MANILA: Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr signed into law a bill on Tuesday that aims to develop the country’s defense industry to reduce its reliance on imported sources and create equipment tailored to its security challenges.
“It’s a logical move forward for a country that finds itself at the fulcrum of geopolitical shifts and volatilities. At its core this act is about cultivating a robust and sustainable national defense industry,” Marcos said after signing the bill.
To promote and encourage investments in the country’s defense technology and production, the new self-reliant defense law will offer fiscal incentives ranging from tax breaks and government-backed financing, Marcos said.
“We will prioritize R&D to develop systems that meet our unique requirements to stay ahead of evolving threats, particularly asymmetrical threats that traditional systems may not be completely equipped to address,” Marcos said.
The new law, Marcos added, will also prioritize the production of critical defense materiel in the country, from small arms and tactical vehicles to more sophisticated systems.
“It establishes a structured approach to defensive development, starting with research and production capabilities that align our defense sector with our strategic objectives,” Marcos said.
The law is expected to complement government efforts to modernize its military, as it would help ensure that the Philippines can manufacture, maintain and upgrade military equipment.
The Philippines has a relatively small defense industry capable of producing small arms and ammunition, but it has yet to achieve large-scale production of advanced military systems such as fighter jets.
It is embarking on the latest phase of a multi-billion-dollar effort to modernize its military at a time of rising tension in the South China Sea.
It has allocated $35 billion for the buildup, spread over the next decade, as it has faced off with China in sea and air confrontations over contested areas of the busy waterway.
Philippines’ Marcos signs law to revitalize country’s defense industry
https://arab.news/4ycev
Philippines’ Marcos signs law to revitalize country’s defense industry
- The Philippines has a relatively small defense industry capable of producing small arms and ammunition
- But it has yet to achieve large-scale production of advanced military systems such as fighter jets
‘A den of bandits’: Rwanda closes thousands of evangelical churches
- A 2018 law introduced new rules on health, safety, and financial disclosures, and requires all preachers to have theological training
- Observers say the real reason for the closures comes down to control, noting that even those who complied with the law had been shut down
- President Kagame has described the church as a relic of the colonial period, a chapter of its history with which the country is still grappling
KIGALI: Grace Room Ministries once filled giant stadiums in Rwanda three times a week before the evangelical organization was shut down in May.
It is one of the 10,000 churches reportedly closed by the government for failing to comply with a 2018 law designed to regulate places of worship.
The law introduced new rules on health, safety, and financial disclosures, and requires all preachers to have theological training.
President Paul Kagame has been vocal in his criticisms of the evangelical churches that have sprouted across the small country in Africa’s Great Lakes region.
“If it were up to me I wouldn’t even reopen a single church,” Kagame told a news briefing last month.
“In all the development challenges we are dealing with, the wars... our country’s survival — what is the role of these churches? Are they also providing jobs? Many are just thieving... some churches are just a den of bandits,” he said.
The vast majority of Rwandans are Christian according to a 2024 census, with many now traveling long and costly distances to find places to pray.
Observers say the real reason for the closures comes down to control.
Kagame’s government is saying “there’s no rival in terms of influence,” Louis Gitinywa, a lawyer and political analyst based in Kigali, told AFP.
The ruling party “bristles when an organization or individual gains influence,” he said, a view also expressed to AFP by an anonymous government official.
‘Deceived’
The 2018 law requires churches to submit annual action plans stating how they align with “national values.” All donations must be channelled through registered accounts.
Pastor Sam Rugira, whose two church branches were shut down last year for failing to meet fire safety regulations, said the rules mostly affected new evangelical churches that have “mushroomed” in recent years.
But Kagame has described the church as a relic of the colonial period, a chapter of its history with which the country is still grappling.
“You have been deceived by the colonizers and you let yourself be deceived,” he said in November.
The closure of Grace Room Ministries came as a shock to many across the country.
Pastor Julienne Kabanda, had been drawing massive crowds to the shiny new BK Arena in Kigali when the church’s license was revoked.
The government had cited unauthorized evangelical activities and a failure to submit “annual activity and financial reports.”
AFP was unable to reach Kabanda for comment.
‘Open disdain, disgust’
A church leader in Kigali, speaking to AFP on condition of anonymity, said the president’s “open disdain and disgust” for churches “spells tough times ahead.”
“It is unfair that even those that fulfilled all requirements are still closed,” he added.
But some say the clampdown on places of worship is linked to the 1994 Rwandan genocide in which around 800,000 people, mostly ethnic Tutsis, were slaughtered.
Ismael Buchanan a political science lecturer at the National University of Rwanda, told AFP the church could sometimes act as “a conduit of recruitment” for the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR), the Hutu militia formed in exile in DR Congo by those who committed the genocide.
“I agree religion and faith have played a key role in healing Rwandans from the emotional and psychological wounds after the genocide, but it also makes no sense to have a church every two kilometers instead of hospitals and schools,” he said.
Pastor Rugira meanwhile suggested the government is “regulating what it doesn’t understand.”
It should instead work with churches to weed out “bad apples” and help them meet requirements, especially when it comes to the donations they rely on to survive, he said.
