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Toothless Barça crashes out of Champions League with 3-0 loss at Bayern

MUNICH — Barcelona crashed out of the Champions League following a 3-0 defeat at Bayern Munich on Wednesday, failing to make it past the group stage of the competition for the first time since the 2000-01 season.

First-half goals from Thomas Mueller and Leroy Sane put the Germans, who won all six matches to top Group E, firmly in the driving seat before Jamal Musiala tapped in the third just past the hour.

Barcelona had advanced to at least the round of 16 every time they competed in the Champions League since 2001 but will continue in the second tier Europa League after ending up third in the group. Benfica qualified as group runners-up with a win over bottom club Dynamo Kyiv.

Barça, who made not a single chance in the second half and scored just twice in six group games, has lost their last two matches in all competitions following new coach Xavi’s first defeat in charge of the side by Real Betis on Saturday.

“Bayern was better, superior,” Xavi said. “This is the harsh reality we have to face. I have told players that this is a turning-point. Today, a new era begins and we have to take Barça where it deserves, which is not the Europa League.

“I am frustrated because this is our reality. We start from scratch and we have to get Barça back to fighting for the Champions League. I now feel responsible. Now, we have to go out and win the Europa League.”

Despite having secured top spot in the group, Bayern coach Julian Nagelsmann fielded his strongest possible team, refusing to rest top players after they beat Borussia Dortmund (3-2) in the Bundesliga on Saturday.

The German champions had been struggling defensively, keeping just one clean sheet in their last eight matches prior to Wednesday.

Jordi Alba tested Bayern keeper Manuel Neuer with a long-range effort in the seventh minute and Ousmane Dembele fired over the bar as the Spaniards initially pressed high. But that was all that was to come from the Barça attack for the rest of the game as the Germans gradually took control.

A scintillating Mueller run down the left caught Barça napping but his cutback came just too late for Robert Lewandowski who failed to tap in from a meter.

The roles were reversed with Lewandowski chipping the ball into the box and Mueller heading in his 50th Champions League goal in the 34th minute, becoming only the eighth player in Champions League history to reach that mark.

Bayern scored again before the break with a Sane missile from 25 meters out. Barcelona, who needed a win to advance, failed to carve out a chance in the second half before Musiala’s 62nd minute tap-in sealed their exit. — Reuters

Jazz thump Timberwolves for fifth straight win

DONOVAN Mitchell scored 36 points as the Utah Jazz extended their winning streak to five games with a 136-104 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Wednesday in Minneapolis.

Bojan Bogdanović added 21 points, Jordan Clarkson fired in 18 off the bench and Rudy Gobert contributed a double-double of 13 points and 10 rebounds in the win. Mitchell has scored 30-plus points in four straight games, tying his longest such streak.

Karl-Anthony Towns led Minnesota with 22 points, seven rebounds and five assists, while Anthony Edwards scored 18 and Patrick Beverley chipped in 16.

The Jazz outscored the Timberwolves 76-45 in the second half to hand Minnesota its fourth loss in a row. Utah drained 25 of 54 3-point attempts, led by Clarkson (six treys), Mitchell (five) and Bogdanović (four).

The Jazz seized control in the third quarter after a tight first half.

Mike Conley broke a 65-65 tie with a 3-pointer, sparking a 14-2 Utah run. The Jazz closed the quarter strong for a 95-81 lead heading into the final period.

Towns powered the Timberwolves back within eight after the Jazz took their largest lead, 97-81. But Utah responded with an 8-1 run to go ahead 107-92.

Minnesota took a time out at that point, but it just got worse for the home team as Utah exploded for a 14-0 run to turn it into a rout.

The Jazz held a one-point lead after a back-and-forth first quarter and then again at half time. But there were some wide momentum swings getting to that 60-59 lead at the break.

Clarkson hit two 3-pointers during a 10-3 push for the Jazz, which put them up 49-39.

The Timberwolves then took advantage of a four-minute drought for Utah. Edwards drained a pair of deep shots and Naz Reid scored four as Minnesota cranked out a 12-0 run to regain the lead, 51-49.

Bogdanović then went on a personal 7-0 run to put Utah back up by four. After Minnesota responded with a 6-1 spurt, Mitchell hit a shot with 13.4 remaining to end a wild quarter.

Jazz backup center Hassan Whiteside missed his second straight game with a glute contusion. — Reuters

UK, Canada join diplomatic boycott of Beijing Winter Games

OTTAWA/BEIJING — Canada joined Australia, Britain and the United States in a diplomatic boycott of the Winter Olympics in Beijing on Wednesday, with China calling the boycotts “political posturing” and a smear campaign.

The United States was the first to announce the boycott this week, saying on Monday its government officials would not attend February’s Beijing Olympics because of China’s human rights “atrocities,” weeks after talks aimed at easing tense relations between the world’s two largest economies.

China on Tuesday said the United States would “pay a price” for its decision and warned of countermeasures but gave no details. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) sought to play down the growing diplomatic boycott.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Beijing would be aware of long-standing Western concerns about human rights in China. “(So) it shouldn’t be a surprise that we decided not to send diplomatic representation.”

