Regardless of how either side characterizes the planned Balikatan 03-1, there has never been any question that it will be Filipino soldiers who will do the fighting, according to Foreign Affairs Secretary Blas F. Ople.

Ople made the statement in response to speculations that Balikatan 03-1 will allow US troops to engage in combat.

"The objective basis that should characterize our military cooperation with the US will be the terms of reference for Balikatan 03-1.   There is a clear understanding that Balikatan 03-1 will be based on and build on the success of Balikatan 02-1 which was held in Basilan," Ople said.

Ople said that before the government even began discussions with the US on Balikatan 03-1, it already had a clear idea of what it wanted to achieve and "what we would allow to be done and what we would not allow to be done."

"In crafting this policy, we were guided by the framework established by the Supreme Court when the constitutionality of the Balikatan in Basilan was challenged. And the policy is this: US forces will not be allowed to engage in combat in Balikatan 03-1.  The fighting will be, and will always be, done by our soldiers," Ople stressed.

The secretary said that this policy will admit only one exception, and it is an exception that will be interpreted in its most restrictive sense.  He said that this exception is the exercise of the right of self-defense, adding that "it is an exception that will be subject to clear limitations.  That is, the use of force should be reasonable and proportionate, and shall only be used for the duration of the direct threat."

When President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo celebrates her birthday today, April 5, she would offer a surprise gift to the public: over 100,000 new jobs available through the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) Kabuhayan 2003 Action Center.

In a statement, the DOLE said the Kabuhayan jobs fair opened at the Atrium, Upper Ground Floor, Building A of SM Megamall in Mandaluyong City.

More than 100,000 job openings under the President's Summer Jobs Program are ready to be filled up.

DOLE Secretary Patricia A. Sto Tomas said a daily jobs fair from April 5 to June 10 would be the centerpiece activity at the Center.

Kabuhayan 2003 is the DOLE's contribution to the President's Kabuhayan, Kabahayan, at Kahusayan sa Pamamahala Program (KKK), which aims to generate employment opportunities and preserve existing jobs.

Sto. Tomas said the vacancies available for the Kabuhayan 2003 Action Center daily jobs fair included 60,000 youth work in community beautification and cleanliness; 10,000 office work, sales, hotel and restaurant services; 50,000 factory work in ecozones and technoparks; 50,000 jobs in construction and infrastructure projects, and 5,000 livelihood opportunities in tourism-related, cottage, and micro-enterprises.

Some 3,000 apprenticeship slots are also available in the jewelry-making, garments and textile manufacturing industries.

Those who plan to work abroad can apply for 4,000 overseas jobs available in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Bahrain, United Kingdom, and Hong Kong.

Sto. Tomas said the jobs fair would be participated in by private firms and organizations namely: Guild of Philippine Jewelers; Magiclips; Cora Cares; Uniform Manufacturers Association of the Philippines; Uniform Manufacturers Organization and Designers Association; Federation of Philippine Textile Industries; Textile Manufacturers Association of the Philippines; Federation of Filipino Chinese Chambers of Commerce and Industry; Employers Confederation of the Philippines; Philippine Exporters Foundation, Inc.; Philippine Business for Social Progress; and the Private Recruitment and Placement Agencies.

Also participating in the said jobs fair are nine associations from the overseas employment sector and 29 government agencies.

President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo Friday night ordered the Bureau of Immigration to tighten its campaign against syndicated human smugglers who endanger the lives of Filipinos who want to work abroad even without legal documents to leave the country.

The President directed Immigration Commissioner Andrea Domingo to stop human smuggling during her regular daily teleconference, this time with Ambassador to Jordan Ruperto Dizon, at Malacanang’s briefing room.

She told Domingo to deploy agents to arrest human smugglers who, in most times, disguise themselves as staff members of escort services in airports.

During the teleconference, the President learned that Lea Cordero, a native of Sultan Kudarat, illegally left the Philippines for Jordan with the help of an escort service agency.

Cordero is having problems, after running away from her employer recently but having no legal documents to show.

The President asked Cordero if she remembered the name of her escort but the latter did not recall it.

"Ma’am, pasensiya na po pero hindi ko po matandaan kung sino po iyon. Basta na lang dumating kami sa airport at (sila ang) nagturo sa amin kung ano ang gagawin namin (I can’t recall the escort service’s name. We arrived at the airport and they gave me instructions on how to go about)," Cordero told the President.

The President assured Cordero that she would talk to Commissioner Domingo to end the nefarious activities of human smuggling rings, and have the perpetrators arrested and prosecuted.

Cordero praised the President’s immediate action, saying that the President’s move would protect Filipinos from human smugglers.

Cordero, together with 20 other overseas Filipino workers who ran away from their employers, also asked the help of the President to return to the Philippines.

