US solon seeks passage of Filipino veterans bills

DALY CITY, California — California State Assembly Speaker pro Tempore Fiona Ma said that two bills have been filed in the US Congress seeking to correct the flaws of the Rescission Act of 1946.

Ma (D-San Francisco/Daly City) made the announcement Monday before about a dozen Filipino World War II veterans at the Pilipino Bayanihan Resource Center.

She said the two bills—AB199 and AJR 6—seek to ensure that Filipino Veterans will get the benefits the US government promised to give them and that their heroism will be remembered by the future generations of Americans.

The Philippines was a US commonwealth during the war and about 250,000 Filipinos volunteered to fight alongside US troops. They were promised full veterans benefits. But in 1946, Congress passed the Rescission Act which stripped Filipinos of the benefits they were promised.

In 2009, a provision in the stimulus bill signed by US President Barrack Obama called for the release of $198 million for the living Filipino veterans—$15,000 each for those who acquired American citizenship and $9,000 for non-citizens.

But while thousands have received monetary compensation, many more were turned away for lack of documents, Ma said.

She said that AB199 seeks to ensure that the sacrifices of Filipino war veterans will not be forgotten. The bill mandates the inclusion of their wartime contribution in the Social Studies Curriculum for grades 7-12.

AJR 6 -- “Filipino Veterans Fairness Act of 2011”, meanwhile, encourages Congress and the President of the United States to enact House Resolution 210, or the “Filipino Veterans Fairness Act of 2011”, authored by Congresswoman Jackie Speier.

The bill seeks to correct the grave injustice brought about by the enactment of the Rescission Act of 1946. (report from Inquirer.net)