2023 Feb. 20 – Today is the 77th anniversary of President Harry S. Truman’s 38 Statement Concerning Provisions in Bill Affecting Philippine Army Veterans – Feb. 20, 1946.
This statement was released two after the 79th U.S. Congress overrode his veto of the Rescission Act of 1946 that deemed the military service of Filipino WWII veterans as “not active service” and therefore Filipino WWII veterans were denied the military benefits they were promised when they signed up to serve, fight, suffer and die in WWII for the only country they knew.
President Truman reiterated that Filipinos were U.S. nationals (but not U.S. citizens) by virtue of FDR’s executive order issued on July 26, 1941 that federalized all Philippine Commonwealth forces. The statement also pointed out that this order
Our parents, grandparents and all Filipinos were scheduled to lose their U.S. nationality or be denaturalized without due process (as it was on March 24, 1934) on July 4, 1946 when the Treaty of Manila will be signed.
FDR’s Executive Order placing Armed Forces of the Philippines under United States Command July 26, 1941
https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/documents/order-placing-armed-forces-the-philippines-under-united-states-command
The Rescission Act of 1946 38 U.S.C., 2011 Edition Title 38 Sec. 107 https://www.nedmacario.us/2016/06/25/the-rescission-act-of-1946-38-u-s-c-2011-edition-title-38-sec-107/
Just like that the military service of 260,000 Filipino veterans of WWII was declared “not active military, naval or air service.”
Two days after the 79th Congress overrode President Truman’s veto and passed this unjust rescission act, Truman issued the statement regarding the bill for Philippine Army Veterans.
38 – Statement by the President Truman Concerning Provisions in Bill Affecting Philippine Army Veterans. – February 20, 1946:https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/documents/statement-the-president-concerning-provisions-bill-affecting-philippine-army-veterans
Feb. 20, 2016 –
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