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Professor Peek, Mr. Ravenholt, and Professor John W. Lederle, Director of the Institute of Public Administration at the University of Michigan and recently returned from the Philippines, discuss the questions "How successful has the U.S. been in the Philippines?", "How strategic is the Philippines to the U.S.?", and "What does the future hold for the Philippines?" Since the Islands were ceded by Spain to the U.S. in 1898, the U. S. Government's mission there has been to prepare the people for independence. On July 4, 1946, the 7,150 islands finally became the Philippine Republic, but many problems remain. Lederle explains that the Philippine Government is similar to that of the U.S., but that the central government, with the president in control, is far more powerful than our own Federal Government. This accounts for the weakness at the grassroots level--the apathy of the private citizen toward the government. Mr. Ravenholt points out that the U.S. program to advance the educational system in the Islands has been successful. So, too, the public health program has progressed. However, the economic and social aspects of the situation have not been developed under American guidance. The panel agrees that the Philippine Islands are in a key position in the Far East. Aware of this the U.S. Government has built a large air base and is constructing its largest naval base in the area on Luzon Island. The future potential is great for the Philippines with its undeveloped natural resources, vast timber lands, and some 20 million acres of rich farm land yet to be plowed. It is conceivable that the Philippines could help to feed Japan and India if the Burma rice fields fall under communist control. The Philippines are independent, but the job of the U.S. is not over. New techniques need to be devised to develop the Philippine resources. And Asia is judging America by what happens in the Philippines.
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