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HOUSE JOINT MEMORIAL 4002
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Passed Legislature - 2001 Regular Session
State of Washington 57th Legislature 2001
Regular Session
Read first time 01/17/2001.
Referred to Committee on State Government.
_1 TO THE HONORABLE GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE
UNITED
_2 STATES, AND TO THE PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE AND THE
SPEAKER OF THE
_3 HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, AND TO THE SENATE AND HOUSE OF
_4 REPRESENTATIVES OF THE UNITED STATES, IN CONGRESS
ASSEMBLED:
_5 We, your Memorialists, the Senate and House of
Representatives
_6 of the State of Washington, in legislative session
assembled,
_7 respectfully represent and petition as follows:
_8 WHEREAS, The Philippine Islands was a territory of
the United
_9 States until July 4, 1946, and the United States had
control over
10 Philippine nationals and its internal affairs. The
Philippines
11 Commonwealth had no function in matters of foreign
affairs and
12 could not declare war nor surrender its forces; and
13 WHEREAS, On July 26, 1941, U.S. President Roosevelt
issued a
14 Military Order and invoked his powers under Section
2(a)(12) of
15 the Philippine Independence Act (P.L. No. 77-127 Section
10(a)) to
16 "call and order into the service of the Armed
Forces of the United
17 States...all of the organized military forces of the
government of
18 the Commonwealth of the Philippines"; and
19 WHEREAS, World War II is remembered as The Good War
that
20 President Roosevelt claimed to have defended the great
human
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4002.PL
_1 freedoms against the encroachment and attack of the dark
forces of
_2 despotism; and
_3 WHEREAS, Filipino soldiers fought during World War
II under the
_4 American flag and under the direction and control of
United States
_5 military leaders pursuant to President Roosevelt's July
1941
_6 Military Order; and
_7 WHEREAS, Shortly after the war in 1946, the U.S.
Congress
_8 passed the Rescission Act which specifically mandates
that
_9 services rendered by Filipino World War II veterans
"...shall not
10 be deemed to have been active military, naval, or air
service for
11 the purposes of any law of the United States conferring
rights,
12 privileges or benefits..."; and
13 WHEREAS, The legislative rider appended to the 1946
Rescission
14 Act denies U.S. military status and benefits to those
veterans who
15 fought under the command of officers of the U.S. Armed
Forces in
16 the Philippines; and
17 WHEREAS, The significant and adverse impact of the
1946
18 Rescission Act is its unjust discrimination against
Filipino
19 soldiers of World War II by denying them eligibility for
equal
20 benefits administered by the department of veterans
affairs; and
21 WHEREAS, Filipinos are the only national group
singled out for
22 denial of full U.S. veterans status while the soldiers
of more
23 than sixty-six other U.S. allied countries, who were
similarly
24 inducted into the service of the armed forces of the
United States
25 during World War II, were granted full U.S. veterans
status; and
26 WHEREAS, The United States government has yet to
fully restore
27 the rights, privileges, and benefits guaranteed, then
taken away
28 from Filipino soldiers of WWII; and
29 WHEREAS, The gallantry, loyalty, and sacrifices of
Filipino
30 veterans of WWII, who fought for freedom and democracy
in the
31 Armed Forces of the United States, deserve recognition
and their
32 honor and dignity restored; and
33 WHEREAS, There is no pending legislation in the U.S.
Congress
34 that will restore full United States veterans status to
Filipino
35 WWII veterans;
36 NOW, THEREFORE, Your Memorialists respectfully pray
that the
37 President and Congress of the United States during the
First
38 Session of the 106th Congress take action necessary to
amend the
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_1 1946 Rescission Act and honor our country's moral
obligation to
_2 restore these Filipino veterans full United States
veterans status
_3 with the military benefits that they deserve;
_4 BE IT RESOLVED, That copies of this Memorial be
immediately
_5 transmitted to the Honorable George W. Bush, President
of the
_6 United States, the President of the United States
Senate, the
_7 Speaker of the House of Representatives, and each member
of
_8 Congress from the State of Washington.
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