Trudeau’s decision seems sure to add tension to a relationship already strained over the detention of Huawei Technologies Co Ltd Chief Financial Officer Meng Wanzhou on a US warrant.

A spokesperson for the Chinese Embassy in Canada accused Trudeau of making false claims.

“Based on ideological biases as well as lies and rumors, Canada and a handful of Western countries have been flagrantly engaged in political maneuvering, with the attempt to disrupt the smooth progress of Beijing Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games. Their clumsy performance can hardly find any support and is doomed to fail,” the spokesperson said in a written statement.

IOC President Thomas Bach said the Committee had always been concerned with the participation of the athletes in the Olympic Games.

So “we welcome the support for their Olympic teams all these governments have been emphasising,” he told a video news conference. “This is giving the athletes certainty and this is what the IOC is about.”

The chairman of the athletes’ committee of Beijing 2022 said the Games were a stage for athletes, not a runway for politics, according to the Xinhua news agency.

“The politicization of sport and the use of the Olympic Games as a vehicle for political purposes by individual politicians would undoubtedly breach (the) Olympic Charter,” said Yang Yang, China’s first Winter Olympics gold med-alist.

BRITAIN, AUSTRALIA BOYCOTT

Asked earlier in parliament if his country would follow Washington’s lead, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said: “There will be effectively a diplomatic boycott of the Winter Olympics in Beijing, no ministers are expected to attend and no officials.”

“I do not think that sporting boycotts are sensible and that remains the policy of the government,” he added, indicating British athletes will still compete.

China said it had not invited British officials.

“Making an issue out of the presence of government officials at the Beijing Winter Olympics is in essence a political smearing campaign,” a spokesman for the Chinese embassy in London said.

Earlier, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said Australia’s decision came because of its struggles to reopen diplomatic channels with China to discuss alleged human rights abuses in the far western region of Xinjiang and Beijing’s moves against Australian imports.

China has denied any wrongdoing in Xinjiang and said allegations are fabricated.

Foreign ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said Australian politicians were engaged in “political posturing.”

“Whether they come or not, nobody cares,” he added.

The Australian Olympic Committee said the boycott would have no impact on athletes’ preparations for the Games, which run from Feb. 4 to 20, adding that “diplomatic options” were a matter for governments.

For the Canadian Olympic Committee (COC), a diplomatic boycott recognized the distinction between government and athlete participation while providing a platform to shine a light on China issues.

“The Canadian Olympic Committee and Canadian Paralympic Committee remain concerned about the issues in China but understand the Games will create an important platform to draw attention to them,” said the COC in a statement.

Other US allies have been slow to commit to joining the boycott, though Japan is considering not sending cabinet members to the Games, the Sankei Shimbun daily said on Wednesday, citing unidentified government sources.

“Countries’ decisions to boycott the Olympics, that’s their decision that they have to make for themselves,” said White House spokesperson Karine Jean-Pierre. “It’s up to them (other countries) to decide how they’re going to move forward, and if they’re going to boycott or not.”

President Joseph R. Biden, Jr.’s administration cited what the United States calls genocide against minority Muslims in China’s Xinjiang region. China denies all rights abuses.

The United States is set to host the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles and is preparing to bid for the 2030 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City. — Reuters

PSEi climbs as worries over new variant ease

BW FILE PHOTO

PHILIPPINE shares rose on Thursday as worries over the new coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) variant eased, with local infections also staying low.

The benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) gained 87.62 points or 1.22% to close at 7,234.92 on Thursday, while the broader all shares index went up by 37.04 points or 0.97% to 3,842.55.

“Philippine shares climbed higher on Wednesday, coming on the back of improved investor optimism that the Omicron variant is not severe enough to derail the economic recovery,” Regina Capital Development Corp. Head of Sales Luis A. Limlingan said in a Viber message.

“The rally was sustained by optimism towards the Philippines’ improving COVID-19 situation and the positive spillovers from Wall Street’s overnight rise. Preliminary evidence, which shows that the Omicron variant may cause milder infections compared to the Delta variant according to the World Health Organization, also helped in lifting sentiment,” Philstocks Financial, Inc. Senior Research Analyst Japhet Louis O. Tantiangco said in a Viber message.

The Department of Health reported 562 new COVID-19 cases on Thursday, with the total infections at 2,835,996 since the pandemic first hit the country on March 2020.

Meanwhile, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 35.32 points or 0.10% to 35,754.75; the S&P 500 gained 14.46 points or 0.31% to 4,701.21; and the Nasdaq Composite added 100.07 points or 0.64% to 15,786.99, Reuters reported.

“In the international scene, participants may also be digesting the recently announced inflation report in China for the month of November,” Timson Securities, Inc. Trader Darren Blaine T. Pangan said in a Viber message.

China’s factory-gate inflation cooled slightly in November, driven by a government crackdown on runaway commodity prices and an easing power crunch, potentially giving policy makers some latitude to unleash more stimulus.

Back home, most sectoral indices closed in the green on Thursday except for property, which fell 2.48 points or 0.07% to 3,265.44.