Mga minamahal kong kababayan, tayo ay nabubuhay sa mapanganib na panahon. Ang pinakahuling insidente ng pambobomba sa Davao City ay nagtuturo sa atin na ang pinakamahalagang leksiyon sa ngayon ay maging mapagbantay. Kailangang maging listo tayo laban sa di-nakikitang kaaway, na walang suot na uniporme at walang dalang watawat. Isang kaaway na ang tanging misyon ay maghasik ng takot at sirain ang ating hinahon at pagkakaisa bilang isang bansa.

Ito ang panahon para tanggapin ng bawat Pilipino ang hamon sa kanya. Maari tayong magpadala sa takot na maghahatid lamang sa atin sa pamamanhid at kawalang pag-asa, o maari tayong tumayo at lumaban. Mangangahulugan ng matitinding sakripisyo para pangalagaan ang ating katatagan bilang isang bansa, at ang ating pagkaka-isa bilang isang lahi.

We are faced with a serious challenge. We must find within ourselves, within our own hands and resources, within our solidarity as a people—the capacity to fight, to prevail and to win.

Walang sinumang dapat bale-walain ang hangad nating kapayapaan. Nakahanda tayong ibigay ang ating buhay at karangalan para dito.

Pero ang kapalit ng kapayapaan ay palagiang pagbabantay. Hindi ko tinutukoy dito ang kaalistuhan lamang ng mga sundalo at kapulisan na nasa unahan ng laban. Ibig ko ring sabihin nito ang pagmamatyag ng mga ordinaryong mamamayan na nagtratrabaho sa kalye o bukid man. Tinutukoy ko ang pagmamatyag ng mga Pilipino na may pananagutan para sa seguridad at kapakanan ng kanilang mga kapuwa. Tinutukoy ko ang bawa't Pilipino na handang maging mata at tainga ng komunidad para alamin ang pangamba at kikilos para ito ay supilin.

The price of freedom is perpetual vigilance. Complacency will only bring us ruin and peril.

Sa Mindanao, ang tungkulin ng pagbabantay ay naka-atang sa mga komunidad ng Muslim at Kristiyano man. Ang ating pinag-isang paghahanda para labanan ang terorismo ay mahalaga hindi lamang para sa katahimikan at kaayusan, mahalaga rin ito para sa ating katatagang politikal at pagsulong na ekonomikal.

Ang mga terorista ay patuloy tayong paghahati-hatiin pero dapat nating lagpasan ang hangganan ng paniniwala at lipi para bumuo ng isang kasunduan ng kapayapaan at kaunlaran. Hanapin natin ang mga katangian na magpapayabong sa ating pagkaka-isa, kalayaan, paggalang sa buhay at pag-aari, damdamin ng komunidad at kapakanan ng lahat.

Ang mensahe ko para sa mga taga-Mindanao ay ini-uukol ko rin sa buong bansa. Nahaharap tayo ngayon sa mabibigat at matitinding mga problema. Ang banta ng SARS ay patuloy na lumalaganap at idinadalangin natin na hindi ito makakarating sa ating bansa. Ang ating mga manggagawa sa Gitnang Silangan ay nabubuhay pa rin sa ilalim ng pangamba, bagama't handa sila sa anumang krisis. Ang pinakahuling pambobomba sa Davao ay nagdulot ng panibagong takot sa ating mga kababayan.

Ang inyong pamahalaan ay gagawin ang lahat ng makakaya upang malampasan ang mga ganitong krisis. Sisiguruhin natin na mapipigilan ang banta ng SARS. Titiyakin natin na ang ating OFWs ay magiging ligtas sa panganib. Hindi tayo titigil hangga't hindi nahuhuli ang nasa likod ng pambobomba at mabigyan ng katarungan ang mga biktima ng terorismo.

Pero, kahit ang lahat ng ito ay hindi matutugunan ng ating paghahangad ng kapayapaan, pagkaka-isa, katatagan at pagbabalik sa normal, sa dakong huli, ang kailangan natin ay damdamin ng pagka-bansa na nagmumula sa damdamin ng pananagutan sa ating kapwa Pilipino. Hanggang hindi tayo natututong mangalaga sa bawa't isa at igalang ang ating kapwa, hindi natin makakamit ang mga biyayang ating inaasam.

Muli, ako ay nananawagan para sa moratorium ng pamumulitika. Marami tayong naririnig na tinig sa mga lansangan, pakinggan natin silang lahat. Maaring paminsan-minsan ay hindi nagtutugma ang ating mga boses, pero huwag nating kalimutan na tayo ay isang bansa sa ilalim ng isang bandila. Huwag nating hayaang mabawasan ang ating pagkakaisa at paninindigan. Magkakasama tayong palalampasin ang unos.

Nananawagan ako sa lahat ng ating mga mamamayan saan man kayo naroroon, sa mga lansangan at bukirin o nasa laot ng karagatan, sa mga bahay at paaralan, sa mga lugar ng trabaho at pagsasaya -- ang inyong Pangulo ay pamumunuan ang ating bansa sa pinakamagaling na paraang aking kakayanin, kasama ang lahat ng lakas na aking matitipon.

