Sonia Brady's notes

In the interest of truth, we are reprinting here the transcript of Sen. Juan Ponce Enrile's speech Wednesday, where he revealed what he said were notes from Amb. Sonia Brady, written after meeting with Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV in Beijing on August 17. On August 22, Amb. Brady suffered a stroke. 


INTERPELLATION OF SENATE PRESIDENT JUAN PONCE ENRILE

Senator Cayetano (A). Anyway, Mr. President, no one can stop a senator from standing up and saying his piece.
Senator Enrile. I did not start this, we know. If the gentleman starts a fight with me, I will take the gentleman on.
Senator Cayetano (A). Yes, Mr. President, I am not objecting now because he has the right to take the Floor on his own time now. I am just—a very humble reminder, Sir, that if it is an executive session, or if this was told in confidence or this affects-
Senator Enrile. No, I am going to speak to the Filipino people about this.
Senator Cayetano (A). Thank you, Mr. President.
The President Pro Tempore.  Yes, the Senate President has been accused by another colleague, we will let the Senate President continue.
Senator Enrile. I will just read these notes of Mrs. Brady about this meeting with Trillanes in Beijing. This is dated 17 August 2012. These are notes made by—I have it here the official copy but I have it enlarged because I have a problem with reading and I will read it to you. Yes, this is my own time now.
1) Senator Trillanes requested that no notes be taken;
2) What the Chinese want is to tone down the rhetoric. He met the night before with senior Chinese MFA official, Ministry of Foreign Affairs;
3) Senator was initially approached by Executive Secretary;
4) When he got involved, it was in the height of the problem; he had to find out what was happening so he tried to see whether this was a move of the Americans. He was suspecting the Americans as involved in the conflict.    He ascertained that they do not want any conflict especially in an election year. I think the word “they” there refers to the Chinese.
5) On Secretary Del Rosario, U.S. has already let him go, binitiwan nasiya. And this is the note of Brady.       In the July meeting, Hillary Clinton did not speak up for us. Secretary Del Rosario is committing treason.This is a senator of the Republic calling our secretary a treasonous person in a foreign land. He does not even know when treason arises.
6) We are internationalizing the issue because of Secretary Del Rosario.This is his move.
7) There was never any negotiation between the Chinese and the Americans, just a meeting with Kurt Campbell. Mr. Campbell was not a negotiator. Besides, Secretary Del Rosario was not there.
8) The arrangement being looked at by the senator, meaning Senator Trillanes, was one side would leave first, then the other side, then the next, et cetera. They were talking about the manner of evacuating Scarborough.
He then received a call from PNoy saying why are the Chinese still there when there was an agreement for simultaneous withdrawal. He thought to himself, this is not the arrangement. He was protecting the Chinese. He asked Manny V. Pangilinan to ask Secretary Del Rosario to keep quiet, to quiet down. This has now happened. The two go along way back because it was also Secretary Del Rosario who introduced Mr. Pangilinan to the Indonesian businessman. During the days of the PLDT, Secretary Del Rosario confronted the Yuchengco group shareholders and threatened them. This is a senator talking back against a cabinet member.
10) The two plus two meeting in the US, Mr. Pangilinan was paying a lobby group to get that meeting. This is number 10.
It says, the two plus two meeting in the US, Mr. Pangilinan was paying a lobby group to get that meeting. I do not know what that “two plus two meeting” was all about. We thought all along it was with the accord of the US.
11) DFA was the one who kept releasing press articles. Now the press is turning their back on Secretary Del Rosario. In this way, he is being marginalized.
The release of the picture of a man planting flag on Panatag is from the 1980s, so this was rehashed.
On the Hasa-Hasa grounding of the Chinese frigate, there was supposed to be no press release, but when the DFA got hold of it, it released it to the media. The running was also an incident that was released to the press. Senator Trillanes wanted everything that was happening in Scarborough to be made secret so that it will protect the interest of the Chinese.
12) Mr. Pangilinan and Secretary Del Rosario wanted to create an event.
He was accusing these two of manipulating a war condition to divert attention from the Reed Bank. The findings there were not substantial, so, Mr. Pangilinan asked the Chinese group not to release the findings. They needed time to ensure that they can recover their investment. First, sell off to another buyer. Imagine. What a Senator. Nakakahiya!
13) There were alarmists in the Palace meeting when Secretary Del Rosario presented the invasion of Luzon. I was there. This is a total falsehood.   So, nabilog ang ulo ng lahat. You saw this in the meeting. Even Senate President Enrile wanted to cut relations. This is very alarmist. This gentleman is foisting a falsehood. I was there, President Aquino was in front of me. I was directly in front of him. The poor Secretary of Foreign Affairs was being pilloried by this Novato in foreign relations accusing him of not knowing his job. And I said: “I support the position of the Department of Foreign Affairs. We should involve our allies and friends in this discussion because we cannot handle the Chinese on a bilateral basis. But he was insisting a one-on-one dealing with China. What bargaining position do we have? He is supposed to be a trained military mind, but he does not know anything about military strategy.
