Diigo, March 22, 2000, The Philippine Star, Sayyaf threatens to kill hostages,
Diigo, March 24, 2000, The Philippine Star, 'Crisis committee' to handle Sayyaf negotiations,
Diigo, March 25, 2000, The Philippine Star, Sayyaf leader's family kidnapped,
Diigo, March 27, 2000, The Philippine Star, 18 Abu Sayyaf hostages freed, by Roel Pareño,
Diigo, March 27, 2000, The Philippine Star, Sayyaf to kill captives if Janjalani's kin not freed,
Diigo, April 8, 2000, The Philippine Star, Sayyaf frees kidnapped trader, by John Unson, Diigo, April 15, 2000, The Philippine Star, Abu Sayyaf frees two ailing children, by Edith Regalado and Roel Pareno,
Diigo, April 18, 2000, The Philippine Star, Sayyaf warns We'll kidnap Americans, by Roel Pareño,
Diigo, April 24, 2000, The Philippine Star, 20 killed in assault on Abu Sayyaf lair, [No Cache,]Diigo, May 2, 2000, The Philippine Star, Gov't blames MILF for failure of peace negotiations, by Paolo Romero,
Diigo, May 4, 2000, The Philippine Star, Sayyaf kills Pinoy hostages 15 saved,
Diigo, May 6, 2000, The Philippine Star, Sayyaf eludes military dragnet,
Diigo, May 10, 2000, The Philippine Star, MNLF integrees allow Sayyaf rebs, 21 hostages to escape,
Diigo, May 22, 2000, The Philippine Star, Two child hostages rescued from Sayyaf, says Palace,
Diigo, May 27, 2000, The Philippine Star, 1st round of Sayyaf talks cancelled, by Roel Pareño,
Diigo, June 1, 2000, The Philippine Star, MILF leader faces arrest, by Allen Estabillo,
Diigo, June 1, 2000, The Philippine Star, Estrada wants Mindanao problem over by 2004, by Marichu Villanueva,
Diigo, June 3, 2000, The Philippine Star, 33 killed as troops capture MILF's perimeter camp, by John Unson And Edith Regalado,
Diigo, June 4, 2000, The Philippine Star, Military won't touch Abubakar, for now,
Diigo, June 4, 2000, The Philippine Star, No ransom for Sayyaf hostages - Aventajado,
Diigo, June 9, 2000, The Philippine Star, RP rejects OIC call to cease offensive,
Diigo, June 10, 2000, The Philippine Star, Talks with Abu seen today; $1-M ransom demand confirmed,
Diigo, June 10, 2000, The Philippine Star, Soldier killed, 3 wounded in new MILF attacks, by John Unson,
Diigo, June 12, 2000, The Philippine Star, Troops capture another MILF camp in Maguindanao,
Diigo, June 19, 2000, The Philippine Star, Troops close in on another MILF camp, by John Unson,
Diigo, June 20, 2000, The Philippine Star, 'Abu Sayyaf hostage crisis may last four more months', by Marichu Villanueva,
Diigo, June 22, 2000, The Philippine Star, Two more MILF camps overrun,
Diigo, June 26, 2000, The Philippine Star, One down 20 to go, by Roel Pareño,
Diigo, June 29, 2000, The Philippine Star, OIC to Muslims: Respect RP laws, sovereignty, by Marichu Villanueva,
Diigo, June 30, 2000, The Philippine Star, OIC urges Abu Sayyaf to release all hostages, by Roel Pareño, Edith Regalado,
Diigo, July 4, 2000, The Philippine Star, Attack on MILF lair has Erap go-signal,
Diigo, July 5, 2000, The Philippine Star, Talks with Sayyaf in 'delicate stage',
Diigo, July 6, 2000, The Philippine Star, Orly to AFP: Take Abubakar--it's now or never, by Paolo Romero,
Diigo, July 9, 2000, The Philippine Star, Talks with MILF continue despite push for Abubakar, by Marichu
Diigo, July 10, 2000, The Philippine Star, AFP takes Abubakar, by John Unson and Paolo Romero, Villanueva, Jaime Laude, John Unson, Jess Diaz,
Diigo, July 11, 2000, The Philippine Star, Gov't to pursue peace with MILF, by Marichu Villanueva and Aurea Calica,
Diigo, July 17, 2000, The Philippine Star, 4 dead, 33 injured in Cotabato blast, by John Unson and Roel Pareño,
Diigo, July 18, 2000, The Philippine Star, MILF rebels massacre 21 Christians, by By Lino De La Cruz,
Diigo, July 22, 2000, The Philippine Star, Sayyaf frees 4 Malaysians 2 teachers,
Diigo, July 23, 2000, The Philippine Star, Release of 6 more Abu hostages seen,
Diigo, July 29, 2000, The Philippine Star, MILF cancels peace talks, demands foreign venue, by Roel Pareño and Paolo Romero,
Diigo, July 30, 2000, The Philippine Star, Gov't-MILF talks reset to Aug. 15, by Edith Regalado,
Diigo, July 30, 2000, The Philippine Star, Sayyaf frees TV crew,
Diigo, August 8, 2000, The Philippine Star, AFP chief admits Sayyaf got P245 M for hostages' release, by Marichu Villanueva,
Diigo, August 9, 2000, The Philippine Star, Palace: Gov't cannot stop ransom payments to Sayyaf, by Marichu Villanueva,
Diigo, August 19, 2000, The Philippine Star, Abu Sayyaf rebels free three remaining Malaysian captives,
Diigo, September 27, 2000, The Philippine Star, 18 Sayyaf suspects arrested in mosque NSC backs offensive vs Abus, by Roel Pareño,
Diigo, October 7, 2000, The Philippine Star, Gov't may eventually hold peace talks with MILF abroad, by Paolo Romero And John Unson,
Diigo, October 12, 2000, The Philippine Star, Robot’ sends surrender feelers,
Diigo, November 9, 2000, The Philippine Star, Abu Sayyaf camp seized, by Roel Pareño,
Diigo, November 17, 2000, The Philippine Star, Seizure of Sayyaf properties mulled; 3 more die in clash, by Roel Pareño,
Diigo, December 1, 2000, The Philippine Star, Military: Drive vs Abu Sayyaf to go on during Ramadan,
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Diigo, March 22, 2000, The Philippine Star, Sayyaf threatens to kill hostages,
The Muslim fundamentalist group Abu Sayyaf threatened yesterday to kill its hostages if the military would press its assault, but offered to free some of the children held captive in exchange for food and medicine. In another development, President Estrada, who flew to Mindanao yesterday, warned that an all-out campaign would be launched to crush the separatist Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF).
Armed Forces chief Gen. Angelo Reyes said the troops would pursue their operations against the Abu Sayyaf. But he asked the rebels not to harm their captives, saying they were civilians who had nothing to do with the conflict. "If they bring the food to us, we will free some of the hostages. They can take some of the children," Abu Sayyaf spokesman Abu Ahmad Alajudin said in a radio interview in Zamboanga City.
He said they were still holding 43 civilians, consisting of 27 elementary and high school students, a Catholic priest and 15 teachers of the Claret school in Barangay Sampinit in Isabela, Basilan.
The hostages were seized after the rebels tried to attack last Monday an Army outpost in the village of Tumahubong in Sumisip town in Basilan. However, the military said the rebel group was holding 38 students, teachers and a Catholic priest after the failed raid on the Army detachment in Basilan. "We will not harm the hostages, but if the military launches an operation to rescue the victims, it is up to them. The blood will be on their hands," Admad warned.
He also said one of the captives was pregnant and had a miscarriage. "We need a doctor and a female Red Cross worker to cure the sick and the injured," he added. Ahmad said they would negotiate only with members of the Claretian order and a local politician, Candu Muarip.
Maj. Gen. Diomedio Villanueva, chief of the Armed Forces' Southern Command (Southcom), said he has ordered his men to ensure the safety of the hostages. Heavily armed Abu Sayyaf fundamentalist guerrillas stormed the Army outpost early Monday morning, triggering a 30-minute firefight that left two soldiers wounded.
But the troops put up a gallant defense, forcing the rebels to withdraw toward the Claret High School where they seized Fr. Roel Gallardo, school principal Reynaldo Rubio, five other teachers and a large group of students. The gunmen later released unharmed 20 students in various areas. Later that day, another group of Abu Sayyaf rebels swooped down on Sinangcapan High School in Tuburan town where they abducted 11 teachers, not students as reported earlier.
Southcom spokesman Col. Hilario Atendido said the guerrillas holding the teachers and students were led by Insilon Hapilon and Kadafi Janjalani, brother of slain Abu Sayyaf leader Abdurajak Abubakar Janjalani. Villanueva raised the possibility that the MILF and the Abu Sayyaf were acting in concert to draw attention away from MILF units under siege by the military.
Estrada vows to crush rebellion in South
Addressing soldiers in Kauswagan town in Lanao del Norte, the President said there would be no letup in the government's anti-insurgency drive. "I am warning them, I will not ease up. We will not rest... my soldiers will not rest until they (rebels) are defeated," Mr. Estrada said before hundreds of soldiers and townsfolk in Kauswagan which was occupied last week by some 400 MILF guerrillas.
As the Chief Executive spoke, Army artillery boomed from a distance as fighting between the troops and the MILF rebels raged. Grim-looking presidential guards, armed with assault rifles, formed a human wall around the President to protect him from snipers as he alighted from a military helicopter to pin medals on the soldiers.
At the town hall where glass windows were shattered during last week's fighting, Mr. Estrada ate a lunch of noodles and smoked fish with the troops. "The attack on Kauswagan was a direct challenge to our government. We will not let them spread fear and terror among our people," Mr. Estrada stressed. The military had claimed some 100 MILF guerrillas were killed in last week's clashes, but the rebel group insisted they lost only seven men. Meanwhile, the Vatican representative to Manila has telephoned the Basilan prelature to express his concern over the abductions.
Fr. Martin Jumuad, chancellor to the Basilan prelature, said on the radio that the papal nuncio was "very much worried." "The only assurance that he is saying to us is that he will raise this immediately to the attention of the Pope and he assured us of his prayers," Jumuad said.
He also appealed to the rebels to release the children, saying they are innocent. The priest also said the church was willing to negotiate and provide food. The Abu Sayyaf was blamed for last month's simultaneous bomb attacks on two police stations and a restaurant in Basilan, killing one person and wounding 17 others.
Ethnic war sizzles in Kauswagan
Irate Christians torched at least three Muslim homes in Kauswagan in apparently retaliation to the MILF's siege of their town last week. Meanwhile, a Muslim leader was reportedly shot dead by a lone assailant inside the victim's house in Butuan City. Police identified the victim as Macabangit Pandin, 60, former Butuan City Commission on Elections Officer.
Pandin's companion, Abdul Mohaiman, 14, was wounded in the attack. This developed as the President ordered the 15-day suspension of Kauswagan Mayor Moamar Maruhom for allegedly abandoning his constituents at the town hall during the MILF attack.
Vice Mayor Peddy Milan was designated as officer-in-charge. For her part, Lanao del Norte Gov. Imelda Dimaporo denied allegations she was sympathetic to the MILF. Dimaporo said while they are also Muslims, it did not mean they were supporting the MILF.
"I have not even seen or met any of the MILF commanders, but I have received extortion letters from them asking for money or revolutionary taxes which I did not give," the governor said. Munai town Mayor Casan Maguiling also denied he was friendly to the rebels.
Meanwhile, an estimated 12,000 villagers from Barangays Suarez, Tominobo and Ditucalan evacuated to the city as MILF fighters were reported massing up in the hinterland barangays of nearby Balo-i town in Lanao del Norte.
Military commanders ordered the setting up of blocking forces to prevent the rebels' entry into civilian centers. Iligan City Mayor Franklin Quijano said the displaced residents were housed in at least 15 evacuation centers.
Despite the resurgence of hostilities in Mindanao, Senate Majority Leader Franklin Drilon said that the National Security Council remained confident that a peace treaty with the MILF could be concluded by June 30, the deadline set by Mr. Estrada. Speaking in Bacolod City, Drilon said the skirmishes involved a main talking point in the peace negotiations--the recognition of MILF camps by the government. - Marichu Villanueva, Paolo Romero, Efren Danao, Roel Pareño, Lino de la Cruz, Edith Regalado, Ben Serrano, John Unson, Rolly Espina, Sheila Crisostomo, wire services
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Diigo, March 24, 2000, The Philippine Star, 'Crisis committee' to handle Sayyaf negotiations,
The government will form a "crisis management committee" that will spearhead negotiations with fundamentalist Muslim rebels holding hostage at least 42 students, teachers and a Catholic priest in the southern island province of Basilan.
Meanwhile, Defense Secretary Orlando Mercado stressed that the government negotiators should insist on a no-ransom policy. National Security Adviser Alexander Aguirre said the committee will be made up of local government officials, but would fall under his direct supervision in negotiating with the Abu Sayyaf rebels.
The Abu Sayyaf extremist guerrillas stormed a Catholic school and a government-run high school last Sunday in Basilan after a failed attack on an Army outpost. They seized at least 45 students, teachers and the priest, but freed a pregnant woman and two boys on Wednesday.
"We will provide all the necessary guidance and advice to the provincial crisis management committee to see to it that the primordial concern of safety of the hostages will be undertaken, and we will proceed to the ground with myself as representative," Aguirre said.
Abu Sayyaf spokesman Abu Ahmad said yesterday they will release 10 more captives in exchange for 200 sacks of rice, canned goods and medicines to be delivered to the rebel hideout by local Red Cross representatives and the Roman Catholic church.
Ahmad relayed the demand to Basilan Rep. Abdulgani Salapuddin who initiated talks with the rebels late Wednesday. Ahmad also urged the military to call off pursuit operations, warning that it would only endanger the lives of the hostages who would be "killed like goats and sent to the town."
One of the captured teachers, Erlinda Manuel, told a local radio station many of the hostages, especially the children, were suffering from fever and flu and badly needed medicines.
"We also need food, clothes and other supplies," the teacher said by telephone from the rebels' jungle hideout. To assure the people that the hostages are safe, Ahmad allowed four others to speak on the radio. They were teachers Annabel Mendoza and Lida Ajon, and students Jay-Jay Raimbonanza, 10, and Bon Adolf Sihalbo, 12 Salapuddin said he would ask the defense department and the military to halt the troops' offensive to allow for negotiations for the safe release of the captives.
"Rescue operations must be stopped during the negotiations and until all the hostages have been released," Salapuddin said. Mercado asserted, however, that the military would not object to negotiations being led by civilians, but stressed that the government's no-ransom policy should be upheld.
For his part, regional Army chief Brig. Gen. Narciso Abaya said Salapuddin should coordinate first with the military before starting the negotiations with the rebels. "We will not fall into a trap where the rebels would use the negotiations to delay the release of all the captives," Abaya stressed.
The Abu Sayyaf attack on the two schools in Basilan came as government forces were trying to flush out guerrillas of the larger Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) in mainland Mindanao where sporadic fighting has been raging since Wednesday last week, leaving scores of people dead or wounded.
Some 80 MILF rebels ambushed an Army patrol in Lanao del Norte, wounding three soldiers. -- Mike Frialde, Jess Diaz, Sandy Araneta, Alvin Tarroza, John Unson, Roel Parreño, AFP report
Visiting Kauswagan town in Lanao del Norte late Wednesday, President Estrada ordered the military to crush the armed struggle in the island. "If we must smash them, we will smash them all. What they are doing is too much."
The President said while the peace talks with the MILF would continue, the military would press its offensive against criminals, kidnappers and terrorists.
Bohol Rep. Ernesto Herrera supported the President's position on the insurgency issue. "I have always abhorred violence, but there are times when you need to take off the kid gloves against recalcitrant elements," Herrera said.
He claimed the MILF has been taking advantage of the peace process to encroach on civilian communities and raid Army and police detachments. "While we are holding peace talks, they continue to kidnap and occupy small towns to the detriment of the poor people."
In other developments, the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) batted for the continuance of peaceful negotiations between the government and the MILF, and twitted Mr. Estrada for ordering an all-out offensive against the communist and Muslim. CBCP secretary general and spokesman Bishop Nestor Cariño said Mr. Estrada's tough stance could weaken the peace talks.
Cariño also revealed that Bishop Romulo de la Cruz has been designated to negotiate with the Abu Sayyaf for the safe release of the hostages in Basilan. The Bishop-Ulama Forum of Western Mindanao, a religious organization of Christian and Muslim leaders, also appealed to the Abu Sayyaf to immediately free their hostages.
In a manifesto, the group also asked the military to call off any offensive that might endanger the lives of the captives. Meanwhile, sporadic clashes between government forces and MILF guerrillas continued in Lanao del Norte and Maguindanao provinces.
The Armed Forces' Southern Command (Southcom) said at least three soldiers were wounded in the fighting in Sapad and Linamon towns in Lanao del Norte and in Sultan Kudarat town in Maguindanao. The wounded soldiers were identified as Cpl. Emmanuel Nacyfuna, Pfc. Jerry Valdez and Pfc. Renante Adolfo.
Southcom spokesman Col. Hillary Atendido claimed that undetermined number of MILF fighters were slain in the skirmishes. Some 80 MILF guerrillas clashed with elements of the Army's 26th Infantry Battalion. The fighting took place a few hours after a one-hour encounter in Linamon, involving troops from the Army's 1st Infantry Division and some 100 MILF rebels.
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Diigo, March 25, 2000, The Philippine Star, Sayyaf leader's family kidnapped,
ISABELA, Basilan - Armed followers of Basilan Gov. Wahab Akbar reportedly snatched the wife and mother of Abu Sayyaf (now Al Harakatul Islamia) leader Khadafy Janjalani early yesterday morning.
Janjalani's wife Karima, his mother Vilma, along with his one-year-old daughter Tashmin and eight other family members were dragged at gunpoint into an ambulance that sped to an unknown destination, said Abu Sayyaf spokesman Abu Asmad Alahuddin.
However, Basilan provincial spokesman Hader Glang denied that Janjalani's family had been kidnapped and that Akbar and his men were involved. "The Abu Sayyaf just wants to destroy the administration of Governor Akbar," he said. "They fabricated the report because they know Governor Akbar has refused to negotiate with them."
Col. Larry Atendido, spokesman for the Armed Forces' Southern Command (Southcom), said they were verifying reports that Janjalani's family was kidnapped by other Muslims whose children were among those being held hostage by the Abu Sayyaf.
He said they have received reports that six armed men led by one Asmin Banga kidnapped Janjalani's family and took them to an undisclosed place. But the military could not confirm if the kidnappers are followers of Akbar, he added.
Last Monday, the Abu Sayyaf kidnapped dozens of students and teachers after a failed raid on a military detachment in Basilan. It has threatened to kill the 42 hostages, including a Catholic priest, being held in two separate jungle hideouts if the military tries to rescue them. Earlier, the group released a pregnant teacher and two students in exchange for food and medicine that the Basilan Red Cross had brought them. In Lanao del Norte, at least 12 Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) guerrillas were killed, while 41 were wounded in skirmishes with government troops yesterday.
Brig. Gen. Roy Cimatu, commanding general of the 4th Infantry Division, said Army troops seized three Armalite rifles after a firefight that killed seven rebels and wounded 16 in Poblacion Tagolcan.
In Barangay Poblacion in Sapad town, troops from the 26th Infantry Division repulsed MILF guerrillas after five hours of heavy fighting, killing four rebels and wounding two soldiers and a militiaman.
Southcom chief Maj. Gen. Diomedio Villanueva said the battle ensued when troops spotted 90 heavily-armed guerrillas led by Commander Gamal Umpa. He identified the two wounded soldiers as Cpl. Emmanuel Lacaytong and Pfc. Jury Valdez, and the militiaman as Reynante Adulfo.
Five hours and 45 minutes later, government troops fought 60 heavily armed MILF guerrillas on the boundary of Baloi and Pantar towns, he added. He said the encounter occurred while troops were conducting mopping up operations on part of the Marawi-Iligan national highway when they chanced upon the rebels at around 4:45 p.m. on Thursday.
The military said the rebels continued to descend from several towns to exact revenge on government forces following heavy fighting in Inudaran town. Earlier, Marines and Scout r Rangers killed 88 guerrillas and overran the MILF-held Camp Bilal after hours of intense fighting with rebels.
Villanueva said sporadic clashes are going on as government troops continued mopping up operations. In Parang in Maguindanao, four Marine battalions arrived at Polloc Point yesterday to reinforce government troops stationed in the province. Sources at the Parang municipal government said the Marines would be shipped to Jolo.
Meanwhile, the League of Mayors of Maguindanao wrote President Estrada yesterday to inform him that the province's security situation has worsened. The league's letter was coursed through San Juan Mayor Jinggoy Estrada, who is president of the League of Municipalities of the Philippines. The league said people in the province are gripped with anxiety as the June deadline given by the President for the MILF to conclude a peace agreement nears. In Manila, President Estrada has instructed Interior and Local Government Secretary Alfredo Lim to give priority to government projects in Mindanao
The Chief Executive stressed that the people of Mindanao should continue to get basic needs so they can easily recover from the insurgency problem. Apart from getting private sector support, Lim is pursuing a food security program to help local governments in the region improve their agricultural capabilities.
Lim recently distributed 5,000 farm tractors to boost food production in the region, and has monitored the handing out of food supplies to families affected by the conflict in Lanao del Norte. In Congress, Senate President Blas Ople and Sen. Gregorio Honasan urged President Estrada to hold talks with MILF Chairman Hashim Salamat for peace in Mindanao. - Roel Pareño, Alvin Tarroza, Lino dela Cruz, John M. Unson, Gina Tabonares, Perseus Echeminda, and AFP
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Diigo, March 27, 2000, The Philippine Star, 18 Abu Sayyaf hostages freed, by Roel Pareño,
ISABELA, Basilan - At least 18 hostages were freed unharmed yesterday by the Abu Sayyaf extremist group, which promised to free even more hostages if its demands for 200 sacks of rice were met.
Basilan Rep. Abdulgani Salapuddin, head of the government negotiators who earlier met with the Muslim rebel group in the hinterlands of this island-province, returned to the capital here with the 18 hostages, regional military chief Brig. Gen. Narciso Abaya said.
Among the freed hostages was the youngest, a four-year-old boy, one of those seized by the Abu Sayyaf Monday after a failed raid on a military detachment. Most of those being held are teachers and students.
Abu Sayyaf spokesman Abu Ahmad said in a radio interview the group released the 18 hostages to government negotiators despite the abduction of 11 relatives of Abu Sayyaf leader Khadaffy Janjalani. He added the group would "release more as negotiations continue."
"Masaya na ako dahil nakita ko na ang aking magulang (I'm now happy because I've seen my parents)," said one freed hostage, 12-year-old Dana Medial. But she added she was still saddened because many were left behind.
Salapuddin said the release of the 18 - composed of eight teachers and 10 students - brought the number still being held by the extremists down to 33. The Basilan congressman brought the freed hostages to a tearful reunion with relatives waiting at the 103rd Army Brigade headquarters in Barangay Tabiawan here, said Victor Leozo, a Red Cross official who witnessed the release.
"There was a lot of crying and I was moved to tears myself when I saw a friend among the freed hostages," Leozo told radio station dxRZ. The released hostages were identified as Ernesto Arellano, principal of Tumahubong Elementary School, Macario Mautdon, Albert Sahaw, Nita Asidin, Nurhalda Kotoh Abubakar, Saida Sabirin, Sahiduan Sahijan, Pairusa Sabirin, all teachers; and students Crisanto Reambonanza, Samina Samadul, Nadia Muslimin, Alih Sahirin, Jamal Abdulwasid, Dania Misal, and Dania and Dana Medial.
The military had earlier halted rescue operations against the Abu Sayyaf to start civilian negotiations for the safe release of the hostages still being held by the extremist group in Sumisip town, a senior military officer said.
"We halted rescue operations to allow peaceful negotiations," said Abaya. And as government forces continued to cordon off the lairs of the Abu Sayyaf in the hinterlands, Abaya said the rebels were now willing to reopen negotiations for the freedom of the hostages after initially threatening to kill them.
The group had threatened to kill the hostages after relatives of Janjalani were kidnapped Friday by an unidentified group in an apparent retaliatory kidnapping. Asmad Salayudin, spokesman for the "Al-Harakatul Islamia" Abu Sayyaf group, said they were still holding more than 30 hostages, including Claret school administrator and director Fr. Roel Gallardo and school principal Reynaldo Rubio.
National Security Adviser Alexander Aguirre is in Basilan to personally coordinate the various negotiating efforts by local officials, religious leaders and non-government organizations.
Salayudin said they would only divulge their actual demands during negotiations with Salapuddin, and that they could possibly release some of the hostages to movie actor Robin Padilla, who has converted to Islam. "We might release some of the hostages to Robin Padilla if he joins the negotiations," the Abu Sayyaf spokesman said earlier.
The extremist group had earlier hinted that they were seeking the ouster of provincial police director Superintendent Akmadul Pangambayan and Basilan Gov. Wahab Akbar.
The Abu Sayyaf initially blamed Akbar for the seizure of their relatives and threatened to kill the hostages unless the relatives were freed. The governor denied involvement.
In a related development, Defense Secretary Orlando Mercado said the government is investigating the reported kidnapping of Janjalani's wife and mother. Mercado pointed out that there is currently no evidence that would show Gov. Akbarwas involved in the abduction of the Janjalani family members.
"We are still not aware of the details of this particular incident. I prefer not to comment on anything until we have the facts at hand. There's a lot of propaganda going around," he told reporters in Fort del Pilar, Baguio City.
Seven MILF rebels killed in Lanao clash
At least seven separatist Moro Islamic Liberation Front leaders were killed and an undetermined number wounded in a running gun battle Friday morning with government troops in Tagoloan, Lanao del Norte, a military official said yesterday.
The fresh fighting has brought the rebel death toll to 11 in the last week as soldiers continued to flush out remaining MILF forces in the province. Southern Command chief Maj. Gen. Diomedio Villanueva said the fighting broke out at 5:30 a.m. in Barangay Libutan when some 200 heavily armed MILF fighters attacked a military detachment there.
The military suffered no casualties as the rebels were immediately repulsed by heavy artillery and ground fire from 105mm Howitzers. Villanueva said two hours after the attack, reconnaissance troops conducted blocking operations and ambushed the withdrawing rebel group, led by a certain Commander Mercy.
The ensuing firefight, which lasted more than an hour, left at least seven rebels dead. Last Wednesday, some 100 MILF fighters tried to occupy a village in Sapad town but were repelled by military forces. Four rebels were killed.
Villanueva said additional government troops would be deployed in Mindanao, particularly in Lanao towns where most clashes have taken place. The additional forces would be on top of the recent deployment of two brigades of Marines and a brigade of Army Scout Rangers. "There will be more troops coming in, and those that have been deployed earlier will stay and secure the towns even if the situation there has normalized," he said.
Villanueva pointed out that all roads in Lanao del Norte are now open to vehicular traffic. "There is nothing to fear now, The rebels can no longer gather as a big group and launch an attack on towns. Our soldiers are there," he said.-- By Roel Pareño, with Paolo Romero, Edith Regalado,Jose Rodel Clapano, John Unson, AFP
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Diigo, March 27, 2000, The Philippine Star, Sayyaf to kill captives if Janjalani's kin not freed,
ZAMBOANGA CITY - Abu Sayyaf guerrillas are threatening to kill their 33 remaining hostages if the wife and family of their leader Khadaffy Janjalani are not freed.
"Anytime, we can execute the hostages," said the group's spokesman Abu Ahmad Salayuddin. "If the lives of the victims don't mean anything to them, we can also sacrifice our own families."
A day after turning over 18 hostages to government negotiators, Salayuddin said over local radio that the group could not guarantee the safety of more than 30 remaining captives if something untoward happens to Janjalani's family.
At Malacañang, President Estrada said military patrols in Mindanao are not intended to harass the people, but to defend them from the rebels. "If they (rebels) will continue to violate truces, we have no choice but to respond accordingly to stop their atrocities," he said. "The government will not abandon its duty to protect the rights of ordinary citizens to have a peaceful and decent life."
In Basilan, a certain Abdul Midjal, who is reportedly a bodyguard of Gov. Wahab Akbar, has admitted kidnapping Janjalani's family in retaliation for the abduction of over 50 people, including Midjal's daughter.
Midjal's group reportedly snatched 10 relatives of Janjalani, including his wife, mother and one-year-old daughter, to pressure the Abu Sayyaf into releasing the hostages. The Abu Sayyaf, now known as Al Harakatul Islamia, has accused Akbar of being the mastermind in the kidnapping of Janjalani's family.
Last week, the Abu Sayyaf abducted the 53 students and teachers, including a Catholic priest after a failed raid on an Army outpost in Basilan, in which two soldiers were also wounded.
Meanwhile, Akbar challenged the Abu Sayyaf yesterday to free the hostages and face government forces in combat. The governor was reacting to Salayuddin's call over the radio for Akbar and his men to set foot at Camp Abubakar, a stronghold of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) in Mt. Mahajir in Sumisip, Basilan.
"If they are tough enough, they should release the innocent ones and face us squarely... we will take their challenges," he said. "Their abduction of 53 innocent civilians to be used as human shield is an act of cowardice."
Apart from 200 sacks of rice, canned goods, and medicine, the Abu Sayyaf is also demanding for the removal of Akbar and Basilan police director Superintendent Akmadul Pangambayan as a condition for negotiating to free the remaining hostages.
Akbar, on the other hand, said the Abu Sayyaf could no longer sustain their operations and that the group's members have become demoralized. Pangambayan said the Abu Sayyaf wants him removed because he had stopped their illegal activities like extortion and drug trafficking since he took charge of the Basilan police.
In the meantime, Basilan Rep. Abdulgani "Gerry" Salapuddin left yesterday for Basilan to negotiate for the release of Janjalani's relatives. Salapuddin appealed to Midjal's group to free the Janjalani family to ease the brewing tension in the region, which he said could endanger the lives of the two sets of hostages.
"This is not the right way of solving the crisis," he told reporters yesterday. "We have to be rational enough, we are already confronting the problem and we must solve this peacefully."
As Salapuddin made his appeal, relatives of the hostages, including former hostages themselves, rallied in front of the Claret school to call on the Abu Sayyaf to free the remaining captives.
At Army headquarters, Southern Command chief Maj. Gen. Diomedio Villanueva said three Army battalions remain on standby after local government and church officials requested on Friday to halt any rescue operation to allow negotiations. In case the talks fail, the troops could be immediately mobilized because the Army's primary concern is the safety of the hostages, he added.
In Isabela, Basilan, Brig. Gen. Glicerio Sua, commander of the Army's 103rd Brigade, said troops have been dispatched to rescue Janjalani's family. However, he refused to reveal the exact location where the troops were deployed to prevent other groups from sabotaging the planned operation.
Fighting continues
In Baloi, Lanao del Norte, at least three MILF guerrillas were killed and an undetermined number, including a soldier, were wounded after government troops stormed a rebel safehouse last Thursday. The military said sporadic clashes are going on as Army scout rangers continued mopping-up operations in several areas in Lanao del Norte. Villanueva identified the wounded soldier as Pfc. Gil Goyo, and the MILF casualties as Lumir and Oging Sumangka, and a certain Tahir.
