NATIONAL

SECURITIES
INTRODUCTION
We are entering a new era of human security where the
concept of security will change, and change
dramatically. Security will be interpreted as:
1. security of people, not just of territory;
2. security of individuals, not just of nations; and
3. security through development, not through arms.
Security is a national concern that every Filipino
must consider to ensure peaceful existence of the
state. It shall be the State’s primordial concern as
well to secure its constituents. It is a condition or
state of being where the Filipino peoples’ values,
way of life, institutions, welfare and well-being,
sovereignty and strategic locations are protected
andenhanced.
NATIONAL SECURITY IN THE PHILIPPINES
Commonwealth Act No. 1, also known as the National
Defense Act, is the original policy basis of the national
security program of the Republic of the Philippines. The
1987 Constitution mandates civilian control of the
military and establishes the President as commander-in-
chief of the Armed Forces. The President also heads the
National Security Council, the policy-making and
advisory body for matters connected with national
defense.
• Responsibility for national security was vested in
the Department of National Defense. The
principal functions of the department in 1991
were to defend the State against internal and
external threats and, through the Philippine
National Police, to maintain law and order. The
Secretary of National Defense, by law a civilian,
was charged with advising the President on
defense matters and developing defense policy.
There are seven fundamental elements that lie at the
core of, and therefore further amplify your definition of
national security. At the same time, they constitute the
most important challenges we face as a nation and
people.
Socio-Political Stability - the government and the
people must engage in nation-building under the
rule of law, Constitutional democracy and the full
respect for human rights.
Territorial Integrity - we must ensure the
permanent inviolability of our national territory
and its effective control by the Government and
the State. This includes the preservation of our
country’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) and its
protection from illegal incursions and resource
exploitation.
Economic Solidarity and Strength - we must
vigorously pursue a free-market economy
through responsible entrepreneurship based
on social conscience, respect for the dignity
of labor and concern for the public interest.
Ecological Balance - national survival rests
upon the effective conservation of our natural
environment in the face of industrial and
agricultural expansion and population growth.
Cultural Cohesiveness - our lives as a people must be
ruled by a common set of values and beliefs grounded
on high moral and ethical standards, drawn from our
heritage and embodying a Filipino standard, drawn
from our heritage and embodying a Filipino identity
transcending religious, ethnic and linguistic differences.
Moral-Spiritual Consensus - we must be propelled
by a national vision inspired, and manifested in
our words and deeds, by patriotism, national pride
and the advancement of national goals and
objectives.
External Peace - we must pursue constructive
and cordial relations with all nations and
peoples, even as our nation itself must chart
an independent course, free from external
control, interference or threat of aggression.
THREATS TO NATIONAL SECURITY
Many security threats to the Philippines are non-
military in nature. Pressing security concerns like
terrorism, poverty, and environmental degradation,
needs to be addressed in an informed and intelligent
manner. In its internal aspect, national security relates
to the defense of the nation’s government against
hostile local elements seeking its replacement with
their own government. In this sense, national security
refers to the measures aimed at countering domestic or
internal challenges to the existing political and socio-
economic order.
In its external aspects, national security is
concerned with safeguarding the stateagainst
outside or foreign forces, pressures, or
influence designed to conquer it or undermine
its sovereignty, or placing under the
domination or control of some foreign state or
states. In this sense, national security
embraces the defense arrangements directed
at insuring the safety of the state against
foreign intervention or domination
TYPES OF THREATS
Rebellion or Insurrection a refusal of obedience
or order. It may, therefore, be seen as
encompassing a range of behaviors from civil
disobedience and mass nonviolent resistance, to
violent and organized attempts to destroy an
established authority such as the government.
Terrorism the systematic use of terror
especially as a means of coercion. Common
definitions of terrorism refer only to those
violent acts which are intended to create fear
(terror),are perpetrated for an ideological
goal, and deliberately target or disregard the
safety of noncombatants (civilians).
Murder as defined in most countries, is
the unlawful killing of another human
being with intent (or malice afterthought),
and generally this state of mind
distinguishes murder from other forms of
homicide.
Kidnapping and Serious Illegal Detention the taking
away or transportation of a person against the person’s
will, usually to hold the person in false imprisonment, a
confinement without legal authority. This may be done
for ransom or in furtherance of another crime, or in-
connection with a child custody dispute.
Hijacking/Highway Robbery the crime of taking or
attempting to take something of value by force or threat
of force and or by putting the victim in fear. In common
law, robbery is defined as taking the property of
another, with the intent to permanently deprive the
person of that property, by means of force or fear.
Crimes involving destruction It may apply
either as a measurable degree of damage up to and
including a state beyond use or repair, or it may
indicate a state wherein such damage is occurring
and continuing. Ex. self-destructive behaviors,
suicide, demolition
INTERNAL THREATS
Our national security is infused with four important
dimensions. Internal threats to our national security
make up the first dimension. Moro Islamic Liberation
Front (MILF) and Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG)The main
internal threat arises from the Moro Islamic Liberation
Front (MILF) which, in open rebellion against the
government, has the avowed objective of establishing
an independent Islamic state in southern Philippines.
Hand-in-hand with this security problem is the threat
from the Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG), a small band of
highly mobile terrorists with suspected links to
international networks.
These three continue to pose a serious threat to
national security, although presently weakened in
comparison with their peak strength in the 1985-
87 period. During the past two years, there has
been an incipient increase of underground
activities in the urban areas and as light upward
trend in isolated terrorist acts in the countryside.
Organized Crime
The challenge of illegal drugs, in particular, has
grown into a major threat to the national community.
Of the 42,979 barangays nationwide, about 12 per
cent are affected in varying degrees. The anti-drug
campaign is a major cornerstone of the
government’s law and order drive, involving the
police, the Local Government Units and the private
sector, and focusing on a tripartite strategy of
reducing drug supply and demand as well domestic
and international cooperation.
EXTERNAL THREATS
The growing uncertainties that lie in the
regional and global milieu make up the
second dimension of our national security
concerns even as threat of external aggression
against our country remains in the remote
horizon. Multilateral dispute over the Spratly
Islands. This is a source of intermittent
tensions, owing to the build up of structures,
believed to bemilitary-oriented, by some
claimant countries in the area.
Smuggling of firearms and contraband, illegal
migration and the occasional movement offoreign
terrorists through the porous borders of our
southwestern frontierPhilippine law enforcement
agencies work closely with international police
organizations,bilaterally and multilaterally, to check
these activities.Lingering effects of the currency
crisis affecting the countries within the Association
ofSoutheast Asian Nations (ASEAN)
The most significant way of promoting a culture of
peace is through peace education.Peace education
needs to be accepted in all parts of the world, in all
societies and countries as anessential element in
creating culture of peace. To meet effectively the
challenges posed by thepresent complexity of our
time, the young of today deserves a radically
different education- “onethat does not glorify war but
educates for peace nonviolence and international
cooperation.” Theyneed the skills and knowledge to
create and nurture peace for their individual selves as
well as forthe world they belong to.