War on corruption, poverty n South must be won first

from The Manilla Times

SPECIAL REPORT Six years after 9/11

By Al Jacinto Correspondent

Third of three parts

EDITOR’S NOTE: The first part showed how the war on terror extended to the Philippines, where troops fought the al-Qaeda-linked Abu Sayyaf bandits. Complete victory eluded government troops, despite winning many battles. The second part discussed how Philippine and US troops went on a charm offensive—complementing fighting with development and humanitarian programs.

ZAMBOANGA CITY: Despite all the efforts and even with the Abu Sayyaf on the verge of extinction—problems remain.

Hostilities broke out again in Basilan’s Al-Barka town in July this year after MILF fighters attacked government forces and killed 14 soldiers who strayed into a rebel stronghold while pursuing the Abu Sayyaf. Ten of the soldiers were later beheaded by the Abu Sayyaf as they retreated.

Since 2002, Philippine offensive against Abu Sayyaf became more intense and effective on Basilan and Jolo islands, with many of its members killed and captured.

And all these were attributed to the persistent military operations under Gen. Hermogenes Esperon, the Armed Forces chief, and Lt. Gen. Eugenio Cedo, of the Western Mindanao Command, and sophisticated US intelligence equipment—from satellite photos to unmanned drones and surveillance aircrafts that tracked the movements of the Abu Sayyaf.

However, the Abu Sayyaf has established links with the Indonesian terror group, Jemaah Islamiah, and a local radical organization called the Rajah Soliman Movement, which is made up of Filipinos who converted to Islam.

And US officials expressed growing concern over the presence of JI in Mindanao and links between that militant group, Abu Sayyaf and the larger rebel group, Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), which is now negotiating peace with the government.

The Bush administration supported the ongoing peace talks between the Philippine government and the MILF as the best means of breaking the MILF-JI link. Washington even offered $30 million in aid should the MILF seal a peace agreement with Manila, according to reports.

The MILF has repeatedly denied any links with JI, although military commanders say there is a connection between the two groups. They say JI militants—among them Indonesian bombers Dulmatin and Umar Patek and Malaysian Zulkifli bin Hir, who heads the Kumpulun Mujahidin Malaysia (KMM) terrorist organization—provided the MILF and Abu Sayyaf training on explosives.

Jakarta tagged Dulmatin and Patek as behind the 2002 Bali bombings that killed 202 people, including 88 Australians. The two were also believed behind several bombings in Jolo Island, where hundreds of American troops are deployed and assisting the Filipino soldiers in fighting terrorism.

“This is a Philippines battle and the Philippines forces are winning,” said Col. David Maxwell, the Joint Special Operations Task Force-Philippines commander based in Zamboanga City, in an interview with The Australian in January.

“The Philippine navy has done a tremendous job with the ability for Dulmatin and Patek to move by water,” he was quoted as saying. He said the terrorists are trapped since the military have practically sealed off Jolo and Basilan.

He added, “They will have to leave the Philippines and right now their best hope is to continue to remain here on Jolo because they’ve got a low level of basic support network that has allowed them to survive. But it’s only a matter of time. The Armed Forces of the Philippines are going to win over all the sanctuaries and they are going to win over all the people and eliminate the ability for them to survive on the island.”

The Australian government also said the presence of JI in Mindanao poses a serious threat to them, but a joint antiterror training with the Philippines is under way in areas where the JI, Abu Sayyaf and MILF operate. For now, it is limited to providing intelligence support and training in bomb detection, hostage rescue and maritime security.

Next to the US, Australia is Manila’s biggest provider of defense and counterterrorism assistance, with about $13.5 million in aid given to Manila last year.

Jemaah Islamiah attacks are always feared to be deadly. The Rizal Day bombings, blamed on JI, were a series of attacks that occurred Metro Manila on December 30, 2000. At least 22 people were killed and more than 100 others injured in the attacks.

The US has offered as much as a $10-million bounty for Dulmatin’s capture; $5 million for Zulkifli, $1 million for Patek. Washington also offered $5 million for known Abu Sayyaf leaders under the Rewards for Justice System.

Since its inception, Rewards for Justice has paid more than $62 million to more than 40 people who have provided credible information that has brought terrorists to justice or prevented acts of international terrorism.

Many disgruntled members of the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF), which signed a peace deal with Manila in 1996, have joined the Abu Sayyaf. They say the peace agreement failed to improve their lives and that many Muslim areas in Mindanao remain in poverty.

MNLF members clashed with government troops on Jolo in 2005, in an eruption of violence reportedly related to the launching of an earlier government offensive against the Abu Sayyaf, with which the breakaway MNLF faction allegedly shares close ties. MLNF faction commanders in Jolo have warned the army against launching attacks close to their bases on the island. The military accused the MNLF of coddling Dulmatin and Patek and other Abu Sayyaf leaders.

Some Moro Islamic Liberation Front commanders are also suspected of providing sanctuary to Abu Sayyaf and JI militants and allegedly even allowing them to train secretly inside rebel bases in central Mindanao, officials say.

In April 2005, US Charge d’affaires in Manila Joseph Mussomeli said parts of Mindanao, with its poverty, lawlessness and porous borders, and links to JI could develop into an “Afghanistan-style” situation. Former US ambassador to the Philippines, Francis Ricciardone, had canceled a US-funded road project in Cotabato, describing the city as a “doormat” for terrorists.

It was in Cotabato City where some foreign al-Qaeda operatives had been arrested by joint US and Philippine law enforcers.

Philippine authorities say as many as seven dozen Indonesian and Malaysian JI militants are believed hiding in Mindanao. The lack or limited military equipment of the AFP, such as aircraft and patrol vessels, made it difficult for troops to hunt down the terrorists or carry out missions. US and Australian military aid have made up for the lack of equipment, however.

President Arroyo ordered the Armed Forces to crush insurgencies in three years before her she steps down by 2010. But it was a tall order and is unlikely that the military will be able to wipe out the Abu Sayyaf, not even the leftist New People’s Army. And new breeds of insurgents and terrorists, deadlier and smarter, will come and go and leave their marks in strife-scarred Mindanao, despite the so-called war on terror, unless poverty and corruption in government are eliminated and eventually peace will reign.