The reports "STUDY OF POPULATION AND IMMIGRATION PROBLEM.. Inquiry into the Enlistment of Nationals of the Republic of the Philippines in the United States Navy ad the United States Coast Guard.

House of Representative. Wednesday, August 14, 1963

 

HISTORY OF RECRUITMENT ARRANGEMENT WITH REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES. Special Series # 15 US Government Printing Office #24-928

 

Prior to 1946, Filipinos were recruited into the US Navy and practically all of them were assigned to the steward branch. After the granting of independence to the Philippine Islands in 1946, this source of recruitment was closed.

 

In 1947 the United States concluded an agreement with the Republic of the Philippines concerning military bases which specified that the United States would be permitted to recruit citizens of the Philippines for voluntary enlistment into the U S Armed Forces. However, there was no requirement for such recruitment prior to the Korean Conflict. Expanded personnel requirement at this time resulted in an urgent need for additional stewards in the U. S. Navy. Consequently an agreement was negotiated in 1952 based upon the 1947 treaty whereby up to 1,000 Filipino citizen could be enlisted in the US Navy each year. This agreement was amended upon the request of the United States in 1954 to raise this number to 2,000 a year. The agreement between the two Governments maybe terminated by either party on 1-year notice.

 

Pursuant to these agreements, the commander, Naval Forces, Philippines under the direction of the Chief of Naval Personnel is responsible for processing applicants for the U S Navy. Since 1944 the following numbers of Filipinos have enlisted in the Navy:

 

Fiscal Years Numbers Fiscal years Numbers

1944-46---------------------- 2,289___1960 ----------------------------- 1,169

1947-52----------------------none ____1961 ----------------------------- 1,675

1953-58----------------------5,525____1962 ----------------------------- 644

1959 --------------------------- 980____1963 ---------------------------- 590

 

During fiscal year 1964 a monthly recruiting quota of 100 Filipinos has been set by the Navy. This is an increase over the previous 2 years and based on planned vacancies in the steward rating in the Navy.

 

CITIZENSHIP STATUS OF FILIPINOS IN THE NAVY

 

Under the Nationality Act of 1940, aliens who served honorably in the US Armed Forces for 3 years or more could be naturalized as US Citizens without having to meet certain normal requirements of naturalization such as lawful admission into the United States for permanent residence. The Nationality Act of 1940, however was repealed on December 24, 1952, by the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952 ($USC 1101 et seq.) which contains many provisions similar to those of the 1940 act, but in the case of an alien who served honorably in the Armed Forces for 3 years requires that he shall been lawfully admitted for permanent residence. Under this law, aliens are normally admitted for permanent residence under the quota system.

 

On September 26, 1961, the Immigration and nationality Act was amended (Public Law 87-301) to grant, among things, to veterans of the Korean conflict the same naturalization benefits that had been granted to veterans of the World War I and World War II. Under this act, members of the Armed Forces who served in World War I, World War II, and the Korean Conflict (June 25, 1950, to July 1, 1955) need not be lawfully admitted for permanent residence in order to qualify for naturalization provided they had been enlisted or reenlisted in the United States, Canal Zone, American Samoa, or Swains Island at any time prior thereto. Those Filipinos, who do not qualify for naturalization by reason of their enlistment or reenlistment in the United States or one of the specified areas with subsequent service during either of the World War or the Korean conflict, have little chance of becoming U S Citizen. The US citizenship quota for the Filipinos (100 per year), coupled with the preference within the quota given to persons of high education or technical training and to certains others, such as parents of US citizens, makes it virtually impossible for Filipinos recruited since September 24, 1952, to qualify for lawful admission and eventual naturalization through the normal means. Actually about the only way a Filipino can qualify for lawful admission and eventual naturalization is to marry a U S citizen. As a spouse of a US citizen, he may lawfully admitted into this country on the nonquota basis.

 

Filipinos enlisted in the Navy may enter the United Sates pursuant to their orders without an immigrant visa or passport. However, this does not constitute lawful admission for permanent residence. This has been the principal bar to most Filipinos in the Navy who have attempted to obtain U S citizenship.

 

As previously stated, the Navy has enlisted about 12,872 Filipinos since 1944. (this report is dated Aug 1963) There are approximately 12840 on active duty in the Navy as of May 31, 1963. Of these, about two-third are serving in the steward's branch and the remaining one-third in over 50 other ratings. Since 1952 all Filipinos have been recruited specifically for service in the steward branch, regardless of motivation or experience. Changes in rating from the steward rating to other ratings are approved when they meet the Navy's requirements in competition with other applicants for the openings. Due to the current vacancies in the nonrated (pay grades E-1, E-2, and E-4) steward group, current Navy policy precludes approval of most requests for change in rating in the lower paygrades.

 

Current Navy regulations do not allow security clearance to be granted to foreign nationals except " in cases of absolute necessity and for specific task or projects." Consequently, those ratings in the Navy showing which normally require a security clearance are closed to Filipino and other foreign nationals.

