Ramos vows to take on crime and coruption

Ramos vows to take on crime and coruption

By Maria Teresa Villanueva-Cerojano

MANILA (Kyodo): President Fidel Ramos has ordered a major
shakeup of generals and colonels of the Philippine National
Police in a bid to crack down on crime and corruption in the
police force that has jeopardized the Philippines' attractiveness
to foreign investment.

The move appears to give substance to Ramos' vow to clean up
law enforcement institutions and arrest a wave of daring
ambushes, bank robberies, multiple murders and kidnappings that
have threatened his administration's efforts to promote the
Philippines in the region.

The order to demote or transfer 18 top police officers comes
amid calls from domestic and foreign businessmen for the
government to put a halt to the unabated, high-profile crimes,
some of which are believed to involve police and military
officers.

The changes are also taking place amid an investigation into
ranking officers' alleged coddling of gambling lords operating an
illegal lottery game called "jueteng" and alleged police
involvement in the rub-out of members of the infamous "Kuratong
Baleleng" bank robbery gang. The probes have produced little
result, but have tainted the administration's credibility in
combating crime.

In his year-end report, even Ramos noted that the brazen
incidents "pose a serious threat to the well-being of our people
and the stability of our nation" and "the involvement of police
and military personnel, retired or in active service, contributed
to the perception that the very vanguards of public safety are
themselves part of the problem," Ramos said.

In his New Year's report to the nation, he vowed to
aggressively stamp out crime and threats of terrorism as well as
institute reforms in the police and armed forces.

National Security Adviser Jose Almonte, briefing diplomats on
the national security situation, said institutionalizing the rule
of law will be the priority of the Ramos government for the next
two years.

The statements offer some assurance for the many who are
worried over the apparent breakdown of law and order.

Business leaders, including officers of the American and
Filipino-Chinese chambers of commerce and industry in the
Philippines, have expressed concern about the country's perceived
rise in crime.

Japanese Ambassador Yoshifumi Matsuda says Japanese
businessmen and residents' associations in the Philippines are
very concerned about the crimes reported in the media, and are
waiting for results from government efforts.

"I urge -- request -- the government of the Philippines to
look after cases and have a better, more stable and safer
atmosphere for foreigners," Matsuda told Kyodo News.

Respected columnist Amando Doronila says the wave of crimes
has put the Philippines back on probation as an investment
destination after Ramos' three years of promotion succeeded in
projecting the country as a potential new Asian dragon economy.

"The restoration of business confidence in the capacity of the
government to crack down on criminal gangs is the toughest test
facing the government at the start of the new year," Doronila
said in his column in the Philippine Daily Inquirer.

Business leader Jose Concepcion forecasts that unless the
government is able to arrest the upsurge in crime by the first
quarter of the year, businessmen will likely postpone investments
to wait until they see the kind of results they want. Concepcion
is co-chairman of the Roman Catholic-backed Bishops-Businessmen's
Conference and his family owns the giant Concepcion Industries.

Trade Secretary Rizalino Navarro admits that the wave of
crimes has caused concern among investors. But he says that as
long as the government produces results, investors will continue
to pour in their money, factoring the safety element into their
equation.

He also notes that despite the crimes, 1995 year-end figures
show that investments exceeded government targets, and "that
tells you and everybody else that the Philippines is still a good
investment destination."

Police authorities also point out that total crime volume has
been declining at an average rate of 13.4 percent a year since
1990.

From 1994 to 1995, crime decreased from 93,300 incidents to
66,078 and the monthly average crime rate per 100,000 inhabitants
dropped from 11.63 percent in 1994 to 9.63 percent in 1995,
according to a crime assessment report released by the Philippine
National Police.

But pictures of the body of industrialist Leonardo Ty, the
former head of the Filipino-Chinese Chamber of Commerce, lying on
his bullet-riddled car have sent shock waves within the business
community. Similar attacks were made on two other Filipino-
Chinese businessmen.

Aside from these incidents, the string of arrests on suspected
Arab terrorists has also given a picture of the Philippines as a
haven for international terrorists.

But Foreign Secretary Domingo Siazon stresses that the
impression that crime is on the rise in the country is wrong.

"Look at the statistics, there is a drop in criminality,"
Siazon told Kyodo. "It's just that some of the people who were
victims are prominent and so the perception is there is a rise
because they were given more press coverage."