Meanwhile, financials added 38.21 points or 2.42% to 1,612.23; holding firms improved by 87.80 points or 1.27% to end at 6,978.22; industrials gained 116.42 points or 1.12% to 10,433.58; services climbed 21.19 points or 1.07% to 1,994.98; and mining and oil rose 15.21 points or 0.16% to close at 9,213.21.

Value turnover increased to P8.61 billion with 1.87 billion issues switching hands on Thursday from the P7.86 billion with 1.98 billion shares traded on Tuesday.

Financial markets were closed on Wednesday in commemoration of the Feast of the Immaculate Conception of Mary.

Advancers outnumbered decliners, 108 against 90, while 45 names closed unchanged.

Net foreign selling surged to P1.09 billion yesterday from the P259.70 million logged on Tuesday.

“6,800 seems to be the closest support area to watch, while 7,454.50 may be considered the nearest major resistance area for the index,” Mr. Pangan said. — MCL with Reuters

Peso climbs on stock market’s gains

BW FILE PHOTO

The peso strengthened versus the greenback on Thursday following the stock market’s gains and new findings related to the protection provided by some vaccines against the Omicron variant of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

The local unit ended trading at P50.26 per dollar on Thursday, appreciating by 11.5 centavos from its P50.375 finish on Tuesday, based on data from the Bankers Association of the Philippines.

The market was closed on Wednesday in commemoration of the Feast of the Immaculate Conception of Mary.

The peso opened Thursday’s session stronger than its previous close at P50.32 per dollar. Its weakest showing was at P50.38, while its intraday best was at P50.18 against the greenback.

Dollars exchanged decreased to $835.22 million on Thursday from $944.35 million on Tuesday.

The peso appreciated on Thursday as the stock market gained for the fifth straight day, Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. Chief Economist Michael L. Ricafort said.

The benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange index rose by 87.62 points or 1.23% to end trading at 7,234.92 on Thursday. The wider all shares index likewise gained 37.04 points or 0.97% to 3,842.55.

Meanwhile, a trader said the peso strengthened due to improved risk appetite following new findings which showed some COVID-19 vaccines gave ample protection against the Omicron variant.

BioNTech and Pfizer on Wednesday said a three-shot of their vaccines resulted to neutralizing the new Omicron variant in a laboratory test, showing hopes that booster shots could provide protection from the new variant, Reuters reported.

For Friday, Mr. Ricafort gave a forecast range of P50.15 to P50.35 per dollar, while the trader expects the local unit to move within P50.20 to P50.35. — L.W.T. Noble with Reuters

Tom Brady looks to improve on 32-3 all-time mark vs Bills

THE Buffalo Bills had their fill of Tom Brady when the future Hall of Fame quarterback played for the AFC East-rival New England Patriots.

Nearly 21 months removed from leaving a 20-year career with the Patriots, Brady will get his first look at the Bills while wearing a Tampa Bay Buccaneers uniform on Sunday in Tampa, FL.

The Buccaneers (9-3) can clinch the NFC South title with a victory over Buffalo (7-5) and a loss or tie by both the New Orleans Saints (5-7) and Carolina Panthers (5-7). The Saints visit the New York Jets (3-9) on Sunday, while the Panthers host the Atlanta Falcons (5-7).

Enter Brady, who leads the National Football League (NFL) in passing yards (3,771) and touchdown passes (34). He traditionally has come up large when facing the Bills, posting a 32-3 record in 35 starts to hold the NFL record for most career wins by a quarterback against one opponent.

“He’s given us the blues on occasions,” Buffalo defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier said. “He definitely presents challenges. He got him another ring. He just continues to get better and better it seems. It’s just amazing. He’s do-ing a great job down there.”

Buffalo-area native Rob Gronkowski also has had a hand in taking down the Bills. The tight end has 69 catches for 1,070 yards with 12 touchdowns in 15 career meetings with Buffalo.

Brady and Gronkowski are coming off impressive performances last week, with the former tossing two of his four touchdown passes to the latter in Tampa Bay’s 30-17 victory over Atlanta.

Buccaneers coach Bruce Arians on Wednesday was asked if Gronkowski is better prepared for football this season as compared to last year following his retirement.

“Oh, it’s light years from last year, even all the way through the playoffs. We were still learning last year,” Arians said. “This year, there’s a hand signal, there’s eyeball contact, let’s play. We’re so much more advanced, not just those two but everybody.”

The numbers back up Arians, who has seen his team average an NFL-best 31.4 points per game this season while the high-octane offense has churned out 403.7 yards per contest.

The Bills aren’t too shabby in that regard, although their fifth-best 28.0-point average took a hit following a 14-10 setback to the Patriots on Monday.

Sure, Mother Nature played a significant role in that contest, with blustery conditions hindering any semblance of an efficient passing game. Josh Allen was able to throw a touchdown pass, however he was limited to just a sea-son-low 145 yards.

The Bills have surrendered the fewest passing yards per game this season (165.3) and the fewest passing touchdowns (eight).

“He still has a really good arsenal of receivers and one of the best tight ends in pro football in Gronkowski,” Frazier said. “So, it’s going to be a challenge for sure. But we’ve got to find a way. We’ve got to find a way to be able to put ourselves in a position to make some plays on the back end. And we look forward to the challenge.