Enclosure (1) is a list of all rates and ratings in the Navy showing the distribution the distribution of Filipinos in these ratings. It should be noted that the vast majority in the navy is Filipino nationals. Approximately 500 of these Filipino are in rating whose duties normally require a security clearance. The Navy is presently encouraging these individuals to change to a rating which does not require a security clearance. Under this program the Chief of Naval Operations has recently approved over 50 request to change their rating.

PERFORMANCE OF FILIPINOS IN THE NAVY

In general, the performance of the Filipinos in the Navy has been outstanding. There are over 4,000 Filipinos serving in ratings outside the steward's branch. This demonstrates the desire and ability of the Filipino to perform duties in most of the ratings in the Navy. Although no statistics are available on Filipino enlistment rates, they are estimated to be very high since the steward branch reenlistment rate in fiscal year 1963 through April was 92.2 percent as compared to 47.8 percent for the overall Navy during the same period. Filipinos have been part of our Navy since before the turn of the century and have traditionally made good sailors. Except for restrictions which normally preclude their receiving a security clearance, they are able to perform highly satisfactory in most rating in the Navy.

 

Enlistment Qualifications for Filipinos

a. Citizenship--Applicants must be citizens of the Republic of the Philippines.

b. Age--Applicants must have attained their 18th but not their 31st birthday.

c. Dependents-- Applicants must be single and have no one solely or partially dependent upon him for support.

d. Physical-- Applicants must be physically qualified in accordance with the provision of the Manual of Medical Department. Particular attention shall be given to diseases of the lungs in that each applicant, prior to enlistment, shall have a chest X-ray. In those cases where the 70-mm chest file shows questionable pathology, the applicant shall be reexamined with a 14x17 chest X-ray in order to make a final determination as to his physical qualifications.

e. Mental-- Must attain a minimum Navy standard score of 45 on the current applicant qualification test (AQT)

f. Language-- Applicants must be interviewed to insure that they have the ability to speak and understand the English language. Since fluency in the English language correlates highly with successful performance in the Navy, applicants who have any difficulty expressing themselves or otherwise understanding English will not be accepted for enlistment.

g. Education-- Applicants must be high school graduates or the equivalent, Higher education such as might have attained in a technical school or college is not desired. Personnel with technical training in electronics, the sciences, building and mechanical trades, the medical-dental aids field and similar occupations should not, as a rule, be enlisted. Applicants who have achieved a college level education may not be enlisted except for those in the liberal arts field.

---will be completing the rest of the reports...

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JUDICIARY US COAST GUARD REPORT TO THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVE, COMMITEE ON THE, SUBCOMMITTTE NO 1

 

Subject: Recruitment of Philippine citizens for service in the U. S. Coast Guard

 

Background

 

An agreement between the Philippines and the United States Governments was executed on December 13, 1952, which provided for the acceptance of nor more than 1,000 male Philippine Citizens per calendar year, 18 to 30 years of age, inclusive, for voluntary enlistment in the U. S. Navy for terms of 4 to 6 years. The terms of agreement provide for termination thereof by either government on 1 year's notice to other. The agreement further provides that termination thereof, of any time, will not prejudice the rights of those qualified to extend their enlistments, or to reenlist for such period or periods of time as may be necessary to entitle them to retirement under U. S. Law if they elect to do so.

 

The original agreement was amended on June 21, 1954, to permit the voluntary enlistment in the U. S. Navy of 2,000 male Philippine citizens per calendar year under the same conditions set forth in the initial agreement. The agreement further amended on September 2, 1954 to provide for the voluntary enlistment in the U. S. Coast Guard of not more than 400 male Philippine Citizens per calendar year under the same condition set forth initially on December 13, 1952.

 

Administration of the Program

 

Liaison.--The commander, U. S. Naval Forces, Philippines, maintains liaison between the representative of the two Governments. Locally, relating to mattes effecting this procurement program. The commander, 14th Coast Guard District, through his representative, the commander, Philippine Section, maintains liaison between the Coast Guard and commander, U S Naval Forces, Philippines, with regards to Coast Guard Participation.

 

Citizenship Status

 

Citizens of the Republic of the Philippines entering the U S Coast Guard under this program retain their Philippine citizenship. There are three ways in which American citizenship may be obtained.

 

One is through filing application for lawful admission on a permanent residence basis under the assigned quota. The assigned quota is 100 per year and the probability of gaining citizenship through this means is practically impossible. Physical return to the Philippines for formal application is required.

 

Secondly, citizenship could be gained as a result of marriage to an American citizen. Following marriage, the wife can make application for permanent residence for her husband on a non quota basis; however, the husband must leave the country for the purpose of obtaining a visa from a U S consulate abroad to reenter the United States. The consulates at Bermuda and the Bahamas are often used in these cases.

