Schwarzenegger endorses Filipino Veterans Equity Act

By ROY C. MABASA, Manila Bulletin

California Gov. Arnold Schwar-zenegger has sought the support of US President George W. Bush for the immediate passage of the "Filipino Veterans Equity Act of 2005" now pending before the US Congress.

In a letter sent to the White House, Schwarzenegger told President Bush that "action is needed in this Congress because the number of surviving Filipino veterans of World War II decreases with each passing year." The letter was dated Dec. 8, 2005.

"I feel the United States government should recognize the military service of these veterans and provide them the benefits they deserve. While Congress has adopted legislation that provides a limited number of benefits to some of these veterans, the Filipino Veterans Equity Act would eliminate gaps in coverage that remain and would ensure all Filipino veterans receive the same benefits available to American veterans of that war," he said.

House Resolution 302 or the Filipino Veterans Equity Act of 2005 was introduced by Rep. Randy Cunningham and co-sponsored by Bob Filner (California) while Senate Bill 146 was introduced by Sen. Daniel Inouye (Hawaii). The legislation will amend the Rescission Act of 1946, which stripped Filipino soldiers drafted into US military service in the Philippines during WWII of their US veteran status.

The California governor noted that while an estimated 300,000 Filipino veterans served in the U.S. Armed Forces in the Far East (USAFFE) in World War II, a federal law was passed in 1946 that rescinded their eligibility for veterans benefits.

"I am writing in strong support of bipartisan legislation currently pending in Congress that would address the inequity in current law by providing full veterans’ benefits to Filipino veterans who served at the request and under the command of the US military in World War II. The Filipino Veterans Equity Act of 2005 has broad support in Congress and a similar bill considered by the last congress was co-sponsored by over 200 members of the House," Scwarzenegger said.

Passage of both bills will mean official recognition of Filipino veterans as American veterans. They will be eligible for veterans benefits such as health care, disability compensation, pension, burial, housing loans, education, and vocational rehabilitation

Currently, less than 30,000 Filipino veterans are living in the United States and the Philippines. Most are not entitled to the full array of benefits offered to American veterans, specifically disability pension benefits. These benefits, he said, were promised to and earned by these veterans, but the promise was not fulfilled after the war.

The governor added that an existing budget proposal in the House of Representatives would provide the veterans with a modest $200 monthly disability pension to complement the veterans health care benefits that Congress had restored in 2003 upon the request of the Bush administration.

"I know that you share my commitment to our nation’s veterans and ask that you join me in supporting efforts to give these veterans their long overdue recognition and the benefits they deserve," Schwarzenegger told President Bush in his letter.

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