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Show TIk J?alt c- - akf Sribunr Friday Morning February Section s test of the new year. Much is at stake: access to military bases, stemming a communist insurgency, the political and economic stability of a nation with which the United States has a history of friendly relations, U.S. policy has assumed a clear focus. Wisely eschewing support for any particular candidate, the United States is advocating only that the presidential elections be fair. Using our economic and military-assistanc- e programs for leverage, we are pushing for changes that would reduce the role of the government in the economy and break up large, inefficient monopolies in agriculture. We also want military changes that would retire old and corrupt generals while getting the armed forces of the Philippines to adopt tactics and equipment suitable to first real Page 14 Let Latest No Fare Attempt In Committee Stay Put Before the Utah Transit Authority and the Utah Division of Social Services worked out an agreement, wel- fare recipients rode cabs to medical appointments, work and to take their e facilities. Now children to bus. the ride they The result has been a substantial savings in tax monies, because instead of paying dollars for cab rides, Social Services people now reimburse UTA in pennies, comparatively speaking. And welfare clients are able to get to work, the doctor and the baby sitter just as easily as ever. Lake, eiRep. Sam Taylor, ther is unaware of this or chooses to ignore it when he again seeks to establish no fare rides on UTA buses durk hours, because he now ing the touts such cost-fre- e service as a boon to the elderly and the indigent. While the elderly dont receive the same degree of assistance as the indigent, they nevertheless can buy monthly bus passes for $12, a 33 percent discount from the regular 618 a month rate. In short, UTA is already making a significant contribution to helping fulfill the transportation needs of the indigent and elderly. To eliminate all revenue production between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. each k hours) would cost day (UTAs the transit district $3.5 million annually in lost revenues. To make up that lost revenue if an . situation were created, says John Inglish, UTA director of operations, would require the present and (off peak) fares to be raised to 90 cents. Monthly pass prices would increase accordingly. The alternative? Reduce annual service by 1,120,000 miles. day-car- D-S- alt off-pea- i . off-pea- off-pea- k, 50-ce- nt no-fa- re 40-ce- nt on By Richard N. Haass Special to The Washington Post The Philippine presiWASHINGTON dential elections on Friday will mark the 7, 1986 A an( foreign-polic- y Rep. Taylors proposal, House Bill ignores the realities of the present whereby the indigent are being served and the decreased buying power of the elderly recognized. Current U.S. policy is thus one of condiIt further ignores the potential re- tional support for the current government: alities of the future. It fails to ac- providing enough help to encourage reform, enough distance to encourage knowledge repeated efforts of the maintaining moderate opposition forces and avoiding Reagan administration, over five alienating the Philippine people. We need now to look beyond Friday to years, to eliminate federal operating subsidies to local transit systems, an the situation. As is often the effort that is being repeated in the case, it is easier to begin by pointing out we should NOT do: budget Mr. Reagan submitted to Con- what Dont pronounce prematurely upon the gress on Wednesday. election. Observers cannot hope to observe While the administration has so what is taking place at the more than 90,000 far been unsuccessful in deleting tran- polling places. More important, they will be sit subsidies, the demands of the unable to observe much of the vote buying or deficit re- miscounting that is almost certain to occur duction legislation make transit subsi- before and after voting day. In any case, what is needed is not a U.S. dies an attractive, high profile, federverdict on the election (something that al budget trimming target. would be seen as inappropriate meddling) so UTA is an efficient, cost effective much as U.S. Sensitivity to the Philippine transit system. But it cant have its reaction. We should take our cue from them. Dont disengage. We do not have the revenue base diminished by schemes like that con- luxury of simply walking away from the Philippines if politics there are not to our tained in HB 7. liking. Too much is at stake. When would we and under what terms? If it is easRep. Taylor complains his proposk UTA ser- ier to get into wars than it is to get out of to al get free-farvice . . . has passed the House at them, it is easier to lose influence than it is to it. But maintain least four times, maybe five its never gotten out of the Senate Rules Committee. Considering that UTA is already providing transportation services for the indigent, that it provides substantial subsidies to the elderly and that its federal operating subsidies are in definite danger because of Rep. Taylors latest attempt to operate the Utah Transit Authority from the floor of the Utah Legislature ought not to be allowed as much success as it has previously enjoyed. It ought to be killed in the House, preferably in the House Social Services Standing Committee where it now rests. 