“It’s a game that we need for a lot of reasons. And we’ve got to find a way to slow that passing attack down and give us a chance to get a W.”

Buffalo wide receiver Cole Beasley did not participate in Wednesday’s practice, albeit due to rest. Defensive tackle Star Lotulelei (toe) and defensive end Efe Obada (hip) were among the players listed as limited for the Bills.

Cornerback Jamel Dean (concussion), safety Jordan Whitehead (calf), center Ryan Jensen (ankle) and defensive lineman Will Gholston (wrist/knee) did not practice on Wednesday for the Buccaneers. Ali Marpet (abdomen) and defensive lineman Vita Vea (knee) were listed as limited, but those injuries did not keep them out of last week’s game versus the Falcons. — Reuters

Woods to compete with son Charlie in next week’s PNC Championshi

TIGER Woods, who is unsure when he will return to the Professional Golfers Association (PGA) Tour after sustaining serious leg injuries in a car crash, said on Wednesday he would compete with his 12-year-old son Charlie at next week’s PNC Championship in Orlando.

The Dec. 18-19 event is a 36-hole tournament with a field typically comprised of major champions and their parents or children.

“Although it’s been a long and challenging year, I am very excited to close it out by competing in the @PNCchampionship with my son Charlie,” Woods wrote on Twitter. “I’m playing as a Dad and couldn’t be more excited and proud.”

Last month, Woods posted a video to social media of him swinging a club along with the caption “making progress” and last week, he logged practice time at the Hero World Challenge event he hosted in the Bahamas.

Woods suffered serious injuries to his right leg and foot when he lost control of his car in Los Angeles in February and faced the possibility of having his leg amputated during a three-week hospital stay.

Last week, the 15-times major champion held his first news conference since the accident and said that while his game was nowhere near ready for the PGA Tour it was good enough to play “hit-and-giggle.”

That comment led many to believe the 15-times major champion would announce his return to golf for the PNC Championship given that it is held near his home on a flat course with no rough and his son could hit all the tee shots.

For Woods and his son, this will mark their second time playing in the tournament having made their debut last year when they finished in a share of seventh place in the 20-team event.

Among those playing in this year’s event is nine-times major champion Gary Player, who said he was looking forward to seeing Woods back on the course.

“I think I speak on everyone’s behalf when I say the sports community is thrilled to see you back on the course!” Player, who will be competing with his grandson, wrote on Twitter. — Reuters

Lakers’ James

Despite having just played 36 minutes, the bounce was still evident in LeBron James’ voice in the aftermath of the Lakers’ emphatic win against the Celtics the other day. No doubt, the fact that they had four days of rest prior to hosting their longtime rivals helped; he scored 16 points in the first quarter alone, and he stayed active and efficient the rest of the way en route to putting up 30 (on 19 shots), four, and five. As he told scribes in his post-mortem, “I’m as young as I’ve ever been.”

Hmm. Perhaps not. There can be no denying the mileage James has accumulated through 19 seasons in the National Basketball Association; beyond turning 37 by the end of the month, his odometer — close to 62,000 minutes — makes him old for his age. Moreover, the numbers don’t lie; advanced statistics have his player efficiency rating declining for the fourth consecutive year. Heck, he’s not even at the top of the Lakers’ list in the category; the distinction now belongs to fellow All-Star Anthony Davis.

And then there are the injuries James has sustained with increasing frequency of late. It’s no coincidence that, after playing all 82 regular-season matches for the Cavaliers in the 2017-18 season, he wound up missing a whopping 58 in the next three years. For the current campaign, he has been compelled to sit out 12 of the Lakers’ 25 set-tos. To argue that his iron-man reputation has taken a hit in recent memory would be to understate the obvious.

Still, James is James, which is why he continues to be the Lakers’ most vital cog. Precisely because he doesn’t seem to have a lot of time anymore, he aims to make the most of his chances. So far, the outlook hasn’t been great; the purple and gold are wallowing in mediocrity and evidently still searching for identity, their victory over their fellow pioneers notwithstanding. If his immediate past pronouncements are to be a gauge, however, better things are in store. He’s not the best problem solver in the league for nothing, and, if nothing else, he’ll be sure to take the opportunity to prove that things are, indeed, looking up.

 

ANTHONY L. CUAYCONG has been writing Courtside since BusinessWorld introduced a Sports section in 1994. He is a consultant on strategic planning, operations and Human Resources management, corporate communications, and business development.

No one can do it alone

Last Tuesday, Dec. 7, we held a hybrid launch in Singapore of the over 800 pages of texts, tables, and charts on the Asian Financial Crisis (AFC) and on to the Global Financial Crisis (GFC), organized into a book called Trauma to Triumph: Rising from the Ashes of the Asian Financial Crisis. Under the auspices of the ASEAN+3 Monitoring and Research Office (AMRO), we edited this book with AMRO Chief Economist Hoe Ee Khor and University of Tokyo Professor Emeritus Masahiro Kawai.

