The militant Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP) rebutted to Francis Ricciardone’s statement that we should know who are our friends and our enemies. According to Danilo “Ka Daning” Ramos “indeed we know who our friends are and you are not one of them. What kind of friend would intimidate you to get what it wants?”

“Besides the Philippines is not a major non-NATO ally of the US, we are not even its ally, we are one of its semi-colonies. We have had more than 50 years of so-called special international relations of the US and what has it given us, a plummeting economy, military bases, onerous agreements, wars and a host of other problems?” added Ramos.

Since our so-called independence from the US in 1946, the only ones who prospered from our relation with the government of this country are its transnational corporations.  
“Furthermore what type of a friend or ally who would blackmail or short change another just to get what it wants? Like what the US is trying to do by saying that it would slash the aid it promised the Philippines, even if we know that it would be used to further suppress us,” lamented Ramos.

“If we have friends like the US government, who needs enemies? Our true friends are the oppressed and exploited people of the world who are struggling to make a better one” ended Ramos. # # #
 

KMP - 17 July 2004