Duterte’s ‘Go to hell’: Not an ally’s normal message

It’s important to pay attention to seemingly deteriorating relations between Manila and Washington, which have been allies for 70 years. On Tuesday, Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte, a populist former big-city mayor elected in May, told President Barack Obama he “can go to hell” after the latest US criticism of murderous vigilantism in the Asian democracy triggered by Duterte’s call for the killing of drug dealers and drug users.

Duterte may soon apologize, as he did last month after calling the US president a “son of a bitch.” But there is little doubt that the Philippines are in for a wild ride after choosing a president who has long shown contempt for not just civility but due process and democracy, using extralegal death squads to fight crime and opposition while mayor of Davao City.

This is a terrible development for a nation of 100 million people that only in recent years has begun to enjoy the economic growth seen in many of its Asian neighbors. That growth was spurred by the decision of the last president, Benigno Aquino III, to push for international investment. Such investment is unlikely to continue if “Duterte Harry” continues to raise questions about his stability by saying Pope Francis is the “son of a whore” and calling a US diplomat the “gay son of a whore.”

How could such a coarse man be elected president in a landslide? It’s because of anger over income inequality and constant headlines about corruption, and a desire for change in a political status quo in which power is often wielded by a handful of wealthy families. Aquino’s mother, Corazon, was president from 1986 to 1992, after the People Power revolution forced out Ferdinand Marcos, the corrupt president of 20 years.

No matter how outrageous Duterte’s provocations may get, the United States should not overreact. The Washington-Manila relationship is long and complex — the Philippines were a US territory from 1898 to 1935 — but the ties between the US and Philippines armed forces are less fraught. In 2014, the nations signed a 10-year accord allowing the US to establish military bases in the Philippines again, more than 20 years after such historic US bases as Subic Bay were ordered closed during a surge of nationalism. The primary reason for the change of heart: the island archipelago’s concerns about the increasing adventurousness of the Chinese military in the South China Sea.

This week, Duterte threatened to junk the agreement and forge a strategic alliance with China. This is unlikely to go over well with leaders of the Philippines armed forces, who have been humiliated by China’s seizure of several small islands.

Duterte’s latest salvo at the United States came as the US and the Philippines military began their latest joint exercise. “I serve notice to you now that this will be the last joint military exercise with US,” Duterte said.

He shouldn’t be so sure about that. The key moment in the 1986 revolution that ousted Marcos was when the Philippines military decided it could not tolerate him stealing an election. The junior officers then are the senior officers now. If Duterte seeks to split with the US and trust China as a partner, the officers may say — politely or otherwise — no thanks.

(San Diego Union-Tribune)
Editorial