PHILIPPINES: What Marcos Must Untangle to Get Train Projects on Track

Posted by Asia Views | Jul 20, 2022 | 0 |

Rappler.com-July 19

China’s loan terms, local elites’ interests, and tycoons’ lobbying stall Duterte’s train projects. Can Marcos get them back on track? The Department of Transportation pins the blame on China for the stalled railway projects. But corruption on land acquisitions have long stonewalled projects. The new administration must remain extra cautious in dealing with Beijing, as experts found that its loan terms have unusual clauses and higher interest rates. President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. can tap public-private partnership financing, but his team has to woo private investors after they were somewhat shunned by his predecessor. President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. is set to renegotiate loan terms with China for railway projects worth $4.9 billion (P276 billion). The Subic-Clark Railway Project (P51 billion), the Philippine National Railways South Long-Haul Project (P142 billion), and the Davao-Digos segment of the Mindanao Railway Project (P83 billion) have been on the pipeline for years, but have yet to be funded. Transportation Undersecretary Cesar Chavez claimed that China “failed to act” on the official development assistance (ODA) funding requests made by then-president Rodrigo Duterte. Why would China do this during what seemed to be the final step after years of negotiations? The Department of Transportation’s track record and local politics point to some clues. The fine print on China’s loan conditions also hints of struggles in getting the trains up and running. Read more at:

https://www.rappler.com/business/what-marcos-jr-must-untangle-get-train-projects-on-track/

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EXTRICATING NDONESIAN CHILDREN FROM ISIS INFLUENCE ABROAD

Indonesia urgently needs to revisit the possibility of repatriating the neediest of its young citizens stranded abroad, whose families had earlier joined ISIS. Most of these children are in camps in northern Syria but there are also small numbers in the Philippines, Afghanistan and Iraq. “Extricating Indonesian Children from ISIS Influence Abroad”, the latest report from the Institute for Policy Analysis of Conflict (IPAC) argues that the government could begin by bringing back small groups of unaccompanied children under ten years of age, who pose minimal security risk and are most vulnerable to deteriorating conditions in the camps.“The problem is that health and security conditions are worsening by the day in the Syrian camps, and the children are growing older,” says Dyah Kartika, IPAC analyst. “They need access to schools, a nurturing environment, and medical attention. If the government waits too long, the children will be further exposed to ISIS ideology.” The new report examines a 2019 list of Indonesians in camps and prisons run by the Kurdish Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). The Indonesian government has been trying to verify their citizenship, but with pseudonyms, misspellings and bad transliterations, it is a daunting task. At the time the data was collected, between March and June 2019, there were 555 Indonesians in SDF camps and prisons, including 367 children. Among the children, approximately 277 were under the age of ten and 34 were unaccompanied. In June 2021, there are fewer than ten children who are both unaccompanied and under the age of ten that could be prioritized for return. Bringing back children of ISIS families is no easy task. The report analyses the main challenges faced by the Indonesian government. These include definitional issues, bureaucratic competition, the difficulty of verifying nationality, evaluating the toll of exposure to conflict, assessing security risk, and finding relatives or others willing to provide care once the children are returned. In addition, COVID has meant stringent restrictions on travel, placing further obstacles in the way of repatriation. There are several models for rehabilitation of children exposed to violent extremism in Indonesia that could be modified to accommodate the needs of children repatriated from abroad. The report examines these models and argues that the government does not need to have every detail of rehabilitation programs in place before it starts extricating children from ISIS influence. It can start by bringing back the most vulnerable children and then modify programs as needed.

“It’s important that the government see these children as victims” says Dyah. “They deserve a chance to be children again.”

PHILIPPINES: What Marcos Must Untangle to Get Train Projects on Track

Rappler.com-July 19

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