7, counter-insurgenc- n Gramm-Rudman-Hollin- gs no-fa- re e, non-pea- ... Philippine Policy means constitute a panacea for either the Philippines or ourselves. If her campaign is any guide, Aquino and savvy to may well lack the experience rule effectively. She would face massive economic and military challenges. Her stance on the U.S. bases is equivocal. What then can we do? Here, unfortunately, the list is shorter: Keep a sense of perspective. Strategic stalemate between government and guerrillas is at least several years off. Time for reform exists; if there is a parallel to Iran here, it is to Iran in 1976, not 1978. Work to keep alive a political process after the election. A Marcos win is probably a foregone conclusion, given his control over the political machinery. Many opposition figures will be disheartened after the vote, and a good number may even be prepared to head for the hills and join the communists. We should discourage this, instead urging participation in the scheduled May municipal elections. We should also urge calm, pointing out to the opposition that they have no interest in providing Marcos with a pretext to reimpose martial law. Keep our eye fixed on the vice presidency. Either Marcos running mate Arturo Tolentino or opposition candidate Doy Laurel (who could win, given the opportunity in the Philippines to split ones ticket in voting) might find himself in a key position should the presidents health falter after the election. Working for a proper succession ought to become the No. 1 priority of the United States. Dumping Marcos is an idea that should be dumped. Our experience two decades ago in South Vietnam with Ngo Dinh Diem is hardly auspicious. Those in the Philippine army who oppose Marcos (including all of the reform movements) are too weak to do much about it. If we are to signal an interest in a coup in the Philippines, we may find one launched The author, a former official la Defease aad State departmeats who Is aow teachlag at Harvard, receatly returned from a trip to the PhUipplaes. by individuals we would prefer not to see in power in place of the ailing Marcos. Outright support of Marcos should be similarly avoided. He has not demonstrated the capacity to undertake needed reforms. His health may give out any day. Why back a man who cannot succeed and may not last if backing him will only alienate the bulk of the people in the country? Dont impose sanctions. Aid cuts are a bad idea. Aid reductions would only weaken the economy, lowering living standards further and reducing the governments ability to combat the insurgency. Given the widespread perception in the Philippines that U.S. aid constitutes rent for the bases, aid cuts could result in reduced access to the bases, thereby weakening us militarily while establishing the undesirable precedent that the bases are a political football to be kicked by either side when it is unhappy with the behavior of the other. Dont overstate our leverage over Marcos. Washington lacks the means to convince Marcos to retire early. We cannot pressure him into doing so, nor will he be bought off with promises of a comfortable retirement and exile as Sen. Bill Bradley, has suggested. Marcos has too strong a sense of his place in history to be tempted. Perhaps more important, Mrs. Marcos and key cronies have no interest in giving up the prospects of their ruling the Philippines one day. Dont gush over the moderate opposition. A victory by Corazon Aquino, even if preferable to a Marcos win, would by no Maintain aid at the agreed level, if possible tied even more closely to specific economic and military undertakings. More aid might be offered, but again only if tied to specific reforms. Remember that we are the former colonial power. This fact gives us special clout in the Philippines; it also is a source of some resentment. We must be careful that legitimate American involvement in the Philippines does not cross over the line and become unwanted political interference. If it does, we could well find that what limited influence we have in this important country grows even smaller. Gramm-Rudman-Hollin- Looking For Flaws When the space shuttle Challenger exploded, sending its shattered remnants hurtling into the Atlantic Ocean, the world seemed to stand momentarily still. Everyone