It was hybrid event as the turnover of the book was live streamed throughout the world. In-person attendees included the diplomatic corps in Singapore, and officials from both the Singapore Ministry of Finance and Monetary Authority of Singapore, and other various agencies and thought leaders.

The launch coincided with AMRO’s 10th anniversary, with Singapore’s Second Minister for Finance and National Development Indranee Rajah as keynote speaker and guest of honor. She was also presented a hard copy of the book by AMRO’s senior management, led by Toshinori Doi, AMRO’s director.

This book is the first of its kind, a compendium of the most interesting recollections of several major players during the AFC and the GFC, particularly the drama behind those IMF adjustment programs that proved more destabilizing in Thailand, Indonesia, and Korea. Country-level narratives, very nuanced, trace the roots of the crisis and the policy measures to manage it. With the shock of both regional and global proportion, it was made clear that working together is the best approach to contend with future crises.

What is unique about the AFC is that it did not spare even those markets which appeared to have sound macroeconomic fundamentals. Ascribed to volatile capital flows due to financial globalization; expanding but shaky balance sheets and governance of the corporate sector; and inadequately regulated financial sectors across the region, the AFC also devastated the more open capital accounts in various countries in the region. Excessive in-flows of foreign capital triggered financial imbalances, namely credit boom, asset bubble and maturity mismatches.

The GFC, on the other hand, was a shock considered external to the region, and less excruciating to the ASEAN+3 economies. Part of the reason is that the region learned well from the AFC’s key lessons 10 years earlier. Painstaking implementation of policy and structural reforms strengthened the region’s economic fundamentals, improved the health of their financial sector, and broadened their linkages. Another rude wake up call, the GFC actually motivated policymakers to further enhance international and regional cooperation, particularly through the Chiang Mai Initiative Multilateralization (CMIM) that helped birth the AMRO.

This book is also distinguished by the stories of key players during the crises. No less than unique to this book, the stories provide the human interest in the otherwise serious economic fallout from the two crises. For instance, the Fund’s Hubert Neiss recalled that Thailand was the only country where he and his colleagues saw difficulties emerging at an early stage. He said he used to report on Thailand in many Executive Board meetings of the Fund. But Anoop Singh, also of the Fund, admitted that “it took us time to understand that this was not a normal crisis. It was a financial crisis which we were late in recognizing.” Thailand was unfortunate to have experienced this crisis because the Fund itself “underestimated the magnitude of the financial crisis that was coming.”

The most pathetic result of the Thai crisis was high public disaffection with the Bank of Thailand (BoT). Former Governor Chatumongol recalled that “taxis wouldn’t take passengers to the central bank. People who wanted to go to the central bank by taxi had to get off some distance and walk to the BoT because the taxi drivers were so mad at the central bank.”

In Indonesia, people refused to believe the Thai problems would spill over. Its economy experienced an average of 8% growth in the eight years prior to the crisis. Its public finance was robust. Public debt was low relative to total output. The economy was managed by “among the best set of economists I’ve worked with anywhere in the world,” according to the World Bank’s Dennis de Tray.

The other interviewees admitted that financial data were not exactly reliable. Jim Walker of Credit Lyonnais Securities (Asia) Ltd. admitted he never saw the crisis coming because the debt obligations “never really got re-ported in the official statistics for whatever reason.”

The frank assessment of the other member countries based on the personal interviews with their own respective policymakers and thought leaders makes this book different. It concludes with an overall assessment of the crisis and the dynamics of regional financial cooperation in Asia.

Which brings us to the first panel held immediately after the book launch.

Moderated by AMRO’s Dr. Khor, we joined Indonesia’s Former Governor J. Soedradjad Djiwandono, BoT’s Former Deputy Governor Bandid Nijathaworn, and Dr Kawai. Historian and Former MAS Economics Director Freddy Orchard provided an excellent overview of his interviews with key players during the two crises.

After asking each one of us about our respective experiences with crisis management, Dr. Khor asked our opinion on whether the AFC was a blessing in disguise. Dr. Bandid and myself shared a common feeling that indeed it was. We stressed that the AFC made us realize that we had not done enough, and that many more challenges awaited us in making the economy more resilient. For the Philippines, it was relatively easier securing ownership of various policy reforms because no one wanted another crisis. As a result, over the years, we have seen our growth potential expanding, leading to higher employment, public spending for public services and infrastructure, and poverty reduction. We could only admit that we had very limited control of all factors driving the crisis.

Asserting that we could have preempted the crisis would make one guilty of the illusion of control. At the time of AFC, many economies did not even have a semblance of a systematic ledger of external debts by their own governments and much less, their private corporates. With capital flow dynamics driving the AFC on account of weakening market confidence and herding behavior, specific country moves were rather of limited efficacy be-cause like today’s virus, the AFC had several manifestations. In some countries, their overvalued exchange rates gave way to significant adjustments. Those with shaky banking system were undermined by a credit crunch. Overexposed to the debt markets, both domestic and external, some economies experienced further stress from high interest rates and large devaluation.

Radical uncertainty was most pronounced during the AFC. Holding hands together in overcoming future crises should be the way to go.

