Waging a battle for benefits Filipino-American WWII vets say U.S. owes
them
Jonathan T. Lovitt
06/18/1997
USA Today
FINAL
Page 02A
(Copyright 1997)
LOS ANGELES -- He was a teen-age guerrilla fighting alongside U.S. soldiers
under Gen. Douglas MacArthur to drive Japanese invaders from his native
Philippines.
But Dalmacio Austria, now 72, finds himself in another battle, a quieter, in part
symbolic one, for benefits that the U.S. government promised during World War
II.
Since Saturday he has sat peacefully in a semicircle of lawn chairs with nine
other Filipino veterans chained to their former commander's statue in MacArthur
Park.
They plan to continue their protest, and for some a hunger strike, until Congress
grants full benefits, under the GI Bill of Rights, to an estimated 70,000 surviving
Filipino veterans.
The bill guarantees assistance in education, home purchasing, job training and
medical treatment. Nearly 8 million WWII veterans received education under the
bill.
Filipino troops were promised full benefits when they enlisted in the U.S.
military. But in 1946, Congress broke that promise when it passed the Rescission
Act, which gave benefits only to wounded Filipinos or the families of those who
died in action.
``Mac (MacArthur) was our savior back then. He promised to come back and he
did. His spirit is here with us today,'' Austria said. ``We fought bravely then. We
risked everything. And now we have to show the government we mean
business.''
``I'm getting pretty hungry,'' said Angel de la Cruz, 72, draped in the Stars and
Stripes and a crisscross of chains. ``And I won't eat a bite until we get what's
coming to us.''
Dozens of other Filipino veterans joined the vigil but are not chained. They sit in
chairs in a drained pond below MacArthur's statue.
Some have wives with them. Most wear veterans caps and hold signs.
They sip geriatric-nutritional beverages by the case and shade themselves from
the blazing sun with umbrellas. Nights are spent in the same chairs, but they
trade the umbrellas for pillows and blankets.
Rep. Bob Filner, D-Calif., said the protest should help get the attention of
Congress. Filner is co-author of the Filipino Veterans Equity Act, which would
reinstate benefits.
The bill, introduced in February, is stuck in committee. The main stumbling
block is the cost: between $700 million and $1 billion.
``Those are the maximum figures. I'm sure we could do the honorable thing for a
whole lot less,'' Filner said in a telephone interview from his Washington office.
Esperanza Ladia, whose husband, Francisco, 70, is among the chained hunger
strikers, is worried about his health. ``He's stubborn, but I don't want him to hurt
himself.''
Filner agrees.
``They should probably eat. They've drawn a lot of attention to their plight, but
the bill still has to go through the regular process. I don't want any of these men
starving to death just to get what they deserve.''
PHOTO, B/W, Bob Riha Jr., USA TODAY