A Liberal response to pressing issues
Dr. Florangel R. Braid

A THREE-day international conference that brought parliamentarians, heads of ministries, and local officials from at least 30 countries ends today in Tagaytay City. At the opening session at the Philippine International Convention Center, former President Corazon C. Aquino, keynote speaker, was joined by Senate President Franklin Drilon, Liberal Party president and chair of the Council of Asian Liberals and Democrats (CALD), Hon. Graham Watson, chair of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe, Liberal International Deputy President, the Hon. Hans van Baalen and Fredrich Naumann Stiftung Chair Dr. Wolfgang Gerhardt in welcoming the 100 international participants and local Liberal Party members.

The objective of the conference was to seek a liberal response to global concerns such as poverty and human security — problems that have driven people worldwide to leave the land of their birth. Added to these are the advancement in technology and open borders that had made it easier for potential migrants to avail of opportunities abroad, according to Pres. Aquino who further cited the problems of brain drain and potential depletion of health care as a result of migration of health professionals. The continuing outflow of workers should now be addressed with policy solutions according to Senate President Frank Drilon who cited the tremendous investment the Philippines had made towards the training of its health workers who eventually sought opportunities abroad. Is there a way for countries where these professionals have migrated, to compensate "source" countries, he asked. On this concern, several parliamentaris shared experiences on how migration and "brain drain" had benefited both source and receiver countries.

Since human rights is at the core of the philosophy of liberalism, the Conference theme and papers dealt with rights of workers, rights of the aging population, and immigrants. In Japan, which according to the Japanese parliamentarian needs migrant workers, the rights of the latter, whether they are legal or illegal, are protected. In fact, Japan provides continuing training to all its skills workers. The problem of our entertainment workers however, has yet to be resolved.

The Conference agenda on Liberal Migration and Population Response and that of Migrant Workers posed questions on how the demographic trends — age distribution, population growth, weath distribution, migration, gender balance, presented threats and opportunities, and whether the policies meet the criteria of liberalism. On Migrant Workers, the concerns raised were on how to encourage remittances not only for consumption but also investment, the political rights of workers especially the indigenous peoples, and whether the political structures allow for genuine representation of migrant communities.

The Conference further addressed terrorism and threats to civil liberties which are currently present in many countries of the world.

As CALD Secretary General Rep. Nereus Acosta noted, terrorism is related to migration. There is the movement of physical terrorism across boundaries with the Internet and with various Islamic cells not only in Southeast Asia but in Europe. The joint CALDALDE-LI meeting further examined how organized religions (Catholicism or Islam) play a role in influencing social policies not just in population but also in education, health and other social issues.

In our knowledge society, it is important that governments through their political parties be at the forefront in facilitating the generation, dissemination and utilization of new knowledge. It is noteworthy that this Alliance of liberals and democrats have come together to reflect and address survival issues of our times. The Liberal Party, according to Acosta, is perhaps the only mainstream party that has an extensive size in the international front. Our networking, he says, is deep and far-reaching, and the Liberal Party of the Philippines is proud that we have come first in terms of linkages.

The challenge now is how to benefit from this global exchange through the crafting of more liberal policies, but even more important, how to disseminate this knowledge through various public forums.