The ASEAN+3 book therefore echoes what many thought were the logical offshoots of the AFC including former general manager of the Bank for International Settlements (BIS), the late Andrew Crockett, who highlighted the importance of policy coordination. He did not refer to a formalized coordination of national economic policies which did not work in the past. Rather, it is getting the individual countries in the region to pursue “responsible, open and transparent policies, and to allow their exchange rates to move in a way that promotes the international adjustment process.” This approach is expected to gain more traction if mutual consistency of policy actions can be supported by regular exchange of information in international bodies like the IMF and the BIS, and in regional bodies like the AMRO and the ADB.

The book could not be more recent and relevant. In its concluding section, the book called for mitigating the health pandemic by stepping up regional financial cooperation and making the regional economies more re-silient to the viral challenge. AMRO will have to stretch its flexibility in terms of extending longer maturity liquidity support, strengthening the operational readiness of the CMIM through enhanced surveillance, and de-velop more complementarities with the Fund.

Post-pandemic recovery is the next challenge for the region. A multilateral approach remains relevant. No one can do it alone. n

 

DIWA C. GUINIGUNDO is the former deputy governor for the Monetary and Economics Sector, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP). He served the BSP for 41 years. In 2001-2003, he was alternate executive director at the International Monetary Fund in Washington, DC. He is the senior pastor of the Fullness of Christ International Ministries in Mandaluyong.

The ties that bind

A MOTORCADE in support of presidential aspirant Bongbong Marcos and vice-presidential candidate Sara Duterte in Quezon City on Dec. 8.

Duterte aide and Senator Christopher “Bong” Go’s withdrawal as the candidate for president of a group no one had previously heard of will be to the advantage of the Marcos Jr.-Sara Duterte team. And should that pair win in 2022, it will also mean the continuing dominance in government, and worse, of the axis of power behind it.

With Go presumably out of the running (he was yet to withdraw officially as of Dec. 8), President Rodrigo Duterte urged voters to support his daughter and her running mate whom he had previously refused to endorse. Sara Duterte then declared that Go’s withdrawal would unite the Duterte camp and its allies. Within hours they indeed declared their support for the Marcos Jr.-Sara Duterte combine.

If all this smells like another bad comedy of horrors and deception, it probably is. But there is also some basis to believe that initially at least, Mr. Duterte was really looking for someone else other than Marcos to support.

The clash of ambitions, personalities, and political agendas was evident in Mr. Duterte’s pushing his former police chief to file a Certificate of Candidacy for the post he’s leaving soon, and when he withdrew, his then making Go his candidate despite the latter’s unlikely chances of winning the Presidency in fair and honest elections. It was a desperate attempt to have someone at his beck and call in the country’s highest office. Apparently, he had grave reserva-tions over whether he could trust enough the son of his model Ferdinand Marcos Sr. to support his candidacy.

Mr. Duterte wants his daughter — or at least someone he is a 100% certain would look after his interests once he leaves office— to be President. Despite his admiration for Marcos Sr. and the Marcos family’s support for his candidacy in 2016 and for his regime after, he apparently bristled at Marcos Jr.’s refusal to give way to his own daughter’s ambitions, and, in addition, doesn’t think much of either his capacity to govern or of his moral scruples. Before anyone says anything about the pot calling the kettle black, however, one should note that Marcos Jr.’s being so regarded by someone of Mr. Duterte’s limitations in either area makes that critique especially credible.

In any event, Mr. Duterte seems to have finally realized that more than what divides him and the Marcos clique are the ties that bind his own camp to those of the Marcoses, the Macapagal-Arroyos, and the Estradas, and that they should first focus on winning in 2022. His having his own candidate while his daughter partners with Marcos Jr. was confusing and dividing his base, and that would have cost his camp the elections.

Without Go to muddy the political waters, the Arroyo and Estrada political parties declared their support for the Marcos Jr.-Sara Duterte team together with Marcos’ party and Sara Duterte’s own. Apparently these families have come together in recognition of their common interests and shared ideology. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo opposed the older Marcos’ dictatorial rule, and supported Joseph Estrada’s removal from office and replaced him as President in 2001. Mr. Duterte was only a few weeks ago fulminating against Marcos Jr. And yet here they all are, figuratively in bed together in affirmation of the cliche that there are no permanent friends (or enemies) in poli-tics; only permanent interests.

Those interests include, above everything else, remaining in power, if not by directly exercising it, at least indirectly by having the capacity to influence the policies that would be to their benefit of the individuals they helped elect through their money, organization, political clout, or whatever. It also includes, should their chosen candidates win, the appointment of someone from their ranks or of themselves to whatever posts would be to their personal, familial, and class interests.

Mr. Duterte’s own interests are no less as vast than the economic and political interests of his allies, and are even more compelling. In addition to retaining access to public funds and the other perks of office, he also needs to win as a senator so he can be Senate President. Ensconced in that by now less than exalted post, he can avoid, so he hopes, prosecution by the International Criminal Court for crimes against humanity, as he in fact admitted in a moment of candor to explain why he was earlier gunning for the Vice-Presidency.

