over.

A closer look at the circumstances behind the lifting of PP 1017 reveals that it is much the same animal as Proclamation 2045. Why was the state of emergency lifted? To answer that, you need to first ascertain why it was imposed in the first place. If the root causes for the initial declaration are no longer present, then it follows that PP 1017 is no longer valid, right? So examine the root causes: it was reported that the declaration was a reaction to a coup plot by several members of the military and political opposition. So since PP 1017 is no longer in effect, this must mean that the DOJ investigation has been concluded and the coup plotters have been dealt with - neither of which is the case at the moment. Furthermore, party-list lawmakers who are charged with rebellion and presently holed up at the House of Representatives are still facing arrest according to Justice Secretary [si]Raul[o] Gonzales. Why is that? Doesn’t the lifting of the state of emergency signify that there is no longer a threat to national security? According to Gonzales, they are charged with rebellion; that’s not a threat to national security?!? Then Gonzales issued a statement earlier today saying that it will continue monitoring the media, and singled out that it will analyze the one-week coverage of ABS-CBN on the emergency rule. Damn, I’d love to have a puff of whatever he’s smoking lately.

So, here’s how I see it: GMA says the emergency has passed, everybody’s relieved, then she goes on with arresting political radicals for rebellion and clamping down on the media. The only real difference between this and Martial Law is the lack of a declaration. So people won’t pay as much attention to what she’s doing; after all, the emergency’s over, isn’t it? Very clever smokescreen, that. The perfect red herring. Marcos would be green with envy if he wasn’t already covered with molds.

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