t definitely slowed down the transformation of Clark into a civilian enterprise.Today, the former Clark Air Base-renamed Clark Special Economic Zone-is rising from the ashes, catching up with Subic Freeport. The government has since rehabilitated the power plant and telecommunications facilities and cleared the runways. Offered incentives such as duty-free importation and waived local and national taxes, local and foreign businesses have set up shop with investments now reaching over $500 million. Most of these are industrial and commercial ventures; the rest are aviation-related and tourism projects. Holiday Inn, guest cottages and a golf course are among the early tourist amenities. Apart from these, construction of an international airport has begun and part of it will be open for daytime landing in a few months. From a virtual wasteland four years ago, Clark has also become a job center. More than 16,000 workers have been employed, half of the 32,000 base workers displaced in 1991. The Political Effects of the U.S. Military in the PhilippinesAll This great economic revival seems to have been downplayed by the political insecurity that the base withdrawals brought. The termination of the Military Base Agreement (MBA) devastated the bilateral security ties with the U.S. Throughout the MBA’s existence security ties have been linked to the terms of the treaty. As a result, the U.S. withdrawal forced the limelight on the Armed forces of the Philippines (AFP) and its capacity to protect the country from external as well as internal threats. This has become the most significant concern affecting the security ties between the two countries.Form the inception of the MBA; the United States underwrote much of the security of the Philippines, clearly establishing a dependency relationship on defense. Former National Security Advisor Rafael Ileto warned that the country’s policy-makers took it for granted that someone else woul...