He said government troops also recovered an Armalite rifle with three rounds of ammunition, an ICOM antenna, and a wet cell battery. On the same day, two MILF fighters were also killed after the Army bombarded with 105mm howitzers and mortars a rebel lair in Barangay Lamak in Tagoloan town, he added.
Later, the MILF camp was overrun by troops from the 30th Infantry Division and that they discovered 40 foxholes, said Maj. Gen. Gregorio Camiling, commander of the Army's 6th Division.
In Central Mindanao, MILF documents seized by the Army showed the rebels have already collected millions of pesos through extortion from different bus companies and local government officials, said Col. Fredesvindo Covarrubias, chief of the Armed Forces' Public Relations Group for Mindanao.
"With these voluminous documents, I believe they cannot deny that they are behind the series of extortion activities and perhaps the recent bombings," he said.
In Maguindanao, thousands of Marines from Sulu are expected to arrive at Polloc Point at 7 a.m. today as part of a final offensive to capture MILF lairs, including Camp Abubakar. MILF leader Salamat Hashim lives in Camp Abubakar, an MILF-held territory and fortress that contains a guerrilla training school.
Officials of towns surrounding Camp Abubakar said the Marines could be deployed in their territories and military officials have already coordinated with local governments. "We don't see any problem here because we know that the Marines are disciplined and respectful of civilians," said a councilor in Parang town. "Of course their coming would cause tension and we are praying that they would not be provoked by the MILF."
Salamat on the other hand, said the Marines are being deployed in Maguindanao to pressure the MILF to agree to an immediate settlement of security problems in the province. "We are expecting so much from the Estrada administration...something good...something bad." he said. "We are prepared for all of these."
At Malacañang, National Security Adviser Alexander Aguirre said government troops will continue to patrol Mindanao to protect residents from MILF harassment. Aguirre also said skirmishes between Army soldiers and MILF guerrillas occurred on March 23 and 24 during routine military patrols. - Roel Pareño, John Unson, Jose Rodel Clapano, AFP
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Diigo, April 8, 2000, The Philippine Star, Sayyaf frees kidnapped trader, by John Unson,
"This was shortly after our regional director (Sen. Supt. Jilhani Nani) ordered a renewed crackdown on the Abu Sayyaf as part of the effort to rescue Endoso," Casimiro said.
The intelligence community in the Armed Forces Southern Command said the kidnappers of Endoso belong to a syndicate led by a certain Garib Andang, a disgruntled member of the Moro National Liberation Front who joined the Abu
Sayyaf in 1994.
In 1998, the MNLF's chairman, Gov. Nur Misuari of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, directed his followers in Sulu to help local authorities neutralize Andang, also known as "Commander Robot."
The first sensational kidnapping attack perpetrated by Andang and his men was the abduction in the early '90s of Oblate missionary Clarence Bertelsman while officiating Mass inside Camp Asturias, the police's provincial headquarters in Jolo.
His group had been tagged as responsible for the abduction of more than a dozen residents in Sulu in recent years, including the kidnapping in 1998 of two Malaysians and a Chinese working for a private fishing company in Tawi-Tawi.
The raiding policemen recovered 4,577 marijuana plants after swooping down on the rebels' hideout, guarded by some 20 guerillas who resisted at first but fled after sensing that Casimiro and his men had surrounded them.______________________________________________________________________________________
Diigo, April 15, 2000, The Philippine Star, Abu Sayyaf frees two ailing children, by Edith Regalado and Roel Pareno,
Two ailing children aged seven and 10 were freed yesterday by Abu Sayyaf guerrillas holding 31 hostages in their jungle hideout in Sumisip town in the island province of Basilan in Mindanao.
Meanwhile, ABS-CBN reported yesterday that the Abu Sayyaf rebels are demanding the release of Arab terrorists jailed in the United States before they free the remaining 29 captives.
It was unclear whether the fundamentalists were demanding the release of Ramzi Yousef, the mastermind in the 1993 bombing of the World Trade Center in New York. Philippine police say the Abu Sayyaf has links with Yousef, who hid in Manila before fleeing to Pakistan, where he was arrested in 1995.
This developed as the extremist rebels demanded a ban on the putting up of crosses in Christian churches, chapels and cemeteries in the predominantly Muslim province of Basilan.
Abu Sayyaf spokesman Abu Ahmad said fourth grader Lanny Mae Cachuela and second grader Nova Verallo, both of the Sinangkapan Elementary School in Tuburan town, needed medical attention after they were stricken with influenza.
The children were turned over to a group of mediators led by popular movie actor Robin Padilla, a recent convert to Islam, and were waiting transport from the extremist rebels' forward base near Maluso town.
The youngsters broke into tears upon their arrival at the Claret Formation Center in the capital town of Isabela.
They said their brothers were among those still being held by the Abu Sayyaf in the rebel Camp Abdurajak in the hinterlands of Sumisip.
Padilla was set to return to the capital town of Isabela, but was delayed after a government truck sent to fetch him broke down.
The rebels are still holding 29 hostages, mostly students and their teachers, and a Catholic priest seized from raids on two schools last March 20.
The rebels also demanded the release from the Basilan jail of five of their colleagues, and the elimination of poaching by foreign vessels in Philippine waters, notably the Mindanao Sea.
The Abu Sayyaf's demands were contained in a letter addressed to President Estrada and sent through Padilla.
"This has a positive impact because we have freed the (two) hostages," Ahmad said.
He also said they have told Padilla their demands and Padilla will in turn convey them to President Estrada.
The gunmen have also vowed to hold on to the remaining captives until they obtain a satisfactory answer to their demands.
"We will wait for Malacañang's reply," Ahmad said, adding that the release of the victims now depended on the government.
Twenty-one hostages were set free last month in exchange for food and medicine, while two were exchanged for the wife and children of Abu Sayyaf leader Khadaffy Janjalani, who were snatched along with other relatives in a counter-abduction by a group of armed vigilantes.
National Security Adviser Alexander Aguirre, head of a management crisis committee handling the hostage drama, said the actor would also go to the vigilantes' lair to persuade them to release some of their own captives.
The Abu Sayyaf began negotiations with Padilla and the government team Thursday after Manila decided to meet the rebels' demand for 200 sacks of rice.
Aguirre said they would consider the rebels' demands from the standpoint of legality, morality and appropriateness.
He added that his committee will not act beyond the authority granted them by the President and the law.
"Everything will be decided on the bases of what is allowed by the law and the Constitution," Aguirre stressed.
The rebels also withdrew their threat to behead their male hostages.
Aguirre warned the Abu Sayyaf that there was a limit to the government's patience.
"If peaceful means are exhausted, then you all know that there is such a thing as a decision of last recourse," Aguirre said without elaborating.
He also clarified that the government's permission for Padilla to act as mediator should not be construed as giving in to the rebels' demands.
"Our primordial concern is the safety of the hostages," Aguirre stressed.
He defended the involvement of Padilla in the negotiations by saying anybody was welcome to take part in the mediation provided he was credible and acceptable to the other party.
Parañaque Rep. Roilo Golez criticized the government's decision to tap Padilla.
Golez also said the government should stop giving in to the demands of the Abu Sayyaf gunmen who, he said, were only after media mileage.
Presidential Spokesman Fernando Barican confirmed that Malacañang granted full authority for the Aguirre committee to make judgment decisions regarding the negotiations.
In Iloilo City, newly installed Senate President Franklin Drilon expressed optimism that Padilla could use his charm to obtain the safe release of the remaining Abu Sayyaf hostages.
"I welcome the presence of Robin Padilla if it will help resolve the hostage situation," Drilon said.
He said the Senate has no particular stand on Padilla's involvement in the
Basilan crisis.
Drilon also gave assurances that under his leadership, the Senate would ensure that Mindanao gets its fair share of the national budget to speed up the economic development of the island.
Meanwhile, Aguirre's committee dispatched an emissary to the camp of the vigilantes holding nine relatives of Janjalani.
The mediator, Alonto Sahiron, carried a letter appealing to vigilante leader Abdul Mijal to reconsider his threat to execute the hostages.
Mijal has given the Abu Sayyaf a 15-day ultimatum to free their captives, or he will execute Janjalani's relatives.
The deadline expires today.
In another development, police defused yesterday two homemade bombs planted in a crowded market in Jolo, Sulu.
The bombs were wired to detonators and placed in gasoline-filled plastic containers.
Sulu police chief Candido Casimiro said the explosives were believed planted by Abu Sayyaf terrorists.
The group also seized last February a bank employee and an accountant just outside Jolo.
"We have intelligence reports saying the Abu Sayyaf would launch attacks to ease the ongoing government offensive against them in the province," Casimiro said. -- With Paolo Romero, Leo Solinap, AFP reportDiigo, April 15, 2000, The Philippine Star, Abu Sayyaf frees two ailing children, by Edith Regalado and Roel Pareno,
Two ailing children aged seven and 10 were freed yesterday by Abu Sayyaf guerrillas holding 31 hostages in their jungle hideout in Sumisip town in the island province of Basilan in Mindanao.
Meanwhile, ABS-CBN reported yesterday that the Abu Sayyaf rebels are demanding the release of Arab terrorists jailed in the United States before they free the remaining 29 captives.
It was unclear whether the fundamentalists were demanding the release of Ramzi Yousef, the mastermind in the 1993 bombing of the World Trade Center in New York. Philippine police say the Abu Sayyaf has links with Yousef, who hid in Manila before fleeing to Pakistan, where he was arrested in 1995.
This developed as the extremist rebels demanded a ban on the putting up of crosses in Christian churches, chapels and cemeteries in the predominantly Muslim province of Basilan.
Abu Sayyaf spokesman Abu Ahmad said fourth grader Lanny Mae Cachuela and second grader Nova Verallo, both of the Sinangkapan Elementary School in Tuburan town, needed medical attention after they were stricken with influenza.
The children were turned over to a group of mediators led by popular movie actor Robin Padilla, a recent convert to Islam, and were waiting transport from the extremist rebels' forward base near Maluso town.
The youngsters broke into tears upon their arrival at the Claret Formation Center in the capital town of Isabela.
They said their brothers were among those still being held by the Abu Sayyaf in the rebel Camp Abdurajak in the hinterlands of Sumisip.
Padilla was set to return to the capital town of Isabela, but was delayed after a government truck sent to fetch him broke down.
The rebels are still holding 29 hostages, mostly students and their teachers, and a Catholic priest seized from raids on two schools last March 20.
The rebels also demanded the release from the Basilan jail of five of their colleagues, and the elimination of poaching by foreign vessels in Philippine waters, notably the Mindanao Sea.
The Abu Sayyaf's demands were contained in a letter addressed to President Estrada and sent through Padilla.
"This has a positive impact because we have freed the (two) hostages," Ahmad said.
He also said they have told Padilla their demands and Padilla will in turn convey them to President Estrada.
The gunmen have also vowed to hold on to the remaining captives until they obtain a satisfactory answer to their demands.
"We will wait for Malacañang's reply," Ahmad said, adding that the release of the victims now depended on the government.
Twenty-one hostages were set free last month in exchange for food and medicine, while two were exchanged for the wife and children of Abu Sayyaf leader Khadaffy Janjalani, who were snatched along with other relatives in a counter-abduction by a group of armed vigilantes.
National Security Adviser Alexander Aguirre, head of a management crisis committee handling the hostage drama, said the actor would also go to the vigilantes' lair to persuade them to release some of their own captives.
The Abu Sayyaf began negotiations with Padilla and the government team Thursday after Manila decided to meet the rebels' demand for 200 sacks of rice.
Aguirre said they would consider the rebels' demands from the standpoint of legality, morality and appropriateness.
He added that his committee will not act beyond the authority granted them by the President and the law.
"Everything will be decided on the bases of what is allowed by the law and the Constitution," Aguirre stressed.
The rebels also withdrew their threat to behead their male hostages.
Aguirre warned the Abu Sayyaf that there was a limit to the government's patience.
"If peaceful means are exhausted, then you all know that there is such a thing as a decision of last recourse," Aguirre said without elaborating.
He also clarified that the government's permission for Padilla to act as mediator should not be construed as giving in to the rebels' demands.
"Our primordial concern is the safety of the hostages," Aguirre stressed.
He defended the involvement of Padilla in the negotiations by saying anybody was welcome to take part in the mediation provided he was credible and acceptable to the other party.
Parañaque Rep. Roilo Golez criticized the government's decision to tap Padilla.
Golez also said the government should stop giving in to the demands of the Abu Sayyaf gunmen who, he said, were only after media mileage.
Presidential Spokesman Fernando Barican confirmed that Malacañang granted full authority for the Aguirre committee to make judgment decisions regarding the negotiations.
In Iloilo City, newly installed Senate President Franklin Drilon expressed optimism that Padilla could use his charm to obtain the safe release of the remaining Abu Sayyaf hostages.
"I welcome the presence of Robin Padilla if it will help resolve the hostage situation," Drilon said.
He said the Senate has no particular stand on Padilla's involvement in the
Basilan crisis.
Drilon also gave assurances that under his leadership, the Senate would ensure that Mindanao gets its fair share of the national budget to speed up the economic development of the island.
Meanwhile, Aguirre's committee dispatched an emissary to the camp of the vigilantes holding nine relatives of Janjalani.
The mediator, Alonto Sahiron, carried a letter appealing to vigilante leader Abdul Mijal to reconsider his threat to execute the hostages.
Mijal has given the Abu Sayyaf a 15-day ultimatum to free their captives, or he will execute Janjalani's relatives.
The deadline expires today.
In another development, police defused yesterday two homemade bombs planted in a crowded market in Jolo, Sulu.
The bombs were wired to detonators and placed in gasoline-filled plastic containers.
Sulu police chief Candido Casimiro said the explosives were believed planted by Abu Sayyaf terrorists.
The group also seized last February a bank employee and an accountant just outside Jolo.
"We have intelligence reports saying the Abu Sayyaf would launch attacks to ease the ongoing government offensive against them in the province," Casimiro said. -- With Paolo Romero, Leo Solinap, AFP report
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Diigo, April 18, 2000, The Philippine Star, Sayyaf warns We'll kidnap Americans, by Roel Pareño,
ZAMBOANGA CITY - Muslim fundamentalists holding 29 hostages in a jungle stronghold in Basilan said yesterday they will kidnap or kill Americans in the country if the United Sates rejects their demand that it free jailed Arab terrorists. The Abu Sayyaf said President Estrada should discuss with US President Bill Clinton the release of Ramzi Ahmed Yousef, Sheik Abdurahman Omar and Abu Haider, who were convicted in the United States for the 1993 bombing of the World Trade Center in New York.
Meanwhile, the Armed Forces may impose a news blackout on the hostage crisis in Basilan to stop the Abu Sayyaf from using the mass media to further the group's terrorist aims.
Col. Rafael Romero, Armed Forces spokesman, lashed out at media for giving the terrorist group, which is now known as Al Harakatul Islamia, extensive coverage and exposure.
"Every terrorist's main weapon is to strike fear in the hearts of every person and they use the media," Romero said in an interview over radio station dZbb. "The best thing here is to cut off the media so that they no longer have exposure. Nobody will listen to them."
The Abu Sayyaf wants President Estrada to formally relay to US President Bill Clinton their demand to set free three terrorists jailed in the US. "If America rejects it, we can promise that we'll kidnap or kill all Americans we will see in the Philippines," Abu Sayyaf spokesman Abu Asmad Salayuddin said.
The guerrillas outlined their demands in a letter to Mr. Estrada they presented last week to action star Robin Padilla, who is helping negotiate the release of the hostages. Salayuddin said they asked Padilla, who left Basilan last Saturday, to return to their jungle hideout after about a week with Mr. Estrada's response. He said the guerrillas are still awaiting a communication from Padilla until the end of the Holy Week before they decide anything.
However, he said they would not push for the three terrorists to be released if the ambassadors of Italy, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Libya, and Afghanistan will go to their jungle hideout to negotiate. The US and Italian Embassies have not commented on the Abu Sayyaf's demands, but the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said the hostage crisis will be discussed during security dialogues with the US.
A US Embassy staff, who requested anonymity, said the hostage situation was discussed "in passing" during a meeting of embassy officials yesterday morning. George Reyes, DFA spokesman, said the department was being updated about the situation in the south and that security authorities held constant dialogue with the diplomatic service.
"We have to monitor the case closely," he said. "We are trying to communicate the demand to the government concerned. But as long as the threat is contained within Philippine territory, this will be handled by local security authorities."
The terrorists also want the government to stop the poaching of foreign fishing vessels in waters off southern Mindanao, and ban crosses in churches, chapels and cemeteries in predominantly Muslim Basilan. They also want the Department of Education, Culture and Sports to order female Muslim teachers and students to wear the traditional Muslim dress that completely covers the body.
The President has dismissed the Abu Sayyaf's demands and described the terrorists as "out of their minds." In Cotabato City, National Security Adviser Alexander Aguirre urged the media to help the government convince the Abu Sayyaf to release the 29 remaining hostages and to stop terrorizing civilians.
"You in media, both in print and broadcast can help us work out the release of the hapless by calling on this group not to resort to violence in furthering their cause and to let the people know what the Abu Sayyaf is doing."
Aguirre said media can be a means for the government to reach the Abu Sayyaf and let its members know about the serious consequences of their activities. "They can fight the government but not harm innocent civilians,"he said. Basilan Vice Gov. Abdulaziz Belamo, chairman of the Crisis Management Committee (CMC), said Padilla will only be allowed to communicate with the terrorists through a two-way radio.
The CMC action came after the Abu Sayyaf held Padilla, a Vatican representative, three ulamas, and more than 20 print and broadcast journalists to force the CMC to deliver 200 sacks of rice to their hideout.
Col. Jaime Canatoy, commander of the Armed Forces Public Relations Service, said the military was poised to storm the Abu Sayyaf's mountain hideout and free the hostages.
"Our troops in Basilan are ready and we are just waiting for the order (to attack)," he said. "We still have to give priority to peaceful negotiations. We are concerned about the lives of the hostages." Basilan Gov. Wahab Akbar, on the other hand, warned the terrorists that 500 of his men were ready to attack them and rescue the hostages.
"I'm not going to wait for the national government to exhaust its patience," he said. "I can no longer bear the sufferings of the 52 parents as well as that of the 30 hostages held by the Abu Sayyaf." Canatoy appealed to the Abu Sayyaf not to push through with its threat to behead the men among its 29 remaining hostages.
"I believe that the Abu Sayyaf still has a conscience," he said. "If ever they continue with their plan to kill the hostages, they will be condemned by international organizations including those from Muslim countries," he said. Aguirre said Padilla's effort was partially successful because he was able to convince the terrorists to free two sick children.
However, the government has still to negotiate for the release of other hostages as the demands of the Abu Sayyaf are impossible and unreasonable, he added. Aguirre said the government remains in control of the situation and that it would continue exhausting means to secure the hostages' safe release.
Cris Puno, spokesman for the Basilan Crisis Management Committee, said the Abu Sayyaf has asked for a physician and a Red Cross volunteer to treat seven sick children.
The 29 hostages, one of them Catholic priest Fr. Roel Gallardo, and several women and children, have been held in a mountain hideout in Sumisip town in Basilan since March 20.
Churchmen, ulamas in MILF talks
Vice President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo said Sunday the government should involve churchmen and ulamas in negotiations with the MILF to prevent further conflict in Mindanao.
"Today we talk of war in Mindanao," she said in a prepared speech upon arrival. "I just have been to the Middle East, where talks of peace may soon pay dividends to Israelis and Palestinians alike." Arroyo arrived last Sunday from a three-week trip to China, the Middle East and the US.
Arroyo, who is also secretary of social welfare and development, said a total of 39,000 families have been affected by the armed conflict in Lanao del Norte, which broke out last March 16.
She said P13.9 million have been allocated for these families, and that P5.7 million came from local government units, P778,000 from the Department of Social Welfare and Development, and P7.9 million from other government agencies like the Office of the President. - Mike Frialde, John Unson, Rodel Pareño, Ding Cervantes, Allen Estabillo, Liberty Dones, Aurea Calica, AFP, AP
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April 24, 2000, The Philippine Star, 20 killed in assault on Abu Sayyaf lair, by Roel Pareno, with Mike Frialde, Efren Danao, Edith Regalado, AP, AFP
ISABELA, Basilan - Three soldiers and at least 17 Abu Sayyaf rebels were killed as government troops continued ground and air assaults yesterday on the Basilan mountain stronghold of the Muslim extremists who are holding 27 hostages.
An Abu Sayyaf spokesman said two hostages, one of them a child, were wounded in the shelling of their camp. The military, however, said the report could not be confirmed.
The rebels warned Saturday they would behead their five remaining male hostages if the military did not stop attempts to rescue the 27 hostages, including a Catholic priest, children and teachers who were abducted from two schools last March 20.
Ignoring the threat, Armed Forces chief Gen. Angelo Reyes said the military would not stop the offensive until the hostages were rescued and the rebels eliminated.
The troops were being guided by former Abu Sayyaf guerrillas.
The decision to attack the Abu Sayyaf camp was made by the provincial crisis management committee that handled negotiations for the hostages' release.
The committee's spokesman, Cris Puno, said the Abu Sayyaf beheaded two hostages last April 19 - President Estrada's 63rd birthday - and this act left negotiators with no option but to resort to military operation.
Two soldiers, Sgt. Romano Luod and Pfc. Sagat Misuari, and militiaman ErwinLaping were first to fall in the assault, launched by about 500 troops starting early Saturday, said Maj. Gen. Diomedio Villanueva, chief of the military's Southern Command (Southcom).
At least 17 of rebels have also been killed while an undetermined number have been wounded, he said.
Col. Ernesto de Guzman, also a Southcom official, said 10 rebels were reportedly killed by their own comrades after finding out that they wanted to flee to Sulu before the military's assault began.
De Guzman, however, said they still have to verify if this report was true.
'No casualties'
Rebel spokesman Abu Ahmad told local radio station dxRZ that there had been no casualties among the guerrillas and insisted they would rather die than surrender.
Ahmad was quoted by local television ABS-CBN News as saying that two of the hostages were wounded by shrapnel from military air strikes. And he reportedly said that those killed on the side of the government were blown up by landmines.
Villanueva, on the other hand, said Air Force helicopters were firing rockets at outlying rebel camps to allow ground troops to penetrate Camp Abdurajak, the main rebel lair at Mt. Ponoh Hadjhid in Sumisip, Basilan where most of the hostages are believed to be held.
"We have reached their defense perimeters... There is gunfire on both sides but we are in the periphery," Villanueva said.
Navy ships have also been deployed to prevent the rebels from escaping and receiving reinforcements from comrades in nearby provinces, he added.
"I feel it's about time we stop talking with these fanatics," Villanueva added. "Otherwise, from the way they have been acting, they will just kill the hostages one by one."
The Abu Sayyaf, which is one of the two groups fighting for a separate Islamic state in Mindanao, has demanded the release of Ramzi Yousef, who had been sentenced to life imprisonment for masterminding the 1993 bombing of the World Trade Center in New York, and two other Islamic militants held in the United States.
The military said it would not know how serious was the rebels' threat to behead their hostages if the three militants are not released.
The hostages have been in captivity for 35 days now.
Assault gains support
Meanwhile, Sen. Juan Ponce Enrile expressed full support yesterday to the military offensive against the Abu Sayyaf.
Enrile, a former defense minister, said the offensive was "appropriate and correct."
Though admitting that the assault could endanger the lives of the Abu Sayyaf hostages, Enrile said the decision to attack had been consulted with the relatives of the captives who all agreed that such drastic action was needed.
"I believe all hostages are still alive," he said. "I saw their spokesman on television and he appeared to be engaging in psywar operation."
President Estrada yesterday prayed for peace in Mindanao, urging Filipinos to unite. "Let us pray that our misguided brethren would be enlightened so they would shun violence," he said.
Although he did not mention anything on the Abu Sayyaf, the President let Press Secretary Ricardo Puno to announce that the military assault against the group would continue.
Puno said they have not confirmed yet if the extremists indeed beheaded two of their hostages. "We can only know the truth from an independent confirmation or once the military gets into the Abu Sayyaf camp," he said.
In other developments, Sen. Aquilino Pimentel admitted that only the adoption of a federal system of government could be the ultimate solution the Muslim insurgency problem in Mindanao.
Pimentel, who is batting to strengthen the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, said a federal system like that in the United States may well be the "ultimate constitutional response to the just aspirations of the Bangsamoro people."
He said that under such system, component states enjoy full autonomy in their internal affairs although certain powers like foreign relations and national defense and security are still exercised by the central government.
Pimentel, however, admitted that since the adoption of a federal system requires a thorough revision of the Constitution, it will have to wait for a more appropriate time.
"Perhaps when people are more receptive of the idea that the Constitution is not meant to be a static document, then it may be amended to conform to the needs of the times," he said.
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Diigo, May 2, 2000, The Philippine Star, Gov't blames MILF for failure of peace negotiations, by Paolo Romero,
The government blamed yesterday the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) for the collapse of peace negotiations. Defense Secretary Orlando Mercado said the peace talks were bound to fail since MILF guerrillas started extorting money from motorists using the Narciso Ramos highway in Maguindanao.
"In response to all these, the government had to clear the area (Narciso Ramos Highway) of the rebels," he said. "The government cannot allow any portion to be occupied by the rebels. Maguindanao is part of the Republic of the Philippines."
The Narciso Ramos Highway, which is seven kilometers from Camp Abubakar, was built by Army engineers in 1995 to link the cities of Cotabato and Marawi. Mercado said the MILF took advantage of the peace talks to continue its arms buildup, recruitment, and extortion activities, and that the the rebel group's continued violation of the ceasefire agreement has made the June deadline for the peace talks unimportant.
"The deadline looks marginalized now," he said. "The deadline was useful only when the talks were ongoing but now it has become superfluous. But let us not lose hope. We are hoping that they would change their minds." At Malacañang, National Security Adviser Alexander Aguirre said the Estrada administration remains committed to peace talks with the MILF.
"So while it is true the MILF has unilaterally declared an indefinite suspension of peace talks, we are hopeful they would return to the conference table," he said.
"The peace negotiations, as far as we are concerned, are still open because we would like to settle the problem peacefully. But of course, in the meantime, continuously upholding government authority through law and order operation."
In Congress, Sen. Aquilino Pimentel Jr., chairman of the Senate committee on local governments, said the administration should exhaust all means to reopen peace negotiations with the MILF.
"This is a very disturbing development," he told The STAR in a telephone interview yesterday. Pimentel said the President was ill-advised by Aguirre on national security matters, especially in Mindanao, and that the MILF problem should be viewed in a bigger perspective.
"The national security policy being implemented by the government does not jibe with the realities in Mindanao," he said. Chief government negotiator Edgardo Batenga said yesterday he will try to convince the 15,000-strong MILF to return to the negotiating table.
Last Sunday, the MILF "indefinitely suspended" peace talks after government troops attacked Camp Abubakar, the guerrillas' main training base in Maguindanao. "That is the only way we will be able to resolve the problem in Mindanao," he said.
However, Southern Command chief Maj. Gen. Diomedio Villanueva said government troops will not attack Camp Abubakar, the MILF's largest base. "Our objective is very limited, only (to secure) the (Narciso Ramos) highway which we believe is for everyone to pass by and not to be controlled by anyone," he said.
"We only wanted to clear the road connecting the towns of Matanog and Balabagan in Maguindanao which has already been controlled by the MILF rebels." MILF guerrillas were reported to have set up checkpoints on the highway linking Matanog and Balabagan towns, which are in the periphery of Camp Abubakar.
At least 10 people were killed and several others wounded in the latest skirmishes in which Army troops removed the checkpoints while MILF guerrillas tried to keep them in place. Maj. Gen. Gregorio Camiling, commander of the Army's 5th Infantry Division, said the military's mission was to drive out MILF guerrillas from the highway and not to capture the headquarters of MILF Chairman Salamat Hashim.
"We really need to clear the highway because aside from the preying on civilian commuters at MILF posts, even government forces could not pass by the area," he said. He said troops attacked MILF checkpoints following complaints from motorists that armed men were collecting toll fees.
Fighting raged for the fifth day yesterday as Army troops continued to flush out MILF guerrillas from the highway's perimeter. Troops from the Army's 402nd Brigade have been deployed to dismantle checkpoints that were set up by MILF guerrillas.
The STAR learned that the MILF had set up blockades in Butig and Ditsaan-Ramalin towns to prevent the Army from taking over their outposts. However, Camiling said the Army will continue dismantling the MILF checkpoints along the highway and restore government control in secluded districts that the thoroughfare traverses.
He said eight soldiers were killed and 31 others were wounded in clashes between government troops and MILF guerrillas along the highway since Friday. Local leaders and evacuees said the MILF suffered 56 fatalities and 14 wounded, who were confined in makeshift clinics under the care of MILF nurses.
Col. Samuel Bagasin, 402nd Brigade commander, did not say if the Army will take Camp Busra in Butig town, the second largest MILF base in Maguindanao. Government forces and MILF fighters are also reported to be engaged in battle in the towns of Buldon and Matanog, also in Maguindanao province.
Maj. Julieto Ando, 6th Infantry Division military affairs chief, told The STAR that more howitzers and helicopter gunships have arrived for mopping-up operations. Brig. Gen. Roy Cimatu, 4th Infantry Division commander, said troops from the 402nd Brigade and militiamen from the Citizens Armed Forces Geographical Units (CAFGU) have been deployed in some towns in Lanao del Norte province.
The military said troops have been deployed to guard exit and entry points to the MILF's Camp Bad'r at the boundaries of Talayan, Datu Piang, and Datu Odin towns, and in Camp Daraspanan in Simsuay, Sultan Kudarat to prevent the sending of reinforcements.
Three Marines were killed and 28 other soldiers were wounded in separate clashes with MILF fighters in Maguindanao last Sunday, according to reports received in Camp Crame. The reports identified the fatalities as Sgt. Garnilla, Cpl. Macallsang, and Pfc. Castillo.
In the first clash, 15 Marines were wounded. They were identified as Sgt. Roberto Radan, Pfc. Michael Zapanta, Pfc. Samuel Briones, 1Lt Pedrito Dalanas Jr., Cpl. Walter Manalansang, Sgt. Luis Marmol, Pfc. Florante Rosete, Cpl. Angel Borromeo. Cpl. Dionisio Lizardo, Sgt. Eugenio Basilan, Pfc. Edrio Fuble, Cpl. Augusto Quadra, Sgt. Ricardo Jimenez, Cpl. Eldi Montecillo, and Cpl. Tenedero Balbuena.
During the second encounter, 13 Army troops were wounded. They are: Sgt. Roque Bustamante, Pfc. Dino Lambayon, Pfc. Evaristo Ecional, Pfc. Rey Llado, T/Sgt. Jonathan Onga, Sgt. Nilo Penaflor, Pfc. Danny Peralta, Pfc. Rexy Marquez, Pfc. Jerry Jayo, Pfc. Raylin Barta, Pfc. Dennis dela Rosa, Cpl. Joel Pansoguiron, and Cp. Reynaldo Lazon.
