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WHILE the entire nation is focused on the rice crisis and lawmakers
have themselves trained on the issue of the Spratly’s Group of
Islands, the administration has secretly effected an open skies
policy at the Diosdado Macapagal International Airport (DMIA) in
Clark and at the Subic Bay International Airport (SBIA) through
Executive Order (EO) 500-A.
The said Executive Order provides for unlimited
foreign carrier flights into the DMIA and SBIA from a carrier’s
home country without restrictions on capacity or type of aircraft.
The apparent open skies was revealed and sharply
condemned by the National Association of Independent Travel Agencies
(NAITAS).
In a statement sent to The Manila Times, the
group assailed EO 500-A, saying that such order should immediately
be revoked.
“They can call it by any other name like
‘pocket open skies,’ but the fact remains that the executive
order does not require reciprocal benefits for Philippine carriers.
We are appealing to the government to scrap EO 500-A,” Naitas
chairman Emeritus Robert Lim Joseph said in the statement.
According to Joseph, a drafted Malacañang
directive would amend E0 500-A and restore a full open skies regime
in Clark and Subic.
He argued that the Palace edict, E0 500-B, is
being pushed by tourism-related businesses in Central Luzon,
investors and locators in Clark’s export processing zone, and some
local government officials.
Among the new investors at Clark is Singapore
Airlines Engineering Company, the engineering arm of Singapore
Airlines. The foreign firm, together with Cebu Pacific, is building
an $81-million repair and overhaul facility.
“Unlike liberalization policies pursued by
most foreign countries worldwide, EO 500-A doesn’t adhere to the
multi-lateral trade concept. The EO did not revoke open skies, but
merely clarified the implementing guidelines for EO 500,” Joseph
said.
President Gloria Arroyo signed EO 500 in January
2006, unilaterally proclaiming open skies at Clark and Subic. But in
August 2006, just 8 months after the initial liberalization, the
President amended EO 500 with EO 500A.
Under EO 500 as amended by EO 500-A., the
Philippines has a unilateral open skies policy for foreign carriers
that guarantees unlimited third and fourth freedom traffic rights,
and additional fifth, sixth and seventh freedom on a case-to-case
basis, according to the Civil Aeronautics Board.
Third and fourth freedom pertain to back and
forth flights between two countries, by the carriers of both
countries. Fifth, sixth and seventh freedom involve market access by
carriers beyond Clark to third countries—i.e., Singapore-Clark-Los
Angeles or Singapore-Clark-Tokyo—operating the third and fourth
freedom routes between two other countries.
Joseph urged aviation authorities to look into
the reasons that forced several US and European airlines to declare
bankruptcy due to record fuel prices, a softening economy and
cutthroat competition.
“Most of these airlines are subsidized by
their governments and protected by Chapter 11 [the right to declare
the company insolvent] and yet they can’t cope with the difficult
conditions,” he said. “This would all the more be difficult for
our local airlines who are operating on their own and under a trade
policy that is short on equality and reciprocity.”
-- Francis Earl A. Cueto
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