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| Arrest of U.S. Marine in Killing of Filipino May Test Military Ties | Arrest of U.S. Marine in Killing of Filipino May Test Military Ties |
| (about 2 hours later) | |
| MANILA — A United States Marine accused in the gruesome killing of a Filipino was placed into custody at a Philippine military base on Wednesday, in a case that some analysts say could have implications for the two countries’ military relationship if the public is dissatisfied with the resolution. | |
| Some Philippine senators cited the case in calling for a review of the longstanding agreement setting the rules for allowing American military forces the country, including the handling of criminal cases involving military personnel. | |
| “I’m for abrogation because it’s not equal,” Senator Teofisto Guingona III said Wednesday of the Visiting Forces Agreement at a hearing on the accord. “If they want to renegotiate it, that’s O.K.,” he said. | “I’m for abrogation because it’s not equal,” Senator Teofisto Guingona III said Wednesday of the Visiting Forces Agreement at a hearing on the accord. “If they want to renegotiate it, that’s O.K.,” he said. |
| The Marine, Pfc. Joseph Scott Pemberton, 19, has been identified by the Philippine police as the principal suspect in the killing of a transgender Filipino, Jennifer Laude, 26. Formal charges against him were still being prepared, a prosecutor said Tuesday. | |
| The police say that on Oct. 11, Ms. Laude’s body was found partially undressed and apparently drowned in the toilet of a hotel room in Olongapo City, just outside the former American naval base at Subic Bay, which is now a commercial port that hosts regular visits by United States ships. | |
| Private Pemberton, who was in the Philippines for joint military exercises, met Ms. Laude in a nightclub and the two went to the hotel, the police said. Witnesses said the Marine was seen leaving the hotel room about 30 minutes later and that Ms. Laude’s body was discovered soon afterward by a hotel employee, according to the police. | |
| Under the terms of the Visiting Forces Agreement, which was signed in 1999, the Philippines has jurisdiction over American military personnel accused of committing crimes in the country, but the United States can retain custody of the suspect until criminal proceedings are completed. The agreement requires that the United States produce the accused when summoned for legal proceedings. | Under the terms of the Visiting Forces Agreement, which was signed in 1999, the Philippines has jurisdiction over American military personnel accused of committing crimes in the country, but the United States can retain custody of the suspect until criminal proceedings are completed. The agreement requires that the United States produce the accused when summoned for legal proceedings. |
| On Wednesday, Private Pemberton was placed into custody at a military base in Manila. He will be held in a modified, air-conditioned shipping container that is to be guarded by both American and Philippine military personnel, Philippine military officials said. He has been ordered by a Philippine prosecutor to appear on Oct. 27 for a court hearing in Olongapo City. | |
| On Wednesday afternoon, a relative and a friend of the victim scaled a fence at Camp Aguinaldo, the military base where Private Pemberton is being held. The two demanded to confront the Marine but were blocked by military guards. | On Wednesday afternoon, a relative and a friend of the victim scaled a fence at Camp Aguinaldo, the military base where Private Pemberton is being held. The two demanded to confront the Marine but were blocked by military guards. |
| The case comes at a delicate time for the two countries’ military relations, when the United States is seeking to bolster its presence in Asia. In April, the two countries signed a 10-year agreement called the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement, or E.D.C.A., which is designed to help the Philippines upgrade its military capabilities. The Philippines, whose air force and navy are among the weakest in Southeast Asia, is involved in several territorial disputes with China in the South China Sea. | |
| The new agreement gives the American military more latitude in temporarily stationing ships, aircraft, equipment and personnel in its former colony. But its constitutionality has been challenged and its implementation has been delayed until the Philippine Supreme Court rules. Initial oral arguments before the high court are scheduled for next month. | |
| James Hardy, Asia-Pacific editor for IHS Jane’s Defense Weekly, said the new accord was crucial to American support for the Philippines in the South China Sea. “When it was signed, E.D.C.A. was seen as the maximum level of U.S. basing that the Philippines could politically accept,” Mr. Hardy said. “If it were nullified, then any hopes in Manila of the U.S. playing an active role in the South China Sea dispute would effectively die with it.” | James Hardy, Asia-Pacific editor for IHS Jane’s Defense Weekly, said the new accord was crucial to American support for the Philippines in the South China Sea. “When it was signed, E.D.C.A. was seen as the maximum level of U.S. basing that the Philippines could politically accept,” Mr. Hardy said. “If it were nullified, then any hopes in Manila of the U.S. playing an active role in the South China Sea dispute would effectively die with it.” |
| Private Pemberton’s case is being handled under the terms of the Visiting Forces Agreement, which the high court has upheld in past rulings, and is not directly related to the new accord. But opponents of American military involvement in the Philippines have linked the case to both agreements, citing a perception that American military personnel have committed crimes with impunity in the past. | |
| On Wednesday, several Philippine senators cited Ms. Laude’s killing to argue that the United States and the Philippines needed to re-examine their military ties, including the Visiting Forces Agreement. | |
| “The V.F.A. is a historic document of inequity between a former colonizer and its former colony, which some global political analysts describe as a ‘failing state,’ ” Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago said. “The Philippines is failing because it has never grown up. Never in the annals of modern political history has a country been so manipulated to serve the interest of another, and taught to be so ironically grateful for such an inequitable relationship.” | “The V.F.A. is a historic document of inequity between a former colonizer and its former colony, which some global political analysts describe as a ‘failing state,’ ” Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago said. “The Philippines is failing because it has never grown up. Never in the annals of modern political history has a country been so manipulated to serve the interest of another, and taught to be so ironically grateful for such an inequitable relationship.” |
| Marites Dañguilan Vitug, a journalist and author who has written two books on the Philippine Supreme Court, said the justices were unlikely to be swayed by public anger over Ms. Laude’s killing in their ruling on the new military accord, if that anger is mostly limited to the activist community that often demonstrates against the American military. | Marites Dañguilan Vitug, a journalist and author who has written two books on the Philippine Supreme Court, said the justices were unlikely to be swayed by public anger over Ms. Laude’s killing in their ruling on the new military accord, if that anger is mostly limited to the activist community that often demonstrates against the American military. |
| “Public opinion affects the justices, but if opposition to E.D.C.A. is coming only from a noisy segment, the justices will take note of this,” Ms. Vitug said. | “Public opinion affects the justices, but if opposition to E.D.C.A. is coming only from a noisy segment, the justices will take note of this,” Ms. Vitug said. |
| Ramon Casiple, executive director for the Institute for Political and Electoral Reform in Manila, said that Filipinos were more likely to be concerned about the strategic threat posed by China than about a single criminal case, particularly if there is a sense that justice is being carried out. | Ramon Casiple, executive director for the Institute for Political and Electoral Reform in Manila, said that Filipinos were more likely to be concerned about the strategic threat posed by China than about a single criminal case, particularly if there is a sense that justice is being carried out. |
| “I don’t think this will become an explosive issue with the general public because there is a real perception among Filipinos of China’s threat to the country,” Mr. Casiple said. “But there is a limit to that. If there is a perception that the U.S. is acting like China, in relation to these cases, with disregard for justice and human rights, then the agreement could be in trouble.” | “I don’t think this will become an explosive issue with the general public because there is a real perception among Filipinos of China’s threat to the country,” Mr. Casiple said. “But there is a limit to that. If there is a perception that the U.S. is acting like China, in relation to these cases, with disregard for justice and human rights, then the agreement could be in trouble.” |