The wounded Marines and Army troops were airlifted to the Sultan Kudarat- Pendatun Medical Hospital for immediate treatment. The reports said an undetermined number of MILF guerrillas were also wounded in the firefight. -- With reports from Allen Estabillo, Edith Regalado, Mike Frialde, Lino dela Cruz, Roel Pareño, John Unson, Marichu Villanueva, Perseus Echeminada, AFP
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Diigo, May 4, 2000, The Philippine Star, Sayyaf kills Pinoy hostages 15 saved,
Abu Sayyaf extremist rebels shot and killed several of their 27 Filipino hostages as the captives were being rescued by government troops in Basilan yesterday, a senior military official said.
"Some of the hostages were killed by the rebels as they fled the government troops during today's rescue," said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
"They could have been shot as the rebels withdrew," the official was quoted by the Agence France Presse news agency. Brig. Gen. Narciso Abaya, a regional Army commander, said 15 hostages have been rescued in the military operation in the village of Kumarang outside Isabela, the capital of Basilan.
Five of the 15 were wounded, he said. Two wounded hostages were brought to the military's Southern Command (Southcom) Hospital in Zamboanga City. School teacher Rosabert Ajon was barechested and wore soiled jogging pants as he was wheeled into the hospital, witnesses said. He had cuts and blisters on his feet and could hardly speak.
Geraldyn Melo, a teenager, was hysterical and could not be interviewed by journalists. Her wounds could not be immediately determined. Melo wore a soiled shirt and muddied blouse. The Abu Sayyaf has been holding the 27 hostages, 22 of them children, since March 20.
They claimed to have beheaded two other captives last month, forcing the military to launch an assault on their jungle base on Mt. Punoh Mahajed. The base was captured over the weekend after more than a week of fierce fighting but the rebels were able to escape with their hostages, who included a Ramon Catholic priest.
Earlier, Defense Secretary Orlando Mercado, citing sketchy field reports from government troops taking part in the rescue operations, said three of the children were found in a barangay in Lantawan town.
"We have the three children," he said. "We believe more will be recovered today as the hostages are the subject of a massive rescue operation." The 13 children were among the 27 hostages from an initial group of 55 captives seized from two high schools after a failed Abu Sayyaf attack on a military detachment in Sumisip town in Basilan last March 20.
Lantawan, a coastal town, is a known bailiwick of the Abu Sayyaf. It is about 20 kilometers away from Mt. Punoh Mohadje where the Abu Sayyaf's main stronghold Camp Abdurajak was overrun by government forces during the weekend.
Earlier yesterday, a man identifying himself as a spokesman for the Abu Sayyaf said they would release the captives to Vice President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo if the military stopped attacks on their camp in Sulu, a Zamboanga City radio station reported.
"We will give all (hostages if) operations will be stopped because we need to continue the negotiations in Jolo," said Abu Asmad Salayudd, who claimed he speaks for the Abu Sayyaf group. Speaking on dxRZ radio, Salayudd said the rebels would only hand over their captives to Arroyo if she comes to Basilan.
"We want her to come here and we will give all the hostages, these children," he said. Arroyo, who is also social services and development secretary, said however that she would still have to get the go-signal from President Estrada to fly to Basilan to receive the hostages.
Arroyo said that in a five-minute conversation with another Abu Sayyaf spokesman, Abu Sabaya, the fundamentalists asked for a ceasefire prior to the release of the hostages. The truce would enable the group to transfer all its hostages from Basilan to Jolo, Sulu, she added. It was the first time that the Abu Sayyaf made contact with a top government official.
At Malacañang, Press Secretary Ricardo Puno said the President authorized Arroyo to proceed to Basilan but only to receive the hostages and not to negotiate with their captors. He said the task of negotiating still belonged to the Basilan crisis management committee. Puno said Arroyo told the President that she would not travel to Basilan until military authorities in the province have determined when the turnover could take place.
In the radio interview in Zamboanga, Salayudd said Arroyo must coordinate with Davao City immigration chief Talib Abdulao, who claims to be his relative, in securing the release of the hostages. The fundamentalist group is holding another group of 21 captives, mostly foreigners abducted from a Malaysian resort island off Sabah, in Sulu in a separate hostage drama.
The 27 Filipino hostages were being held at the Abu Sayyaf's Camp Abdurajak in Punoh Mohadje in Sumisip, Basilan until government forces overran the rebel base during the weekend. Salayudd, who resurfaced four days after the military's siege of Camp Abdurajak, said they successfully evaded the government forces and confirmed they were now out of Basilan.
"We are now far from Basilan and engaged in 'tactical withdrawal' (from government troops)," Salayudd said as he appealed to Arroyo to initiate the move for the captives' release. Meanwhile, the government demanded yesterday that the Abu Sayyaf submit a list of conditions for the release of its captives, saying the crisis should be resolved as soon as possible because of the health conditions of the hostages.
"We have not received a full list of demands from the kidnappers so we still have to wait for demands and try to assess them. A demand for a third country (to negotiate) is no demand. What is the end objective? That is just a procedural aspect. A demand would mean a substantive demand," Foreign Affairs Secretary Domingo Siazon said. He said the government would not accede to any demand without getting something in return. - AFP, Paolo Romero, Mayen Jaymalin, Marichu Villanueva, Aurea Calica
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Diigo, May 6, 2000, The Philippine Star, Sayyaf eludes military dragnet,
JOLO, Sulu -- Abu Sayyaf members managed to break through a tight military encirclement here and have moved their 21 hostages to another location, senior security officials said yesterday.
A combined military and police force has inched closer to the new hideout but ruled out an immediate rescue operation. Sources close to government negotiators also said all 21 hostages are alive. "Government forces are near the hideouts where the captives are being kept," said Sulu police director Col. Candido Casimiro. "We are closing in on the area."
He added that "the move is not aimed at a rescue operation" but largely to keep away any reinforcement effort by the Abu Sayyaf. Nine Malaysians, a German family of three, two French nationals, two Finnish men, a South African couple and a Lebanese woman, along with two Filipinos, were abducted from the Malaysian island resort of Sipadan off Borneo on Easter Sunday. The hostages were turned over to the Abu Sayyaf in Jolo.
Col. Ernesto de Guzman, chief of staff of the AFP Southern Command (Southcom), said soldiers, including members of the former Muslim rebel group Moro National Liberation Front, had cordoned off suspected lairs of the Abu Sayyaf.
Military sources said the rebels were holding the hostages in a cluster of houses in the large town of Talipao comprising mostly coconut plantations. "Before, they were in the center of Bandang village (in Talipao town), but now they have moved to the fringes and possibly assimilated with villagers who are sympathizers of the rebels," a source said.
A border scout said he spotted some of the 21 hostages and their abductors in a remote village. Hadji Asda Abdu, a local militia unit chief, told Agence France Press that he saw the hostages outside five huts along a stream in Lumping village.
The village is at the foot of Mt. Dao in Talipao. They had been moved seven kilometers from a previous hideout in Bandang. "I saw some white people but I did not know how many," said Abdu, a 56-year-old former MNLF guerrillas.
Abdu pinpointed the exact location of the hostages to the military, which is closing in on the extremists. The tightening of the cordon around the Abu Sayyaf came amid an apparent clampdown on media coverage of the hostage crisis now into its 12th day.
Movement of journalists in Jolo has been restricted, a foreign reporter said. "We were unable to move around like before." Southcom has ordered officers in Sulu not to divulge any information on the hostage crisis, sources said. Soldiers have tried to confiscate cameras and videos from media personnel near Talipao, and complaints of harassment by troops included guns being pointed at journalists, a local reporter said.
Southcom spokesman Col. Hilario Atendido denied the charges. "There is no news blackout in Sulu province about the hostage situation. What we want is for the media not to communicate with the terrorists because they are using the press for propaganda," he said.
"The terrorists are like performers without an audience. They are nothing. They need media attention," he said. For its part, the Department of Foreign Affairs said it was trying to prevent foreign correspondents from going to Sulu and Tawi-Tawi because of security risks.
Foreign Affairs Secretary Domingo Siazon Jr. said the military could not guarantee their safety. On accusations that military commanders on the ground did not want to give statements to the media, Atendido said: "Maybe the officials there do not want to be disturbed because they are in the middle of crucial operations."
In a related development, several emissaries sent by negotiators attempting to free the hostages were able to visit the Abu Sayyaf kidnappers at their hideout on Thursday, sources said. They said all 21 hostages were in the same house as the kidnappers, according to the sources.
The emissaries' account contradicted earlier reports that the hostages had been divided into different groups and that some had either died during a clash with the military or had escaped. On Thursday, Defense Secretary Orlando Mercado said the hostages were being held in five different locations.
Contacts between the kidnappers and the negotiators were cut earlier this week by military operations in the area. Hundreds of troops and police formed a tight cordon around the area where the hostages were believed to be held, and a series of clashes erupted on Tuesday and Wednesday as the rebels attempted to escape.
The emissaries' report is the first indicating that the kidnappers may have been able to break through the military encirclement. On Wednesday, troops seized the simple bamboo hut where the hostages had been held, but found no one inside. No bloodstains or bullet holes were evident inside the hut, and medicines brought by a doctor on Monday were left behind, the military said.
Troops also found three room keys from the Sipadan Island Resort, the Malaysian diving resort from where the hostages were abducted April 23 and taken to Jolo, about one hour away by boat. The rebels had threatened to behead two foreign hostages if the military does not pull its troops away from area, but Mercado said the military will stay put.
"The military will never retreat," he said. "If the military withdraws, the Abu Sayyaf will be in control." The kidnappers did not send any message or demands through the emissaries, the sources said. On the basis of the emissaries' report, a team of negotiators sent by chief government negotiator Nur Misuari was to arrive in Jolo later Friday. They will then decide whether to go into the mountains to meet with the kidnappers directly, or to continue indirect contacts through emissaries, they said.
Rebel leaders told local radio stations Wednesday that two foreign hostages had died during a clash with the military, one from a stray bullet and the other from a heart attack. One radio station also reported that a rebel commander had died while trying to recapture two hostages who had escaped.
The reports "from our checking are not true," Mercado said. On the nearby island of Basilan, troops continued to search for Abu Sayyaf rebels who are believed to be still holding several people from a separate group of 27 Filipino hostages seized nearly seven weeks ago, the military said. Fifteen of the hostages were rescued by troops Wednesday in a clash with the rebels but four, including a Roman Catholic priest, were killed, reportedly shot in the back of their heads by their captors.
Meanwhile, local officials said government negotiators and the Abu Sayyaf have re-established contact and the police will take medicine and food to the captives. An aide of Misuari said emissaries and guerrilla representatives restored contact.
Local officials said a convoy carrying food and medicines would travel to an area near a rebel camp, where the extremists are holding the foreign hostages. In other developments yesterday, Vice President Gloria Macapagal- Arroyo urged Muslim extremists to release their remaining hostages, especially the schoolchildren, and not to harm anyone of them anymore.
She said innocent civilians, like Fr. Rhoel Gallardo and two teachers who were tortured before they were killed, did not need to suffer in the conflict. "Killing innocent civilians will not lead to the peace everybody aspires for in Mindanao," Arroyo said. "Instead, it will only result in the destruction of the region and continued suffering of the people."
At the Senate, Sen. Aquilino Pimentel Jr. said the government should never negotiate with the bandits. He also cautioned Arroyo from having dialogues with the Abu Sayyaf.
"There should be no compromise, no negotiations with the bandit group. The government should go after them hammer and tongs. It must be extirpated in accordance with the law," Pimentel said.
Foreign gov'ts join forces
HELSINKI -- The Finnish, French and German foreign ministers announced yesterday that they would join forces in an attempt to bring the hostage crisis to a peaceful and rapid conclusion.
Finnish envoy Holger Rotkirch arrived in Manila yesterday, where he will work with French and German envoys already on the ground. The three countries' foreign ministers -- Finland's Erkku Tuomioja, France's Hubert Vedrine and Germany's Joschka Fischer -- have also sent a joint letter insisting on security to Foreign Affairs Secretary Domingo Siazon Jr. Finland has also instructed its ambassador in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia to ask the Organization of Islamic Conference to intervene.
Meanwhile, French President Jacques Chirac met the parents of one of the two French hostages as his country's foreign minister declared that everything possible would be done to negotiate a way out of the crisis. "Mr. and Madame Loisy are going through a terrible trial," Chirac said. "I told them that everything would be done to make sure the hostages are released as soon as possible, but there are still many uncertainties."
He added: "It is for the French authorities -- who are in close contact with all the parties concerned -- a permanent preoccupation." French couple Stephanie Loisy and Sonia Wendling are among a group of 21 hostages taken 11 days ago by the rebels.
Vedrine, meanwhile, told reporters in Budapest that his country's "priority" was to ensure that the "Philippine Army doesn't do anything stupid." Verdine insisted that he would work to "find the best means to strike up a dialogue, a discussion which shows us a way out."
The foreign minister added that he did not believe any of the 21 hostages had been killed in recent Army raids against the Muslim guerrillas, though he admitted that "even the Philippine authorities are not entirely sure what's happening." -- By Roel Pareño, with Aurea Calica, Liberty Dones, Ding Cervantes, Efren Danao, wire reports
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Diigo, May 10, 2000, The Philippine Star, MNLF integrees allow Sayyaf rebs, 21 hostages to escape,
Former Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) rebels who are now soldiers have allowed Muslim extremists to drive through a military cordon in Jolo, Sulu with all 21 mostly foreign hostages, a senior police official said yesterday.
The Abu Sayyaf gunmen moved on Monday night from a mountain hideout in Talipao town to the village of Panzol about 20 kilometers away in Patikul town, said the official, who asked not to be named. The abductors put their hostages on board 16 mini jeeps before 9 p.m. Monday and drove away, the police official said.
It was believed they used mountain paths unmanned by the military which had put up checkpoints in key areas around the extremists' hideout, the official added. They could have obtained the jeeps through "civilian" contacts, he said. A military statement earlier yesterday said some of the extremists had slipped through the cordon with three Caucasian hostages on Sunday night. Details of the breakout were released as the new government negotiator headed for the Abu Sayyaf's jungle camp and special European envoy Javier Solana arrived in Manila to try and end the 16-day hostage crisis.
The cordon around the Abu Sayyaf was mostly manned by former Muslim guerrillas reinforcing government forces in Jolo. But the members of the now mainstream Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) "did not take appropriate actions or put up resistance against the Abu Sayyaf, allowing the latter to escape from the cordon/dragnet put up by the government forces," a government report said.
A report on the Sunday breakout was sent to the Armed Forces chief Gen. Jose Reyes on Monday night, the military statement said without explaining the delayed dispatch. The hostages include nationals from Germany, France, Finland, South Africa, Lebanon, Malaysia and the Philippines who were snatched from a Malaysian dive resort on April 23. 'Talk with the rebels' Manila Archbishop Jaime Cardinal Sin appealed to the government to negotiate with the Abu Sayyaf for peace in Mindanao. "Let there be ceasefire," he said. "Let there be recovery of fraternal trust and confidence. Nobody wins in war. Everybody loses and sadly, the innocent people, the women and children, are the ones gravely affected."
Sin made the appeal in a homily during a Mass for Fr. Rhoel Gallardo, the Catholic priest who was tortured and killed by the Abu Sayyaf in Basilan, at the Immaculate Heart of Mary Church in Quezon City last night.
The Cardinal told Fr. Rhoel's family that their son is now closer to them as he can always intercede with God and reach the same "heights of heroic sanctity" which he exhibited in his lifetime. "You have a gem within your circle; and you shared your treasure to us all, especially to the people of Basilan," he said. "God will reward your generosity and selflessness."
Sin said Fr. Rhoel's death reminds us of our sins against unity, our misgivings against peace, and our complacency in espousing values and principles that benefit our brethren.
In the same manner, God is fashioning something out of the pieces brought about by Fr. Rhoel's death and his sacrifice has evoked the same reconciliation in our hearts, he added.
"Now more than ever, our passion for unity is stirred," he said. "Our longing for peace finds impetus, a driving force. Our quest for genuine brotherhood in Mindanao has another model and heroic example."
Sin said that Fr. Rhoel in life and in death has become a "bridge of healing and reconciliation" for Muslim and Christian Filipinos in Mindanao. "It does not matter whether one is a Christian or a Muslim," he said. "We are all united in the pursuit of genuine peace, justice and development in Mindanao."
Sin said the death of Fr. Rhoel continues to plead for justice, even though forgiveness and reconciliation are Christian yearnings and uncontrollable violence needs to be stopped. "We are appalled and even angered by the daily occurrence of disturbance in our midst," he said. "But we admit that hatred and revenge are not the solution," he said.
Sin also called on the Catholic faithful to continue their pursuit of peace in Mindanao as they weep and mourn the death of Fr. Rhoel. "I reiterate my appeal to the government to institute and apply genuine socio-economic reforms in Mindanao," he said. "If there is true progress, if there is equal opportunity to growth and development, if there is respect for human rights and if there is justice, there will be peace."
The Catholic Church mourns the passing of a faithful son and the nation weeps for a man of peace and understanding, but the people know that Fr. Rhoel's death will not be in vain, he added. "Let us pray for peace," he said. "Let us implore the Almighty for a speedy and non-violent resolution in Mindanao. That is Fr. Rhoel's dream and let that be our dream as well," he said. - Sandy Araneta, AFP
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Diigo, May 22, 2000, The Philippine Star, Two child hostages rescued from Sayyaf, says Palace,
Government troops rescued yesterday afternoon two of seven children still being held hostage by the extremist Abu Sayyaf in Basilan, a Malacañang statement said yesterday.
Brig. Gen. Narciso Abaya, commander of the Army's 1st Infantry Division based in Pagadian City, said Billy James Larrosa, 9, and Rellos Pia, 12, were recovered following an hour-long encounter between soldiers and the bandits in upper Mahayhaya near Lamitan town in Basilan.
He said they are now working to ensure the safe release of five more children and two adults still under captivity. They were among the 51 persons abducted by the Abu Sayyaf last March 20. "This is part of our continuing pursuit operations," Abaya said after the two children were recovered, adding there was no casualty on the government's side during the firefight.
Meanwhile, government negotiators, assisted by foreign emissaries, will try their luck anew today in securing the release of 21 hostages, mostly foreigners, being held for a month now by Abu Sayyaf extremist rebels in Jolo, Sulu.
Chief negotiator Presidential Adviser Robert Aventajado said they would return to Jolo today for another round of talks with Abu Sayyaf leaders. The panel of negotiators was in Manila over the weekend for consultation with President Estrada regarding the Abu Sayyaf's demands for the safe release of the captives.
Formal talks have been delayed by intermittent skirmishes between the guerrillas and government forces, as well as frequent changes in the government negotiating team and security arrangements for the negotiations. Aventajado said the Abu Sayyaf leaders are expected to formally submit their demands during the meeting, and a reaction to the government's request that an ailing German mother be freed as a gesture of goodwill. Police authorities said some 500 policemen may be deployed to secure the venue for the talks, most likely to take place at an Abu Sayyaf jungle lair in Jolo.
However, sources said the guerrillas were also eyeing the towns of Patikul and Panamao as possible venue for the talks. The hostages, consisting of nine Malaysians, a German family of three, a South African couple, a Lebanese woman, two Finns, two French nationals and two Filipinos were snatched on April 23 in the famous diving resort island of Sipadan off Borneo and brought to the Jolo jungle.
The Abu Sayyaf, the smaller and more radical of two groups of Muslim rebels fighting for an independent Islamic state in Mindanao, drew world attention to the hostage crisis. Another band of Abu Sayyaf guerrillas is still holding at least nine Filipino hostages in the nearby island province of Basilan. The nine captives were remnants of over 50 schoolchildren, teachers and a Catholic priest who were taken and used as human shields by the rebels after a botched raid on two militant camps in Sumisip town last March 20. - Paolo Romero, Roel Pareño, AP
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Diigo, May 27, 2000, The Philippine Star,1st round of Sayyaf talks cancelled, by Roel Pareño,
Government efforts to secure the release of 21 hostages, mostly foreigners, being held in a jungle lair of the extremist Abu Sayyaf guerrillas suffered another setback yesterday as the first round of talks was canceled due to a communication breakdown.
"We will have to do it another day... we will have to reschedule it," said chief government negotiator Robert Aventajado. He said their Abu Sayyaf counterparts had broken up into several groups and could not be contacted for the meeting.
But observers said the Abu Sayyaf leaders apparently backed out due to excessive military presence around the venue in Bandang village in Talipao town, Sulu. The Associated Press reported that the snag developed over a military order that brought troops too close for the Abu Sayyaf's comfort to the meeting site.
The guerrillas split into several groups and by the time they were contacted, it was already too late in the day. "The military activity caused some skepticism on the other side (Abu Sayyaf)," said negotiator Farouk Hussein. At Malacañang, Press Undersecretary Antonio Seva said the canceled meeting cannot be considered a "failure" in negotiations. "There are factors to be considered as reason for postponement," he said.
Earlier in the day, Aventajado said he intended to achieve an immediate release of the 19 foreigners and two Filipinos being held for over a month now by the bandits. Aventajado, who leads a four-member panel of government negotiators, said President Estrada has instructed him to resolve the hostage crisis in Sulu "as soon as possible." He warned, however, that any monetary demands by the captors would scuttle the long-awaited talks for the release of the hostages.
The meeting between the government negotiators and the Abu Sayyaf leaders is expected to be held at a village near the coastal town of Talipao. "They know the policy of the government. We don't pay ransom. If they ask for a ransom, that will be a deal breaker," Aventajado stressed.
He said he expected five Abu Sayyaf leaders to seriously negotiate with his team and independent mediator former Libyan Ambassador Abdul Rahab Azzarouq. "I just hope they will be reasonable with their demands so that we could resolve the hostage situation peacefully," Aventajado added.
Although the kidnappers have not made any monetary demands, officials said the talks will eventually boil down to the payment of a ransom. The hostages, consisting of nine Malaysians, a German family of three, a South African couple, two Finns, a French couple, a Lebanese woman and two Filipinos, were seized by gunmen on April 23 in the Malaysian resort island of Sipadan off Borneo.
They were then taken on a boat to Sulu. Abu Sayyaf leader Galib Andang, also known as Commander Robot, has said the captives would be released if the talks were successful.
Aventajado also revealed that they had set aside their plan to prioritize the release of two ill hostages. "Our plan now is to have them released at the same time, so there will just be one series of negotiations," Aventajado said. In apparent protest over the slow pace of the negotiations for their release, the hostages refused to be examined by doctors. Sulu provincial health director Dr. Nelsa Amin said the captives have also showed signs of depression. In another development, the President vowed to throw the full force of the military at the rebels and terrorists out to derail government efforts to ease mass poverty.
"While my administration is determined to throw its full weight against the enemies of our sovereignty, we must also continue to do everything within our powers to secure a better future for all Filipinos," Mr. Estrada said. Addressing ground-breaking rites for the government's P993-million irrigation project and P260 million worth of bridges in Quirino province, Mr. Estrada downplayed the secessionist uprising in Mindanao as a "minor problem."
"But this is only temporary. Once this is resolved, we will have true peace and order. We need to solve these problems now because I believe that our country would not prosper as it should if we don't have peace and order," the Chief Executive said.
Meanwhile, Foreign Affairs Secretary Domingo Siazon Jr. said that despite the Abu Sayyaf kidnappings, the European Union (EU) has firmed up its commitment to extend development assistance to Mindanao. Siazon said the EU adopted on May 18 a resolution manifesting its continued interest to help alleviate poverty in the South.
"They (EU) have indicated they have ongoing projects in Mindanao, and that they intend to continue participating in development projects (there) in cooperation with the Philippine government," Siazon said.
French Foreign Secretary General Loie Hennekine, Finnish Undersecretary of State Eero Falovaara and German Director General for Political Affairs Thomas Matussek met with Siazon to convey their respective government's concern on the hostage crisis in Sulu involving their nationals.
Siazon said the European mission was supportive of the Philippine government's efforts to rescue the hostages through peaceful negotiations. In another development, Defense Secretary Orlando Mercado hit back at his critics by saying if they cannot be of help in solving the hostage crisis, they should not meddle in the issue.
"If you can't be of help, don't get in the way," Mercado told his detractors. He was referring to comments by Senators Renato Cayetano and Raul Roco who said the defense secretary, Armed Forces chief Gen. Angelo Reyes and Philippine National Police chief Director General Panfilo Reyes were unfit for their jobs.
Mercado said the legislators should instead help the government solve the hostage crisis. For his part, Col. Jaime Canatoy, spokesman for the military, said the troops were fully behind Reyes. "We have a very good and credible Chief of Staff. They military is behind him and we support him," Canatoy said.-- With reports from Aurea Calica, Paolo Romero, Marichu Villanueva, AP
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Diigo, June 1, 2000, The Philippine Star, MILF leader faces arrest, by Allen Estabillo,
GENERAL SANTOS CITY - A South Cotabato judge has ordered the arrest of a Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) commander and his men for the May 3 siege on a highway in Tupi town.
Tupi Judge Gaydefredo Ocampo issued the arrest warrant against Commander Nadsid Faisal, one Danny Tabayag and their men, all belonging to the MILF's 204th Brigade based in Barangay Bentung Sulit, Polomolok town.
The warrant came as a result of brigandage charges earlier field by the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group-Region 12 (Central Mindanao) against them. Ocampo recommended a bail of P28,000 for each of the accused, who are also set to be charged for illegal detention and damages.
According to the CIDG, Faisal personally led about a hundred of his men in taking a portion of the highway linking this city and South Cotabato last May 3 and held several vehicles and more than a hundred passengers at bay.
Faisal and his men blockaded the highway with a passenger bus and several private vehicles in Polonuling, Tupi at about 6 a.m. and took their passengers hostage.
They herded the commuters to the nearby Tropifresh plant of Dole Philippines, but all managed to escape when clashes ensued between the Moro rebels and responding government troopers.
An Army soldier was wounded while a number of rebels were believed killed in the gunfight. A suspected rebel was also captured.
The CIDG-Region 12 said Faisal, clad in camouflage attire, personally directed the siege. It also accused Faisul's group of robbing commuters, among them Lake Sebu Mayor Samuel Loco, of their personal belongings. Loco lost a government-issued M-16 Armalite rifle and several important personal items.
Faisal admitted responsibility for the incident and also for the simultaneous siege on the Palian bridge, also in Tupi, in a subsequent statement to the media.
The crime of brigandage, according to Article 306, Chapter II of the Revised Penal Code, is committed when "more than three persons formed a band of robbers for the purpose of committing robbery in the highway or kidnapping persons for the purpose to be attained by means of force and violence."
Persons found guilty of brigandage face the penalty of prision mayor (six to 12 years imprisonment) to a maximum of reclusion temporal (12 to 20 years).
Guns' purchase
Meanwhile, noting that tension in South Cotabato arising from the Muslim insurgency has "subsided," members of the provincial board have changed their mind on the planned purchase of firearms to protect themselves.
During the session the other day, the 15-man board recalled an earlier resolution for the firearms' purchase and agreed to channel the allotted funds to other needs.
Last week, the board gave Gov. Hilario de Pedro III the go-signal to purchase at least 15 9 mm pistols and 1,500 rounds of ammunition.
Board member Eliordo Ogena proposed that the provincial government instead acquire communications equipment for the use of local officials and militia units.
"If we buy these arms now, they will no longer serve their purpose since the trouble has already subsided. My personal concern here is that these firearms might even place our lives in danger in the future," Ogena said.
He said the recent siege by MILF rebels on the Palian bridge in Tupi town showed the evident lack of vital communications equipment of the local police. Although the board has supported Ogena's proposal, De Pedro has already forwarded the resolution to Camp Crame which approved it and cleared the firearms' purchase.
Most residents, however, have criticized the earlier resolution, supposed to be funded from the province's P1-million peace and order fund approved last May 3. The board members thought of acquiring firearms following reports that the MILF was planning to liquidate local officials.
Meanwhile, residents of Barangay Gasi in Kiamba, Sarangani fled in fear the other night after some 120 MILF rebels appeared in the village.
Col. Delfin Lorenzana, commander of the 601st Infantry Brigade, said the guerrillas wanted to return to Camp Abu Abayda in Palimbang, Sultan Kudarat.
To avoid any encounter, Kiamba Mayor Raul Martinez scouted for a pumpboat to ferry the Moro rebels. - With Olive Sudaria
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Diigo, June 1, 2000, The Philippine Star, Estrada wants Mindanao problem over by 2004, by Marichu Villanueva,
President Estrada wants the Muslim insurgency in Mindanao to be over by the end of his term in June 2004, according to Armed Forces chief Gen. Angelo Reyes.
"The President said he would like to solve the problem now so that the next president will have less problems than he is facing now," Reyes told the weekly breakfast forum of the Greenhills Walking Corp. at the Ristorante La Dolce Fontana in San Juan.
This explains the military's continuous campaign against the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), Reyes told the forum hosted by STAR chairman and publisher Max V. Soliven.
Reyes cited the military's latest victory in the capture of the MILF's second biggest base, Camp Bushra, in Lanao del Sur earlier this week.
"If we let the next administration solve it, it will become a bigger problem. So let's solve it now. No pain, no gain," he said.
Aside from Reyes, Interior and Local Government Secretary Alfredo Lim and Sen. Gregorio Honasan, chairman of the Senate committee on peace, unification and reconciliation, were guests at the forum.
Honasan, a former coup leader, called for an end to the "vicious cycle" of bloodshed-ceasefire-peace talks-violations-hostilities in Mindanao.
He batted anew for a bill he authored proposing a comprehensive policy in effectively conducting peace negotiations with the rebels that would, hopefully, eventually lead to a settlement.
While calling for public support for the government's resolve to end the Muslim insurgency once and for all, Lim said the government aims to develop Mindanao because military might alone would not solve the decades-old conflict.
Lim also praised Philippine National Police chief Director General Panfilo Lacson and police task force members who tracked down and arrested the suspected MILF rebels allegedly responsible for the two shopping mall bombings at the Glorietta shopping mall in Makati City last May 17 and at the SM Megamall in Mandaluyong City four days later. A janitor was killed in the Megamall blast.
Lim also declared that all law enforcement agencies remained on alert and were following other leads as well.
Despite his tough stance on the MILF, Reyes hoped that with the resumption of peace talks, the fighting will die down in the South.
"We don't want to eliminate them from the face of the earth as some quarters were accusing us," he said.
"We have to convince them we can have peace within the framework of the Constitution." But as for the Abu Sayyaf extremists, Reyes only had contempt.
"The solution for them is clear: we have to neutralize each one of them. They don't deserve to walk on the face of the earth."
Reyes was particularly angry at the bandits for mutilating or decapitating bodies of dead soldiers. --With a report from Mike Frialde
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Diigo, June 3, 2000, The Philippine Star, 33 killed as troops capture MILF's perimeter camp, by John Unson and Edith Regalado,
COTABATO CITY - At least 32 Muslim rebels and a soldier were killed as government troops advanced on Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) camps in Maguindanao last Thursday.
Army brigade chief Col. Hermogenes Esperon said five soldiers were also wounded in the fighting in the villages of Limbalod and Dungguan in Maguindanao.
At Malacañang, President Estrada declared the liberated MILF camps as "zones of peace."
Thursday's fighting came as negotiators from the government and the secessionist Muslim group concluded three days of peace talks in this city, about 80 kilometers from the scene of the clashes.
