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| Philippines (Republic of the Philippines) |
State in Southeast Asia, located on 7107 islands of the Philippine archipelago (of which about 800 are inhabited). Territory - 299.7 thousand sq. km. Population - 45 million (estimate, October 1979); Visaya - 41%, Tagaly - 21, Ilok - 12, Chinese - 1.2%, etc. The capital is Manila (7.5 million inhabitants within Greater Manila). The official languages are Tagalog and English. 86% of believers are Catholics, 6% are Muslims, the rest adhere to local beliefs. In the XIV - XVI centuries. in the Philippine Islands there were several feudal principalities, which in 1565-71. fell under the rule of Spain. The long anti-colonial struggle of the people ended with the expulsion of the Spanish enslavers from the country and the proclamation of the republic in 1898. As a result of the aggressive war of 1898-1904. the American imperialists established their dictate over the Philippines. In 1934, the United States granted autonomous control to the country. During the Second World War, the Philippine Islands were occupied by Japan. In 1946, the Philippines was proclaimed an independent republic, but the United States imposed enslaving economic and military agreements on them, and established its military bases on the islands. Under pressure from the United States, the Philippines entered the aggressive SEATO bloc in 1954, in 1966 - in AZPAK, in 1962-69. participated in the imperialist aggression in Vietnam. From 1946, for two decades, power in the country was in the hands of bourgeois-landlord circles, who obediently followed in the wake of US foreign policy. In 1965, F. Marcoe, a prominent bourgeois figure, was elected to the post of President of the Philippines, who spoke in favor of revising unequal relations with the United States and for achieving political and economic independence for the country. The Philippines withdrew its military units from Vietnam, called for the dissolution of the SEATO bloc, for the development of economic and cultural relations within ASEAN, for the transformation of Southeast Asia into a zone of peace and security, for participation in the non-aligned movement. The Philippine government has established diplomatic relations with almost all socialist countries, including the USSR . In 1976, President F. Marcoe paid an official visitUSSR . In December 1978, the Philippines entered into a new agreement with the United States on the status of American military bases on the islands, according to which Filipino sovereignty was established over the two largest bases, Clark and Subic, and the area occupied by them was reduced. The agreement is subject to revision in 5 years. However, public outcry continues in the country for the complete elimination of US military bases and the withdrawal of US troops from Philippine territory. Since 1972, martial law (emergency) has been maintained in the Philippines. An armed struggle is under way against the government of the Maoist New People's Army, supported by the PRC, as well as units of the Moro National Liberation Front (FNL). In 1972, FNOM led the armed struggle for the creation of an independent Muslim state on the islands of Mindanao and Sulu. For many years, the government has been negotiating with the leadership of the FNOM on a peaceful solution to the problem of the Muslim population in the south of the country. In July 1979, limited autonomy was granted to the two Muslim regions, but the problem of the Muslim population in Mindanao and Sulu remains unresolved. Сохранение в стране в течение длительного времени чрезвычайного положения привело к усилению личной власти президента. В стране растет движение за восстановление буржуазных парламентских свобод, создание переходного правительства и отмену чрезвычайного положения. According to the 1973 constitution, the legislative power belongs to the unicameral National Assembly, and the executive power belongs to the Council of Ministers. The President, elected by the National Assembly for a 6-year term, is the symbolic head of state. The Constitution provides that until the elections to the Permanent National Assembly, all power in the country remains in the hands of President F. Marcos. In 1978, a provisional National Assembly was elected, the majority of whose members were deputies from the ruling Movement for a New Society coalition. At the first session of the National Assembly, President F. Marcos received powers and prime minister. Under the state of emergency law, from 1972 to 1978, all political parties were banned. During the election campaign to the National Assembly, the Nationalist Party (founded in 1907) resumed its activities, which created the government coalition "Movement for a New Society" (leader F. Marcoe), and the opposition Liberal Party (created in 1946), which formed a coalition "Laban" ("Struggle"). At the end of 1979, on the eve of local elections, two opposition blocs were created - the National Union for Liberation and the National Union for Freedom and Democracy. The Communist Party of the Philippines (CPF) was founded in 1930, in 1948-74. she worked underground and is currently in a semi-legal position. Supports the implementation of progressive socio-economic reforms, for the elimination of the country's dependence on the United States, for the creation of a single national. front and development of the Philippines along a non-capitalist path. The VII Congress of the CPF in 1977 adopted a new program and party charter. General Secretary of the CPF Central Committee - F. Makapagal. The largest trade union organizations: the Congress of Trade Unions of the Philippines, the Federation of Trade Unions of the Philippines (part of the WFTU), the National Association of Trade Unions (part of the WFTU), the Federation of Free Workers, the Federation of Free Peasants, etc. The Philippines is an agricultural country. It has significant reserves of minerals (copper, chromium, gold, iron, manganese, mercury, etc.). The economy is dominated by foreign, mainly American, capital, which accounts for over 50% of all capital investments. Japan is also a major contributor to capital; it has about 20% of all capital investments (data as of June 1979). There are about 60 interethnic capitalist monopolies operating in the country. Agriculture employs over 50% of the population and provides 60% of all export earnings. The bulk of the land is in the hands of large landowners, including foreigners. Over the past 7 years, an agrarian reform has been carried out in the country. During this time, a little more than 300 thousand tenants received small land plots with a total area of 550 thousand hectares for the purchase (the area of all cultivated land in the country is 8 million hectares). In 1978, produced (thousand g): rice - 7200, corn - 3800, root crops - 3004, coconuts - 4721, raw sugar - 3282, abacus - 130, tobacco - 65, rubber - 54. Rice harvest in 1979 amounted to over 9 million tons. In 1978, the share of prom. production amounted to 28.5% of the DV, the growth of prom. production in 1979 - 5.8%. The main industries are mining, processing, construction and energy. In 1977, 11.3 billion kWh of electricity were produced, 12.1 thousand tons of zinc concentrate, 4 million tons of cement; mined 281 thousand tons of coal, 261.7 thousand tons of copper ore (in 1978), collected 34 thousand cars. Since 1978, oil has been produced in coastal waters. Length of rail roads - 3.5 thousand km, highways - 76 thousand km. There is developed inter-island water transport (over 90 sea vessels), local air and motor transport. The monetary unit is the peso. 1 peso = $ 0.13 (November 1979). Main export items: coconut oil, copper concentrate, copra, bananas, coconuts, sugar, timber, lumber, gold. Main trading partners: USA, Japan, England, Germany, Netherlands. In 1979, prices for food products increased by 22.7%, for consumer goods and utilities - by 20-30%. More than 6.4% of the total number of able-bodied people are unemployed and 8% are partially unemployed.
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