Pero kailangan ko ang inyong tulong at suporta. Samahan niyo ako para pangalagaan ang ating bansa at isulong ito tungo sa kaunlaran.

Stay with me. Let us keep our nation secure, and march onward to a strong Republic.

LUBAO, Pampanga – President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo today announced that despite negative global developments spawned by the ongoing war in Iraq, the Philippine stock market performed well in Asia and the country’s export to the United States grew and remained competitive.

The President made the announcement in a short message she delivered before the end of a Thanksgiving Mass for her 56^th birth anniversary celebration at the San Agustin Parish Church here.

In her message, she said she received two pieces of good news from an international analyst who said the country’s stock market performed very well in Asia and the export industry became more competitive compared with other nations.

The news provided her one of the best birthday gifts she received today, she added.

"Again, we have the best performing stock market in (the Asian) region today. And even though the United States, our main market, is weakening, again our exports are still growing, which means that they are growing not because the market is growing but because they get more market share," she said.

The President arrived here at 8:30 a.m. and attended the Thanksgiving Mass offered by her townmates. Pampanga Bishop Paciano Aniceto officiated the Mass.

The presidential convoy encountered temporary delay because of the ongoing rehabilitation work being made by the Philippine National Construction Corporation (PNCC) at the North Luzon Expressway.

First Gentleman Jose Miguel Arroyo and presidential children Pampanga Vice Governor Juan Miguel, Evangeline Lourdes and Diosdado accompanied the President.

The President said she prayed to the Almighty God to bring "peace and prosperity in our country, peace and reconciliation for our people and the peoples of the world, and peace in the next elections so that it will be a culmination of the new politics that we are trying to bring about."

"I’m wishing for peace and reconciliation so that we can heal the deep division in our society. And I’m wishing for peace, and honest elections, so that the new politics can be the legacy of my administration," she told reporters after the Mass.

The President also joined for breakfast the clergy and local officials led by Bishop Aniceto and Governor Lito Lapid, respectively, at the patio of the San Agustin Parish Church.

She likewise visited and inspected the booths of the local Kabuhayan fair being conducted in front of the Lubao municipal hall, some 50 meters away from the church.

The DOLE, TESDA and TLRC set up a booth for jobs. The booth was an attraction for new graduates in the province.

President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo today inaugurated the Santolan, Pasig City to Cubao, Quezon City stretch of the Light Rail Transit (LRT) Line 2, marking another achievement in her administration’s efforts to ease traffic through mass transit in Metro Manila.

After the President graced the Job Fair Program at the Kabuhayan 2003 Action Center at the SM Megamall in Mandaluyong City where she also had her daily teleconference with Middle East Preparedness Team Head Ambassador Roy Cimatu, the President went to Santolan to lead in the inaugural ride aboard the Light Rail Transit Authority (LRTA)-Megatren Line 2.

With the President in the initial ride were former President Corazon Aquino, First Gentleman Atty. Jose Miguel Arroyo, daughter Evangeline Lourdes Arroyo, Transportation and Communications Secretary Leandro Mendoza, LRTA Administrator Teddy Cruz, Jr., local government officials and representatives from the Japanese government.

"Sana mapanatiling maganda at malinis ang mga train (I hope the trains would be well-maintained)," the President said after the inauguration ceremonies wherein she poured a bottle of champagne at the front part of the inaugural train.

The Santolan-Cubao stretch, representing Phase I of the project, spans 4.3 kilometers and traverses Aurora Blvd., a traffic-heavy route. It has four stations – Santolan (where the depot is located), Katipunan, Anonas and Cubao.

According to LRTA Administrator Cruz, Phase 2 of the rail system – from Cubao to Recto Avenue in Manila – is being fast tracked to meet its 2004 deadline.

Once fully operational, the entire line will span 13.8 kilometers and traverse Aurora Blvd., Ramon Magsaysay Blvd., Legarda St. and Recto Avenue.

Line 2, also dubbed as the "Megatren," is at par in terms of facilities and technology with those in other parts of the world.

The trains are electrically-driven, using a solid state propulsion technology powered by electric motors of l,500 volts. This enables the train to travel anywhere from 40 kilometers per hour to 80 kilometers per hour.

With such speed, travel time between Santolan and Cubao will take only from 10 to 15 minutes. At present, travel time between the two points takes from 45 minutes to more than an hour during rush hours.

A flat fare of P12 per trip will be charged from passengers after the free rides from today, April 5 to April 9.

The regular stored-value ticket will cost P120 each and the discounted ticket for senior citizens and persons with disability is priced at P96.

The megatren is commuter-friendly, specially for the mobility-impaired like the blind.

There are Braille engravings in the elevators to allow the visually-impaired to access the stations as well as path-finding tiles to guide them around the station concourse and platform levels.