The Army used rocket-firing MG-520 attack helicopters and artillery to soften up MILF defenses on a rebel base, Camp Usman, as ground troops advanced.
Gunbattles continued early yesterday around the camp, on the boundary of North Cotabato and Maguindanao, but there were no immediate reports of casualties.
"We will continue our push to the site where they had set up their own government," Esperon said. "There is no other government in the Philippines, not in accordance with the Constitution."
The lone government casualty was identified as Cpl. Salvador Baria of the 39th Infantry Battalion, who died of several gunshot wounds.
Maj. Julieto Ando, civil-military relations chief of the Army's 6th Infantry Division, said Baria was killed when heavily armed rebels opened fire at his group in Barangay Limbalud, Pagagawan town.
Baria's group was dispatched to the town to verify reports that some 200 Muslim guerrillas had converged in the area for an attack on a strategic stretch of the Davao-Cotabato Highway.
"Probably they were planning to block the highway again," Ando said.
The clashes immediately spilled over to nearby Barangay Dungguan, forcing hundreds of villagers to flee.
Rosalinda Caballero, an evacuee, said six mortar shells landed on their yard as opposing forces pounded on each other's position.
"We don't know why the mortars are landing on our houses. We don't have anything to do with their fighting," she said.
A fisherman was killed while six other civilians were wounded when mortar shells fired from a military position on viollages along the Davao-Cotabato Highway.
For the MILF, rebel spokesman Eid Kabalu said they are expecting soldiers to attack Camp Rajah Muda, one of their biggest enclaves, since the government has not agreed to call a ceasefire during the three-day talks in this city.
The President has rejected rebel demands for a ceasefire, urging them to accept the government's offer of a peace agreement by the end of June or face a further onslaught.
Last Thursday, the MILF agreed to consider the government's offer for limited self-rule, a major shift from its struggle for an independent Muslim state in Mindanao.
Next battleground: Camp Abubakar
After a month-long assault on MILF territories, government forces earlier this week captured Camp Bushra, the rebels' second-largest training base. They also pushed the guerrillas back from a major highway outside their main bastion of Camp Abubakar.
MILF leaders, however, vowed to defend to the last man Camp Sarmiento, the last perimeter of defense for Camp Abubakar.
MILF spokesman Kabalu said they would do everything to defend the camp, but the military merely laughed off his claim.
"What Camp Sarmiento is he talking about?" asked Capt. Noel Detoyato, spokesman of the Army's 6th Infantry Division.
"We already captured it since Thursday noon."
Detoyato noted that government troops have occupied the camp, including the house of Al Haj Murad, the MILF's military affairs chief.
He said soldiers approaching the camp were initially met with intense fire from the rebels who later withdrew, enabling government forces to easily overrun the camp.
"But I have to admit that we have yet to take complete control of the camp," he said.
Disunity is the problem
Meanwhile, two senators yesterday expressed their views on the ongoing conflict in Mindanao, noting that the disunity among Muslims remains the biggest obstacle for peace in the region.
Sen. Rodolfo Biazon said Misuari's alleged attempt to block a peace settlement between the government and the MILF only proved that he (Misuari) did not want to share his power with other Muslim leaders.
He explained that Misuari's position as governor of the four-province ARMM would be threatened should the government grant a similar concession to the MILF.
"This (ARMM) is a very small pie to be shared, and Misuari would not want his powers to be reduced by having to share this with MILF chairman Hashim Salamat," Biazon said.
He added that a bigger share of the "pie" for both Misuari and Salamat would hinge on the expansion of the ARMM to include 10 more provinces and 10 cities. He, however, said that the expansion is certain to be rejected by the people of Mindanao.
"This problem (war) would be solved if all Muslims, including Salamat and Misuari, would unite and together work for a meaningful autonomy of the ARMM without their individual struggle for power," he said.
Sen. Raul Roco, on the other hand, said that granting more autonomy to Muslims in Mindanao would further divide rather than unite the nation.
"When two mothers went to King Solomon, the one who was willing to divide the baby was not the mother. Those who are willing to divide the country should not be favored," he said.
Several lawmakers have proposed federalism as a possible solution to the decades-old Mindanao conflict and the growing poverty in various regions. They noted that under the present setup of government, decisions affecting the welfare of people in the provinces are being made by those in Manila who rarely know the real condition in the countryside. Sen. John Osmeña, for one, said that even the acquisition of paper or paper clips in remote towns in the Visayas and Mindanao still have to be decided on by authorities in Manila.
Osmeña is among those endorsing a federal system of government. On his side are senators Francisco Tatad and Aquilino Pimentel who all believe that federalism would satisfy the demands of Muslim separatists without dismembering the country. - With reports from Paolo Romero, Olive Sudaria, Marichu Villanueva, Efren Danao, AFP
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Diigo, June 4, 2000, The Philippine Star, Military won't touch Abubakar, for now,
After capturing several bases of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, Malacañang has decided to spare the MILF's biggest base -- for now. But unless peace talks between the government and the MILF produce positive results by June 30, President Estrada might unleash the military's full might on Camp Abubakar.
In the meantime, the military offensive against the MILF's other camps will continue, Defense Secretary Orlando Mercado said, to confine the rebels to Camp Abubakar and prevent them from carrying out attacks. "The military establishment has a clear view of its objectives and we feel that... we have to degrade the military capability of this group, meaning we have to focus in being able to prevent its resurgence because we have seen this problem come and go," Mercado said.
Armed Forces chief Gen. Angelo Reyes, however, indicated in a radio interview that Camp Abubakar - which is now practically surrounded by government troops - would not be spared.
"There's no self-respecting republic that will allow non-military camps or any other armed forces to stay or subsist. All camps must be abolished. There is no inch of territory in the Philippines that could rightfully be said that it is not part of the Republic," Reyes said in a television interview yesterday.
Reyes said they were forced to launch the offensive against the MILF's camps after the peace talks were delayed, charging that the rebels used the hiatus to rebuild their forces.
The rebel bases, he said, were being used as launch pads for kidnappings and bomb attacks on civilian targets -- allegations denied by the MILF. "The MILF has grown in size because we ignored their rebuilding in the past. If this continues, the problem will grow," he said.
In Zamboanga City, Armed Forces Southern Command chief Maj. Gen. Diomedio Villanueva said Camp Abubakar "is practically surrounded." Camp Sarmiento, the main perimeter defense of the MILF's main camp, was overrun by government troops Thursday. The camp, located in Matanog town in Maguindanao, was the fifth rebel base to be taken over by the military since fighting began a month ago.
The other camps were Bilal and John Mack in Lanao del Norte, Bushra in Lanao del Sur, and Omar also in Maguindanao. Meanwhile, MILF leader Hashim Salamat, his deputy Al-Haj Murad and 26 suspected MILF rebels have been charged with murder for the recent shopping mall bombings in Metro Manila.
Sen. Juan Ponce Enrile, a former defense minister, said the two MILF leaders should be excluded from the charges because the suspects could simply argue that they committed the act in pursuit of their political beliefs. The 26 suspects should have been charged with murder and illegal possession of firearms without linking them with the MILF, he said, to prevent them from going back to Mindanao and "assist in the fight against the government."
Last Friday, 11 MILF rebels were killed as the military pressed on to capture another MILF base, Camp Usman in Maguindanao province, the military reported yesterday. The new fatalities raised the death toll in the campaign to capture Camp Usman near Cotabato City to 43 over the past three days.
Yesterday, the army shelled Camp Usman with 105 millimeter howitzers. The rebels fired back with mortars. About 1,000 troops arrived last Friday to reinforce the 2,500 soldiers already deployed to capture the rebel base, Esperon said. Their mission is to prevent rebels from nearby Camp Rajah Muda from sending reinforcement to Camp Usman.
The attack on Camp Usman followed last week's capture of Camp Bushra in Lanao del Sur, the MILF's second-largest base. Last Friday, the military took over the gateway to Camp Abubakar in Maguindanao, the MILF's biggest base.
The rebels countered by attacking an army base in Kauswagan, Lanao del Norte yesterday but were repulsed. Two rebels were killed. The battle for Camp Usman came as government and MILF negotiators ended three days of peace talks last Thursday in Cotabato City. President Estrada has given the MILF until June 30 to accept the government's offer of autonomy in place of independence or face intensified military onslaught.
Meanwhile, Malacañang expressed concern over the MILF's bid for recognition from the Organization of Islamic Conference (OIC), an influential Jeddah-based forum of Islamic states. "It's very clear that they are now watching the situation in Mindanao. In fact, the MILF representatives who were supposed to be in the peace negotiations were already there in the hallways where the OIC meetings are being held," Press Secretary Ricardo Puno said.
The OIC recognizes only the Moro National Liberation Front and gave it observer status while the MILF -- a breakaway faction of the MNLF -- has been waiting in the wings for recognition. The OIC helped broker the 1996 peace pact between the government and the MNLF, headed by Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao Gov. Nur Misuari. Misuari reportedly tried to block a settlement between the MILF and the government by denouncing Manila's failure to comply with its peace commitments to the MNLF. -- Marichu Villanueva, Sandy Araneta, Lino De La Cruz, John Unson, Roel Pareño, AFP
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Diigo, June 4, 2000, The Philippine Star, No ransom for Sayyaf hostages - Aventajado,
Presidential Adviser Robert Aventajado reiterated yesterday the government's no-ransom policy in dealing with kidnappers.
"We will not pay any ransom to end this case, because we all know that once we pay ransom, this (kidnapping) will occur again," Aventajado said amid reports that the Abu Sayyaf wants $1 million for each of its 21 mostly foreign hostages in Sulu.
Aventajado has consistently denied that the Abu Sayyaf is demanding ransom for the hostages. Other government officials, however, have reported the ransom demand.
The international hostage crisis in Sulu enters its seventh week tomorrow with no solution in sight. The terrorists have received reinforcements from their comrades in nearby Basilan in anticipation of military operations to rescue the hostages.
Police and military authorities in Western Mindanao are also verifying reports that Basilan-based Abu Sayyaf gunmen have turned over their eight remaining Filipino hostages, six of them children, to the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF).
Aventajado, designated by President Estrada as chief government negotiator in dealing with the Abu Sayyaf, appealed for understanding on why the negotiations were dragging on, saying they were doing everything possible to secure the release of the 21 hostages.
Governments of the 19 foreign hostages have complained of the slow pace of negotiations, with Malaysian Deputy Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi even urging for a change in strategy.
Aventajado clarified, however, that he could not reveal every detail of the negotiations for security reasons.
"I wish to tell them that unfortunately, we cannot divulge to the public all that we are doing because in the process of negotiations, you are like playing poker," Aventajado said in a radio interview.
"You cannot lay down all your cards for all to see," he said.
The victims were seized last April 23 by Abu Sayyaf gunmen in the Malaysian resort island of Sipadan in Sabah near Borneo. They were immediately taken by boat to Sulu where they have been held in assorted rebel lairs in the jungles of the island.
The hostages consist of nine Malaysians, three Germans, two French nationals, two Finns, two South Africans, two Filipinos and one Lebanese.
Despite several trips to Sulu, Aventajado and his team have met with the kidnappers only once, during which they were allowed to visit the hostages. However, there have been regular contacts through emissaries.
The negotiations stalled anew over the past week as the kidnappers reportedly dropped their political demands in favor of a $1-million ransom for each of the hostages.
Aventajado expressed optimism the negotiations will resume on Wednesday.
He also assured the hostages that the construction of new huts to house them did not necessarily mean they will have to stay longer in captivity, but merely to protect them from the elements.
While denying reports about the ransom demand, Aventajado said the government would consider other proposals by the kidnappers, notably a ban on poaching in Philippine territorial waters by foreigners.
He said he was to meet last yesterday with officials from the Navy, the Coast Guard and the fisheries bureau to discuss implementation of an existing law banning commercial fishing within 15 kilometers from the shoreline.
The Abu Sayyaf was also pressing for an independent Muslim state in Mindanao, but the President has repeatedly said the issue is non-negotiable.
Meanwhile, reports reaching Zamboanga City cited Abu Sayyaf landings in Sulu from nearby Basilan. Police intelligence sources said some 100 Abu Sayyaf members have arrived in Jolo to reinforce the unit headed by Sahiron Radullan which is keeping the 21 hostages.
Some of the captives told journalists they have also noticed new faces among their captors. Sulu police director Superintendent Candido Casimiro said it was likely that the Abu Sayyaf guerrillas in Basilan have slipped to Jolo unnoticed by government forces that have set up a blockade on Basilan.
A government emissary from Sumisip town in Basilan confirmed that the eight hostages, remnants of over 50 people seized by the Abu Sayyaf from their schools last March, have been turned over to MILF leader Querino Sakandal. The source said the Abu Sayyaf kidnappers decided on the handover to ease their escape from pursuing soldiers.
Malaysia, meanwhile, defended its move to deport thousands of illegal Filipino immigrants in Sabah from charges that it was in retaliation to the kidnapping of nine Malaysians as well as 11 Westerners and two Filipinos by the Abu Sayyaf.
"The state government will continue the operation against illegal immigrants involved in criminal activities," said Tham Nyip Shen, deputy chief minister of Sabah. "We are not obliged to stop the operation as we have a duty to ensure peace and security in our state," he stressed.
Philippine Ambassador to Malaysia Jose Brillantes has claimed the crackdown on illegal Filipino immigrants could complicate Philippine government efforts to secure the release of the 21 hostages.
Brillantes said the Abu Sayyaf might misconstrue the purge as a retaliation to the kidnapping. - Marichu Villanueva, Roel Pareño, Rey Arquiza, AFP and AP Reports
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Diigo, June 9, 2000, The Philippine Star, RP rejects OIC call to cease offensive,
The government will reject a call by the Organization of Islamic Conference (OIC) to stop a military offensive against the separatist Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) in Mindanao, National Security Adviser Alexander Aguirre said yesterday.
This developed as the military pressed on with its campaign in Mindanao, capturing the rebels' 70-hectare Camp Darapanan in Sultan Kudarat town in Maguindanao. Aguirre said only Philippine authorities "have the absolute prerogative to make a decision" on when to stop the military offensive.
A draft communiqué of a meeting of OIC foreign ministers in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia from June 27 to June 30 incorporated a paragraph calling on the Philippine government to stop the offensives against the MILF. It also seeks to ask Manila to postpone the 2003 elections in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM).
"The Islamic Conference of Foreign Ministers (ICFM) urges the Philippine government to halt immediately its military offensive against the Bangsamoro people and reach a peaceful solution to the problem in Mindanao," the draft communiqué said.
The document was approved by OIC senior officials during a meeting in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia last month. It is to be presented for approval to the OIC foreign ministers who will issue a final communiqué at the end of their meeting, said a source who requested anonymity.
Aguirre said in a radio interview yesterday that any OIC statement would only be "persuasive." He also noted that the document was still a draft. Aguirre was interviewed from Qatar, while on a diplomatic mission to OIC member countries to explain the government's side ahead of the Kuala Lumpur meeting.
He said that the MILF's chief military strategist, Mohamad Murad, had been seeking OIC help in their fight against the government, claiming the Armed Forces of the Philippines was resorting to "ethnic cleansing" against Muslims in Mindanao.
"We have to explain to (OIC members) that the present hostilities are but reactions of the government to the MILF's illegal occupation of a public highway, town halls... and so on," Aguirre said. "We are just upholding constitutional order and protecting the civilian population here," he added.
Press Secretary Ricardo Puno Jr. said the Armed Forces will never move out of Mindanao. "They are staying in place and consolidating their gains," he said. "They will continue to neutralize and contain the rebels at their Camp Abubakar."
Aguirre said the Philippines must "maintain very good relations" with the 56 member states of the OIC "because they are host to hundreds of thousands of Filipino workers and of course they supply oil to our country."
While Islamic states are poised to call for a stop in the hostilities in Mindanao, the OIC said it still "recognizes the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) as the sole legitimate representative of the Muslims in southern Philippines."
The MILF is seeking observer status at the OIC meeting, but the seat has already been taken by the former separatist MNLF, which signed a peace treaty with the government in September 1996. The Philippine government is seeking to be invited as a guest during the meeting.
According to Foreign Affairs Undersecretary Lauro Baja Jr., the Philippines will try to lobby to the OIC through Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad and Indonesian President Abdurrahman Wahid.
Meanwhile, the military claimed that scores of Muslim rebels have been killed in a three-day battle in Lutayan, Sultan Kudarat province. A report from the Army's 64th Infantry Battalion said soldiers were able to intercept radio messages from the guerrillas, notifying their superiors about casualties. No figures were given in the report.
In Sultan Kudarat town, Maguindanao, soldiers were able to capture Camp Darapanan without resistance. Local officials said the rebels moved out of the camp when Datu Tucao Mastura, the acknowledged town leader, convinced the guerrillas to leave Darapanan so as not to endanger civilians. Soldiers from the Army's 3rd Infantry Battalion then destroyed a big detention cell on top of a hill, and continued to scour its perimeter for land mines.
In other developments, between 5,000 to 10,000 Muslims in Metro Manila will forgo their Jumu'a (Friday) prayer today to hold a rally to protest against the alleged discrimination they are getting from Christians as well as the government's mishandling of the Mindanao conflict.
Instead of flocking to their mosques, the Muslims will converge in front of the Blue Mosque along Mindanao Avenue in Maharlika Village, Taguig at around 10 a.m. today. Lyn Pangandaman, chairman of the newly formed Pagragn Secretariat, said her group will also conduct a survey among Muslims to determine if they want a separate state, a federal form of government, or a bigger autonomous region in Mindanao.
Pagragn is a Maranaw word which could mean "to fight back," "to hold on to your flag," or "to kill to get even." Pangandaman said their Friday noon prayer in all 47 mosques will be canceled to give way to the rally. -- Aurea Calica, John Unson, Marichu Villanueva, Liberty Dones, Allen Estabillo, Edith Regalado, Jaime Laude, AFP
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Diigo, June 10, 2000, The Philippine Star, Talks with Abu seen today; $1-M ransom demand confirmed,
A resumption of formal talks with Abu Sayyaf terrorists holding 21 mostly foreign hostages in Sulu is expected today even as the government rejected a fresh demand by the captors.
In related developments yesterday:
* Government chief negotiator Roberto Aventajado stressed that no ransom will be paid for the release of the hostages. * An Abu Sayyaf leader confirmed earlier reports that they were asking for $1 million ransom for each of the captives. * The Malaysian government, apparently concerned over the slow pace of the negotaitons, is sending Foreign Minister Al Syed Hamid Albar to Manila on June 15 for talks on the hostage crisis.
Sulu Gov. Abdusakur Tan who is a member of the government panel, said he has sent an emissary to verify reports Abu Sayyaf leader Ghalib Andang alias Commander Robot wanted three additional government negotiators in the talks. But another Abu Sayyaf leader, Mujib Susukan, told the emissary to simply ignore Andang's latest demand.
"I told them they are so confusing. I told them it's only the President (Estrada) who appoints (negotiators). We will not consider that (new demand)," Tan said. Andang told reporters who accompanied a food convoy to the Abu Sayyaf lair in the hinterlands of Talipao in Sulu they wanted a retired police general, a university professor and a third person to be included in the government panel.
Last Thursday, Andang also proposed that Abu Sayyaf chieftain Khadafy Janjalani and spokesman Abu Sabaya be involved in the talks. The current team headed by Presidential Adviser Roberto Aventajado consists of Tan, former Libyan ambassador Rajab Azzarouq, peace advocate Farouk Hussin and Islamic scholar Ibrahim Ghazali. Tan said he was optimistic formal talks would resume for the freedom for the nine Malaysians, three Germans, two South Africans, two French nationals, two Finns, two Filipinos and one Lebanese being held by the extremist rebels.
The victims were snatched from a Malaysian diving resort off Sabah last April 23 and taken by boat across the sea border to the Sulu capital of Jolo. The two parties formally met only once, in a Muslim mosque in Talipao town last May 27. However, there were contacts through emissaries. The government panel gave in to the Abu Sayyaf's demands to ban large fishing vessels in waters around Jolo, but rejected two other conditions including the establishment of an independent Islamic state in Mindanao.
Gov't panel rules out ransom
"No, we do not pay ransom," Aventajado said in reaction to the Abu Sayyaf's ransom demand of $1 million each for the 21 hostages. He said the governments of the foreign hostages will also reject payment of any ransom. "They will not pay," Aventajado told The STAR.
Asked if the military option is still open, Aventajado responded with the question; "You want us to pay P900 million?" A government emissary said earlier the kidnappers were asking for $1 million for each of the hostages, but the negotiators insisted there was no such demand. Abu Sayyaf spokesman Abu Sabaya confirmed that they were asking for $1 million ransom for each of the hostages to finance their armed struggle.
The emissary said the ransom demand was a key factor that has been stalling the negotiations. Hussin said they will clarify with the Abu Sayyaf leaders the alleged ransom demand in their next formal meeting which may take place today.
Previous Abu Sayyaf abductions invariably ended in the payment of ransom, euphemistically called "board and lodging" for the victims while in captivity. The slow pace of the negotiations has been bitterly criticized by the hostages whose psychological state has deteriorated in recent weeks as their release remained uncertain.
"In the past weeks, we have been better because, as you see, the conditions are a bit better, but mentally, it's been hard," Finnish hostage Risto Vahanen told visiting journalists. Meanwhile, Malacañang clarified that the President Estrada did not set June 12 as deadline for the government negotiators to resolve the hostage crisis in Mindanao.
"It is not a deadline. Let me be very categorical and clear on that. The President did not impose any deadline on the negotiating panel," Press Undersecretary Mike Toledo said. He pointed out that negotiations of such nature could not be "time-bound."
He clarified that Mr. Estrada merely wanted some substantive breakthroughs in the talks with the Abu Sayyaf by June 12. Meanwhile, doctors from Malaysia and Germany arrived in Jolo yesterday to treat the ailing captives. Horst Heydlauf, a specialist in tropical medicine sent by the German government, came by boat from Zamboanga City where he awaited clearance to visit the hostages.
Two Malaysian physicians and two medical assistants also arrived by a military cargo plane which flew them from Kuala Lumpur via Kota Kinabalu. The mission from the Malaysian Red Crescent brought along 45 boxes of medicines, food and other supplies.
Team leader Yahaya Abu Ahmad said his group expected to stay in Jolo for 14 days during which they planned to see the hostages at least three to four times. Meanwhile, sources at the Department of Foreign Affairs said Albar would call on Mr. Estrada and Foreign Affairs Secretary Domingo Siazon Jr. Malaysians are to coordinate their visit to the Abu Sayyaf hideout with the Philippine National Red Cross and Sulu provincial health officer Dr. Nelsa Amin. -- Roel Pareño, wire services
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Diigo, June 10, 2000, The Philippine Star, Soldier killed, 3 wounded in new MILF attacks, by John Unson,
COTABATO CITY -- A soldier and a civilian were killed while at least 10 government troops were wounded in attacks by separatist Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) rebels in North Cotabato early yesterday.
MILF guerrillas fired at patrolling troops in Nalapaan village in North Cotabato using rocket-propelled grenades, triggering a firefight that left a farmer dead and three soldiers wounded. The attack forced the military to close a major road which links Cotabato City to Davao City, the largest urban center in Mindanao. Soldiers stopped about 300 vehicles from passing through the road to prevent them from being caught in the crossfire.
Col. Hermogenes Esperon, commander of the Army's 602nd Infantry Brigade, said he expected the road would be cleared of rebels and reopened later yesterday. Maj. Julieto Ando, civil-military relations chief of the 6th Infantry Division, said farmer Leopoldo Tumagos of Aleosan town was killed in the crossfire between the soldiers and the rebels.
"He was dragging his work animals from his yard to a safe area when the rebels started shooting him. Three of of the animals were also killed," he said. Ando said the MILF's attacks were believed to be a retaliation for the military's capture of rebel enclaves in Sultan Kudarat and Pagagawan towns in Maguindanao.
At least 67 rebels were killed in the Army's siege of an MILF camp in Barangay Limbalud, Pagagawan where the rebel group used to run a shadow government. The camp fell last Thursday after a week-long offensive. In nearby Midsayap town, suspected MILF rebels also attempted to blow up a 65-foot concrete bridge before dawn yesterday.
Esperon said one of the five bombs planted under the bridge exploded, causing slight damage, but did not set off the four others which could have destroyed the span. No one was hurt in the explosion. The military uses the bridge to deploy troops from Maguindanao to North Cotabato. On Thursday, government forces met little resistance when they captured three rebel camps in Maguindanao and North Cotabato, about 10 kilometers from Camp Abubakar, the MILF's main headquarters.
Soldiers overran last week the MILF's second biggest camp and military training center, Camp Bushra, in Lanao del Sur. The military said troops discovered a complex of trenches and bunkers in the camp and found a rebel jailhouse which was empty.
"No letup in drive vs MILF'
Military operations against the rebels intensified in late April after the government decided to shut down dozens of MILF satellite camps. However, the military has left Camp Abubakar largely untouched. Esperon said there would be no letup in the government's campaign against the rebels.
"The MILF forces are weakening," he said. "There is no letup in this campaign." Col. Ernesto de Guzman of the military's Southern Command said the MILF camps were "illegal" and served as launching pad for "terroristic attacks" by the 15,000-strong group that has been waging a 22-year war for a separate Muslim state in Mindanao.
"We are conducting operations to neutralize these illegal MILF camps," he said. "What is important is for us to be able to address their terroristic activities from out of these camps which they use as terrorist bases." The military has captured at least six other key rebel camps since January while it is conducting peace negotiations with the group.
De Guzman said most of the MILF's major bases had been neutralized, with Camp Abubakar still untouched. He said the military has no intention yet of "occupying or attacking" the camp while peace talks are ongoing. At least 184 soldiers and militiamen have been killed and more than 680 wounded in clashes since January, the most serious fighting in Mindanao since the height of the Muslim rebellion in the 1970s.
Executive Secretary Ronaldo Zamora said yesterday that the government could not implement a draft resolution of the Organization of Islamic Conference (OIC) calling for an end to the military offensive against the rebels until the guerrillas lay down their arms. The OIC consists of 55 Muslim states and political groups. "We can't just stand by if our country is under attack, if our military units are ambushed, if there is extortion along our public highways. That can't be," Zamora said.
Senior OIC officials met in Saudi Arabia earlier this month to prepare for a foreign ministers' meeting in Malaysia in late June. Last week, government and rebel negotiators resumed peace talks, stalled for a month by the fighting, while the military operations continued. Another round of talks has been scheduled for June 28.
Security tightened
Meanwhile in Zamboanga, security has been tightened after government troops intercepted a load of chemicals used by Muslim rebels in manufacturing explosives.
Military officials said soldiers seized early this week some 25 kilograms of ammonium nitrate aboard a ferry bound for nearby Basilan island, a base of the Muslim extremist group Abu Sayyaf which is on the run from a military offensive.
"We have ordered tightened security and extra precaution here and in nearby provinces against bomb attacks by both rebel groups on government and civilian targets," said Southern Command's De Guzman.
He said that soldiers swooped down on a ferry in Zamboanga after intelligence reports said that the vessel was carrying chemicals for explosives. The shipment, he added, was neatly packed and sealed. Ammonium nitrate is an ingredient often used by the Abu Sayyaf and the MILF in manufacturing homemade bombs used in attacking targets in Mindanao and even in Metro Manila.
No one has been arrested for the illegal shipment, although the military has deployed additional soldiers at the Zamboanga City wharf and an Army special unit to escort ferries crossing over to Basilan. Abu Sayyaf forces in Basilan are still holding six school children and two teachers hostage while their comrades in nearby Sulu are separately holding captive 21 mostly foreign captives seized from a Malaysian dive resort last April. -- With wire reports
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Diigo, June 12, 2000, The Philippine Star, Troops capture another MILF camp in Maguindanao,
COTABATO CITY - Government forces captured another major camp of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) in Maguindanao, while fighting raged in nearby North Cotabato where the rebels took more than 50 residents hostage to use as human shields.
About 1,000 troops, backed by artillery fire and planes, seized Camp Mohamad al Saleh after a day of heavy fighting last Saturday afternoon, said Maj. Julieto Ando, spokesman of the Army's 6th Infantry Battalion. The Philippine flag was hoisted at the abandoned camp later in the day.
Ando said Camp Mohamad al Saleh is the fifth MILF enclave to be captured by the military in Maguindanao since a major offensive against the 15,000- strong guerrilla force was launched this year. He said troops discovered about 100 trenches in the heavily fortified camp, as well as bunkers that could accommodate about 300 fighters.
Ando said the military was under instruction to continue its offensive against other MILF-held territories even as peace negotiations were going on. Capt. Noel Detoyato, spokesman for the Army's 6th Infantry Division, said MILF guerrillas retreating from Camp Mohamad al Saleh are heading for Camp Abu Bakar to seek sanctuary.
"The attack against (Camp Mohamad) al Saleh was conducted after we received intelligence reports that it was being used by MILF fighters to conduct harassment attacks against our troops," he told The STAR yesterday.
Detoyato said Camp Mohamad al Saleh is located some 200 kilometers from Camp Abubakar, the MILF's main camp in Maguindanao. In nearby Midsayap town in North Cotabato, MILF guerrillas attacked six adjoining barangays with rockets and machineguns as the soldiers were celebrating their victory.
Ando said the rebels took more than 50 residents hostage for use as human shields when about 500 government troops responded to the attack. The rebels arrived just after dawn, cordoned off the houses and opened fire with rockets and machineguns, forcing hundreds of residents to flee, he added.
Five soldiers were reportedly wounded in the attack, but the Army has not been able to confirm this as of presstime last night. Ando said the Army operations center here has still to gather information on the circumstances that led to the attack on the six barangays in the predominantly Christian town. "The attacks were perpetrated while our men hoisted the Philippine flag in two separate MILF strongholds in Duluan and Parang (both) in Maguindanao," he said. Ando said troops from the Army's 301st and 803rd brigades destroyed more than 200 overhead bunkers and foxholes in the 800- hectare Camp Muhammad al Fatah and a secret defense complex in Barangay Marang in Parang town.
Col. Vivencio Bataga, operations officer of the Army's 603rd Brigade, said the rebels occupying Barangay Parang had scampered in different directions after troops had surrounded their positions. "There was no fight whatsoever because they chose to abandon their camp than figure in an encounter with our men," he said. "They could have sensed that we were superior in strength and firepower."
Ando said the bunkers and foxholes in Barangay Marang were dug between coconut and coffee trees and that government troops met stiff resistance when they broke through the camp's defense perimeter. "We had to use cannons, mortars and OV-10 planes to weaken them physically and drive them away from the scene," he said.
Ando said two soldiers were wounded in the fighting, while local officials said the rebels suffered 19 dead, including two foreign-trained commanders. In Palimbang, Sultan Kudarat, three people were killed and one was wounded while clashes continued between government troops and Moro rebels.
About 800 residents of four barangays fled their homes when troops from the Army's 68th Infantry Battalion, supported by helicopter gunships, moved in to flush out about 400 MILF guerrillas holed up in the town since Wednesday. Capt. Sam Deles, spokesman for the Army's 601st Infantry Brigade, said the bullet-riddled body of Carlito Casbuena, former chairman of Barangay Sinangkaan, and the mutilated bodies of two still unidentified Muslim women were found in the barangay after the fighting last Friday. At least six MILF fighters were killed and two militiamen were wounded during Wednesday's fighting between government troops and MILF rebels in Barangay Sinangkaan. The militiamen were able to repulse the attack but the rebels returned and assembled in the outskirts of the barangay the next day and attacked again.
