IMG_1506Foreign Secretary Alan Peter Cayetano’s recent revelation that countries within the European Union (EU) are pressuring the Philippines to legalize drug use and abortion as a “condition” for development grants only reinforces President Rodrigo Duterte’s sound decision to cut off or reject financial aid from this dictatorial Western bloc.
It goes back to the notion that the ways of the Western World are a one-size-fits-all solution to all the problems of the world community.
It is quite ironic that in its attempt to impose its imperialistic views on less-developed countries like the Philippines, the EU hides behind a smoke screen by pretending to be against dictatorial ways in countries that are merely trying to solve their internal problems in the most appropriate of strategies.
The EU claims to be the vanguard of democracy and freedom, yet it has no qualms imposing its will on countries and governments, especially those that are outside of its exclusive club.
Now we get the real score on why the EU is so against Duterte’s war on drugs. It wants drug use to flourish just like it does in many of its member-nations. If it’s good for the goose, then it must be good for the gander. Nevermind that unlike in many countries within he EU, drug use in the Philippines accounts for a huge number of crimes against innocent citizens and fuels corruption in the government as well as political landscape.
And as far as abortion is concerned, has EU forgotten history in which the pro-life movement espoused by no less than the Roman Catholic Church in the Philippines has its roots in the Western World’s colonization of the country — Spain in particular?
It’s irrevant that Politikal Pinoy is pro-choice and has supported the legalization of marijuana in the United States.
The Philippines is not the United States, and the Western World cannot simply dictate its policies and ideologies without fully understanding the history, culture and societal nuances of the country which has gone through hundreds of years of imperialistic, and yes, dictatorial rule.
