My Trip in the Philippines

Posted on August 13, 2009 by Jack Stephens

Mendiola St., Manila, Philippines: Protesters apart of BAYAN (Bagong Alyansang Makabayan) gather at Mendiola in Manila to oppose the presidents plans to change the constitution to allow her to become Prime Minister and hold power after 2010 (Photo by Jack Stephens)

Mendiola St., Manila, Philippines: Protesters apart of BAYAN (Bagong Alyansang Makabayan) gather at Mendiola in Manila to oppose the president’s plans to change the constitution to allow her to become Prime Minister and hold power after 2010 (Photo by Jack Stephens)

So I got back from the Philippines on Sunday night and the trip was one of the more amazing experiences in my life. So over the next month I will be going through my notebook and pictures and will be posting some pics and reactions to my days in the Philippines on my blog.

Plenty of these happened during my trip, a four day march from Calamba, Southern Tagalog to Makiti City, Manila, the death of former President Cory Aquino, and me being accused by local militia of being a communist rebel.

Hope you all look forward to the posts.

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2 Responses to My Trip in the Philippines

  1. RonF says:
    August 14, 2009 at 8:01 am

    “The President’s plan to change the constitution …”

    So here’s that process:

    Article XVII
    Amendments or Revisions
    Section 1. Any amendment to, or revision of, this Constitution may be proposed by:

    (1) The Congress, upon a vote of three-fourths of all its Members; or

    (2) A constitutional convention.

    Section 2. Amendments to this Constitution may likewise be directly proposed by the people through initiative upon a petition of at least twelve per centum of the total number of registered voters, of which every legislative district must be represented by at least three per centum of the registered voters therein. No amendment under this section shall be authorized within five years following the ratification of this Constitution nor oftener than once every five years thereafter.

    The Congress shall provide for the implementation of the exercise of this right.

    Section 3. The Congress may, by a vote of two-thirds of all its Members, call a constitutional convention, or by a majority vote of all its Members, submit to the electorate the question of calling such a convention.

    Section 4. Any amendment to, or revision of, this Constitution under Section 1 hereof shall be valid when ratified by a majority of the votes cast in a plebiscite which shall be held not earlier than sixty days nor later than ninety days after the approval of such amendment or revision.

    Any amendment under Section 2 hereof shall be valid when ratified by a majority of the votes cast in a plebiscite which shall be held not earlier than sixty days nor later than ninety days after the certification by the Commission on Elections of the sufficiency of the petition.

    So the President would need the approval of 3/5 of the Congress and a majority of the people to put this through. What are the politics involved in that? Would the votes be there?

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