Led by a certain Commander Tigre Jakiri, guerrillas also blocked roads going to Barangays Minah, Sinagkaan, Domoldol, and Tibuhol. Residents of these barangays have fled and sought refuge in Barangay Milbuk, Maitum town in Sarangani, and in General Santos City. Deles said the MILF in alliance with lawless elements have looted the deserted barangays, and that residents told a radio station that they have seen rebels carting away sacks of rice and cattle. -- AP, AFP, John Unson, Allen Estabillo, Mike Frialde
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Diigo, June 19, 2000, The Philippine Star, Troops close in on another MILF camp, by John Unson,
PAGALUNGAN, Maguindanao - A dozen more Muslim guerrillas were killed yesterday in continuing clashes with soldiers advancing into the heart of Camp Rajah Muda, the third biggest enclave of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) in Mindanao.
This developed as the military hoisted the Philippine flag at Camp Jabal Thur, a satellite camp of the MILF in South Cotabato which soldiers overran at noon yesterday. The fighting in Camp Rajah Muda forced thousands of residents in six barangays here to evacuate to the town proper for fear of getting caught in the crossfire.
Local authorities said there were reports that seven soldiers had been killed in the skirmishes, but they remained unconfirmed. "We have learned that the dead soldiers have not been retrieved yet from the scene," a barangay official said. Dr. Kadil Sinolinding, the town's health officer, said evacuees are now confined at the town proper and need food, clothing and medicines.
He said that while clashes have been taking place in only four areas -- Kudal, Inog-ug, Talitay and Bago Inged -- hundreds of families in three nearby barangays have fled to safer grounds for fear of being caught in the crossfire.
Residents of two other barangays in Pagagawan town have also left their homes, according to Sinolinding. Maj. Julieto Ando, civil-military relations chief of the Army's 6th Infantry Division, said the soldiers breaking through Camp Rajah Muda met tough resistance from the MILF guerrillas.
"The rebels were shooting at our men recklessly. There was a need for continued bombardment of the camp's surroundings," he said. Ando noted that most of the rebels killed in the clashes were young, mostly in their teens. He added that an Army driver was killed when his truck hit a land mine while on the way to retrieve the slain rebels' bodies. Eid Kabalu, spokesman for the MILF, blamed the military's offensive on Camp Rajah Muda for the displacement of thousands of civilians from villages surrounding the camp. The 5,000-hectare Rajah Muda straddles 16 barangays at the boundaries of Pagalungan, Pagagawan and Pikit towns in North Cotabato.
The government has acknowledged that the area used to be a sanctuary of MILF fighters since it was formerly covered by a ceasefire agreement. Col. Hermogenes Esperon, commander of the Army's 602nd Brigade, said there was a need to clear the area which has long been used by the rebels as "springboard" for their terrorist activities.
"If we can fully clear the camp of MILF occupation, we will be putting a stop to kidnapping, extortion, car theft and illegal activities of the rebels there," he said. Since Thursday, Esperon's men have breached 17 well-fortified rebel positions in their assault of the camp.
Satellite camp falls
Meanwhile, government forces captured Friday in Banga town, South Cotabato the satellite camp Jabal Thur which was home to the MILF's 204th Brigade. Members of the Army's 601st Brigade raised the Philippine flag yesterday at noon to mark the successful takeover of the camp.
Col. Delfin Lorenzana, head of the brigade, said they were able to capture the camp without facing any resistance from the rebels who fled before they arrived. Three soldiers, however, were killed in the siege when the jeep they were riding hit a land mine. Jabal Thur is the first MILF satellite camp in the South Cotabato, Saranggani and General Santos (SOCSARGEN) region which the military has captured since it began its offensive against the rebels more than two months ago.
In Zamboanga, suspected MILF rebels ambushed a group of civilians which included a government prosecutor late Friday, leaving at least four men seriously wounded. Southern Command chief Lt. Gen. Diomedio Villanueva said Davao Oriental Prosecutor Pableo Baldoza, his driver and at least two others were rushed to the hospital after heavily armed men strafed their vehicle in Mali town.
The continuing clashes between government forces and the rebels are feared to cause heavy damage on Mindanao's economy. Datu Haron Bandila, assistant agriculture chief of the Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao, said the fighting would reset the region's planting season.
"The farmers should be planting by now," he said. "But how can they start if the fighting is ongoing?" Bandila is worried that massive hunger would follow the conflict in Mindanao since farmers would have nothing to eat in the coming months. He said that the government's promise of farm inputs to the farmers has not encouraged them to return to their fields.
"What they want is a ceasefire, not fertilizers or seeds," he stressed. "They have been telling us that what we can extend to them would be useless if their safety is not guaranteed."
At least P134 million worth of crops were left by thousands of farmers when they fled their homes last April due to hostilities. And not even 20 percent of the abandoned rice which is ripe for harvesting has been harvested, Bandila said. Ninety percent of the 1.3 million residents of Maguindanao and Lanao del Sur provinces rely mainly on farming as a means of livelihood. -- With Roel Pareño
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Diigo, June 20, 2000, The Philippine Star, 'Abu Sayyaf hostage crisis may last four more months', by Marichu Villanueva,
Four more months in hell. The 21 mostly foreign hostages who have been held by the Abu Sayyaf extremists in Jolo for two months running may have to wait much longer for their release. Executive Secretary Ronaldo Zamora said this yesterday as he warned officials of six countries yesterday not to resort to paying ransom to secure the release of their citizens from the Muslim terrorists.
Zamora said the government is hoping to restart negotiations with the terrorists this week after it suspended talks a week ago due to the kidnappers' "impossible demands." "We are hopeful that we can speed things up, although right from the beginning we have told them (other countries) that we are looking at three to six months," he said.
Germany and Malaysia have pressed for a swift resolution of the hostage crisis which began on April 23 when Abu Sayyaf gunmen seized their captives from the Malaysian resort island of Sipadan and brought them to Jolo.
A German newspaper reported that Berlin is readying aid equivalent to a ransom in the form of technical support for infrastructure projects in Jolo where the hostages are being kept. A German family of three is among the hostages.
Malaysia, for its part, has urged the Philippines to explore "exceptional ways" of dealing with the problem. Malaysian Foreign Minister Syed Hamid Albar, who visited Manila last week, suggested that the Philippine government relax its no-ransom policy.
But Zamora said the suggestion would only make matters worse. "We would all end up the loser," he stressed. Zamora said officials from Finland, France, Germany, Lebanon, Malaysia and South Africa need to be aware of the danger of resorting to ransom for the release of the hostages. "If we reduce the problem to a sum of money, at some future date they (the rebels) would just resort to new kidnappings," he said. He confirmed that the rebel group has demanded a ransom for its hostages whom it abducted in the Sipadan resort island nearly two months ago.
"You may have heard that they are asking for one million dollars per hostage. It is true. That is what they are asking," he said. The hostages, who also include two Filipinos and nine Malaysians, were snatched on April 23. Their abductors have sought $21 million and made several political demands, including an independent Muslim state in Mindanao.
Supplies cut
Meanwhile, government authorities halted food supplies to the rebels holding 21 hostages in desperate jungle conditions to force the kidnappers to reveal the whereabouts of 10 Caucasian captives who have been unseen for 17 days.
The Abu Sayyaf moved three Germans, two Finns, two French nationals, two South Africans and a Lebanese to an undisclosed place earlier this month to deter the military's rescue attempt. The extremist group has since requested food supplies for the hostages, saying the foreigners were running out of provisions.
Emissaries from other countries, however, have been ordered to suspend deliveries until the location of the Western hostages is determined. During the break in the negotiations, the Abu Sayyaf quietly released five Filipino children whom it abducted on the nearby island of Basilan three months ago. Press Secretary Ricardo Puno said the government did not pay a single centavo to the Abu Sayyaf for the release of the five children.
Government negotiators, meanwhile, said that the "humanitarian corridor" to the Abu Sayyaf camp remains open for medical missions. Chief government negotiator Robert Aventajado said that though the food ration has been stopped, a group of doctors composed of a German, a Finn and a French national, was preparing to go up the Abu Sayyaf camp to check on the medical condition of the hostages.
The Western hostages last received medical attention on June 2 while the Asians were last treated by Malaysian Red Crescent Society volunteers on June 10. "The humanitarian corridor is open," Aventajado said, adding that the German physician and Finish psychiatrist were just waiting for the arrival of the French doctor before visiting the rebel camp.
"The European physicians want to go there at the same time," Aventajado said. Aventajado appealed to the kidnap leaders to make up their mind on what they really want in exchange for the hostages. Last Sunday, two of Abu Sayyaf's five leaders issued a signed statement accusing the Philippine government of ignoring their demands for a separate Muslim state and a human rights commission to investigate the alleged abuse of Filipinos in the Malaysian state of Sabah.
Abu Jumdail and Nadjmi Sabdullah accused President Estrada's government of reducing the crisis to one "merely grounded on monetary considerations." "I am appealing to them to discuss among themselves what it is they really want so as to facilitate the negotiations," Aventajado said. -- With reports from AFP, Reuters
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Diigo, June 22, 2000, The Philippine Star, Two more MILF camps overrun,
Two more camps of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) have fallen, the military said yesterday. Camp Jabal Jud, situated near the towns of Polomolok and T'boli in South Cotabato, fell after a day of fighting last Tuesday. Camp Ednu Harris, located near the towns of Pa-galungan and Pikit in North Cotabato, fell on the same day.
Armed Forces chief Gen. Angelo Reyes said yesterday they might capture all of the MILF's camps -- except Camp Abubakar in Maguindanao province -- by the end of the month. Camp Abubakar is the MILF's main base. Reyes said the MILF has nine camps left, including Abubakar.
"All camps surrounding Camp Abubakar will be taken over next week or within a couple of days," Reyes told reporters, adding that the MILF should now "realize the futility of war and the inevitability of their defeat." The government plans to pen the MILF inside Camp Abubakar to prevent them from launching attacks and force them to sue for peace.
The relentless military offensive has stirred calls for a ceasefire from various sectors, but were ignored by Malacañang which claimed the rebels would use the time to rebuild their forces. Muslim groups in Metro Manila and in provinces north and south of the capital will meet either in Quezon or Ilocos Norte this weekend to discuss the situation and take a common stand.
Col. Delfin Lorenzana, commander of the Army's 601st Infantry Brigade, said the attack on Camp Jabal Jud began last Monday with howitzers and mortars. Soldiers, led by the 2nd Special Forces Battalion, advanced early Tuesday morning.
An estimated 120 rebels retaliated with rocket-propelled grenades and mortars before retreating by noon. No casualties on both sides were reported in the attacks on Jabal Jud and Ednu Harris.
The capture of Camp Jabal Jud came less than a week after Camp Jabal Sur - - considered the largest MILF base in the province -- in Banga town fell to government forces last Saturday. Just last week, another MILF base, Camp Rajah Muda, situated near the towns of Pagalungan and Pikit in North Cotabato, was captured.
Soldiers are now securing the area to prevent a possible rebel counter-attack, said Brig. Gen. Gregorio Camiling Jr., Army 6th Infantry Division commander. Troops clashed with rebels in the nearby village of Kudal, the birthplace of MILF leader Hashim Salamat. No casualties on both sides were reported.
The battle for Camp Jabal Jud forced an estimated 70 families to flee their homes and seek refuge in a public school in Polomolok. The military found bomb-making materials and documents on MILF trainees in the camp, leading them to believe that the base is used for training MILF guerrillas. "It is a big possibility that this group was responsible for the previous bombings in General Santos City," said 1Lt. Nestor Mondia, who led the ground attack.
A rash of bombings last month killed three people and wounded 70 others in the city last month. The MILF denied any responsibility. Since February six major MILF camps have fallen: Omar, Usman, John Mack and Bilal in Lanao del Norte; Bushra, the second biggest MILF base, in Lanao del Sur; and Sarmiento in Matanog, Maguindanao.
In Davao Oriental, tension forced the suspension of classes in the towns of Mati, Tarragona and Lupon. Local education officials said the MILF is reportedly planning to launch bomb attacks, but the rebels denied it. The MILF has a base, Camp Salappudin, near Tarragona.
The military offensive has forced hundreds of thousands of residents to flee their homes and seek refuge in evacuation centers where conditions are often poor. Poor sanitation and a shortage of medicine have led to an outbreak of illnesses. In Maguindanao, 38 people from different evacuation centers -- 31 of them children -- have died from diarrhea and other water-borne illnesses.
The situation is also beginning to take its toll on government social workers who usually complain of fatigue and shabby treatment from evacuees "who shout at them and demand for just anything from them." A local social welfare official in Pikit, North Cotabato said "even mayors would shout at them publicly," adding to the social workers' frustration. Meanwhile, troops near the town of Kalawit in Zamboanga del Norte are combing the mountains for two teachers kidnapped by MILF rebels last Monday.
Edna Quimiging and Elizabeth Proferio were snatched by a band led by one Commander Yacub Basug while they were about to enter Paraiso Elementary School. -- Paolo Romero, Matthew Estabillo, John Unson, Edith Regalado, Jaime Laude, Liberty Dones
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Diigo, June 26, 2000, The Philippine Star, One down 20 to go, by Roel Pareño,
9 Sulkurnain to 2 Zulkurnain,
"One down, 20 to go." Malacañang urged yesterday the Abu Sayyaf terrorists to "take the ultimate step" and release the remaining 20 mostly foreign hostages being held in the jungles of Jolo, Sulu for nine weeks now. Malacañang viewed the release of Malaysian hostage Sulkurnain bin Hashim as a "gesture of goodwill" by the Abu Sayyaf.
Zulkurnain was reportedly bitten by a scorpion and needed immediate medical attention. Asked about the remaining 20 hostages, among them eight more Malaysians, Presidential Adviser Robert Aventajado, the government's chief negotiator with the Abu Sayyaf kidnappers, said their release can now be expected.
"The important thing is we produce results," he said. "For me, it is one down, 20 to go." He described the Malaysian's release as a "breakthrough" in the negotiations. Sulkurnain was reportedly taken by a commercial ferry to Zamboanga City for the handover to Aventajado.
Aventajado flew in from Manila yesterday just to receive Sulkurnain who was already at presidential consultant Lee Peng Hui's residence in Barangay Pasonanca, Zamboanga City. Aventajado then turned over the 29-year-old Sulkurnain, a forest ranger, to Malaysian authorities preparatory to his trip back to his home state of Sabah in Malaysia.
Asked why the kidnappers chose to free Sulkurnain, Aventajado said he is the "most religious in the group, so maybe, they took pity on him." Apart from eight other Malaysians, the remaining captives consist of a German family of three, a South African couple, two French, two Finns, two Filipinos and a Lebanese.
They were seized from the Malaysian resort island of Sipadan in Sabah on April 23 and taken by boat across the sea border to nearby Sulu. Observers said Sulkurnain's release caught Aventajado's team, most of whom were in Manila during the weekend, by surprise. Negotiations with the Abu Sayyaf had been in limbo, with the government panel having formally met only once with leaders of the Abu Sayyaf kidnappers, and that was last May 27.
Since then, communications with the kidnappers were mostly through emissary, with no significant headway being attained. Malaysian deputy chief of mission Badruddin Ab-Rahman said he did not know anything about Sulkurnain's release, until Sulu Gov. Abdusakur Tan informed him about it Saturday night.
Badruddin said he hoped all the hostages would be set free. "We don't want to see (a situation) when only the Malaysians are released. We just hope all the hostages are released as soon as possible," Badruddin said.
The Malaysian official has been in Jolo in recent days trying to help send a Malaysian Red Crescent mission with food and medical supplies to the hostages. The team was scheduled to leave yesterday, but officials said the trip might be delayed for a day. Kuala Lumpur has repeatedly denied any involvement in the reported backdoor talks with the Abu Sayyaf with a ransom offer of $300,000 for each of the nine Malaysian hostages. Malaysian Foreign Minister Syed Hamid Albar also said no concessions were made in exchange for the freedom of Zulkurnain. He also urged the Abu Sayyaf to release the remaining hostages. "I feel that in their own interest, the best thing will be for them to release all the captives," Albar said.
Tycoon admits role in hostage's release
Local tycoon and presidential consultant on economic affairs Lee Peng Hui said he was instrumental in securing Sulkurnain's freedom. Lee told reporters the Abu Sayyaf handed over the Malaysian to one of his emissaries.
He denied that ransom was paid, but added they slowly worked their way into the Abu Sayyaf's confidence. "We are already inside. We have a way to negotiate. At least, the door is open for us," Lee said. He stressed that he was merely following Aventajado's instructions.
Malaysia's Sunday Star newspaper quoted Lee as saying the Abu Sayyaf will release the captives one by one. Sulkurnain's wife, Siti Hajar Jakiah, told the newspaper that her husband had telephoned her from Zamboanga City Saturday night, but that she still could not believe he had been freed. Meanwhile, a military source, citing intelligence reports, said Abu Sayyaf leader Khadaffy Janjalani has returned to the island province of Basilan after a few weeks' stay in Jolo to evade hot pursuit operation by soldiers in Basilan.
Col. Saulito Aromin, commander of the Army's 103rd Infantry Brigade, said Janjalani and his family landed at a coastal village in Sumisip town last June 17. Seven members of Janjalani's family were released by Muslim vigilantes in a hostage swap in Jolo last week, with the Abu Sayyaf setting free five school children they snatched in Sumisip on March 20.
"We received reports that Khadaffy and his men arrived in the province, along with his family members," Aromin said. Aromin said Janjalani's armed force has been severely emaciated by the military's all-out offensive in Basilan last month. He warned, however, that the Abu Sayyaf may intensify its recruitment of new fighters from various schools in Basilan. - By Roel Pareño, with wire reports
"One down, 20 to go." Malacañang urged yesterday the Abu Sayyaf terrorists to "take the ultimate step" and release the remaining 20 mostly foreign hostages being held in the jungles of Jolo, Sulu for nine weeks now. Malacañang viewed the release of Malaysian hostage Sulkurnain bin Hashim as a "gesture of goodwill" by the Abu Sayyaf.
Zulkurnain was reportedly bitten by a scorpion and needed immediate medical attention. Asked about the remaining 20 hostages, among them eight more Malaysians, Presidential Adviser Robert Aventajado, the government's chief negotiator with the Abu Sayyaf kidnappers, said their release can now be expected.
"The important thing is we produce results," he said. "For me, it is one down, 20 to go." He described the Malaysian's release as a "breakthrough" in the negotiations. Sulkurnain was reportedly taken by a commercial ferry to Zamboanga City for the handover to Aventajado.
Aventajado flew in from Manila yesterday just to receive Sulkurnain who was already at presidential consultant Lee Peng Hui's residence in Barangay Pasonanca, Zamboanga City. Aventajado then turned over the 29-year-old Sulkurnain, a forest ranger, to Malaysian authorities preparatory to his trip back to his home state of Sabah in Malaysia.
Asked why the kidnappers chose to free Sulkurnain, Aventajado said he is the "most religious in the group, so maybe, they took pity on him." Apart from eight other Malaysians, the remaining captives consist of a German family of three, a South African couple, two French, two Finns, two Filipinos and a Lebanese.
They were seized from the Malaysian resort island of Sipadan in Sabah on April 23 and taken by boat across the sea border to nearby Sulu. Observers said Sulkurnain's release caught Aventajado's team, most of whom were in Manila during the weekend, by surprise. Negotiations with the Abu Sayyaf had been in limbo, with the government panel having formally met only once with leaders of the Abu Sayyaf kidnappers, and that was last May 27.
Since then, communications with the kidnappers were mostly through emissary, with no significant headway being attained. Malaysian deputy chief of mission Badruddin Ab-Rahman said he did not know anything about Sulkurnain's release, until Sulu Gov. Abdusakur Tan informed him about it Saturday night.
Badruddin said he hoped all the hostages would be set free. "We don't want to see (a situation) when only the Malaysians are released. We just hope all the hostages are released as soon as possible," Badruddin said.
The Malaysian official has been in Jolo in recent days trying to help send a Malaysian Red Crescent mission with food and medical supplies to the hostages. The team was scheduled to leave yesterday, but officials said the trip might be delayed for a day. Kuala Lumpur has repeatedly denied any involvement in the reported backdoor talks with the Abu Sayyaf with a ransom offer of $300,000 for each of the nine Malaysian hostages. Malaysian Foreign Minister Syed Hamid Albar also said no concessions were made in exchange for the freedom of Zulkurnain. He also urged the Abu Sayyaf to release the remaining hostages. "I feel that in their own interest, the best thing will be for them to release all the captives," Albar said.
Tycoon admits role in hostage's release
Local tycoon and presidential consultant on economic affairs Lee Peng Hui said he was instrumental in securing Sulkurnain's freedom. Lee told reporters the Abu Sayyaf handed over the Malaysian to one of his emissaries.
He denied that ransom was paid, but added they slowly worked their way into the Abu Sayyaf's confidence. "We are already inside. We have a way to negotiate. At least, the door is open for us," Lee said. He stressed that he was merely following Aventajado's instructions.
Malaysia's Sunday Star newspaper quoted Lee as saying the Abu Sayyaf will release the captives one by one. Sulkurnain's wife, Siti Hajar Jakiah, told the newspaper that her husband had telephoned her from Zamboanga City Saturday night, but that she still could not believe he had been freed. Meanwhile, a military source, citing intelligence reports, said Abu Sayyaf leader Khadaffy Janjalani has returned to the island province of Basilan after a few weeks' stay in Jolo to evade hot pursuit operation by soldiers in Basilan.
Col. Saulito Aromin, commander of the Army's 103rd Infantry Brigade, said Janjalani and his family landed at a coastal village in Sumisip town last June 17. Seven members of Janjalani's family were released by Muslim vigilantes in a hostage swap in Jolo last week, with the Abu Sayyaf setting free five school children they snatched in Sumisip on March 20.
"We received reports that Khadaffy and his men arrived in the province, along with his family members," Aromin said. Aromin said Janjalani's armed force has been severely emaciated by the military's all-out offensive in Basilan last month. He warned, however, that the Abu Sayyaf may intensify its recruitment of new fighters from various schools in Basilan. - By Roel Pareño, with wire reports
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Diigo, June 29, 2000, The Philippine Star, OIC to Muslims: Respect RP laws, sovereignty, by Marichu Villanueva,
The Organization of Islamic Conference (OIC), the influential 56-member body of Islamic states, has called on Muslims living as minorities to respect the laws and sovereignty of their respective countries.
Philippine government representatives attending the OIC foreign ministers' meeting in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia saw the statement as an indication that the Islamic Conference will not support bids for secession of Muslim minorities such as the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF).
It was also seen as an indictment of the extremist group Abu Sayyaf, which has waged a terrorist campaign in Mindanao in the name of Muslim fundamentalism for nearly a decade.
The OIC did not refer directly to the MILF or the Abu Sayyaf, but OIC Secretary General Azeddine Laraki, addressing Muslims worldwide, said in a speech before the Islamic Conference, "I would like to call and encourage them to contribute effectively to the progress of the countries they live in and to respect their sovereignty and laws."
National Security Adviser Alexander Aguirre, who is representing Manila in the four-day conference in Kuala Lumpur, said that with the MILF's bid for OIC support virtually rejected, the rebel group is left with little option but to "not think anymore of secession."
Malacañang has proposed a 30-day extension of President Estrada's June 30 deadline for the conclusion of peace talks between the government and the MILF. The deadline, incidentally, marks President Estrada's first two years in office.
Press Undersecretary Mike Toledo said there would be an extension only if the rebels drop their bid for an independent Islamic state and stop launching terrorist attacks.
Mr. Estrada gave the MILF until tomorrow to abandon its 22-year armed struggle in exchange for expanded autonomy in Muslim areas in Mindanao.
The MILF said it wanted a peaceful solution to the Muslim insurgency but would continue to wage war if peace continued to remain elusive.
"I think the political front will hold the great hope to our people and that is because war is the last option of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front," rebel peace negotiator Moner Bajunaid said.
The MILF said it wants a peace agreement with the government that has the blessing of the OIC, an MILF commander somewhere in Mindanao told The STAR by telephone.
"We want the international community to help us resolve the problem in Mindanao," said Jannati Mimbantas, the brother of the MILF chief negotiator, Abdul Aziz Alim Mimbantas.
"Whether there is an OIC intervention or that it would decide not to interfere, we are still hoping for a peaceful resolution to the problem in Mindanao," he said.
The MILF was able to get support from four Malaysian opposition parties which urged the OIC to broker peace talks between Manila and the MILF.
The OIC mediated the 1996 peace agreement between the administration of Fidel Ramos and the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) led by Nur Misuari, who is also governor of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM).
The MILF sent 20 representatives to Kuala Lumpur to further its cause but was refused an observer status enjoyed by the MNLF. The OIC recognizes the MNLF as the sole representative of Mindanao's Muslim minorities.
The MILF, an MNLF breakaway group, sent an information pack to OIC delegates on the situation in Mindanao.
"We hope it delivers the message that the Estrada administration of the Manila government has unleashed its war plan on the people," Bajunaid said, claiming that "our women are raped, mosques bombed and even the Koran was used as toilet paper by the Philippine soldiers."
Interim agreement not in sight
Bajunaid denied Aguirre's claim made Tuesday that the government was nearing an interim peace agreement with the MILF that could extend the June 30 deadline, saying it was "inaccurate."
"We are willing to discuss the political package but there must be no conditions attached to it," he said. "We are also not closing our doors to anything including independence. Any final solution must be brought to the people for a referendum." Government chief negotiator Edgardo Batenga is still confident that an agreement could be reached, saying that back channel talks are ongoing.
Aguirre said former Labor Secretary Ruben Torres is in Kuala Lumpur conferring on the sidelines with MILF vice chairman for political affairs Ghadzali Jaafar, who leads the MILF delegation.
Torres was instrumental in forging the 1996 peace agreement between the Ramos administration and the MNLF.
"Their talks have been good and I think their proposal can be a vehicle so that we can have an interim agreement," Aguirre said.
The results of talks between Torres and Jaafar have been relayed to Batenga, who, in turn, will discuss them with the MILF's central committee, Aguirre said.
The outcome will then be relayed to a Cabinet panel on national security who will review them before making recommendations to the President. But unconfirmed reports said the MILF's central committee, the group decision-making body, has already rejected the proposals.
The Cabinet panel will also do the "refinements" on the draft interim agreement with the MILF, Aguirre said.
Gov't to MILF: No more terror attacks
If the MILF enters into such an agreement, Toledo said the rebels should no longer launch terrorist attacks.
But Philippine National Police chief Director General Panfilo Lacson said they received intelligence reports warning of more rebel bomb attacks.
"It is incumbent upon their leadership and it is their responsibility that terrorist attacks should end.
Otherwise, they would be responsible for the acts of all their people or subordinates," Toledo said.
Last Saturday, six bombs rocked downtown General Santos City, killing a woman and wounding 41 other people. The attacks were blamed on the MILF, an accusation denied by the rebels.
Bajunaid said Mr. Estrada's June 30 deadline should be lifted, adding an ongoing military offensive is threatening to scuttle the peace talks.
Malacañang refuses to declare a ceasefire, fearing that the rebels might use the time to rebuild its forces.
Armed Forces chief Gen. Angelo Reyes claimed that the MILF's strength could reach 28,000 men in three years if the military campaign, which has captured most of the MILF's camps, is halted.
"There can be no lasting peace with a large and fanatical armed group like the MILF threatening armed violence anytime at their pleasure," Reyes told the Makati Business Club, a group of businessmen, the other night. -- By Marichu Villanueva, with reports from AFP, AP, Reuters, Edith Regalado, Roel Pareño
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Diigo, June 30, 2000, The Philippine Star, OIC urges Abu Sayyaf to release all hostages, by Roel Pareño, Edith Regalado,
The influential Organization of Islamic Conference (OIC) scolded the Abu Sayyaf yesterday and urged the extremist Muslim group to release all its remaining mostly foreign hostages.
"Even if they aspired for some vindication, political or otherwise, this should not be the kind of behavior," the Malaysian news agency Bernama quoted outgoing OIC Chairman Youssouf Quedraogo as saying. "We think the best way is to release all of them," Quedraogo stressed. The OIC earlier called on Muslim minorities to respect the laws and sovereignty of their respective countries. But the Abu Sayyaf reiterated it will reject the Philippine government's offer of an expanded autonomy and continue its fight for an independent Islamic state in Mindanao.
The group's hardline position was contained in a statement intended for the 56-member OIC which is currently meeting in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
The letter did not mention the 20 hostages the Abu Sayyaf has been holding in its jungle lair in Talipao town in Jolo and three Filipino teachers in the nearby island province of Basilan. "We will never compromise our birth right to rule our homeland," the statement, signed by six Abu Sayyaf leaders, said.
The extremists also said they are opposed to a federal system of government as proposed by some senators. One Malaysian captive was released last week in what government officials said was a "gesture of goodwill" by the by the Abu Sayyaf kidnappers.
Meanwhile, Sulu Gov. Abdusakur Tan, a member of the government panel negotiating for the release of the hostages in Sulu, said he has refused to allow a group of Christian fundamentalists to visit the Abu Sayyaf lair to persuade the kidnappers to free their captives. Tan said if the Jesus Miracle Crusade (JMC) led by Wilde Almeda insisted on going to the Abu Sayyaf lair, they would be on their own. The JMC reportedly offered $3,000 and 50 sacks of rice to gain entry into the Abu Sayyaf lair and conduct a prayer meeting in the area.
However, the Abu Sayyaf rejected unofficial emissaries and demanded that only one government team should talk with them.
The call for a single channel of negotiations came as France, Germany and Finland were reportedly under pressure to follow Malaysia's move to launch backdoor talks for the victim's freedom.
Abu Sayyaf senior leader Galib Andang alias Commander Robot urged the Estrada administration to speed up the negotiations, saying several of the foreigners have been sick after more than two months in captivity due to hunger.
"The government must send only one team so as not to hamper the negotiations," Andang said in a tape-recorded message sent to the local media.
"We will not listen to others who boast they could win the release of the hostages," he added.
The government negotiating panel headed by Presidential Adviser on Flagship Programs Roberto Aventajado was still trying to set a second meeting with the kidnappers.
So far, the two panels officially met only once, last May 27, but no significant headway has been attained. Andang and some of his comrades have asked for $1 million in ransom for each of the hostages, but other leaders of the kidnap group made political demands, including the setting up of a separate Bangsa Moro state in the South. The Abu Sayyaf has also offered to swap the remaining eight Malaysian hostages with an elderly Filipino Muslim serving life term on drug charges in Malaysia.
Vice President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo who is currently in Geneva, Switzerland said the foreign ministers of Germany, France and Finland have told her the unexpected release of Malaysian hostage Zulkurnain bin Hashim has put pressure on their respective governments to effect the release of their nationals using backdoor channels.
The reason for Zulkurnain's release had remained unclear, with both governments of Malaysia and the Philippines denying any ransom payment.
