I HOPE you all have a happy Memorial Day weekend, and most especially to our World War II veterans and their families who have been waiting to receive what they believe they have earned through their service to the US military during the war. Pensions and benefits are important, but what has been most frustrating for many of them is their long-held dream that one day, their families will all live together again in the United States.
Sadly, there are now only 20,000 Filipino veterans that are still alive, many others have died before their dreams came to pass.
But as Balitang America reported, there is now a renewed hope for these heroes that the Family Reunification Act will be passed soon, so that these remaining veterans will no longer have to wait years to bring their children to the United States.
The long wait these Pinoy veterans and their families have been enduring are due to the massive backlog in America’s broken immigration system.
But advocates fighting on behalf of these heroes contend that time is of the essence, because if these Manongs die while waiting, their petitions die with them per current immigration laws.
But a great Memorial Day gift was the hope that came with Hawaii’s passing a Senate Resolution that urges the Federal Government to support the passage of the Family Reunification Bill.
Will 2015 be the year that our Filipino World War II veterans have been waiting for?
Call for Boycott Against Products made in China
Tensions in the West Philippine Sea continue to escalate as China issued a warning to a US reconnaissance plane that was flying over the man-made islands in the disputed waters.
As Balitang America reported, a voice claiming to be from the Chinese navy warned the aircraft via radio to “go away” in order to avoid a “misunderstanding”.
China contends that it has the right to monitor such situations and called for everyone to respect Beijing’s territorial rights.
The man-made islands in the disputed waters and Chinese military buildup on them have alarmed Washington.
To make a clear and strong statement that the US does not recognize China’s claims, the Pentagon is carrying out surveillance flights.
This has been an issue that Fil-Am comminity leaders have been warning Malacanang about, particularly the U US Pinoys for Good Governance (USP4GG). In my interview with Atty. Ted Laguatan, legal counsel for USP4GG, he said they think the Aquino Administration has not done enough.
In light of these new developments in the West Philippine Sea, Laguatan announced on Balitang America a protest to fight against China’s so-called bullying in areas also claimed by the Philippines.
USP4GG has called on kababayans all over the world to boycott products made in China. The group’s boycott includes big US companies like Walmart, Target, and Apple — which sell Chinese-made products.
The Fil-Am group has scheduled the anti-China boycott for June 12, Philippine Independence Day.
Atty. Laguatan said his group’s call to boycott will activate Filipinos all over the world into standing up to China’s so-called bullying in the West Philippine Sea.
“China is acting like a rogue nation; like a non-civilized member of the global community,” Laguatan said. “Therefore, their attempt to get these oil resources of of the Philippines by building these military bases on Philippine territory should be stopped.”
WILL YOU JOIN THE BOYCOTT AGAINST PRODUCTS MADE IN CHINA, and companies that sell these goods like Walmart, Target and Apple?
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Gel Santos Relos is the anchor of TFC’s “Balitang America.” Views and opinions expressed by the author in this column are are solely those of the author and not of Asian Journal and ABS-CBN-TFC. For comments, go to www.TheFil-AmPerspective.com, https://www.facebook.com/Gel.Santos.Relos
