THE GOVERNMENT AND THE FILIPINO PEOPLE
THE STATE AND THE CONSTITUTION
The Concept of State
A state is a community of people, more or less numerous, permanently occupying a definite portion of territory, independent of external control and possessing an organized government to which the great body of inhabitants render habitual
Four Elements of State
1. People
2. Territory
3. Government
4. Sovereignty or independence from external control
1. People/population
●Without people there can be no State.
The absence of population in Antarctica makes it a non-state.
● There is no specific number of people that should constitute a state; what important is ...People must be sufficient to provide governing body and a number of persons to be governed, & of course, sufficient to support a state organization & to fulfill its international organization.
2. Territory
The territory of the State consists of:
1. All the lands and water embraced therein including all lakes and rivers within its boundaries & even rivers within its boundaries & even lakes & rivers which serve as boundaries.
2. The territorial sea, the air space, the subsoil, the seabed, the insular shelves and other submarine areas over which the state has jurisdiction or sovereignty.
VATICAN CITY/HOLY SEE
● VATICAN CITY- (in Rome, Italy) has an area of 0.44 sq. km.
-This is the smallest state in the world with a population of atleast 1000. (826 as of 2010)
-The Holy See is the episcopal jurisdiction of the Catholic Church in Rome.
3. Government
● Government is a form or system of administration by which a community is managed.
● It is the agency through which the will of the state may be ascertained and its ends realized
4. Sovereignty
It is the inherent, supreme and absolute power of the state to command obedience from all its subjects and its freedom from external.
●Internal Sovereignty- refers to the power of the ruler or of the people to govern within the state.
●External sovereignty or independence - is the right of the state to pursue its aim and purposes without interference from other states.
RIGHTS OF STATE
1. The right to independence - right to be free from external control
2. 2. The right of equality - right to enjoy similar privileges & immunities & to observe same duties under international law
3. The right to jurisdiction - is the power
to extend its authority. This means that it has the power over its citizens, institutions and property within the confines of the state.
4. The right of property - is the right of the state to own, hold and use property.
5. 5. The right of intercourse or the right of legation - the right of the state to send diplomatic representatives to other countries and to receive representatives coming from other countries. This right also includes the right to refuse a person who is not acceptable to the State. Such a person is referred to as a persona non grata to receiving state.
EX: The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) declared a Panamanian diplomat who was accused of raping a 19-year-old Filipina as persona non grata.
In accordance with Article 9 of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, Shcks should be recalled or terminated of his functions by the Panamanian government or he will accordingly be stripped of his immunities," the DFA said.
The list of Philippines PERSONA NON -GRATA
● Alec Baldwin, 51 year-old Emmy-winning actor, said that he was "thinking about getting a Filipino mail-order bride." This turned out to be very derogatory a statement that angered some of the Filipinos.
● Claire Danes was banned by former President Estrada for describing Manila as as "ghastly and weird city", in an interview in Vogue magazine.
● In one scene of ABC's Desperate Housewives, Susan Mayer played by Teri Hatcher was going to be checked by a gynecologist but refused to be examined. She said, "Okay, before we go any further, can I check those diplomas? Coz I would just like to make sure they are not from some med school in the Philippines." For this, the government demanded for a public apology from ABC and form the actress herself.
