Withdrawing Philippines’ Troops is Terrorists’ Victory

On July 19, the New York Times criticized that the Philippines let the terrorists score a victory by withdrawing troops from Iraq in an attempt to free its hostage.

In an editorial, the New York Times wrote, “To the dismay of her allies, and possibly even of the kidnappers, President Arroyo is hastening to comply with the demands of the terrorists,” and pointed out that, “One can understand the desire to save a life, but the Philippines’ surrender will only place all other foreign nationals in Iraq in greater peril.”

The editorial warned, “The decision to withdraw troops may play well at home in the short term, but it could have disastrous longer-term consequences considering million of its citizens working overseas.”

The New York Times pointed out that, “Although Spain and some Latin American countries left Iraq, their decisions, unlike the Philippines, were not driven by terrorist demands,” and added, “The problem lies in complying with the demands of terrorists, not in the decision to withdraw troops itself.”

On July 19, the Philippines completely withdrew its troops from Iraq, and the hostage was released on July 20 accordingly.

Kwon-Heui Hong konihong@donga.com