Arroyo said she had discussed with the three European nationals the possibility of offering development aid or humanitarian assistance to Jolo instead of ransom.
In Manila, visiting British Foreign Minister of State John Battle announced an emergency assistance aid worth P16 million for people displaced by the fighting in Mindanao. The fund will be dispensed mainly through OXFAM, a British non-government organization which has been working in refugee shelters in Mindanao.
Andang said the release of the remaining hostages depended on the Estrada administration.
He also asked journalists to stop visiting their camp where the captives were stying.
Apart from the eight Malaysians, still being held by the Abu Sayyaf are a German family of three, a South African couple, two French nationals, two Finns, two Filipinos and a Lebanese.
The victims were seized on April 23 from the famous Malaysian resort of Sipadan, then taken by boat across the sea border to nearby Jolo.
Top Abu Sayyaf leaders, among their chieftain Khadaffy Janjalani and his spokesman, Abu Asmad Salayuddi, reportedly met the other day in Barangay Bandang in Talipao to discuss the fate of the 20 hostages.
"They seem to be cooking up something," the source said. Others who attended the secret meeting were Andang, Abu Sayyaf chief of staff Sahiron Radullah, Mujib Susukan, Abu Jumdain, Nadzmi Sadalla alias Commander Global, Jumdain Sajirul alias Black Killer, Ustadz Ommal Sahibul and Paradja Said.
Another source said the kidnappers were planning to set free six of the 20 hostages, mostly like all Malaysians in a bid to appease the Malaysian authorities.
The Philippine Navy apprehended over the weekend two fishing boats off Sulu in an attempt to prove to the Abu Sayyaf that the government is enforcing the ban on commercial fishing in the rich waters of the island. Commodore Elonor Padre identified the fishing boats as F/B Sailor I and F/B Sailor II.
In another development, police authorities have placed the entire Southern Mindanao region under double red alert amid threats of more bomb attacks following the spate of explosions in General Santos City last Saturday.
"We are not taking things for granted. We could not be just sit down and wait things to happen. We have put our men on double red alert," said Senior Inspector Matthew Baccay, spokesman for the Southern Mindano regional police command.
Security measures were intensified in public places such as markets, churches, schools, shopping malls, sea ports and the Davao International Airport.
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Diigo, July 4, 2000, The Philippine Star, Attack on MILF lair has Erap go-signal,
After the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) failed to meet his June 30 deadline to reach a peace agreement with the government, President Estrada gave the Armed Forces the go-signal to attack Camp Abubakar by land and air, Malacañang said yesterday.
Meanwhile, the military has imposed a news blackout on the massive operation for the final assault to capture the MILF's last stronghold in Mindanao.
The Chief Executive has not yet extended the deadline for the MILF to talk peace with the government or face a relentless military assault.
Mr. Estrada had given the MILF until June 30 to renounce secession from the republic and to stop all terrorist activities in Mindanao and other parts of the country.
MILF spokesman Eid Kabalu told reporters yesterday that Air Force fighter planes and helicopter gunships were continuously bombarding Camp Abubakar.
But military spokesman Maj. Julieto Ando would not confirm that the air strikes are taking place.
However, Malacañang said the military offensive that started three days ago was limited to "retaliatory and defensive" actions by ground forces.
Executive Secretary Ronaldo Zamora told reporters that the Armed Forces has been conducting "pre-emptive strikes" against Camp Abubakar following the MILF's attempt to recapture Camp Sarmiento.
"Obviously they have control of the situation on the ground," he said. "Do they have the authority to attack? Of course, (with) what has been happening there, you're responding the way it is appropriate. What President Estrada and we in Cluster E are saying is, 'We cannot decide for you'."
Camp Abubakar is surrounded by the towns of Barira, Buldon, and Matanog in Maguindanao province, and Bulig and Kapatagan towns in Lanao del Norte province.
Army troops killed 11 MILF guerrillas in fierce fighting yesterday in Barira town at the foot of Camp Abubakar as government forces penetrated rebel lines.
A Muslim religious leader said two of the slain rebels were foreign-trained commanders whose bodies were mangled beyond recognition by powerful mortar blasts.
A soldier, identified as Sgt. Vidal, was reported killed and two others wounded in the firefight. The wounded were taken to a hospital in Cotabato City.
Barira police said troops recovered a 50-caliber machine gun, 12 rounds for a rocket-propelled grenade launcher, and a dozen rockets in abandoned bunkers near Camp Abubakar.
Residents of a barangay near the Cotabato City airport said Air Force bombers and attack helicopters have been flying bombing sorties since last Sunday.
Army officer survives ambush
In Kapatagan town, an Army officer survived an ambush by MILF guerrillas while on his way to the town proper from Barangay Duguan.
Army and police investigators said the rebels fired rockets at the convoy of Col. Rolando Rodriguez, commander of the Army's 303rd Brigade, destroying an Army truck.
Rodriguez is now recuperating at a hospital in Cagayan de Oro City. At the Ninoy Aquino International Airport, seven top MILF leaders, who arrived from Malaysia last Sunday night, were cleared by immigration agents on orders of Armed Forces vice chief Lt. Gen. Jose Calimlim, who also heads the Intelligence Service of the Armed Forces of the Philippines.
Immigration officials held the seven, led by Lansang Ali, MILF legal consultant, and Ibrahim Gampong, religious affairs chairman, upon request of the Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Task Force.
Calimlim said the seven Muslims were covered by safe-conduct passes. Zamora said the MILF had made several attempts to recapture Camp Sarmiento, which military commanders consider a satellite of the much bigger Camp Abubakar.
"Of course, it is both retaliatory and pre-emptive," he said. "If possible, we should bring the war to (the MILF). We should not wait for them to bring the war to us. What should we do? Should we start using howitzers?"
Zamora said MILF guerrillas had been firing mortars toward government positions from the safety of Camp Sarmiento before Army troops had captured it.
"If you recall this is one of the satellite camps beside Camp Abubakar which the MILF wants to retake," he said. "Perhaps we should explain so our people will know that Camp Abubakar is not a camp in the way Camp Aguinaldo or Fort Bonifacio is. It's a community."
Zamora said Army commanders have been careful to limit attacks to military targets inside Camp Abubakar like the training ground for new guerrillas and ammunition factories.
"The original proposal of the MILF when the peace talks were just starting (was) that we should recognize Camp Abubakar as covering an area larger than the entire (province) of Lanao del Norte," he said. "In short, if it's a community... you're talking of an area maybe as large as Metro Manila."
On the other hand, National Security Adviser Alexander Aguirre said President Estrada has kept open communication lines with the MILF despite the lapse of the June 30 deadline for the rebels to negotiate peace with the government.
"The President has given them a deadline to stop fighting," he said. "You don't go on with your secessionist move, we will talk with you on autonomy and let us just talk peace and that is the reason why we have been doing a lot of back-channeling to really open up an interim agreement there."
Aguirre said former executive secretary Ruben Torres, who is a government peace adviser, was in Kuala Lumpur last week to hold "back-channeling efforts" with MILF vice chairman for political affairs Ghadzali Jaafar.
"But the MILF is insisting on secession," he said. "They have not fulfilled the conditions of the President and the deadline has lapsed. So the government has to do what is proper within our Constitution, which is to defend our Constitution and to maintain and order in the area."
Aguirre said the MILF was violating a resolution of the Organization of Islamic Conference (OIC), which had called on Muslim minorities to obey the laws and respect the sovereignty of the countries of their residence.
"So that is favorable to us," he said. "So that means the OIC is not supporting impliedly the MILF secessionist move."
Aguirre arrived last week from Kuala Lumpur where he presented the government's stand on the Mindanao problem before the OIC's 27th foreign ministers' conference.
In a briefing at Malacañang yesterday, Press Secretary Ricardo Puno Jr. said no ceasefire is in effect and that President Estrada has not extended the June 30 deadline for the MILF to sign a peace pact with the government.
"What is worrisome is that the MILF has not dropped its secessionist bid, even during the talks, they have not dropped their secessionist bid," he said.--Marichu Villanueva, John Unson, Rey Arquiza, Paolo Romero, and AFP
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Diigo, July 5, 2000, The Philippine Star, Talks with Sayyaf in 'delicate stage',
Negotiations with the Abu Sayyaf have entered a "delicate stage" following the separate "unauthorized entry" of 13 Christian televangelists and a German journalist into the rebels' jungle hideout in Jolo, Sulu, Executive Secretary Ronaldo Zamora said yesterday.
Zamora said chief government negotiator Robert Aventajado was expecting results in the talks soon, but the entry of the Christian televangelists led by Wilde Almeda and of Andreas Lorenz of the German magazine Der Spiegel only complicated matters.
The executive secretary said these visits were not helping the government end the hostage crisis.
Zamora also frowned on the reported willingness of the Sultan of Sulu to broker the release of all the hostages.
"It is a good thing that some people are offering to help but the problem is we're in a delicate stage," Zamora said. "We are hoping though that they will put their offers on hold. When the time comes that we would need their help, we hope their offer still stands."
Officials were keeping their fingers crossed that the Abu Sayyaf would release members of the Jesus Miracle Crusade who were detained when they went to the bandits' lair on Saturday.
The preachers were trying to convince the gunmen to free the 20 hostages they have been holding for more than two months since their abduction from a Malaysian resort off Borneo on April 23.
Regarding Lorenz, the German journalist was taken at gunpoint on Sunday by four men believed to be Abu Sayyaf rebels in Patikul, Jolo.
The journalist was there to cover the kidnapping of three Germans, two French, two Finns, two South Africans, a Lebanese, nine Malaysians and two Filipinos. Zamora said that the government was hoping the preachers would be "allowed to go back to Jolo this afternoon." He also dismissed reports that the gunmen sought P10 million in ransom for the 13.
Abu Sayyaf leader Ghalib Andang said on Sunday that the preachers had not been detained but they would be staying at the gunmen's hideout for 40 days to fast. However, Defense Secretary Orlando Mercado insisted that the preachers were "being held against their will."
Zamora ruled out reimposing a military cordon around the Abu Sayyaf camp. The cordon was lifted early in the hostage crisis at the request of government negotiators.
"At this delicate stage of the negotiations, the last thing you want is a military confrontation," he said.
Foreign Affairs Secretary Domingo Siazon Jr. said that Manila would negotiate with the kidnappers for Lorenz's release.
But Mercado warned against paying a ransom. "Paying them is akin to helping the kidnappers. We would only prolong the problem," he said in a radio interview. In the same tone as that of Zamora's, Mercado also let rip at the preachers and the Der Spiegel magazine reporter who he said were "adding to our problems."
"This German went in independently. It would have been better if he swapped places with one of the ailing German hostages," he said, referring to 57-year-old teacher Renate Wallert, held with her husband and son and who suffers from high blood pressure.
Intelligence sources in Jolo said the bandits have moved the kidnapped German journalist to Pansol town. The sources said the Der Spiegel writer was taken to Abu Sayyaf leader Tadulan Sajiron's hideout near Patikul town on Monday as his abductors tried to work out an agreement to split any ransom proceeds.
However, no deal was struck and Lorenz has since been taken to two other Abu Sayyaf leaders, Khadafy Janjalani and Abu Sabaya, said the sources, who asked not be named.
But an Abu Sayyaf spokesman, Abu Ahmad, denied that his group had abducted Lorenz.
"We deny any involvement in the kidnapping of the German journalist," Ahmad told radio station dxRZ in Zamboanga City.
"We still don't know which group is responsible for his disappearance," he said. German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer said the kidnapping complicates efforts to free the hostages.
"That does not simplify matters," Fischer said after talks with European Union secretary general Javier Solana.
Solana and Fischer both pledged full support to efforts to free the hostages. In a related development, French President Jacques Chirac was to meet the parents of Sonia Welding, one of the 20 hostages.
"We are going to meet him -- my wife, daughter and I -- at about 12 noon," Wendling said from his home at Dresenheim in the region.
Chirac had vowed "everything will be done" to free the hostages.
Government officials, meanwhile, allowed food rations for the hostages to resume and an emissary left for an Abu Sayyaf hideout to deliver nine boxes of combat rations along with a package for Lebanese hostage Marie Moarbes sent by her government.
The humanitarian corridor was shut down last month as formal negotiations for the hostages' release broke down.
The intelligence sources said the condition of the Western hostages had since gotten "worse" and were reduced to eating tubers and cassava. -- With reports from Roel Pareño, AP, AFP
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Diigo, July 6, 2000, The Philippine Star, Orly to AFP: Take Abubakar--it's now or never, by Paolo Romero,
It's now or never.
Ignoring calls for a ceasefire, Defense Secretary Orlando Mercado urged government troops yesterday to launch a swift takeover of Camp Abubakar, the last bastion of the separatist Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) in Mindanao.
With government troops now at the doorstep of the MILF's main headquarters, the Army offered amnesty to secessionist guerrillas who will lay down their arms and peacefully surrender.
For its part, Malacañang belittled threats by the MILF to widen its guerrilla warfare in Mindanao.
"If we don't move now, in three to five years there will be a more serious problem. Now we have a very good chance of taking over Abubakar," Mercado stressed.
"The government can't just allow them to control a 10,000-hectare territory where you cannot enforce the law," Mercado said of the rebel camp, which is several times bigger than Singapore.
Testifying at a joint hearing of the Senate committees on defense, peace and reconciliation and unification, Mercado said the relentless attack against the MILF was meant to emaciate the rebel group's fighting force.
"We don't want to prolong this war any longer," Mercado said.
Maj. Gen. Gregorio Camiling, commander of the Army's 6th Infantry Division (ID), said his troops were pressing the assault.
"Our clearing operations were ongoing. We have the momentum. If we reach (the heart) of Abubakar, that would be okay," an obviously excited general said.
The all-out attack on the rebels' largest stronghold in Mindanao was launched last week in retaliation to guerrilla assaults on nearby military outposts.
Army and Marine combatants gained added advantage yesterday when they captured six hills overlooking the MILF camp.
The troops continued to pound the MILF positions with 105-mm. howitzers and air-to-surface missiles, sending hundreds of rebels scampering toward the jungle southwest of Camp Abubakar, lugging their dead and wounded comrades.
Asked if President Estrada had given direct orders to take over Camp Abubakar, Camiling replied, "No direct order, implied only."
He added that the troops were encountering stiff resistance from the rebels, who were trying to recapture lost territories around the camp.
Another Marine battalion was dispatched to the warfront yesterday where two Marine brigades were already deployed against the MILF.
Navy chief Vice Admiral Luisito Fernandez and Marine Commandant Brig. Gen. Librado Ladia presided over the send-off ceremonies for the 8th Marine Battalion Landing Team at the Navy headquarters in Manila.
The government originally said the troops would not touch Camp Abubakar, yet the military launched a full-scale offensive after the MILF failed to meet the June 30 deadline to lay down its arms and renounce its secessionist struggle.
Col. Ernesto de Guzman, chief of staff of the Armed Forces' Southern Command, said the shelling was meant to knock down MILF gun positions.
De Guzman also said the rebels have planted land mines in the peripheries of Camp Abubakar.
MILF fighters flee for dear life
Camiling's offer of amnesty came on the heels of reports that over 300 MILF fighters have deserted Camp Abubakar amid mortar shelling and heavy bombardment by helicopter gunships and OV-10 bomber planes.
Local community leaders and members of religious groups confirmed earlier reports that hundreds of MILF fighters, several of them still in their teens, have deserted and rejoined their families, leaving behind their uniforms and firearms.
"Some of them are in a state of shock. They have not eaten for days. Some are wounded. They virtually turned their backs on the MILF and are now with their families in evacuation centers," a 56-year-old Islamic missionary told The STAR.
School teachers said some of the deserters were their former students who suddenly dropped out shortly before the military's assault on MILF positions along the Narciso Ramos Highway last April.
Hadja Bai Monina, 52, said two of the 327 MILF deserters were her children, Mando, 18, and Abulkhayr, 16.
"I am worried for them. Their former companions in the MILF will certainly execute them. I hope they can avail (themselves) of help from the local government unit in the area where they are now," the mother said in halting Tagalog.
Ameer Kusain, 43, a farmer, said his nephew Barudi, 23, was also among the deserters.
Camiling said he has been receiving reports from various quarters saying hundreds of young rebels have deserted the MILF and returned to their homes in Matanog, Barira and Buldon towns in Maguindanao province.
"We are offering them (MILF rebels) amnesty and other support to start life anew if they decide to return to the fold of the law," Camiling said.
He also said the troops in the three municipalities were merely involved in "clearing operations" meant to drive away MILF hardliners who may disrupt government efforts to rehabilitate public facilities damaged by the fighting. Military sources said 14 MILF guerrillas were killed in skirmishes in four barangays inside Camp Abubakar yesterday.
Senior Superintendent Omar Ali, police community relations director of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, said they have been directed to monitor desertions by MILF guerrillas.
"We have to help concerned government agencies in rehabilitating these rebels because if we just let them roam freely without any proper guidance, we might be having more serious peace and order problems in the communities," Ali said.
Meanwhile, Executive Secretary Ronaldo Zamora said the MILF has lost its capability to wage full-scale guerrilla warfare due to the troop's relentless attacks which resulted in the capture of over 30 satellite rebel camps.
Zamora said the military's operations against Camp Abubakar were basically "preemptive, retaliatory and defensive."
Reacting to the MILF threat, Zamora said leaders of the rebel group have to say something "so that their own fighters are not demoralized as they already are." He belied the MILF claim that it has six divisions consisting of 130,000 fighters.
"We all knew this is not true," Zamora said, adding if the separatist rebels have that much strength, their camps could not be easily captured by government forces.
In another development, Press Secretary Ricardo Puno rejected a proposal by Sen. Aquilino Pimentel Jr. for a halt in the military offensive against the MILF.
"The military offensive against the MILF in Mindanao is a legitimate act to protect the citizenry, uphold the law and defend the Constitution," Puno stressed.
He said despite the fighting, the government continues to hold back-channel negotiations to restore peace in the South.
"We have our military objective to attain, but we are not saying that this is the only solution," Mercado said, leaving the possibility of negotiations open.
Ex-Libyan envoy belies MILF claim.
Former Libyan Ambassador to Manila Rajab Azzarouq belied yesterday the MILF's claim that it has been granted belligerency status by the Organization of Islamic Conference (OIC).
At the same time, Azzarouq criticized the Philippine government for alleged failure to fully comply with its commitments under its 1996 peace accord with the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF).
Speaking at a forum on Prospects for Peace in Mindanao sponsored by the Asian Center of the University of the Philippines, Azzarouq indicated that a resolution passed by the 56-member grouping of Islamic states was merely a statement of concern over the political situation in Mindanao.
The document urged the Philippine government to call off its all-out offensive in Mindanao, but the MILF viewed it as a grant of belligerency status.
"From my legal point of view, there is no way to look at it that way," Azzarouq said.
He said the OIC was concerned that the government has failed to faithfully implement the terms of the peace accord it signed in 1996 with the MNLF.
The MILF has been lobbying for observer status at the OIC, a privilege granted earlier to the MNLF. The MILF, a breakaway faction of the MNLF, refused to honor the 1996 peace agreement.
Azzarouq also welcomed an OIC decision to send a team to Mindanao to monitor government compliance to the peace pact.
"It took us four years to work that (peace accord) out. But I'm sorry to say that today, you still don't know who is implementing what," he said.
He cited the case of the Southern Philippines Council for Peace and Development (SPCPD) which was supposed to be a transitory body set up to prepare Mindanao for full Muslim autonomy.
"Things did not prosper well under the SPCPD. If you go to the SPCPD building in Mindanao, (you'll find) it's full of ghosts, more than people," he said.
He faulted the Philippine Congress for dilly-dallying on the government's commitment to conduct a plebiscite on autonomy as embodied in the peace treaty.
The plebiscite is supposed to be held on Sept. 11 this year, but many legislators appeared bent on postponing it to coincide with next year's elections. -With reports from John Unson, Marichu Villanueva, Roel Pareño, Romel Bagares, Perseus Echeminada, AFP
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Diigo, July 9, 2000, The Philippine Star, Talks with MILF continue despite push for Abubakar, by Marichu Villanueva, Jaime Laude, John Unson, Jess Diaz,
Informal talks between the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) continued yesterday even as government troops made a final push to capture the rebels' Camp Abubakar in Maguindanao, National Security Adviser Alexander Aguirre said.
Elements of the 1st and 2nd Marine Brigades, backed by Army Scout Rangers, captured the strategic Mt. Bitan inside the MILF's main stronghold yesterday, leaving at least 29 rebels and two soldiers dead.
In a forum, Aguirre said the informal talks had been going on since June 30 when the government-imposed deadline for the MILF to accept the peace offer lapsed. "The peace talks are still open even with the lapse of the June 30 deadline," Aguirre said. "They (government and rebel negotiators) can go on talking by telephone, fax or by letters."
He expressed optimism that the informal negotiations may result in the signing of a peace agreement on July 29.
While the two peace panels have been exchanging notes, the military traded heavy gunfire with the rebels to capture Camp Abubakar.
Armed Forces Southern Command (Southcom) chief Lt. Gen. Diomedio Villanueva said five days of fierce fighting resulted in the capture of Mt. Bitan and the death of 29 rebels and two soldiers, including Maj. Adel Jandayan of the 2nd Marine Battalion Landing Team.
He said soldiers have started to recover the bodies of the slain rebels from at least 16 positions. Government troops then marched on to another hill, where hundreds of MILF rebels were guarding their training camp.
Villanueva said the military has started to pound these enemy positions with artillery fire and bombs from attack planes.
The Southcom chief said they have no time frame as to when they would completely overrun the 10,000-hectare camp.
The MILF believes that their main camp will fall soon, but MILF spokesman Eid Kabalu said the fall "does not mean we will just give up our fight for an independent Islamic state." He warned of a "deadlier" guerrilla warfare.
Kabalu also appealed to the Organization of Islamic Conference to immediately send a probe body to Mindanao to see for themselves what they are fighting for.
In other developments yesterday, Speaker Manuel Villar Jr. said the House of Representatives recently passed a measure that would ban the media from describing a crime suspect as either a Muslim or Christian.
"Singling out a crime suspect based one one's religion helps spark divisiveness which we do not need at this point," he said.
"This is a discriminatory practice against our Muslim brothers and sisters which we should put an end to," he added.
Villar said the bill must be seriously considered in the light of the Mindanao conflict, which has been erroneously depicted as a war between Christians and Muslims.
Rep. Simeon Datumanong (Lakas, Maguindanao), principal author of the bill, said the words Muslim and Christian refer to a person's religious beliefs and do not in any way refer to a person's place of origin.
Thus, he said associating these words with criminals is inconsistent. Villar said the bill is not intended to gag media but to curb a practice that has been unfair to Muslims. Meanwhile, President Estrada was warned that he would be courting more trouble in Mindanao if he suspends the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP) in the island.
"CARP suspension can only be interpreted as a declaration of war against the peasantry," said opposition Rep. Hernani Braganza (Lakas, Pangasinan).
He was commenting on reports that one of the special powers that the President is seeking from Congress is the power to suspend the implementation of CARP in Mindanao.
"It appears that the President is not content with one enemy. He wants to open a new but bigger theater of war. After taking on a separatist group, he now wants to tangle with a class," he said.
He said the administration will incite peasants to revolt if it suspends the program that distributes land to the landless and helps farmers make productive use of their land.
He added that whoever proposed the suspension of CARP "is not a friend but an enemy of the President."
In a related development, Speaker Manuel Villar Jr. said the House has done its part in helping the government develop the South by passing 139 Mindanao-related bills.
He said most of these measures call for the establishment of schools, construction of roads, appropriation of funds for other infrastructure projects, and the conversion of progressive towns into cities.
"We have done our role in pushing the development of Mindanao," he added.
As for the proposal to give the President a special power to ban the issuance of temporary restraining orders (TROs) by the courts against government projects, Villar said the House has passed a bill imposing such a prohibition.
He said the measure is now with the Senate, which can speed up its passage to avert the need for an emergency presidential power to ban TROs.
"We can just expedite the enactment of this bill," he added.
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Diigo, July 10, 2000, The Philippine Star, AFP takes Abubakar, by John Unson,
CAMP ABUBAKAR, Maguindanao - The main enclave of the secessionist Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) fell to government troops before noon yesterday, ending months of fierce battles.
The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) captured Camp Abubakar at 11 a.m., President Estrada said in a statement issued by Malacañang.
Eight soldiers were killed and 37 were wounded in the assault, Malacañang said. On the MILF side, 30 dead guerrillas were found in bunkers, trenches, abandoned huts and near a building serving as the base of MILF chairman Hashim Salamat.
"Government troops have seized major structures inside the sprawling camp, including the armory where retreating MILF fighters left a huge cache of arms and ammunition," the Palace statement said.
The Chief Executive said the military faced little resistance from the rebels in seizing facilities at the 10,000-hectare camp, despite the MILF's earlier statement that they would defend their headquarters at all costs.
"I salute all soldiers who have been putting their lives on the line so the people of Mindanao and of the whole country can live in peace and fully enjoy their rights and democratic governance," the President said.
Mr. Estrada said the fall of Camp Abubakar would enable the government to speed up economic development in impoverished areas in Mindanao.
"With this development, we can look forward to faster government efforts to give Mindanaoans the quality of life they have long deserved," he said.
Most buildings inside the camp were scarred by gunshots or bomb blasts. Fallen trees lay in many places, surrounded by craters dug by bombs dropped by military aircraft.
Government troops deliberately spared mosques and houses, said Maj. Gen. Gregorio Camiling, commander of the Army's 6th Infantry Division.
"The damage was heavy on the perimeter areas and less intense in the main camp," Camiling said. "At least our efforts bore fruit."
A report by Armed Forces chief Gen. Angelo Reyes to the President said that no government aircraft or armor was lost during the assault.
The military attributed the light resistance to the mass abandonment of the camp by MILF fighters. Troops were now "consolidating their forces" as they set up perimeter security around the camp before a scheduled flag-raising ceremony to be attended by top military and defense officials today.
Soldiers are also sweeping the area for land mines planted by fleeing MILF fighters.
A large group of jubilant soldiers led by the chief of the military's Southern Command, Maj. Gen. Diomedio Villanueva, entered the camp and the buildings that used to house the guerrillas.
Camiling, for his part, brought a roasted pig as an initial celebration of their success. But a relative silence was observed inside the camp, which straddles the towns of Barira, Matanog and Buldon in Maguindanao, save for the whir of military vehicles and clatter of choppers overhead.
Rebel spokesman Eid Kabalu said the fall of the camp does not signal the end of their separatist struggle.
"Despite the capture of Camp Abubakar, our dream of establishing an Islamic Mindanao continues," he said. "Every Muslim dreams of living in a land free of discrimination and exploitation."
"There will be more Moro rebels who will rise up and continue the fight," he said.
Camp Abubakar's fall came after almost four months of ceaseless air and artillery operations against MILF strongholds across Mindanao.
Hundreds of soldiers and rebels have been killed and thousands of others from both sides wounded in the fighting.
Before Camp Abubakar's capture, at least five Muslim rebels and one soldier were killed as the guerrillas put up heavy resistance to advancing government troops.
MILF guerrillas were also reported to have damaged two Army trucks with rocket-propelled grenades but suffered casualties last Friday night as the military cleared a network of bunkers and trenches near the rebel stronghold.
A Marine was killed and 15 Army soldiers were wounded late Friday night before the guerrillas retreated towards Camp Abubakar and behind their last line of defense, Camp Jaguar.
Military saves life of rebel
Brig. Gen. Emmanuel Teodosio, commander of the 1st Marine Brigade, said the life of a wounded MILF guerrilla was saved after a military doctor, Capt. Armando Azur, removed bullets from his leg and chest during an operation.
Teodosio said Marines brought the rebel, Abdullah Singgon, to their camp after they captured him during recent fighting here.
Teodosio said he would donate a pint of blood to the wounded guerrilla, who had lost a lot of blood.
"Even if we are in the business of killing the enemy, I felt I had to help the dying rebel because we are all Filipinos," he said.
Teodosio said the fighting was so fierce that his men nearly ran out of ammunition. "I hope that was their last resistance," he said.
Army spokesman Maj. Johnny Macanas said the wounded guerrilla will be taken to Cotabato City for proper medical attention.
Army artillery, and Air Force bombers and helicopter gunships have been bombarding Camp Abubakar since last week and before the lapse of the June 30 deadline set by President Estrada for substantive progress in peace talks. After occupying, Camp Jalajuddin in the nearby town of Puntukan, Compostela Valley, the military and Philippine National Police have vowed to capture another MILF enclave in Tarragona, Davao Oriental.
At least 300 heavily armed MILF guerrillas are reported to be holding out in the rebel camp in Tarragona. They are said to have splintered into 20 groups so they can effectively defend the camp.
Intelligence sources said arms have been unloaded on the shores of Tarragona several times. The arms are said to be intended for MILF guerrillas in rebel camps in Tarragona.
Several MILF fighters in the Tarragona camp were reported to have been wounded in air strikes and the military expects to capture the camp within two to three days.
Use of land mines, kids in war scored In another development, the Department of National Defense (DND) has chided again the MILF and the New People's Army (NPA) for their continued use of land mines and children as soldiers.
In a statement, the DND said the use of pressure-activated anti-personnel land mines violates the 1997 Ottawa Treaty which bans their use in combat, and that international humanitarian law prohibits the use of children as combatants.
"The MILF and the NPA have been contradicting their own self-serving claims of adherence to international humanitarian law by using banned anti-personnel land mines and recruiting child soldiers," the statement said.
Records at the Armed Forces showed that the MILF had allegedly used anti-personnel mines in at least six incidents in Matanog, Maguindanao, and in Pikit, North Cotabato this year.
The incidents left two soldiers dead and 14 others wounded.
In Shariff Aguak, civilians harvesting rattan were said to have been injured when they accidentally stepped on a mine allegedly planted by the MILF.
As for the NPA, the military said they used improvised anti-personnel mines in an ambush of an Army medical mission in Jones, Isabela recently.
An Army colonel and 12 soldiers were killed in the ambush. The DND also called on human rights groups to investigate allegations that the MILF and NPA are using so-called "child-warriors" in their combat units.
Prior to the Senate's ratification of the Ottawa Treaty last January, the Armed Forces said it had categorically declared that its arsenal does not contain anti-personnel land mines. -- By John Unson and Paolo Romero, with reports from AP, AFP, Edith Regalado, Lino dela Cruz, Mike Frialde
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Diigo, July 11, 2000, The Philippine Star, Gov't to pursue peace with MILF, by Marichu Villanueva and Aurea Calica,
The government will continue to tread the path to peace with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) even if the military has just captured the separatist rebels' main camp.
Press Undersecretary Mike Toledo told a press briefing at Malacañang that the government will still offer a "meaningful autonomy" to the rebels, with peace talks expected to resume on July 29.
"The bottom line, of course, is the peace process with the MILF will continue," he said. Foreign Affairs Secretary Domingo Siazon Jr. gave a similar assurance.
In Maguindanao, President Estrada and key defense and military officials raised the Philippine flag over Camp Abubakar, the last bastion of the MILF which was overran by the military on Sunday.
"We have won the war," the President announced in Manila after visiting Camp Abubakar. "This may herald the reign of peace in the country."
