Father Robert Reyes, popularly referred to as 'the running priest', deposited three pieces of bread shaped like guns at Manila's foreign affairs department yesterday as a symbolic protest against planned U.S.-Philippine military exercises in southern Philippines.

"We need bread, not dead people in Basilan," said Reyes, who, after his morning jog, marched with others to Roxas Boulevard's U.S. embassy, where thousands held a protest rally against the exercises.

The Catholic Bishop Businessmen Conference of the Philippines has given President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo's policy the nod, but this did not deter Father Reyes from continuing his anti-U.S. jog for a week.

"We have declared a day of national protest against the U.S.-Philippine war games," the protesters said, adding that nationwide anti-U.S. protests will "further escalate".

U.S. officials promptly closed the embassy's consular office, which dismayed many Filipinos who were scheduled for interviews for visa requests.

Similar anti-U.S. protest rallies were held by overseas Filipino workers in Hong Kong, Canada, parts of the U.S. and Europe, said Migrante International.

Organised Filipino professionals abroad have scheduled rallies in the Philippine embassies in their respective places, said Migrante International general secretary, Poe Gratella.

Protest rallies were held in Cebu City and Iloilo City in central Philippines, and in Davao City in southern Philippines, organisers added.

"President Arroyo is a liar because she has not told the public her real objective in allowing the entry of U.S. soldiers in Mindanao's war zones," said Bayan secretary general, Teddy Casino.

The protesters said the six-month long exercises were meant to crush the Abu Sayyaf which is still holding a Filipina nurse and two American missionaries in Basilan.

Women's groups said the war games will "promote prostitution and destruction", adding that the destruction of Basilan will mean more money will be required to build up war-torn Mindanao.

"The war games are assaulting our capability, our sovereignty," said a placard. It was a reiteration of the common complaint expressed by critics even before the start of the war games in Zamboanga City, Basilan (in southern Philippines) and in Cebu City, central Philippines on February 15.

"Rumblings against the war games are getting stronger. I think they will stop only after the president can prove the means can justify the end," said an observer.

"I am for the war games per se, but the Filipino soldiers are beginning to look stupid while in fact they could teach the American soldiers how to withstand and survive the Basilan jungle warfare," said non-Catholic pastor, Alfredo Crespo.

"It's good to know that the Filipino soldiers are learning about new equipment, night vision goggles and other hi-tech weaponry," said Crespo.

When asked to comment on the Catholic Church's response to the war games which dismayed many militant critics and former allies, Crespo said: "That is understandable. They have given conflicting signals. They have been proponents of peaceful solution in the Mindanao problem and all of a sudden they are pro-war games."

Meanwhile, details of the guidelines in the controversial war-games are not yet approved, five days after the formal opening of the large scale joint exercises.

Malou Talosig adds: Arroyo clipped the power of Foreign Secretary Teofisto Guingona by preventing him from appointing the executive director of the visiting forces agreement (VFA) monitoring board. This has been the prerogative of the foreign affairs secretary since the Philippines senate ratified the VFA in 1999.

Arroyo's new memorandum said Executive Secretary Alberto Romulo will be the one to appoint the VFA monitoring board's executive director. "This is a sign that Arroyo has been clipping the power of Guingona who is known to be against the war games," said a critic.

Guingona remains chairman and Defence Secretary Angelo Reyes vice chairman of the monitoring board, but the board's pointman is the executive director.