14) The Senator was inquiring, this is Brady talking–on which officials could visit China. Because the Chinese side were angry with PNoy, they suggested his kalaban, the Vice President. Imagine, intriguing between the President and the Vice President. Senator thought, “Perhaps, Mar Roxas na lang”. The Chinese side said: “An official could meet Chinese Vice President. ”
15) In Panatag Shoal, there was never a problem about their presence.
From 66 boats, this was reduced to three. The Chinese side said: “They will eventually take out the boat. They may eventually have given time.”
16) This is his twelfth. According to Mrs. Brady, that was his twelfth meeting with the Chinese. Senator Trillanes has been quietly, secretly,   clandestinely meeting with the Chinese about the Scarborough and the West Philippine Sea. PNoy called the Senator when he saw that the Chinese did not keep their word to withdraw. PNoy did not know of the arrangements being made by the Senator.
Imagine, talking to a potential enemy of this country 16 times. What did he discuss with these people? Who initiated the discussion? Did he or did they? Did they pay for his trip to Beijing? Ha? He should answer. That is why he could not be here because I am going to ask him. ·My God, this guy is a fraud. [Pause]. Where was I?
17) President PNoy did not know that talks were suspended with theChinese for two weeks.
18) President PNoy gave his clearance to pursue initiatives on back channel talks. This is his representation to Mrs. Brady.
19) In the Philippines, no one cares about Panatag Shoal. He said to Mrs. Brady: “Sa Pilipinas walang may gusto sa atin yong Panatag, yong Scarborough Shoal.” Iyan ang sinasabi niya. Filipino ba iyan? Makabayan ba iyan? My God! What kind of a Senator is this?
“China was never going to put up a station there.” Iyon ang sinabi niya. Sinabi ni Trillanes. He was speaking for China. “If China wanted to, they would have done so already.” That was his position. He did not realize that the whole China Sea is being claimed by China. And yet he claims to be an expert in international law, expert in security, expert in geopolitical struggle, expert in foreign relation.
About Sansha City and the garrison, the Senator, meaning, Trillanes, said: “We also have garrison in KIG.” I think, this is Kalayaan Island Group. Garrison ba iyon? Aka ang nagpalagay ng airstrip doon para mabigyan natin ng ayuda yang ating mga sundalo doon, pero hindi garrison iyon. Hindi kagaya ng sinusuportahan niya na bansa na mayroon ng mga fortification doon. Para sa kaniya, hindi fortification iyon. Laruan lang iyon. Aywan ko kung sinong nagturo sa kanya sa Philippine Military Academy.
“Besides, this is for their domestic audience.” Domestic audience daw, pero kinukuha nila ang Iugar natin. Pero sa kaniya, parte lang ng politika ng Tsina ito. “The Chinese could have attacked our garrison if they wanted to.” What a military mind. “We also have a sunken ship in the area which we did on purpose.” Ito ang ipinagmamalaki niya. Siguro, baka siya ang nagpalubog nito. Pero hindi ko narinig ito, when I was still in the Defense Department eh. Hanggang ngayon, ngayon leo lang narinig ito.
He told the Chinese, Trillanes told the Chinese that we cannot enforce our coastal protection. That is the kind of a Filipino Senator we have here. He told the Chinese that we cannot enforce our coastal protection. Our fishermen are living on subsistence fishing. They cannot, therefore, fish too far.
Ibig niyang sabihin, pamigay na lang ninyo iyong Scarborough Shoal. Tumakbo tayo, sapagkat tayo ay mga duwag. Magku-kunwari pupunta sa Galeria, magpa-pakita sa media para tumakbo lamang.
The Philippine side did not make gapang the Asean which the Chinese did. Akalain mo sinasabi niya na dapat gapangin natin iyong mga Asean dahil gumagapang daw iyong mga Intsik sa boto. Ito iyong tungkol sa nangyari sa Cambodia. Ana ang pakialam nitong Senador sa foreign relations? Nothing. This guy is involving us with a major problem.
He asked Secretary Del Rosario if we could give the space in the Asean meeting because we did not do the preparation. He wanted to become the Secretary of Foreign Affairs to superimpose his mind to the judgment of the duly designated and appointed shaper of foreign policy for the county.
“So, now we fought with everyone.  Sabi niya, lumalaban daw tayo. Ginapang ng Tsina, pero hindi natin ginawa.” Akala ko ba gusto niya peaceful pero ang gusto niya makipaggapangan.
“On the issue of bananas and tourists, they can be fixed quickly if the Chinese leadership wanted. Ayos na ang bananas”. Inayos daw niya. Ipinagmamalaki niya na siya raw ang nagpaalis noong apatnapung (40) bapor ng Tsina doon sa Scarborough Shoal. lyon ang pinalalabas niya. Pinagtatawanan lamang siya. Maski sa Malacanang, maraming nabubuwisit sa kaniya noong nandoon kami kaya lamang hindi ko na sinabi sa kaniya.
“The Chinese side suggested the visit of the DOTC Secretary to China”, ang sabi niya. On the Chinese ships that maneuver towards Philippine sea, he said, meaning, Trillanes said that “these are ordinary moves that ships would go.” Aba, napakagaling naman ng admiral na ito. “The senator”, meaning Senator Trillanes, “was saying that Del Rosario should be replaced by Mar Roxas. Knowing that reports are coursed through the DFA, the senator said that he would give an alternate channel so that communications can go directly to the Palace.” He arrogated that to himself to become the channel of foreign policy from him to Malacanang. I do not know whether the President knows about this. “Can go ahead with bilateral; China also wants this.” He was suggesting and working for a bilateral negotiation with China. And in that meeting in the Cabinet, it was agreed that we should not do that.
I do not want to discuss anymore this sordid matter. It is enough that I read the notes of Ambassador Brady to unmask this “Phantom of the Opera” in Philippine politics. I have here his white paper on the Department of Foreign Affairs and I would not bother you about it. If you want to read it, I will give it to you and read it.
Thank you.
The President Pro Tempore. Thank you, Mr. Senate President.