But as Senate President he would also be only two heart beats away from the Presidency — and never mind the Constitution, which in his mind is probably just another “piece of paper” like the United Nations Convention on Law of the Sea Arbitral Tribunal’s decision recognizing Philippines rights in the West Philippine Sea that he once described in those terms.

Beyond those interests, however, are the ideological ties that bind the Duterte-Marcos-Arroyo-Estrada Axis. The most fundamental precept of all in that ideology is its opposition to anything that will change the dominant political, eco-nomic, and social order that has so amply benefitted the handful of families that has monopolized political power in this country for decades.

From that perspective flows the consequent demand for everyone to conform and think alike. Rather than depart from such medieval ideas as that government is sacrosanct and should be supported for the sake of that convenient buzz word “unity,” or to be informed enough to dissent, question policies that cause more harm than good, hold accountable and be critical of those officials who serve no one but themselves, unthinking approval is what the ideology of acquiescence expects of the citizenry.

It is on coercion and the use of force that this primal assumption depends. Hence the harassment, the threats, the violations of human rights, the assaults on, and even the assassination of critics, dissenters, social and polit-ical activists, independent journalists, and anyone else who dares exercise their civil, political and human rights. The political expression of this ideology is either open tyranny and one-man rule, or the rule of a few dynasties united in their common adherence to the use of State coercion as policy.

Contrary to the conventional view that Philippine political parties have no ideology, the reality is that while they are hardly conscious of it, they do — and that ideology is neither more nor less than that of gaining and keep-ing power through whatever means and whatever its cost to the Filipino people. Only briefly has it been recognized as the primary threat to progress and the well-being and future of the Filipino millions. But it has always been the core ideology of the political class, and it is today poised not only to continue driving Philippine governance, but to also perpetuate authoritarian rule a la the Marcos Sr. kleptocracy.

Even more distressing than that contingency is that while it is humanly possible to prevent it, it can happen because the individuals, groups, and forces committed to the restoration of the democratic space that has so obviously shrunk since 2016 have yet to unite despite their common interest in halting the country’s descent into the bottomless pit of another tyranny.

Divided by their differing views on how best to achieve that aim, and suspicious of each other’s motives, the centrist and left-of-center groups have yet to forge the unity needed for their candidates to prevail in next year’s elections. Their political and ideological foes have done better, united as they are this election season in the single-minded enterprise of winning power and keeping it. n

 

LUIS V. TEODORO is on Facebook and Twitter (@luisteodoro).
www.luisteodoro.com

Economics and the Constitution

The general rule is: less is more. And when dealing with a subject whose nature is inherently about the scarcity of resources, i.e., economics, then less is definitely more.

Apparently, any talk on constitutional changes inevitably zeroes in on the Charter’s economic provisions. As usual, lawyers are blamed for whatever flaws are perceived therein. But really, a rewrite by businessmen or economists can hardly be said to be a well-thought through solution.

As one of my more astute colleagues at the University of Asia and the Pacific School of Law and Governance, Vida Gruet, puts it: “I think I have 400 years of history on my side when I say that the best constitutions are written by those that understand that the way a State should deal with the economy is to not write it in the constitution at all.”

Indeed. Some things are better off constitutionally left unsaid, leaving to the elected Congress to deal with the matter in the way it deems best.

Actually, the Constitution — by its structure and orientation towards natural rights — already has provisions significantly affecting the economy. There is really just no need to keep ramming further specifics into it.

The most important of those provisions is the most famous one, one that first year law students are required to memorize: “No person shall be deprived of life, liberty, or property without due process of law, nor shall any person be denied the equal protection of the laws.” (Article III.1). This is the crucial, the core, statement of individual right that the entire structure of the Constitution essentially seeks to protect.

This statement on the need to protect “property” is traceable to the Lockean idea of an inherent natural right, founded on a good in itself and also by which the individual is able to maintain his life and liberty vis-a-vis the State. To put it in Alexander Hamilton’s words: “The man who has control over another man’s subsistence also exercises control over his will.”

Article II’s standing principles are merely an elaboration of the foregoing: “just and dynamic social order,” “prosperity and independence of the nation,” promote “full employment, a rising standard of living, and an improved quality of life for all,”; “free enterprise,” and so on.

Other “economic” constitutional provisions are those regarding the protection of contracts, the taxing power of Congress, and the ability of the president to negotiate trade agreements and foreign loans.

It needs pointing out that those provisions, while indeed having a no insignificant effect on the economy, are structural in nature. In other words, in keeping with the fact that a good constitution doesn’t pretend to give the answers but merely provides a pragmatic and coherent process by which the people can arrive at the answers themselves.

Compare those foregoing provisions with that found in Article XII.1: “The goals of the national economy are a more equitable distribution of opportunities, income, and wealth; a sustained increase in the amount of goods and ser-vices produced by the nation for the benefit of the people; and an expanding productivity as the key to raising the quality of life for all, especially the underprivileged.

“The State shall promote industrialization and full employment based on sound agricultural development and agrarian reform, through industries that make full and efficient use of human and natural resources, and which are competitive in both domestic and foreign markets. However, the State shall protect Filipino enterprises against unfair foreign competition and trade practices.”