For his part, Defense Secretary Orlando Mercado said "this long and useless war is finally over."
"After much blood had been spilled, thousands of families dislocated, and a lot of socio-economic opportunities squandered, we have finally come to this phase of rehabilitating this war-torn region," he said.
Siazon said the path to peace was what the Cabinet Cluster E on national security, which he heads, had decided following the government's victory against the rebels.
He said the peace talks were an apparent guarantee against possible sanctions from the Organization of the Islamic Conference, which earlier called for a peaceful settlement of the conflict.
Toledo said chief government negotiator retired Gen. Edgardo Batenga had told the Cabinet cluster that his July 29 meeting with MILF representatives has not been rescheduled, so far.
"We don't know if this will change considering Camp Abubakar has fallen. But as it is now, that date is still in their calendars ... Hopefully, before that or on that date, an interim agreement can be entered into and eventually a final peace agreement can be ratified by both parties," Toledo said.
He said the fall of Camp Abubakar would hopefully speed up the peace process. A jubilant Mr. Estrada commended the military commanders and soldiers involved in the several days of fighting to capture Abubakar and brought a truckload of food and beer.
"You are what we call new heroes of the country. We cannot forget what you did this day," he said as heavily armed soldiers, backed by tanks and armored personnel carriers, guarded the site.
The elite Presidential Security Group had dissuaded Mr. Estrada from going to Camp Abubakar as government troops flushed out rebels still hiding in the camp's fringes.
But the Commander-in-Chief insisted that he visit his troops.
As a compromise, Mr. Estrada was advised to wait at the Awang Airport in Cotabato City until the military had secured Abubakar.
A convoy of 50 vans, Army trucks and armored personnel carriers brought Mr. Estrada to the heart of Camp Abubakar for the flag-raising ceremony. Soldiers, some with paper Philippine flags inserted in the barrels of their rifles, lined the road, where a few bodies of guerrillas still lay.
MILF spokesman Eid Kabalu said fighting was still raging inside the 10,000-hectare camp, but the military provided documentary evidence that key portions of the camp had fallen.
Kabalu said MILF fighters had destroyed five government armored personnel carriers and "we are still fighting, we are still defending."
"It is not the end of the world. It does not really affect us, we are not fighting for territory, we are fighting for a cause," he said.
"Even if they capture all of Camp Abubakar, that is okay with us, that is just a structure. This will not affect the cause we are fighting for the entire Mindanao island and the Moro people."
The President was able to visit the house of MILF military chief Al Haj Murad, who was last seen by his comrades on May 4, or just before fighter planes dropped their bombs on the camp.
From there, Mr. Estrada went to the Philippine National Police's Camp S.K. Pendatun, passing through the Secretary Narciso Ramos Highway, which the rebels had held for a couple of months until the military cleared it.
Military faced little resistance
The President said the military faced little resistance in seizing facilities at the 10,000-hectare camp, despite the MILF's earlier statement that they would defend their headquarters at all cost.
The military attributed the light resistance to the mass abandonment of the camp by MILF fighters.
"We thought they would defend this camp to their death as what their spokesman had repeatedly announced," said Maj. Gen. Roy Kiamko, assistant division commander of the Army's 6th Infantry Division.
At least 30 rebels and eight soldiers were killed in the battle to take Abubakar.
Maj. Gen. Orlando Buenaventura, commander of the 3rd Marine Brigade, said the rebels who had tried to defend the camp could have been shocked by the rapid deployment of troops as well as the accuracy of the artillery and air attacks. "They did not expect this kind of onslaught," he said.
"Inside their training grounds alone, we have fired 300 rounds from 105 howitzer cannons. That was done with precision," he said.
Most buildings were scarred by gunshots or bomb blasts. Fallen tress lay in many places, surrounded by craters dug by bombs dropped by military aircraft. Government troops deliberately spared mosques and houses, said Maj. Gen. Gregorio Camiling, commander of the Army's 6th Infantry Division.
The accuracy in the military's artillery and air attacks could be attributed to the information provided by rebels, who defected.
Abdullah Sinonggon, 27, a wounded guerrilla who was recovered by the Marines near the rebel training camp, said he and his comrades were surprised by the precision in which the military launched its artillery fire.
"This is the reason why my comrades retreated," said Sinonggon, who is now recuperating in a military hospital.
Maj. Medardo Geslani, commander of the Army's 57th Infantry Battalion who led the offensive on the western portion of the camp, said soldiers had tried to save voluminous documents inside the rebels' headquarters, which the MILF deliberately set on fire.
Mercado said "it is very clear" that the military had overrun key military and other installations inside Camp Abubakar and "this reflected a significant achievement of the Armed Forces."
Among the structures seized was an armory with large amounts of arms and ammunition, including five caliber .50 machineguns, 200 rounds of ammunition for 81 mm. and 60 mm. mortar, a ton of ammonium nitrate and an accessory for a surface-to-air missile.
Mr. Estrada last week gave the go-ahead to the military to capture the camp after the MILF failed to accept his June 30 deadline for a peace agreement, including autonomy.
Government troops had earlier captured about 50 satellite camps and training bases of the MILF, which has constantly refused to give up its fight for an independent Islamic state in Mindanao.
Local military spokesman Maj. Julieto Ando said the military had seized the MILF's weapons arsenal and was establishing defenses inside the camp and searching for land mines and booby traps.
Witnesses said scattered gunfire could still be heard a few kilometers from the heart of Camp Abubakar, in a thickly forested area.
Abubakar's fall came after almost four months of ceaseless air and artillery raids against MILF strong-holds across Mindanao.
Military victory will not solve problems Critics said that military attacks on the MILF will not solve the basic problems, such as poverty and prejudice, that triggered the Muslim rebellion. Senate Minority Leader Teofisto Guingona said the fall of Camp Abubakar does not indicate victory for the government.
Guingona, who is one of the only three senators from Mindanao, said the victory could be achieved only through formal talks.
He said that there can be no military solution to a war that is rooted in political and cultural differences.
"If the problem is political, then only a political solution would work, not a military one," he said.
He warned that the fall of Abubakar would signal not the end of the war but the beginning of a guerrilla warfare.
Already, exiled communist leader Jose Ma. Sison called on the MILF to get even with the government by attacking key installations and foreign establishments.
In a statement, Sison said the MILF can "reduce the Armed Forces ... by attacking and destroying electric power grids, oil depots, communication towers ... transport lines and operations of foreign monopoly and big comprador firms." Rep. Ernesto Herrera (Lakas, Bohol) said the conquest of Abubakar "represents no more than a tactical victory that serves, more than anything else, to boost the morale of government troops that suffered heavy casualties in the last two months."
Herrera warned the government against deluding itself that the MILF had been defeated. "The MILF is in the advanced stage of attrition," he said. "The way we see it, they are basically still engaged in guerrilla warfare, which calls for them to withdraw and disperse when they are under heavy attack."
He noted that the MILF, just like the communist New People's Army, is not engaged in positional warfare, thus it tends to avoid head-on clashes with large military formations.
"This is exactly the reason why they chose to give up Abubakar and their other camps with little or no resistance. If they showed signs of resistance, these were meant primarily to wear down troops," he said.
For his part, Rep. Joker Arroyo (LAMP, Makati) said the capture of Abubakar "does not spell victory for the government."
"If the idea is just to capture Abubakar to gain territory, then it doesn't achieve anything because you have captured a territory but you could have not destroyed MILF forces," he said.
The opposition Lakas-NUCD party said Abubakar's fall is not the end of the war. "Abubakar has fallen. We must congratulate the sagacity and courage of our soldiers ... But the real challenge is not in the battlefront but in the political arena of reconciliation," said Isabela Rep. Heherson Alvarez, who is secretary general of Lakas.
Marine officer gives blood to MILF rebel A badly wounded Muslim rebel got a new lease on life when a Marine general donated his own blood for the guerrilla.
MILF rebel Mimantal Sihayon, who had gunshot wounds in the chest and leg, was gasping for breath when he was found by Marine Brig. Gen. Manuel Teodisio inside Camp Abubakar.
Teodisio, commander of the 1st Marine Brigade, was among the first group of soldiers who stormed the camp.
When he found Sihayon still breathing, the Marine general ordered his men to bring the wounded to a military hospital.
There, military doctors stopped blood from oozing out of the rebel's chest and legs. But so much blood had been lost from Sihayon that doctors ordered a transfusion.
And since the Marine officer was the only soldier who had a similar blood type with that of the rebel, Teodisio immediately volunteered to donate his own blood.
The rebel said he was not a regular fighter of the MILF, and that he went to Camp Abubakar just to study Arabic. He said he was just forced by the rebels to join the armed group.
Brig. Gen. Proceso Torrelavega, deputy commander of the AFP Southern Command, said Sihayon is from Pikit, North Cotabato who was ordered by his superiors to reinforce their comrades in Camp Abubakar.
Meanwhile, at least 17 MILF rebels were wounded when the military stormed the guerrillas' Camp Salajuddin II in Tarragona, Davao Oriental. -- With Paolo Romero, John Unson, Lino dela Cruz, Sandy Araneta, Rey Arquiza, Efren Danao, Liberty Dones, Cecille Suerte Felipe, Sheila Crisostomo, Edith Regalado, wire reports
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Diigo, July 17, 2000, The Philippine Star, 4 dead, 33 injured in Cotabato blast, by John Unson and Roel Pareño,
A powerful bomb planted by suspected Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) rebels ripped through a crowded market in Kabacan, North Cotabato yesterday morning, killing four people and wounding at least 33 others. A second bomb was discovered several meters away but was defused, the military said.
The blast came amid reports that MILF military chief Al-Haj Murad had been killed in a military assault that led to the capture of Camp Abubakar, the separatist rebels' main base, in Maguindanao. Many of the injured in the bomb attack were in critical condition, military spokesman Capt. Noel Detoyato said. Sunday is market day in Kabacan.
"It could be the handiwork of Muslim rebels following the call for jihad (holy war) by the Moro Islamic Liberation Front," Detoyato said. Police said one of the fatalities, 10-year-old Ariel Sanchez, died on the spot. Another victim, a woman, died in the hospital.
MILF leader Hashim Salamat called for a jihad against the government following the capture of Abubakar on July 9. He had also ordered his troops to intensify attacks against vital government installations and vulnerable public targets in a "flexible warfare."
Salamat's failure to rally Muslims against the government drew the ire of MILF spokesman Eid Kabalu to brand those who refused to heed Salamat's call for jihad as "hypocrites." "The problem is that there are Muslims who are only living by the name," Kabalu said. Detoyato said soldiers are now tracking down the bombers and security was tightened in the area.
North Cotabato Gov. Emmanuel Piñol has offered reward money for information that could to the arrest of the bombers. "We should not take this heinous offense sitting down," he said. Ordnance experts said the improvised explosive was an 81-mm. mortar rigged to a timing device, similar to those used in previous bombings by suspected MILF rebels. It went off at about 8:30 a.m., sending a deadly hail of shrapnel, and triggered a stampede.
"I condemn this attack against the civilians and I challenge the MILF to come forward and face authorities," Kabacan Mayor Wilfredo Bataga said, taunting the rebels to target the military. The bombing is the fourth in North Cotabato since April.
Known for his tough stance against the MILF, Bataga survived two MILF ambushes this year. "They cannot intimidate me. I am always ready to fight back," he said. Defense and military officials downplayed Salamat's call to arms, saying the majority of Muslims in the country do not support the MILF.
Defense Secretary Orlando Mercado still believes "we'll be able to negotiate" a peace settlement with the MILF despite the heightened Muslim insurgency. Last Saturday, the government issued "safe conduct passes" to 20 MILF leaders in an attempt to restart the stalled peace negotiations. This would allow MILF leaders to move freely, but they would be arrested if they commit crimes.
Armed Forces chief Gen. Angelo Reyes said Muslim leaders, during a recent conference in Manila, assured the government that they would not support Salamat's call. "This call for jihad will not get our Muslim brothers' support. What they want is peace," a statement quoted Reyes as saying.
"Conducting terrorist acts for secession is a criminal activity. If you invoke religion to support a criminal activity, that is not right," he stressed. Kabalu clarified that Salamat's call did not mean a holy war or a campaign against Christians. "There is no holiness in war. War is violence," he explained. "This is an armed struggle. When we fight against oppression and injustice, then it is jihad."
President Estrada ordered the assault on Abubakar, a 10,000-hectare self- sustaining camp, after the rebels rejected a June 30 deadline for them to lay down their arms and accept a peace deal that included limited autonomy. Murad was last seen rallying his troops during the military offensive against their headquarters.
He "was hit at his residence...and reportedly died during the intense bombing and airstrikes" on Abubakar, a military report from an army division in Maguindanao said. A rebel survivor, whom the military identified only as Salit, relayed the information, the report said.
The military is checking reports of his death, which Kabalu dismissed as "simple propaganda designed to sow confusion between and among the Bangsamoro (Muslim) people." Kabalu, however, could not give a specific answer on Murad's whereabouts. Salamat and other MILF top leaders were able to slip out of the country but would be returning soon, he said.
If the report about Murad's death is true, it would deal a significant blow to the MILF, whose thousands of fighters are on the run following the fall of Abubakar.
Former President Fidel Ramos, a former general whose administration concluded a ceasefire in 1997 with the MILF, warned that the government's tough stance against rebels would force them to switch to guerrilla warfare and terrorist tactics.
Malacañang said they already anticipated that and are prepared to meet the threat. Troops in Abubakar are bracing for an MILF counterattack. --By John Unson and Roel Pareño, with reports from AFP, AP, Allen Estabillo
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Diigo, July 18, 2000, The Philippine Star, MILF rebels massacre 21 Christians, by Lino De La Cruz,
Armed men believed to be Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) rebels herded 21 Christians, including a pregnant woman and an off-duty militiaman, inside a mosque, tied their hands behind their backs, then shot them pointblank last Sunday in Lanao del Sur.
The killers then burned the victims' homes in a remote farming village and went on a shooting rampage, injuring 11 people, the military said. President Estrada condemned the massacre "in the strongest possible terms," Press Undersecretary Mike Toledo told reporters.
Toledo said Malacañang will hold MILF chieftain Hashim Salamat "responsible for any blood that will be spilled because of his call for jihad (holy war)." Salamat had exhorted Mindanao's Muslim minority to rise up in arms against the government after the MILF's headquarters, Camp Abubakar in Maguindanao, fell to the military last July 9, sending the rebels on the run. About a hundred men, led by a certain Hadji Malik, attacked the village of Somogot in Bumbaran town last Sunday and forced 21 Christian residents into the mosque, military reports said.
The victims pleaded for their lives but were shot dead, said Maj. Johnny Macañas, a military spokesman from the Army's 4th Infantry Division. Macañas said the motive of the killing was not known. The village is half Christian and half Muslim. "This is condemnable, deplorable and un-Islamic," Macañas said.
He said that after the killings, the armed men attacked a nearby militia outpost but were repulsed. The bandits fled to Lanao del Norte where Army troops are hunting them down. MILF spokesman Eid Kabalu claimed some of the victims were Muslims, a claim denied by the military. In another shooting rampage last Sunday, four people were injured when about a hundred guerrillas attacked the village of Natividad in Columbio town, Sultan Kudarat.
The rebels struck at dawn while the villagers were asleep, firing on houses. They torched 10 huts and fled, exchanging gunfire with pursuing army troops and policemen. In North Cotabato, a bomb planted by suspected MILF rebels exploded in a bus terminal in Matalam town yesterday but no one was hurt.
Police said the explosive was fashioned from an 81-mm. mortar shell rigged with a timing device. The blast hurled a second mortar shell about 10 meters away, but it did not explode. A third explosive was discovered in a market in nearby M'lang town and defused. "No other group has the stomach for this kind of attack except the MILF," North Cotabato Gov. Emmanuel Piñol said. The bomb was similar to the one that went off last Sunday in the nearby town of Kabacan, which killed three people, not four as earlier reported.
The explosion ripped through a crowded market and set off a stampede. Two more bombs were discovered nearby and defused by policemen. Officials blamed the MILF for the Kabacan blast. "The victims of their jihad (holy war) are their own people, innocent Muslims," Piñol said. Kabalu denied the accusation, claiming that they do not target civilians.
"The problem with these rebels is that they are too ferocious in harming innocent civilians. I have long been challenging them to a gunbattle anywhere they want but they don't want to fight me and my men. They want to harm only those who can't fight back," said an angry Kabacan Mayor Wilfredo Bataga, an opponent of the MILF.
No one claimed responsibility for the Matalam and Kabacan bombings. Kabalu could not be reached for comment on yesterday's explosion, the fifth in North Cotabato since April. Matalam Mayor Oscar Valdevieso said one of the two bombs was placed in a sack and left in the middle of the terminal, which was empty at the time. The explosion prompted store owners to close their shops.
Military and police officials believe the massacre in Lanao del Sur and the North Cotabato bombings were in response to Salamat's call for a jihad, which was largely ignored by the populace. Press Undersecretary Toledo said peace talks will still resume on July 29 despite the latest attacks.
Mr. Estrada ordered the offensive against Camp Abubakar after the rebels rejected a June 30 deadline for them to lay down their arms, drop their bid for an independent Islamic state and accept a peace deal that included limited autonomy. Most of the MILF's 50 camps have been captured by the military after a relentless campaign that began in April. The campaign drew criticism from Mr. Estrada's predecessor, Fidel Ramos.
A former Armed Forces chief, Ramos warned that the campaign might force the MILF to adopt guerrilla and terrorist tactics once their camps were captured. Two days ago, a suspected Iranian terrorist, identified as Behrouz Vafajoe, was arrested in Manila by military intelligence and immigration agents, who are now tracking down his confederates.
Armed Forces Vice Chief-of-Staff Lt. Gen. Jose Calimlim and Immigration Commissioner Rufus Rodriguez believed that Vafajoe is a member of Hizbollah (Party of God), an Iranian-backed group of Islamic fighters based in southern Lebanon.
Calimlim and Rodriguez suspected that Vafajoe is helping train MILF or communist New People's Army rebels. A pistol, several rounds of ammunition and a stolen car were seized from Vafajoe, who resisted arrest. Vafajoe, who is allegedly staying illegally in the country, will be deported after being interrogated.
The Ramos administration concluded a ceasefire agreement with the MILF in 1997 in an attempt to begin peace talks, which were put in limbo when Mr. Estrada took over. Last Saturday, the government issued "safe conduct passes" to 20 top MILF officials, allowing them to move freely, in an attempt to restart the stalled peace negotiations.
Unmoved, the MILF demanded that Mr. Estrada put in writing that he sincerely wants to make peace with them. "The President should make it clear in written form that the government still wants to talk peace with us," Kabalu said. "It has to be official. We cannot just work on anything that we do not have anything to hold on to."
As for the passes, Kabalu said it was part of a March 9 agreement between the two sides. The Estrada administration rejected calls for a ceasefire during the military campaign, claiming that the rebels would use the time to rearm. The fighting was the worst in recent years and forced hundreds of thousands of people to flee their homes. Presidential Adviser for Children's Affairs Jamby Santos-Madrigal promised more aid to the refugees. -- By Lino De La Cruz, with Reports From John Unson, Paolo Romero, Rey Arquiza, Edith Regalado, Jaime Laude, Marichu Villanueva, Efren Danao, AP, AFP,
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Diigo, July 22, 2000, The Philippine Star, Sayyaf frees 4 Malaysians 2 teachers,
JOLO, Sulu -- An apparent squabble over huge ransom payments is splitting the Abu Sayyaf and muddling negotiations for the release of the group's hostages. An Abu Sayyaf commander reportedly snatched four of seven Malaysian hostages from rival Ghalib Andang, alias Commander Robot, then released the four to a group led by former presidential adviser Dee Ping Wee.
Vincent Kwong, Lee Hock Liong, Francis Masangkin and Balaksrishnan Nair were freed by Abu Sayyaf commander Radulan Sajiron on a beach near Patikul town in Sulu at dawn yesterday. Andang reportedly planned to release all the seven Malaysians to presidential adviser Robert Aventajado, who heads the government team negotiating for the release of the Abu Sayyaf's hostages.
This developed as a third Abu Sayyaf leader released two Filipino school teachers to a local official in Patikul. Reports reaching Zamboanga City said Teresita Academia and Erlinda Manuel were handed to Sulu Vice Gov. Munib Estino by Abu Ahmad Sabaya, another Abu Sayyaf commander. The two teachers were the last hostages from an original group of over 70 who were snatched last March 20 in Basilan. The other day, high school student Richard Sintos, also from Basilan, was released.
Sources monitoring the hostage crisis said Andang initially wanted to free all of the seven Malaysians who were part of the 21 captives the Muslim extremists seized from a resort in Sabah on April 23. However, Sajiron reportedly "hijacked" four of the Malaysians and handed them to emissaries of Dee Ping Wee, a businessman friend of President Estrada.
Malaysian Ambassador Arshad Hussein said he was pleased at the release of the four but could not fully rejoice. "While there is reason to rejoice today, it is not the time to celebrate yet unless all the hostages similarly regain their freedom," he said.
Sources said Aventajado was angry that Lee, who has business interests in Mindanao and in Sabah, bypassed him by going directly to the President for permission to negotiate the handover. Aventajado reportedly shut down the Jolo airport and prevented a Sabah Air plane from flying out the freed captives direct to Kota Kinabalu in Malaysia. The plane instead flew the Malaysians to Manila.
Aventajado had argued that he feared the release would be aborted because Lee insisted on using emissaries "not approved by Commander Robot." He opted to downplay, though, his apparent turf war with Lee, saying he had already resolved their disagreement. He later publicly thanked Lee, describing him as "my coordinator" in the negotiations. "I don't care who gets the credit because the important thing is to resolve this problem as soon as possible," he said.
Many factions
In Manila, Executive Secretary Ronaldo Zamora said the Abu Sayyaf has "so many factions" and that these factions may actually be quarreling over ransom. He did not discount the possibility that a ransom was paid for the release of the four Malaysians.
"If there were ransoms paid, we do not know about it. But this does not mean it's not happening. It is possible that a Malaysian or a Malaysian businessman may have paid ransom," he explained. Commander Robot's group freed Monday ailing German hostage Renate Wallert after releasing two other Malaysians earlier.
On Thursday, a third faction led by Khadafy Janjalani released a boy, one of the three Filipinos his group abducted from Basilan. Sources said the flurry of activity has netted the Abu Sayyaf $4 million, though no one among the six countries whose citizens were among the captives had admitted to paying ransom.
Commander Robot's faction still holds five French citizens including three journalists, three Malaysians, two Germans, two Finns, two South Africans, Lebanese woman, and 15 Filipinos including 13 preachers. Except for the journalists and the preachers, all were snatched from the Sipadan diving resort in Sabah.
Janjalani's faction, on the other hand, released two Filipino teachers yesterday while a "lost command" led by a former Janjalani aide still has in its custody a German journalist of Der Spiegel magazine.
No info
The four Malaysians were unkempt and long-haired, were shod in flip-flops and carried sacks with mementos of their 89-day captivity. Questioned on the whereabouts of three other Malaysians and the 10 Finnish, French, German, Lebanese and South African tourists who were also abducted on April 23 with them in the Malaysian resort of Sipadan, the four said, "we don't have any idea now."
Ambassador Hussein noted that based on Aventajado's report, "The time is not far before the hostages can be safely released to bring this unfortunate crisis to an end." Aventajado refused to give a timetable for the release of the other captives. "We are trying to move as fast as we can but don't want to have a time frame."
He said he could not explain why the gunmen decided to retain three other Malaysians. Shu Fa Fong, a pilot, flew to Jolo early Friday after being told, wrongly, that his son Ken was among the four freed (See related story). "I know how he feels," Aventajado said, before telling Fong to wait further: "I guess you have to wait, captain, so that we can release your son also." Aventajado said Commander Robot had told him that the women would be released ahead of the men.
"I don't know whether the women will be released all together or one by one depending on the result of the negotiations," he said. Sulu Gov. Abdusakur Tan told reporters government emissaries had been advised that five more hostages would be freed "in the next few days," but did not identify them. Sabah's former chief minister Yong Teck Lee, who accompanied the hostages' relatives to Jolo, told reporters he was "optimistic" there would be "more releases in a short while."--AFP, Marichu Villanueva, Paolo Romero, Rey Arquiza, Roel Pareño, AP and Reuters
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Diigo, July 23, 2000, The Philippine Star, Release of 6 more Abu hostages seen,
Chief government negotiator Robert Aventajado hinted yesterday that the three remaining Malaysians and three Western women would be the next hostages to be released soon by the Abu Sayyaf. "The three Malaysians may be freed in the next few days," Aventajado said in an interview with a Jolo- based radio station.
Sources close to the negotiations said an Abu Sayyaf leader held on to Fong Yin Ken, Basilius Jim and Kua Yu Loong in a row over ransom money received for four other Malaysians set free last Friday. Aventajado said he had an agreement with Abu Sayyaf leader Ghalib Andang alias "Commander Robot" that the women would be set free first.
Four women, who were among 21 people seized by gunmen during a raid last April 23 on the Malaysian diving resort of Sipadan, are still being held in the Abu Sayyaf's jungle lair in Talipao town, Sulu. They are Lucrecia Dablo of the Philippines, Sonia Wendling of France, Marie Moarbes of Lebanon and Monique Styrdom of South Africa.
The other Sipadan hostages still in Abu Sayyaf custody are Werner Wallert and his son Marc, Wendling's French boyfriend Stephane Loisy, Mirco Jahanen Rista and Johan Franti Seppo of Finland, Strydom's husband Carel, and Filipino Roland Ullah.
Since the Sipadan abductions, the Abu Sayyaf have also captured a three- member French television crew including a woman, 13 Filipino Christian preachers and a German magazine writer. The kidnappers have so far released six Malaysians and Wallert's wife Renate.
Sources said the Abu Sayyaf bandits, who style themselves as freedom fighters, have raked in at least $4 million out of the hostage crisis. The kidnappers earlier asked for $1 million for each of the Sipadan captives. Executive Secretary Ronaldo Zamora rued that huge amounts of money have apparently changed hands during the hostage saga. The Estrada administration, along with the governments of Germany and Malaysia, has repeatedly insisted that no ransom payments were made for the release of the hostages.
"The Malaysians have been dealing directly with the Abu Sayyaf. But that is without our knowledge and that certainly, is without our cooperation," Zamora clarified. "Let's be truthful to each other. We cannot stop parties concerned to give (ransom) money," Zamora said. Aventajado reported to Malacañang earlier that a group of Malaysians introducing themselves either as senators, ministers or businessmen were conducting back-channel talks with the Abu Sayyaf.
Zamora said they started suspecting that ransom payments were in the works when the Abu Sayyaf dropped their political demands, yet began releasing the hostages. Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohammad maintained that no ransom was paid for the release of the Malaysian hostages. Mahathir added, however, that they were willing to provide development assistance for Mindanao, adding Malaysian businessmen were already investing in oil palm plantations in the South.
In another development, Batangas Rep. Ralph Recto vowed to block any move by the Estrada administration to allocate funds that will directly benefit Abu Sayyaf members. Recto, chairman of the House economic affairs committee, was reacting to reports that Andang was seeking government financing for an orange plantation he plans to set up on a piece of land he owns in Talipao.
"Commander Robot will have to kiss his orange orchard goodbye," Recto said in a statement. He said any request in next year's national budget that will be earmarked for projects which will have Abu Sayyaf members as beneficiaries "will never see the light of day."
He said any proposed allocation in the budget meant for the Abu Sayyaf is "nothing but ransom payment through congressional insertion." "If he wants to be an orange magnate, Robot should use his loot as his capital. It will be adding insult to injury if his project will receive government sponsorship," Recto said. -- Roel Pareño, Marichu Villanueva, AFP, AP
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Diigo, July 29, 2000, The Philippine Star, MILF cancels peace talks, demands foreign venue, by Roel Pareño and Paolo Romero,
The separatist Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) has canceled its talks with the government scheduled for today, insisting peace negotiations should be held in another country.
Retired Gen. Edgardo Batenga, chief of the government negotiating panel, received a letter yesterday from his MILF counterpart Aleem Mimbantas asking that the talks be moved to August and that they be held on neutral ground.
MILF central committee spokesman Eid Kabalu confirmed that their top leaders have decided to move the peace talks to August, but gave no definite date.
Kabalu said peace talks should be held on neutral ground to protect MILF leaders from possible arrest.
"This is for the security of our comrades who are directly involved in the talks with the government panel," he explained. "We cannot gamble with the security of our brothers."
National Security Adviser Alexander Aguirre said the government cannot accept the MILF proposal.
"The stand of the government is that peace negotiations will be held in the country since the insurgency issue is a domestic affair," Aguirre said. "We have a difference of opinion here."
He also pointed out the talks cannot be facilitated since the MILF has yet to submit an updated list of persons to be given safety and security guarantees (SSGs). However, Aguirre said there was still a positive note to the latest postponement. Attached to Mimbantas' letter, he explained, was a proposed interim agreement, which had been a product of back-channeling between both sides at the sidelines of the Organization of Islamic Conference in Kuala Lumpur.
"In that proposed agreement, it was stated that the MILF and the Government of the Republic of the Philippines shall discuss autonomy as the solution to the Mindanao problem," Aguirre said.
Last week, the MILF rejected President Estrada's peace deal offer for limited autonomy, and stuck to its bid for an independent Islamic state.
Aguirre said government negotiators will continue with back- channeling efforts as well as with informal contact with their MILF counterparts to try and persuade the rebels to agree to in-country peace talks.
Malacañang said it was willing to discuss with the MILF its proposal to reset the talks just to keep the negotiations going.
Although the rebels said they are willing to negotiate, the talks seemed headed for an impasse. Peace efforts have been stalled following heavy fighting, which ultimately led to the capture of Camp Abubakar, the MILF's main enclave.
MILF sets up camp at foot of Mt. Apo
At least 5,000 MILF rebels have established a camp at the foot of Mt. Apo, military intelligence reports said yesterday.
Rebels set up camp after obtaining "clearance" from the guerrillas of the communist New People's Army (NPA) in the area, the report added.
The new camp is located in the same area where NPA rebels held captive Army Brig. Gen. Victor Obillo and his aide Capt. Eduardo Montealto last year.
It was further revealed that the camp is only accessible by foot, making it impenetrable to tanks and armored personnel carriers.
The perimeter of the MILF camp is being secured with the help of NPA rebels, confirming earlier reports that the two groups have established a military alliance.
Meanwhile, some 30 MILF rebels attacked an Army detachment in Kauswagan, Lanao del Norte yesterday morning but were immediately repulsed by government troops. Col. Luciano Campos, deputy commander of the Army's 402nd Infantry Brigade, said government forces suffered no casualties from the attack.
The rebels, on the other hand, suffered several casualties, based on the bloodstains along their path of retreat.
Campos said government troops are conducting pursuit operations, and that there will be no let-up until all rebel groups are driven out of the area.--With Lino de la Cruz, Jaime Laude
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Diigo, July 30, 2000, The Philippine Star, Sayyaf frees TV crew,
Abu Sayyaf gunmen released yesterday two Filipino broadcast journalists who were captured last week while covering the hostage crisis in Jolo, Sulu. Meanwhile, President Estrada vowed to crush the Abu Sayyaf as soon as all the hostages have been freed. "I just hope that there will be no more journalists kidnapped while covering the hostage crisis," said presidential adviser and chief government negotiator Robert Aventajado.
