Press Release
April 5, 2009

Press statement of Sen. Loren Legarda

ON ABU HOSTAGES

The release of Jean Lacaba by the Abu Sayaff should be taken by the government as an encouraging sign that the group is amenable to negotiations for the release of its two foreign hostages from the International Committee of the Red Cross.

The government must explore all avenues to bring about the release of the two other hostages, considering that international opinion, including no less than the Pope and the president of the ICRC, have pleaded for their safe release. Religious and civic groups in our country have also prayed for the release of the hostages.

The prestige of the Philippines as a country that values human lives is at stake in the current hostage standoff in Sulu. A resort to desperate armed force to secure the release of the hostages at an inopportune time would be disastrous not only to the hostages but to the prestige of our government and nation.

TAX HAVEN

The blacklisting of the Philippines, among three other countries, by the Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development for being "uncooperative tax havens" is an opportunity for our government to minimize corruption and stop massive tax evasion.

Our people have long observed that many officials and individuals with government contracts have used bank secrecy to hide their ill-gotten wealth. The Department of Finance and the Bureau of Internal Revenue have long argued that bank secrecy should not be used to evade payment of taxes nor by corrupt officials to escape prosecution.

The US government under President Barrack Obama has pressured Swiss banks with branches in the United States to reveal the names of US citizens with big accounts in those banks in order to ferret out US tax evaders. It is time that we review our tax and banking laws including the Anti - Money Laundering Act. to bring about transparency in bank transactions not only to be in step with the global trend but also to save our government billions of pesos in taxes lost through secret bank accounts.

CLEAN OUR BEACHES

With the advent of summer, our national government, cities, municipalities and barangays bordering beaches should cooperate in cleaning the shores in order to make them safe and healthful not only for foreign and local tourists, but also for the local population. Brigades of civic-spirited people should be organized to clean the beaches. I also urge the local government units and the national government to ensure that environmental laws such the solid waste management act are implemented.

An archipelago of more than 7,000 islands, the Philippines is blessed with stunning and picturesque beaches with incomparable views of the sunset and the shimmering sea which foreign people, especially in the cold countries of Europe and Americas, can only dream of. We must preserve this gift from heaven, and allow our people and our friends from all over the world to enjoy them for generations to come.

Because of the global economic turndown, even well-to-do Filipinos may no longer be able to go abroad for the summer. Foreigners will also want to take advantage of lower costs to enjoy our beaches. So what better attraction for them to come than our beautiful beaches?

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