LINKAGES AND STRATEGIES IN FILIPINO DIASPORA MOBILIZATION FOR REGIME CHANGE*

Abstract

Over the last century, the activities of migrants and refugees have been crucial in homeland democratization. How does the relationship between the homeland and hostland shape their strategies? Comparing the activism of Filipinos in the U.S. and in the Netherlands from 1972–1982 against the dictatorship of Ferdinand Marcos, this study shows that linkage influences the demands, arenas, and tactics of movement actors. Analysis of archival and interview data shows that activists in the U.S. pursued foreign policy lobbying due to strong linkage between the U.S. and the Philippines, which provided activists an accessible institutional target, channel, and resources for their claims making. In contrast, through transnational advocacy networks, Filipinos in the Netherlands engaged in naming and shaming in nongovernment tribunal due to weak Dutch-Philippine state relations. The article considers the relationship between two polities and societies as a shifting transnational field of relations that shapes the agency of actors in cross-border activism.