Estrada opponents call for general strike

WEB EXCLUSIVE Maria Ressa on the Philippines' political institutions on trial

January 19, 2001
Web posted at: 10:33 AM HKT (0233 GMT)

In this story: Thursday protests held across the country Impeachment trial in limbo Pressure grows on government RELATED STORIES

MANILA, Philippines -- The Philippine government is facing a crisis of public credibility as round-the-clock protests demanding the resignation of President Joseph Estrada continue to grow.

With the impeachment trial of Estrada suspended indefinitely, Estrada's opponents have called a general strike for Friday and plan to rally hundreds of thousands to march on the presidential palace.

All 11 men prosecuting Estrada on corruption charges quit this week after being denied access to bank records they claimed would prove his guilt. They said a fair verdict was impossible because so many of the senators were in the president's pocket.

Rumors circulated Thursday of a military coup backed by businessmen incensed by the impact the 3-month-old crisis is having on the stock market and the Philippines' currency. Defense Secretary Orlando Mercado denied any such plans.

VIDEO Thousands turned out to protest and to demand Estrada's resignation Play video (QuickTime, Real or Windows Media) GALLERY Scenes of protest across the Philippines PROFILES Key players in the Estrada impeachment case RESOURCES Follow a timeline showing President Estrada's recent political crisis MESSAGE BOARD Estrada trial

"The military has decided not to engage in partisan politics. If (the opposition) is waiting for military intervention, they're waiting in vain," he said.

Such rumors were having an economic effect on the country. As the weekend approached, the London-based rating agency Fitch warned that it might downgrade the Philippines' sovereign debt. Continued political instability could lead to such a move, the agency said.

On Thursday, the call for President Joseph Estrada's resignation swelled as tens of thousands of Filipinos, linked arm-in-arm, called for his ouster in a Manila demonstration that stretched from a popular revolution monument to the financial district.

Cars honked and confetti rained down on some 100,000 protesters who filled the capital's streets around a monument to the uprising that forced out the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos. Similar rallies were reported in at least 17 other Philippine cities a day after Estrada's impeachment trial was suspended.

About 2,000 Estrada supporters prepared for battle, arming themselves with heavy sticks and staking out a position near the palace. Pro-Estrada backers allegedly made bomb threats against one TV network and some reportedly were seeking out the black-garbed anti-Estrada protesters.

Riot police were ferried into Manila to prevent unrest in the sprawling capital of 12 million. Estrada told police to treat protesters with "maximum tolerance" and ordered soldiers to stay in their barracks, Mercado said.

Business leaders also joined the protest. Traders put "Estrada resign" placards on computer terminals and others clanged empty cola cans at the stock exchange after shares closed down 1.4 percent Thursday on top of a 6 percent loss one day earlier. The peso weakened against the U.S. dollar, closing at 54.790 pesos to the dollar compared with 54.525 to the dollar a day before.

Still, the protests were small compared to the masses that rose up against Marcos, forcing the former dictator to flee the country in 1986. Several coup attempts rocked the country after his ouster, the last in December 1989.

On Thursday, legislators in the House of Representatives wrangled over how to restart the impeachment trial. Alternatives included choosing new prosecutors and dropping the charges.

House Speaker Arnulfo Fuentebella said he was trying to convince the prosecutors to rescind their resignations and was hoping for a resolution by Sunday. One of the prosecutors, Rep. Joker Arroyo, said in a TV interview that he would consider returning if Estrada agreed to testify in person.

Estrada's camp supported restarting the trial, saying the country needed closure.

"The only reason that the process lost credibility is because they walked out and by walking out, by copping out, it is a way of saying that from the very beginning, they didn't really have the evidence to prove the guilt of the president," said government spokesman Mike Toledo.

Nineteen of the 22 members appointed to the EDSA People Power Commission, a government group set up to promote democratic action in the Philippines, resigned Thursday and urged a boycott of companies owned by those they called Estrada cronies.

In another blow to the president, a popular actress who once actively campaigned for Estrada rescinded her support.

"We can see what's happening and we should not act like deaf and blind," Nora Aunor said Thursday at the EDSA rally. "He should think that if the people want him to step down, he should go."

Top officials from Estrada's government also are under intense pressure to quit, but most are resisting. The deputy director general for economic socio-planning, Ruperto Alonso, said Thursday that he was giving up his position, which was key in implementing the president's economic agenda.

Estrada, a popular movie-star-turned politician, was elected in 1998 with an unprecedented electoral majority.

In October, Luis Singson, the governor of Ilocos Sur state and a former friend of Estrada, accused the president of taking more than $7.7 million in bribes from illegal gambling lords as well as another $2.5 million in tobacco tax kickbacks.

An impeachment trial similar to the kind the United States uses began last month in the Philippine Senate. Estrada denies the allegations and has vowed to finish his term, which ends in 2004. His popularity has remained high among the Philippines' poor majority.

CNN's Maria Ressa and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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President Joseph "Erap" Ejercito Estrada
Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (BAYAN)
Philippine House of Representatives

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