Fil-Am veterans gear up for Congress hearing on compensation

On Veterans Day, four Filipino-American veterans and their supporters visited Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington County, Virginia, to recall and honor the sacrifices of 400,000 military service members buried there since the Civil War.

Filipino World War II veterans Celestino Almeda, 97, and Pontenciano Dee, 87, were joined by their younger comrades, former US Army chaplain Georgette Beltran and retired US Army Maj. Sonny Busa.

The four placed American and Philippine flags and a vase of red poinsettias besides the headstones of three heroes, namely US Navy service man Jose Yulo Lachica, US Air Force Master Sergeant Francisco J. Salveron, and US Army Colonel Edwin Price Ramsey.

Lachica was born in La Carlota in Negros Occidental and later resided in New Jersey and fought in World War I, while Salveron was a Purple Heart recipient who served in WWII as an aide to Gen. Douglas MacArthur and later in the Korean War. Ramsey, meanwhile, led 24,000 Philippine guerrillas in Central Luzon during WWII.

During their visit, Chaplain Beltran led the group, which included family members of the veterans, in prayer at the grave sites of three selected heroes. Busa recited the popular moving World War I poem “Flanders Field” to honor Lachica.

More than 4 million visitors visit the cemetery annually.

Busa invited interested volunteers to place Christmas Wreaths at the Arlington gravesites on December 13.

More than 60,000 Philippine Commonwealth Army, Philippine Scouts and Filipino guerrillas in addition to 14,000 American G.I.s fought and died in the Philippines in WWII.

A million Filipino civilians died to war related causes, the US State Department estimated.

Meanwhile, Filipino-American veteran leaders and supporters are preparing to attend the November 20 hearing of the US House of Representatives' veterans affairs subcommittee on the Filipino Veterans Equity Compensation Fund’s adequacy of verification process by the Department of Veterans Affairs, according to Eric Lachica of the American Coalition for Filipino Veterans, Inc.

The hearing will be held at 10 a.m. at Cannon House Building room 340.

More than 4,554 Filipino WWII veterans or their surviving spouses have appealed the denial of their official recognition for the one-time payment of $15,000 to a US citizen veteran (or $9,000 for Filipino citizen) by the VA Department that refuses to accept the validity of their US Army and PH Commonwealth USAFFE service discharge documents.

The American Coalition for Filipino Veterans, a national membership organization in Arlington VA, and other advocacy groups will be submitting written statements to the committee, urging the new VA Secretary Robert MacDonald to live up to 2009 Equity Compensation Law’s directive to make prompt payments to deserving surviving veterans. —KBK, GMA News