grieved for the seven crew members and their families, friends and colleagues. But the urgency of everyday life always intrudes on such moments of sorrow and remorse. The routine has a priority, probably a sanity-savinclaim on our emotions. For many, the routine, from time to time, involves an airplane flight; something most people accept, as a minimal-ris- k undertaking. Possibly the singular truth to rise from the Challenger tragedy is reaffirmation of the fact that anything fabricated by fallible man inherently contains a flaw of fatal potential. It is very likely that a fatal flaw was responsible for Challengers destruction. It is almost assuredly a similar flaw that caused the worst single the Aug. airplane crash in history 12, 1985, crash of a Japan Air Lines Boeing 747 that killed 520 people. g, .That plane lost a times belatedly, to discover the fatal flaws in his artifacts. For example, the 747, which when it was introduced in 1966 had pushed to the limit the boundaries of aviation technology, has become the subject of intensive by air safety people. The latest move in that examination was the Federal Aviation Administrations emergency directive ordering special inspections on between 150 and 160 older 747s to ensure against severe cracking in the fuselage frame, or rib cage. Failure of the fuselage frames, the FAA says, . . . could lead to rapid decompression of the com-merici- al Value of a too. After-the-fa- n ct checks dont return hero-astronau- ts his rule was as firm as a monkeys tail, our White House and our State Department were calling each other monkeys. We publicly welcomed to the White House former Marxist Jonas Savimbi, now born again as an Angolan freedom fighter, and President Reagan proclaimed we were looking for the best way we could help him, thereby guaranteeing that any covert aid we send him wont be covert. Savimbi, fresh from his White House triumph, hinted that he might have to blow the Chevron oil operation in Angola to smithereens. Comes now the honorable Sen. Richard and his hearty band of fewG. Lugar, er than 20 electoral proctors, off to oversee the fairness of an election about to be conducted in 90,000 polling places on 7,100 islands. They will go where they are taken, utter a few tsks, and come back home somewhat tanned for their trouble. situThe Philippines election is a ation. The U.S. news media already have concluded that it will be crooked and Marcos will win. There already have been killings, and our press has been full of reports of how that WASHINGTON There are times in the affairs of men. and nations when the prudent say nothing, wait thing to do is be quiet and see what happens. Some men, like me, and some nations, like ours, never learn. I get paid for it; the nation loses. Over the past two months our nation has spoken out too much about Libya, Haiti and Angola. These brayings have made us look foolish and have strengthened the hands of our enemies. In Libya we loudly called for sanctions that we are already backing away from. Libyan leader Col. Muammar Khadafy jumped into a gunboat and sailed north into the Gulf of Sidra to challenge our Sixth Fleet, which sailed away. He got the Arab nations to vote unanimous support for him and against us. He looked strong and we looked stupid. In Haiti we couldnt wait long enough to find out if it was true before blurting out the joyful tidings that the dictatorial hereditary monarchy of the Duvaliers had been overthrown. It hadnt, and while Little Doc drove around proudly proclaiming Port-au-Prin- taxi drivers are paid to put Marcos stickers on their cabs. Shocking. Politicians pay more, in this country, to have them put on buses. We have been unable, thus far, to put them on the rifle butts of our Army, which is being done by President Marcos in the Philippines. no-w- in Another Viewpoint Marcos Is Election Key; Will He Vote for Democracy or Tyranny? From The New York Times The vote that matters most in the Philippines on Friday will be cast by President Marcos. These are his choices: 1) he can permit a genuinely free contest between himself and his challenger, Corazon Aquino; 2) he can rig the election to assure his victory; 3) he can rig the results to divide the opposition by making Aquinos running mate, Salvador Laurel, vice president; and 4) he can cancel the election at the last moment, claiming a need to uphold law and order The first choice is the only responsible course if Marcos cares about his countrys future and American support. President Reagan has properly tried to hold him to the vote. Having promise of a free and fair called the election largely to placate Ameri- - cans, Marcos has no grounds for rejecting as meddlesome Americas scrutiny and the standards to which it will hold him. In the campaign itself, Marcos has already betrayed his promise. He has retained his office despite a constitutional