 

Thirdly, citizenship may be acquired under the provisions of law permitting naturalization of aliens or non citizens who have honorably served in the Armed Forces during either World War or the Korean conflict ($ USC 1440, as amended). To be eligible, the service during the Korean conflict must have occurred during the period June 25, 1950, and July 1, 1955, and must have included presence in the United States whether or not there was an admission for permanent residence. There is no residence requirement under this provision of law.

 

In the first two instances following admission, 3 years' residence is required for citizenship, provided the individual is a member of the US Armed Forces on continuous active duty during the period.

 

Separations from Service

 

Citizens of the Republic of the Philippines who are serving in the United States are normally transferred to Alameda, Calif., for separation and furnishing of Government Transportation to the Philippines. There is also a provision whereby a Filipino may be transferred to the office of the commander of the U. S. Coast Guard Section, Philippines, for separation provided such action is specifically requested by the individual. There is no particular advantage attached to either procedure.

 

Filipinos are separated at other points in the United States only when they are legally authorized to remain in the country by the Bureau of Immigration and Naturalization. All separations of aliens in the United States are reported to the latter agency prior to actual separation in order that appropriate actions may taken as required in any particular case.

 

AS of June 30, 1963 there were a total of 720 Filipinos serving the US Coast Guard.

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--------------------- Distribution of Filipinos serving in the U S Navy on May 31, 1963  


(Enclosure 1)

Rating _______________________Filipino National ____Immigrant intent___ Naturalized US Citizen

Boatswain's Mate(BM)

 

23

 

18

Quatermaster (QM)

s

9

 

7

Radarman (RD)

s

 

 

3

Signalman (SM)

s

5

 

3

Sonarman (SO)

s

3

 

1

Fire Control Tech (FT)

s

2

 

4

Gunnery's Mate (GM)

s

4

 

8

Mineman (MN)

s

 

 

Missile Tech (MT)

s

 

 

1

Torpedomate (TM)

s

1

 

1

Data Sys Tech (DS)

s

 

 

2

Electronic Tech (ET)

s

10

 

8

Instrumentman (IM)

s

1

 

3

Opticalman (OM)

s

 

 

 

Commissaryman (CS)

 

111

3

97

Communication Tech(CT)

s

 

 

 

Disbursing Clerk (DK)

 

384

4

29

Journalist (JO)

s

6

 

 

Machine Accountant(MA)

s

6

 

 

Personnelman (PM)

s

182

9

40

Postal Clerk (PC)

c

 

 

5

Radioman (RM)

s

9

 

26

Ship's Serviceman (SH)

 

193

2

146

Storekeeper (SK)

 

885

7

83

Yeoman (YN)

s

164

5

128

Illustrator Drftsman(DM)

s

12

1

3

Lithographer (LI)

s

2

 

2

Musicians (MU)

 

46

 

3

Boilermaker(BR)

 

 

 

 

Boilerman(BT)

 

29

 

2

Damage Control (DC)

s

7

 

6

Electrician (EM)

 

259

3

18

Engineman (EN)

 

160

1

15

Interior Com (IC)

s

78

 

7

Machinery Repair(MR)

 

32

1

3

Machinist's Mate (MN)

 

88

 

11

Molder (ML)

 

1

 

 

Patternmaker (PM)

 

 

 

 

Shipfitter (SF)

 

29

 

4

Builder (BU)

 

10

 

1

Construction Mech (CM)

 

11

 

5

Construction Elect (CE)

 

8

 

2

Engineering Aid (EA)

 

10

1

2

Equipment Operator (EO)

 

2

 

1

Steekworker (SW)

 

1

 

 

Utilities (UT)

 

7

 

1

Aegrapher's Mate (AG)

s

1

 

 

Air Controllman (AC)

s

2

 

 

Aviation Anti Sub (AX)

s

 

 

 

Aviation Boatswains (AD)

 

1

 

5

Aviation Electr (AE)

s

2

 

5

Aviation Electronic (AT)

s

3

 

 

Aviation Fire Cont (AQ)

s

 

 

 

Aviation Machi (AD)

 

32

 

17

Aviation Ord (AO)

s

 

 

1

Aviation Storek (AK)

 

108

 

17

Aviation structrual M (AM)

 

6

 

6

Parachute Rigger (PR)

 

 

 

 

Photographer (PH)

s

3

 

3

Pho Intelligence (PT)

s

 

 

 

Travevman (TD)

s

 

 

 

Hospital Corpsman (HM)

 

150

4

20

Dental Tech (DT)

 

70

2

8

Steward (SD)

 

1084

10

1445

Airman (AN)\

 

6

4

1

Constructionman (CN)

 

3

 

1

Dental man (DN)

 

1

 

1

Firemen (FN)

 

24

2

5

Hospitalman (HN)

 

4

 

3

Seaman (SN)

 

38

14

33

Stewardsman (TN)

 

6088

27

49

Teleman (TE)

 

1

 

4

 

 

 

 

 

Total

 

10417

100

2323

S=requires security clearance

C=US Citizenship requires

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