EAP DAS JOHN MEETINGS EXPLORE EMERGENCY RULE, FREE

UNCLAS MANILA 001040 SIPDIS SENSITIVE SIPDIS DEPT FOR EAP, EAP/MTS, EAP/PD, DRL/CDA E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV PINS ASEC PREL KPAO RP SUBJECT: EAP DAS JOHN MEETINGS EXPLORE EMERGENCY RULE, FREE PRESS, ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT REF: MANILA 995 AND PREVIOUS ¶1. (SBU) Summary. On March 2, EAP Deputy Assistant Secretary Eric John discussed President Arroyo's declaration SIPDIS of a State of Emergency with Ricardo Saludo, Secretary of the Cabinet and member of the Presidential Management Staff. They also discussed the Arroyo administration's strategy for further economic development in the Philippines. Later that day, DAS John discussed the impact of the State of Emergency on the Philippine press at a dinner with local media personalities. End summary. ¶2. (SBU) On March 2, EAP DAS John met in Manila with Cabinet Secretary Saludo. The conversation revolved around President SIPDIS Gloria Macapagal Arroyo's declaration of a State of Emergency on February 24 in response to an apparent coup plot. (She lifted the State of Emergency on March 3.) Secretary Saludo addressed the media's characterization of the State of Emergency as a crackdown on freedom of the press by expressing exasperation with what he characterized as the Philippine media's sensationalism and loose regard for facts, stating that the media was not behaving responsibly in the current crisis. Although the Philippine Constitution allows for government control of the media in a State of Emergency, the President had not chosen to pursue this option, he noted. Responding to the specific case of a small newspaper that had been raided by the police, he further noted that the press was subject to the GRP's laws against sedition regardless of whether a State of Emergency had been declared. ¶3. (SBU) Saludo also discussed the prospects for continued economic improvement in the Philippines. Once the State of Emergency had been lifted, President Arroyo would continue to pursue her development agenda, he stressed. This agenda rested on six goals: increased foreign direct investment; improved infrastructure; increased social services; fighting corruption; assuring peace and order; and "cooling down" the overheated political climate. Enhanced enforcement of tax collection would be necessary to fund this agenda, he added. ¶4. (SBU) Later on March 2, DAS John attended a dinner hosted by the Charge for local media personalities, where talk again turned to the State of Emergency and its impact on the media. All media representatives present agreed that the State of Emergency had had a "chilling effect" on the Philippine press, noting that reporters were now being more circumspect and some were engaging in self-censorship. However, when pressed, they could not articulate any specific harm resulting from government actions. When asked how media practices in the Philippines would be different after the State of Emergency was lifted, no one present could point to any specific changes they anticipated. ¶5. (SBU) Comment. In spite of the lifting of the State of Emergency on March 3, the Philippine media -- especially the Daily Inquirer, a frequent source of anti-Arroyo sentiment -- continues to complain about President Arroyo's media "crackdown." That these complaints are on front pages, in banner headlines, would seem to contradict their substance. We do not anticipate any change in the Philippine media's style or substance in the foreseeable future. End comment. ¶6. (U) DAS John has cleared this message. Bellard