August 19, 1999, Seattle Times / AP, Filipinos Protest Proposed Change To Constitution, by Jim Gomez,

August 19, 1999, Seattle Times / AP, Filipinos Protest Proposed Change To Constitution, by Jim Gomez, 

MANILA - More than 150,000 Filipinos rallied today in several cities to protest plans to amend the constitution, saying the changes could endanger the Philippines' young democracy.

In Manila's financial district, 75,000 people marched to a statue of Benigno Aquino, a pro-democracy leader slain 16 years ago, the military said.

The rallies were the first mass protests against President Joseph Estrada, who won a landslide election victory 15 months ago. They were organized by the Catholic Church and by Aquino's widow, former President Corazon Aquino, who helped lead the "people power" revolt that ousted dictator Ferdinand Marcos from power in 1986.

"We fought a dictatorship then," said Josefina Fernando, a Franciscan nun. "We are here to prevent this government from ending up like that one."

Estrada says the constitution, enacted a year after Marcos' overthrow, must be overhauled to attract more foreign investment to help the country's poor. But critics fear the planned economic changes could lead to political amendments that might thrust the country back into the dark days of dictatorship.

"Who will control the change?" Aquino asked the crowd. "There is no sound reason to tinker with the constitution."

The issue has sharply polarized Filipinos and reverberated into financial markets. On Tuesday, stocks plunged 4.1 percent to a six-month low and the currency, the peso, hit a four-month low. Stocks, however, recouped some of their losses later in the week.

Estrada said again today that he only wants to help the poor, and he warned that the country's image abroad will suffer if Filipinos appear divided.

"I do not want anything but the betterment of our country and to raise our people out of poverty," he said in a radio interview. "We are showing other countries that we are divided. We will be destroyed that way."

Estrada says he wants to remove provisions from the constitution that limit foreign ownership of local businesses and bar foreigners from owning land.

Currently, foreigners are limited to a combined 40 percent stake in a number of key sectors, including transportation, telecommunications and utilities.

Those restrictions have caused the Philippines to lose out on investment to its neighbors, Estrada says. He says the changes should boost economic growth by an additional 4 percent to 5 percent a year.

Although the proposed changes generally have the backing of big business, some smaller enterprises fear they may be driven out of business by foreign competition. Leftist groups say the amendments would allow foreigners to take control of the economy.

The changes also have split the Catholic Church. Although the church hierarchy helped organize the protests, more than 1 million members of a large Catholic charismatic group, El Shaddai, held a rival rally in Manila today to celebrate the 60th birthday of its leader, Mike Velarde. Velarde is Estrada's spiritual adviser.

"We support charter change because President Estrada said it's an economic reform," said Rodolfo Guevarra, who attended the El Shaddai rally. "Economic reform is important for low-income citizens like us."