The foregoing are not mere principles, they are specific instructions and it effectively do two things: the first is that it ties the hands of Congress to a particular economic policy, one that leaves no room for adjustment regardless of prevailing circumstances; and, finally — and more disconcertingly — it opens itself up to being interpreted as an invitation for the Supreme Court to engage in policymaking when the latter inherently has no business doing so.

Because, assuming that Congress made a law setting an economic policy of full industrialization but seemingly detached from agriculture, which the Executive Branch is constitutionally bound to execute, does this mean the Supreme Court, by authority of Article VIII.1, can overturn such legislation and instead demand economic legislation that the latter interprets to be more in keeping with the Constitution?

If so, can the Supreme Court now tell the other branches of government that its measures are too protectionist or vice-versa, too free trade or vice-versa, too fiscally prudent or vice-versa? That’s really an eccentric way of doing things, considering the Constitution demands the Supreme Court be populated by lawyers only and not economic or governance experts.

Frankly, we can vastly improve the Constitution simply by deleting Arts. XI to XV (the “impeachment provisions” could be placed under the General Provisions).

Really, if people want a Constitution more in tune with economics, the best way to do that is to forget about it. n

 

JEMY GATDULA is a senior fellow of the Philippine Council for Foreign Relations and a Philippine Judicial Academy law lecturer for constitutional philosophy and jurisprudence https://www.facebook.com/jigatdula/ Twitter @jemygatdula

SC rules parts of anti-terror law unconstitutional

THE PHILIPPINE Supreme Court (SC) has declared unconstitutional two portions of a controversial anti-terrorism law passed last year, invalidating a provision that would have criminalized protests deemed by authorities as harmful.

Voting 12-3 in a case hearing on Dec. 7, the court declared as unlawful a provision in the anti-terrorism law, which states that a protest could be considered terrorism if it is intended to cause death or physical harm, to endanger a person’s life, or to create a serious public safety risk.

That provision is “overbroad and violative of freedom of expression,” the court said in a media advisory on Thursday.

Voting 9-6, the high tribunal also declared unconstitutional a designation method that would have allowed the country’s anti-terrorism council to adopt proscriptions by supranational authorities after a through criteria review.

The High Court said that other challenged provisions of the law — including the warrantless arrest and 24-day detention — are not unconstitutional or are still enforceable.

“The main ponencia and the various opinions contain interpretations of some of the provisions declared in these cases as not unconstitutional,” the court said in the advisory.

Republic Act No. 11479 or the Anti-Terrorism Act of 2020, which repealed a 2007 human security act, is considered as the most contentious law to date.

It was signed into law on July 3, 2020, and took effect on July 18. A total of 37 legal petitions were filed by Filipino lawyers from across the political spectrum. Reiterative motions were also filed after Philippine authorities arrested or tagged as communists some of the law’s petitioners.

Petitioners hailed the court’s decision as an initial victory, but said there are still provisions that could be abused by the government.

The ruling “corrects the erroneous and dangerous view of the law’s proponents that equate activism with terrorism,” said former lawmaker Neri J. Colmenares, one of the petitioners.

He said the decision has “essentially” excluded advocacy, protest, dissent, stoppage of work, industrial or mass action, and other similar exercises of civil and political rights from the scope of the law.

“We welcome the effort by the High Court to protect our civil and political rights from the overreach of such a draconian and dangerous law.”

However, Mr. Colmenares said petitioners plan to challenge the court’s declaration that the other provisions of the law are not unconstitutional.

Edcel C. Lagman, another petitioner and a veteran lawmaker, said upholding the legality of the anti-terrorism council’s authority to detain a terror suspect for a maximum of 24 days without a judicial warrant of arrest is “a blatant violation of the Constitution, which mandates that only the courts can order the detention of a suspect through the issuance of a warrant of arrest.”

“Under the Constitution, during extraordinarily precarious times when the privilege of the writ of habeas corpus is suspended, a person apprehended must be released, if there are no charges filed against him in court, upon the expiration of three day’s detention,” he said.

The definition of terrorism should have been junked for being vague and putting the lives of critics at risk, Mr. Lagman said.

“(T)he entire law should have been voided,” he said.

Lawyer Howard M. Calleja, one of the first petitioners, welcomed the court decision, but said the legal battle is not over.

“We are pleased with our partial victory and will continue to pursue available remedies for the reconsideration of the other questionable provisions,” he said.

There are more than 700 political prisoners in the Philippines, 489 of them were arrested under the Duterte government, data from rights group Kaparatan showed. More than 400 politically-motivated killings happened under the current administration, it said.

On the other hand, Senator Panfilo M. Lacson, one of the principal authors of the law, said the court’s ruling fundamentally upholds the Anti-Terror Act as constitutional.

“The decision of the Supreme Court, in just one short sentence is ‘peace wins over terror’,” Mr. Lacson said.

The country’s Anti-Money Laundering Council has said that the law is crucial to efforts in countering “dirty money” and terrorism financing. Kyle Aristophere T. Atienza with a report from Alyssa Nicole O. Tan