requirement that he resign before a special election. He is rifling the treasury to buy favor with voters and is blatantly coercing support from all in his debt. Faced with a personable rival who draws exuberant crowds, he has television. And now monopolized state-ru- n comes the insulting final touch: the election will be "supervised by Gen. Fabian Ver, the Marcos henchman who doubles as chief of staff. By plunging his soldiers into the a woman Foreign Policy Look-and-List- en Newhouse News Service Earlier, after a 747 experienced a sudden surge in power during landing and was pulled off the runway when a cable broke, the FAA ordered inspections of engine-powe- r cables. Then there was the incident near Boston when a wing flap fell off a 747 after a nut apparently sheared off a bolt. The FAA ordered checks then, ... I hope to return to Otis Pike fuselage. section or any of the 520 and flew uncontrollably for about 40 on board that Japan Air Lines minutes before crashing into a moun- people to life. back They do, however, tainside. Most evidence indicates a plane make it safer for those who follow rear pressure bulkhead, damaged in a them, whether they are in space push1978 crash and repaired, had coling forward the limits of mans knowllapsed, causing the plane to fly its er- edge or simply trying to get to Peoria ratic and deadly course. or Portugal. But man, for all his fallibility, is the world's only known reasoning aniAbout the only thing more popular than mal and, as such, takes steps, some- - prime time is quitting time. tail-fi- I leave you a delicate, blushing, girlish youth al process, Marcos is playing a last, desperate trump. With the military in charge, is likely to exceed the usual 20 percent and intimidation is bound to occur beyond the gaze of foreign poll watchers. Only one check remains: wholesale fraud cannot be kept secret from his own people. ballot-s- tuffing Reagan has wisely conditioned his promise of more aid on an election that Filipinos find credible. American observers, led by Sen. Richard Lugar, will play a part, but Marcos future will depend on the electorates judgment. If he resorts to trickery of any kind, he can ruin his challengers but without helping himself. Americans are plainly cheering for Marcos defeat and there's no shame in that. Af- - ( 20 years of Marcos, the economy is in a tailspin and a communist insurgency flourishes. Before him, elections were fair if not perfect; every incumbent president was unseated at the polls. Marcos thought he could forever buy Americas favor by playing the loyal ally no matter how great the corruption or tyranny at home. But the basis of that arrangement was convenience. The ailing Marcos misrule now jeopardizes a shared affection which, more than any treaty, has guaranteed the security of vital American bases. The Marcos era is near an end. The best finale is, alas, the least likely: an honest vote on Friday, even one won by Marcos. By calling in Ver after an already tainted campaign, the president himself betrays doubt that he is the peoples choice. ter I I We report with horror that there has been bribery of Filipino voters and report with pride that President Reagan offered a significantly larger program of economic and military assistance if only they will conduct their vote in a credible manner. When one uses proper words, it isnt a bribe. We have done everything we could to get Corazon Aquino elected. We have released old documents saying Marcos was a collaborator with the Japanese and not a guerrilla fighter. We have held a congressional hearing to reveal the millions that Marcos and his wife have squirreled away in this country in the unlikely event of an unscheduled flight. Our press has kept up a drumbeat of complaints showing how Mrs. Aquino cannot get a hearing while showing daily photographs of her addressing monster crowds. Marcos is alternately described as cheating, whining and dying. Friday it all will be over, and if the election goes as predicted Marcos will win. As has been said in times past of places as distant as Cebu and Chicago, it isnt who votes that counts, its who counts the votes. Then where are we? We have vilified him, embarrassed him, humiliated him, and were going to say he stole the election. Were also going to say we want to keep our bases at Clark Field and Subic Bay. Even if Mrs. Aquino beats the odds, she has been picking up votes by saying she wants us out of there. No mailer who wins in this situation, we lose. We will pay monstrous bribes in the form of base rental agreements. This is one from which we should have distanced ourselves. Poor Sen. Lugar. No matter what he says, half the people are going to be screaming, We wuz robbed." Trying to run elections in other countries makes us just as welcome as people in other countries who try to affect ours But we never learn. no-wi- n f |
