EDCA: TO SECURE SOVEREIGNTY

EDCA: TO SECURE SOVEREIGNTY

“At the end of the day, the goals are simple: safety and security.”

-Jodi Rell (2011)

One of the primary duties of a country is to protect its citizen and nation. This entails the aspects of the internal and external sovereignty. It is to rule and administer the supreme and absolute power of the state over its inhabitants and territories. Such power exists to maintain the safety and security of the whole nation. But how far will the government go just to maintain that essence existing?

The Philippines is an archipelagic country which is studded by more than 7,000 islands. To monitor its boundaries would be a great task for the military to maintain. Given the mass of the military personnel and equipment the country has, it would surely lack a great number just to maintain boundary surveillance and protection. Given such circumstances, the Enhance Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA) would surely be helpful. With additional military power, tools and equipment coming from the United States, a great deal of improvement and productivity growth could be maximized.

The EDCA agreement/ treaty was signed last April 2014 during the state visit of President Barack Obama. It was the newest joint military exercise, training and enhancement program between the Philippines and the United States (US). The agreement includes the establishment of new US bases in the locations agreed upon, however, these posts should not be considered as permanent occupation but only for the time being (10 years period). The US military troops were also allowed to roam around specific areas to maximize security enforcement and response. Moreover, the goal of EDCA is to promote peace and security in the region.

For the past days, there had been heating issues regarding the constitutionality of the EDCA. According to those who oppose it, the agreement/treaty directly struck the country’s sovereignty. By allowing the US military to stay and roam around specific areas in the country might cost the integrity of the independence and sovereignty. However, these oppositions failed to recognize the greater gift the EDCA has offered the country.

As one of the duties of the government, it must always prioritize to maintain peace, security and order of the country. As the contestation of territory between China and Philippines intensifies and given the drastic measures they are employing, the support from the US military might balance the odds. For the alarming daily natural disasters and needed humanitarian missions, the cooperation with these people would surely maximize the target output to provide response and help with efficiency. For what happened last year with the Typhoon Haiyan (Yolanda), one of the earliest response team is a US Naval Ship, which deployed its personnel for search, rescue, medical and relief purposes. Furthermore, such cooperation would benefit the country’s military for the training and sets of equipment the US military could provide.

Such actions made by the government do not always pertain to sacrificing the integrity of the country’s sovereignty. It is just their way to improve, develop and enhance the resources of the country. Furthermore, sovereignty might not exist if there would be no strong security embracing it.