ABS-CBN cameraman Martin Percival Cuenca and his wife, researcher Mary Ann "Maan" Macapagal, were handed over to Sulu Gov. Abdusakur Tan in Patikul town in Sulu where they were abducted last Monday on their way back from interviewing Abu Sayyaf leaders.
Cuenca and Macapagal were then taken to the military's Camp Bautista in Jolo and flown to nearby Zamboanga City. Journalists waiting in Zamboanga City embraced the two and greeted each other with high fives. Macapagal, who had insect bites on her neck and arms, was teary eyed. "We also experienced what the (Sipadan) hostages went through. We were co- vering them before, we're now being covered by you," she told colleagues.
Cuenca said before they were freed, a brief shootout erupted between their captors and another Abu Sayyaf band led by Commander Abu Sabaya "that tried to take us into their custody." Cuenca said Sabaya, who invited them for the interview, tried to rescue them because he (Sabaya) was embarrassed by the abduction.
ABS-CBN announced that no ransom was paid for the release, but sources in Sulu said the abductors got an undetermined amount of money for "board and lodging" of the two journalists while in captivity. Cuenca and Macapagal narrated, however, that they had to sleep on a makeshift copra kiln dryer without any mats, pillows or mosquito nets, making them fair game for mosquitos.
They said they were fed mostly rice and canned sardines, although some villagers brought them other foodstuffs. The kidnappers earlier demanded P10 million for the release of Cuenca and Macapagal. "There's no money that exchanged hands," ABS-CBN chairman Eugenio Lopez III said.
Despite the government's official "no ransom" policy, the Abu Sayyaf kidnappers have reportedly raked in some P190 million in ransom for a 56- year-old German teacher and six Malaysians who have been previously freed. The victims were part of 21 foreign tourists and workers seized on April 23 during a raid by Abu Sayyaf gunmen on the Malaysian dive resort island of Sipadan off Borneo.
The hostages were then taken by boat across the sea border to nearby Sulu where they were kept in the kidnappers' lair in the jungles of Talipao and Jolo towns. Still being held by the Abu Sayyaf are two Germans, two South Africans, two French nationals, two Finns, two Filipinos, three Malaysians and a Lebanese.
Abu Sayyaf splinter groups also detained 13 Filipino Christian preachers led by television evangelist Wilde Almeda, three crew members of French television and a German magazine editor. However, the kidnappers have freed Andreas Lorenz of the German weekly magazine Der Spiegel and evangelist Danilo Cuarteros of the Jesus Miracle Crusade.
Lopez, who fetched Cuenca and Macapagal from Jolo, said they may no longer assign any reporter or cameraman to the island. Lopez said it would be best for journalists to stay in Zamboanga City because Jolo has become a "no man's land."
Aventajado earlier warned journalists to stay out of Jolo "where everyone is fair game" for the Abu Sayyaf. Aventajado said a go-between for the Abu Sayyaf bandits has told him the three remaining Malaysians would be freed next week, with the other Sipadan hostages to follow soon.
The chief negotiator flew to Jolo with Lopez and other ABS-CBN officials, including network senior vice president Angelo Castro Jr., to receive Cuenca and Macapagal.
Estrada vows to go after Sayyaf
In Washington, the President promised to go after the Abu Sayyaf after the three-month-old hostage saga in Jolo has been resolved. In an interview with the "Q & A" program of the Cable News Network, Mr. Estrada clarified, however, that no short-cut solutions (military operations) would be applied to the hostage crisis.
"As you can see, we cannot fast-track the rescue of the hostages because the primary concern of my government is the safety of the hostages. But we are making gains now, because out of the 28 (foreign) hostages, seven have already been released," Mr. Estrada said. He added that Aventajado has assured him eight more hostages would be set free soon.
Addressing the Filipino-American community during a dinner reception at the J.W. Marriot Hotel in Washington the other night, Mr. Estrada regretted that the hostage crisis has overshadowed the achievements of his administration.
But he assured the audience that the government is still in "full control" of the situation in Mindanao. "We have to understand that what is happening in Mindanao does not reflect the general peace and order situation in the rest of the country. We must also realize that unless peace reigns in our land, we can never create a climate that is conducive to business and economic growth," the President said.
"This is the reason why I assured a forceful stand against secessionist and bandit groups who have gone too far. We have to remind them that in our country, we submit to one flag only, one Constitution, one government and one armed forces," he added. -- By Roel Pareño, with Marichu Villanueva, wire reports
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Diigo, July 30, 2000, The Philippine Star, Gov't-MILF talks reset to Aug. 15, by Edith Regalado,
Peace talks between the government and the secessionist Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), which were to resume yesterday in Cotabato City, were postponed to Aug.15. The rebels also seemed to have softened on their demand for the talks to be held abroad, a condition which the government has consistently rejected.
"We have tentatively set the date for Aug. 15. Preparations are actually being made, many of which are not seen by the public. But certainly, things are being worked out between the two panels," said a source in the MILF central committee who requested anonymity. The committee is the MILF's decision-making body.
The venue of the resumption of the talks will either be Davao City or Metro Manila, the source said. The choice of venue is vital, he said, because they want the atmosphere "conducive to negotiations." Meanwhile, "hit-and-run tactics" by MILF rebels will continue as long as there is no ceasefire agreement, rebel spokesman Eid Kabalu said.
Twelve rebels and a militiaman were killed while five other people were wounded in new clashes in Mindanao as the rebels staged more attacks against civilians, the military said yesterday.
About 50 guerrillas attacked Nangaan village in Kabacan town, North Cotabato last Friday, triggering an hour-long gunbattle that left nine rebels and one militiaman dead, said Maj. Lito Aso, Army 6th Infantry Division spokesman.
Also, a bomb planted by suspected MILF rebels was found near an Iglesia ni Cristo church near a busy street in Kabacan and defused by policemen, officials said.
Believing the church was not being targeted, investigators said the rebels were probably planning to bomb a populated area in the town proper. They left the bomb in haste after sensing that security in the town was tight. Fashioned from a live 81-mm. mortar round and rigged to a timing device, the explosive was found in a bag that attracted the suspicion of passersby, who promptly called the police.
The bombing attempt came less than two weeks after a deadly explosion ripped through a busy market in Kabacan, killing four people and seriously wounding 37 others. Meanwhile, a rebel band raided a village in South Upi town in nearby Maguindanao the other day, seizing rice and other foodstuffs before fleeing, Aso said. Soldiers and militiamen pursued the rebels and killed three.
Yesterday, another band entered Calean village in Buluan town, also in Maguindanao, and burned several houses, a local official said. No one was hurt. They also burned a Philippine flag. Responding soldiers and militiamen forced the rebels to retreat.
Calean is inside the eight-hectare Camp Al Fateh, an MILF base which fell to the military on June 11. Local and military officials hoisted the flag in Calean after the capture of Al Fateh broke up the MILF's shadow government in the village.
Although the rebels said they are willing to resume the negotiations, suspended last month, they want the talks held abroad, preferably in Malaysia. National Security Adviser Alexander Aguirre said negotiators are making informal contacts with the rebels to convince them to resume the talks in the Philippines.
The government refuses to negotiate abroad, saying the Muslim insurgency is a domestic issue. MILF chief negotiator Alim Adulazis Mimbantas suggested that the agenda of the talks focus on an interim agreement discussed informally next month by rebel and government negotiators in Malaysia.
Kabalu said the proposed interim agreement only says that the two sides agree to discuss "comprehensive and permanent political solutions" to the insurgency. It says that both sides, not just the MILF, condemn "all human rights violations and terroristic acts and activities."
President Estrada last Monday vowed to crush the rebellion but said the government is willing to grant amnesty if the MILF lays down its arms and drop its 22-year-old secessionist struggle. Mr. Estrada wants to develop Mindanao into a major "food basket" once the insurgency is over.
But even the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF), a Muslim rebel group that made peace with the government in 1996, accuses the Estrada administration of failing to keep its part of the deal. Randolph Parcasio, executive secretary of the Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao (ARMM), said a team of observers from the Organization of Islamic Conference (OIC) will arrive in the country to check the accord's implementation.
Parcasio said they will prove to the observers that the government has been releasing the ARMM's funds "in trickles." ARMM Gov. Nur Misuari, the MNLF chieftain who signed the historic peace deal with the previous Ramos administration, complained recently to the OIC that government was not sincere in implementing the accord. The government denied Misuari's allegation. The OIC helped mediate the settlement and is overseeing its implementation. -- With reports from AFP, AP, John Unson, Allen Estabillo, Lino de la Cruz
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Diigo, August 8, 2000, The Philippine Star, AFP chief admits Sayyaf got P245 M for hostages' release, by Marichu Villanueva,
Whatever happened to the government's no-ransom policy? Abu Sayyaf bandits have raked in some P245 million over the past three months in "board and lodging" fees - euphemism for ransom - of dozens of Filipino and foreign hostages, Armed Forces chief Gen. Angelo Reyes revealed yesterday.
The financial settlements were allegedly made despite the Estrada administration's insistence that no money changed hands in the of releases of hostages in line with its avowed "no ransom" policy. In his report to President Estrada, Reyes said the money could be used by the Abu Sayyaf to buy more firearms.
Reyes' report prompted Press Secretary Ricardo Puno Jr. to request Presidential Adviser Roberto Aventajado, the government's chief negotiator with the Abu Sayyaf, to shed light on the alleged ransom payments. Aventajado insisted, however, that it was only the German weekly magazine Der Spiegel, employer of Andreas Lorenz who was captured by the Abu Sayyaf while covering the hostage drama, which has admitted having paid ransom for its reporter's release. Aventajado also claimed the government had nothing to do with the negotiations for the release of Lorenz. Before Reyes could divulge more information about the hostage drama, the President cut him short saying the issue was not included in the agenda of yesterday's Cabinet meeting.
Meanwhile, Defense Secretary Orlando Mercado gave assurances of the safety of the people of Jolo and Zamboanga City amid threats by the Abu Sayyaf that they would raze the two areas if the military launches rescue operations for the hostages.
"We can assure our people that they don't have anything to worry about. We can truthfully say that there are no military operations there (Sulu)," Mercado said. Chief hostage-taker Ghalib Andang, also known as Commander Robot, had threatened to attack Jolo and Zamboanga City following the reported buzzing of the kidnappers' lair in Sulu by two military OV-10 planes.
The fly-over was suspected to be in line with mapping operations preparatory to an impending assault by government forces. Armed Forces officials clarified, however, that the aircraft were merely on their way to Malaysian-Philippine joint military exercises in Sabah. Mercado declined to say what the government intends to do after all the hostages have been freed.
Mahathir sends emissaries to Zamboanga City
Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohammad ordered emissaries to go to the Philippines and help end a 107-day-old hostage crisis, Aventajado said. "He gave instructions to the emissaries to fly to Zamboanga at 2 p.m. today," Aventajado said in a radio interview.
Former Sabah Chief Minister Yong Teck Lee and Malaysian Deputy Education Minister Datu Abdul Aziz Shamsuddin were supposed to meet Aventajado in Zamboanga City last Sunday, to discuss a package of livelihood projects in exchange for the release of Abu Sayyaf hostages, among them three Malaysians.
However, the appointment was scrapped for still unknown reasons. This prompted Aventajado, the government's chief negotiator with the Abu Sayyaf kidnappers, to call up Mahathir and inform him about the unilateral cancellation of their meeting. The projects include the setting up of mango, orange and coffee plantations in Abu Sayyaf-controlled areas in Talipao town in Sulu.
"There are certain deals on the table. If there is an agreement, Commander Robot has committed to start releasing hostages the following day," Aventajado said. He was referring to the Abu Sayyaf leader whose group was holding 14 mostly foreign hostages who were snatched from the Malaysian dive resort of Sipadan in Sabah last April 23.
The victims were taken by boat across the border to nearby Sulu province. The Abu Sayyaf raiders originally seized 21 people, consisting of nine Malaysians, three Germans, two South Africans, two Finns, two French nationals, two Filipinos and one Lebanese. So far, six of the Malaysians and one German woman have been freed following ransom payments, but government authorities vehemently denied that money changed hands in the series of hostage releases.
In Beirut, Lebanese Prime Minister Salim Hoss said his government has accepted a Libyan proposal to pay a ransom for the freedom of Franco- Lebanese woman Marie Michelle Moarbes. The offer to pay the $1 million ransom demand was made by Seif al-Islam Gadhafi, son of Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi.
Intelligence sources said the Abu Sayyaf bandits, self-styled freedom fighters for an independent Islamic state in Mindanao, have been using the ransom to build up their arsenal, with certain local politicians acting as go- between for arms dealers based in Manila and elsewhere to arrange the sale of M-203 rifles with grenade launchers.
Sources said the guns were being sold for P250,000 each, three times its black market value, and the Abu Sayyaf has placed orders for 50 guns from several arms dealers. Meanwhile, provincial police chief Candido Casimiro said they will launch a crackdown on the sale of military uniforms and equipment at the Jolo public market, saying the items could end up in the hands of the Abu Sayyaf.
The articles include combat boots, pistol belts and backpacks. Meanwhile, Sen. Aquilino Pimentel Jr. warned that the reported offer of the Libyan government to pay $25 million for the release of all Abu Sayyaf hostages could be detrimental to national security.
Pimentel said the Abu Sayyaf terrorists could buy sophisticated and powerful weapons with all that money, putting government forces at a great disadvantage against rebel groups. "The government should, therefore, use its diplomatic channels to persuade the Libyan government or other private organizations to rethink their offers to pay a princely ransom for the release of the hostages, if indeed such offers are in the works," he said.
Libyan authorities have denied, however, that their government has made such an offer. On the other hand, Finland said it would finance development projects in the Philippines in exchange for the release of its two nationals among the Abu Sayyaf hostages.-- With reports from Paolo Romero, Roel Pareño, AFP
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Diigo, August 9, 2000, The Philippine Star, Palace: Gov't cannot stop ransom payments to Sayyaf, by Marichu Villanueva,
"What can we do?" Executive Secretary Ronaldo Zamora categorically admitted yesterday the government's helplessness in preventing the payment of ransom to Abu Sayyaf kidnappers. Meanwhile, Makati Rep. Joker Arroyo chided the government for allowing itself to be outsmarted by the Abu Sayyaf in the negotiations for the release of the hostages.
For his part, Sen. Robert Barbers vowed to initiate a Senate inquiry on the alleged payments of princely ransom to the Abu Sayyaf. Zamora, along with Presidential Adviser Roberto Aventajado who is chief government negotiator with the Abu Sayyaf, blamed backdoor negotiators for facilitating the illegal transactions.
Armed Forces chief Gen. Angelo Reyes reported to Malacañang the other day that the Abu Sayyaf bandits, self-styled secessionist guerrillas fighting for an independent Islamic state in Mindanao, have so far collected P245 million in ransom settlements for the release of a handful of local and foreign hostages over the past few weeks.
"It's really hard to deny that. You can see money is now flooding Sulu and Basilan," Zamora said in a radio interview, virtually confirming Reyes' report to be accurate. But Aventajado disagreed with Zamora, saying Reyes' figure was too high. The Abu Sayyaf has established its bailiwicks in the neighboring island provinces of Sulu and Basilan where the bandits perpetrated mass kidnappings starting last March.
Zamora indicated that compatriots of the hostages and certain foreign government emissaries conducted back-channel talks with the Abu Sayyaf for the immediate release of the foreign captives. "The problem here is the government of the Philippines cannot stop all of that because these are foreign individuals, foreign agencies, foreign governments that are paying. Even if we say don't do it, that the government's policy is no ransom, when the time comes, they find a way to pay," Zamora said, but did not elaborate. He said some of the monetary settlements were probably done outside the country. However, Press Secretary Ricardo Puno Jr. maintained that the government is not entirely helpless in checking the ransom payments. "We can still make representations to these people not to exacerbate the situation by adding to the amounts that are already in the hands of the Abu Sayyaf," Puno said.
He acknowledged, though, that ransom payments could now be done through bank-to-bank transactions. "This is an internationalized economy right now. There are many ways of transferring funds, and there are many ways of putting money into people's pockets," Puno said.
The Abu Sayyaf has so far released six Malaysians, two Germans, two crew members of ABS-CBN Channel 2 television and a Filipino Christian preacher. Still being held in Abu Sayyaf jungle lairs in Sulu were 12 preachers of the Jesus Miracle Crusade (JMC), three Malaysians, five French nationals, two South Africans, two Finns, two Germans, two Filipinos and one Franco-Lebanese.
Fourteen of the captives, including 10 Westerners, were seized by Abu Sayyaf gunmen from the Malaysian resort island of Sipadan last April 23. They were part of an initial group of 21 people rounded up by the bandits during the raid, then taken by boat across the border to nearby Sulu. The Abu Sayyaf later detained the 13 JMC preachers led by televangelist Wilde Almeda after the group conducted a pray-over session for the release of the Sipadan hostages at the abductors' hideout in the hinterlands of Talipao town, along with a three-member French television crew, a German magazine writer and the two ABS-CBN crew members.
Zamora said the President has expressed displeasure over the ransom payments and ordered that they be stopped. He also said Aventajado has vowed to resolve the hostage crisis in Sulu within one to two weeks. "Let's wait," Zamora added. Aventajado, who earlier categorically denied that no ransom was paid for the release of the six Malaysians, changed his tune as he hinted that the Malaysian negotiators had apparently met the kidnappers' ransom demand.
Both the Philippine and Malaysian government officials insisted that no money changed hands for the freedom of the Malaysians and some of the other hostages. To prevent further unauthorized negotiations, Aventajado said he has directed airport authorities in Sulu and Zamboanga City to be more strict in granting landing permits to Malaysian aircraft. Aventajado met yesterday afternoon with Malaysian Education Deputy Minister Datuk Aziz Shamsuddin and former Sabah Minister Yong Teck Lee to discuss the possibility of securing the release of the remaining three Malaysians. "We were not able to finalize anything today because they still need to consult their higher-ups back in Kuala Lumpur," Aventajado told reporters.
Sayyaf outsmarts the gov't - Arroyo
The Abu Sayyaf bandits are outsmarting the government by retailing the release of hostages, Arroyo said. "What we were made to understand is that the government would tolerate the (unofficial) negotiations, but it would be on a package deal basis--that is, all hostages would be redeemed for a fee in one deal," Arroyo said.
Once the hostages are all freed, the military would then pursue the hostage- takers, he added. "But what happened? Under the very noses of the government, there were separate piecemeal deals; the Malaysian deal, the German deal and the what-not deal - totaling, it turns out, P245 million (in ransom)," Arroyo noted.
"Government goofed here... the government was outsmarted," he stressed. He pointed out that after collecting P245 million, the bandits still have most of the hostages. "Abu Sayyaf outflanked the government by engaging in retail trade release. Abu Sayyaf has found a prosperous cottage industry, the retailing of hostages," he said.
Arroyo also said with Reyes' admission on the P245 million in ransom payments, the Philippines is now known as the ransom capital of the world. "General Reyes' admission indicates a breakdown of government policy on the hostage problem," the legislator said.
He said Reyes has a reason to complain, since "our brave soldiers who died or were wounded in the campaign to defeat the Moro Islamic Liberation Front have not been blessed with even P50 million."- With Jess Diaz, Perseus Echeminada, Roel Pareño, AFP, Reuter reports
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Diigo, August 19, 2000, The Philippine Star, Abu Sayyaf rebels free three remaining Malaysian captives,
Abu Sayyaf bandits set free yesterday three Malaysian hostages as negotiations continued to secure the release of the remaining Western and Filipino captives being held for nearly four months in the the hinterlands of Sulu.
Chief government negotiator Roberto Aventajado, briefing European diplomats in Manila, said the remaining 28 hostages would likely be freed starting at noon today. The Associated Press reported that the three Malaysians, part of an original group of 21 people seized by Abu Sayyaf gunmen from the famous Malaysian dive resort island of Sipadan in Sabah on April 23, would be taken by boat from the capital town of Jolo to nearby Zamboanga City where they will be presented to Aventajado.
Negotiators for the Malaysians said an agreement was reached for an additional ransom. They did not specify the amount and the terms of the agreement. Aventajado said he had received information from Zamboanga City-based Filipino-Chinese trader De Peng Wee saying the three Malaysians have been freed and on their way to Zamboanga City.
An estimated $5.5 million was believed paid for the previous release of six Malaysians and an ailing German woman. A source close to Wee said "a little amount of ransom was paid" for the three Malaysians.
Wee was sacked earlier as a member of the government negotiating panel, but was put back in harness by Aventajado to assist in the release of the Malaysians. Aventajado was to fly to Zamboanga City late yesterday to receive the three Malaysians, identified as dive instructor Fong Yin Ken, cook Kua Yu Loong and wildlife ranger Basilius Jim.
"Our emissary has informed us that he has the three Malaysians and that they are on their way to Zamboanga City by boat," Wee said after receiving a satellite phone call from his emissary, Jamil Hassan.
Wee added that Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohammad has requested help to secure the release of the Malaysians. "We are glad it’s finally over." He maintained that no ransom was paid for the freedom of the three Malaysians. A plane from Sabah where the three hostages live had been in Zamboanga City since Friday to take the three back home. The aircraft was piloted by Fong Shan Fah, father of hostage Fong.
Six other Malaysians, one German and one Filipino were freed earlier. The Malaysians were forest ranger Zulkarnain Hashim who was released on June 24; policeman Abdul Jawah Sulawat on July 14; and Vincent Kwong, Lee Hock Leong, Francis Masangkim and Balakrishnan Nair on July 21.
Renate Wallert, a 56-year-old teacher in Goettingen, northern Germany, was released on July 17 along with Filipino evangelist Danilo Cuarteros, while Filipina Lucrecia Dablo, a cook at Sipadan, was freed on Aug. 16.
Other Sipadan hostages who are still in the clutches of the Abu Sayyaf are French nationals Sonia Wendling, 34, a mechanical engineer from Drusenheim, and her boyfriend, Stephani Loisy, 34, also a mechanical engineer; Risto Vahanen, 47, and Seppo Fraenti, both of Helsinki, Finland; Wallert's husband Werner 57, a geography teacher, and their son Marc, 27; South African Callie Strydom, an accountant from Johannesburg, and his wife Monique; Lebanese Marie Moarbes, 32, from Beirut, and Filipino Roland Ullah, also a dive instructor, from Jolo, Sulu.
Other Abu Sayyaf captives are French 2 television crew members Maryse Burgot, 36; Jean le Garrec, 46, cameraman, and Roland Madura, 49, soundman, who were held July 3 while covering the hostage drama, 12 preachers of the Jesus Miracle Crusade (JMC) led by flamboyant evangelist Wilde Almeda who were seized on July 1 after conducting a pray over session for the Sipadan victims; and Filipino construction workers Samuel Ramillano, 40, Reynante de la Cruz, 20, and Nelson Habibas, 51, all of Zamboanga City, who were abducted Aug. 1 in Jolo.
Sources close to the negotiations said President Estrada's directive to secure the freedom of all the 28 remaining hostages would complicate the talks. "It is better to have two or three (hostages), or in batches than none at all," the source said.- Roel Pareño, wire services
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Diigo, September 27, 2000, The Philippine Star, 18 Sayyaf suspects arrested in mosque NSC backs offensive vs Abus, by Roel Pareño,
Government troops raided an Islamic mosque in Jolo, Sulu late Monday in search of Abu Sayyaf terrorists and arrested 18 suspected Muslim extremists, a religious leader said yesterday. Meanwhile, the National Security Council (NSC), which President Estrada convened at Malacañang yesterday, decided the offensive will continue until the Abu Sayyaf has been destroyed.
"No timetable or deadline was given insofar as the Abu Sayyaf operations are concerned," Press Secretary Ricardo Puno told reporters after the NSC's two-and-a-half-hour meeting. Meanwhile, two soldiers were reported killed and eight others were wounded in separate clashes between Abu Sayyaf gunmen and government forces who have been waging an all-out ope-ration to rescue 17 people held hostage by the Muslim bandits. Army soldiers reportedly swooped down on a mosque in Masjid Tulay in downtown Jolo and detained 18 suspected Abu Sayyaf members, said Grand Imam Yakub Ismi. Eight of the suspected Abu Sayyaf members were later cleared and released, but 10 were turned over to the local police for detention and criminal prosecution. He said the raiders also seized eight firearms from the mosque. The Agence France Presse quoted local residents as saying they heard gunfire from the vicinity of the mosque late Monday.
Ismi denounced the raid, saying the troops desecrated their place of worship by not leaving their shoes at the door and toppling a copy of the Koran, the holy book of Islam, from its perch. "I have nothing against military movements, but the thing is, they should have warned us in advance," he said.
The death toll on the government side in the Sulu operations rose to three as the Task Force Trident pressed its massive air and ground assault for the 12th day yesterday against the Abu Sayyaf rebels. A 30-member Abu Sayyaf and ambushed an Army patrol near Talipao town the other day, leaving one infantryman dead and four others wounded. In another encounter, an Army corporal was killed and four other soldiers wounded near Maimbung town.
Task Force commander Brig. Gen. Narciso Abaya identified the fatality as Cpl. Moises Mapili, while those wounded were Sgt. Herwin Villegas, Sgt. Crispin Fantalinan and integrees Pfc. Lutan Alilul and Pfc. Asangi Jalmaani. The AFP operation was launched on Sept. 16 after Abu Sayyaf pirates raided the Malaysian island resort of Pandanan in Sabah and seized three Malaysians who were taken by boat across the border to nearby Sulu island.
KL youth group alarmed by military attack
In Kuala Lumpur, a leading Malaysian Muslim movement accused the Estrada administration of carrying out a genocide against Muslim minorities in Mindanao. The Muslim Youth Movement of Malaysia (ABIM) expressed serious concern over the "indiscriminate use of force" by the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) in their efforts to punish the Abu Sayyaf for the recent kidnapping spree in Mindanao and Sabah.
The group, in a statement, said the news blackout imposed by the government on the military operations in Sulu was obscuring the real situation of the war in Sulu. It cited unconfirmed reports saying the civilians were suffering the brunt of the offensive, including a bomb that dropped on a wedding reception, killing at least 10 people.
The AFP insisted, however, that only two civilians have been killed and four wounded in the crossfire, while an estimated 36,000 villagers were forced to flee their homes. ABIM charged that the Estrada administration was merely using the Abu Sayyaf problem "as a cover for a more diabolical agenda."
Citing the lack of development aid for poor Muslim-populated areas, ABIM said the Filipino Muslims were being punished for refusing to accept total integration into the national body politic, which also means embracing Christianity.
A Malaysian official has also urged the Estrada administration to talk to moderate Muslim leaders in Mindanao rather than rely mainly on the military. Malaysian Defense Minister Najib Razak said Manila should adopt a "comprehensive approach" in addressing the security problem.
Kuala Lumpur also justified last week’s arrest of 33 Filipinos illegally entering Sabah. "They are economic migrants trying to take advantage of the situation. What we’re doing is we're trying to screen all the boats that enter. That's also one way to check piracy," said Malaysian Ambassador to Manila Mohammad Arshad Mansoor Hussein. The envoy also expressed grave concern over the absence of information on the fate of the three Malaysian hostages seized from Pandanan last Sept. 11. Meanwhile, the mainstream Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) will ask the Organization of Islamic Conference (OIC) to initiate an independent probe on the reported heavy casualty on civilians of the war in Sulu.
An OIC team is expected to arrive in Mindanao next month to evaluate the government’s implementation of the September 1996 peace accord with the MNLF. The Bureau of Public Information (BPI) of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) said MNLF chieftain and ARMM Gov. Nur Misuari may take the opportunity to ask that the OIC also inquire into the effects to civilians of the ongoing military offensive in Sulu.
"They (OIC representatives) might as well investigate the deaths of civilians who were killed in the hostilities between the Abu Sayyaf and the military," said BPI chief Hadji Samson Gogo. Gogo said MNLF officials in Sulu reported that over a hundred civilians have died in the fighting.
Sources from the MNLF-led Southern Philippines Council for Peace and Development said they tried to verify the reported deaths of civilians, but the military would not allow them to go to the affected areas. Defense Secretary Orlando Mercado said the military will soon lift the news blackout and allow medical and social workers to conduct relief operations in critical areas following reports of mounting civilian casualties.
"The idea is to open the area to newsmen and doctors so the public would see what's happening," Mercado said. He pointed out, however, that the Abu Sayyaf appeared to have launched its own black propaganda campaign against the government.
IBP poised to sue Estrada, DND and AFP
The Integrated Bar of the Philippines said it would file a class suit against the President, the Department of National Defense (DND) and the AFP for imposing an "undeclared martial law" in Jolo. At a press briefing held at the Commission on Human Rights (CHR) offices, IBP governor Serafin Rivera said the military operation in Sulu resulted in serious violations of human rights. "The military has violated the freedom to travel and the freedom of expression which form part of the basic human rights of the Filipinos," Rivera said. CHR Commissioner Nasser Marohomsalic said Abu Sayyaf leader Mujib Susukan alias Commander Bugok, was no longer in Sulu.
He said Susukan and other Abu Sayyaf leaders had fled to either Basilan or Lanao. IBP president Arthur Lim said the government will not allow the government to continue with its "ethnic cleansing" operation. "There is an unnecessary force being implemented by the military in Mindanao today. They are isolating the innocent non-combatant civilians by imposing transportation and communication blockade. We cannot even contact our relatives there because they are all at the mercy of the military operations," Lim said.
He said while they support the campaign against the Abu Sayyaf terrorists, eradicating the criminal elements should not be done without giving top priority to the safety and welfare of civilians. He dared the military leadership to make public the daily toll of the war on civilians.
"Only if the media (are) allowed free and untrammeled access in the area that we can only check them. The government could observe transparency without compromising military tactics," Lim said. Marohomsalic said the military violated the rules of engagement and Protocol II of the International Humanitarian law which allows the imposition of blockades but not exceeding three days.
"Under the law, the military or the government is required to evacuate first the innocent and non-combatant civilians, particularly the children, to ensure their safety," the CHR chief said. However, Sulu Gov.
Abdusakur Tan urged the public to give the government a chance to finish the joint military-police operation in Sulu. "We should give these operations a chance to succeed. Let us not limit it by giving a time frame," Tan said.
In a meeting with AFP chief Gen. Angelo Reyes and Philippine National Police chief Director General Panfilo Lacson, Tan said local villagers have also offered to help fight the Abu Sayyaf. Reyes and Lacson visited Jolo on Monday to assess the progress of the campaign. "Basta susuportahan kami ng pamahalaan, kami na ang titira. Kasi, kung magre-report pa kami, baka makaalis pa (As long as the government will support us, we will strike (at the Abu Sayyaf) ourselves... because if we have to report (the Abu Sayyaf's presence in our communities), chances are they will be able to leave)," Tan quoted the residents as saying. In another development, opposition leaders in the House of Representatives urged Malacañang to stop the military attack in Sulu following reports that the Abu Sayyaf leaders and their hostages have fled the island.
Lakas-NUCD secretary general and Isabela Rep. Heherson Alvarez said the government should now withdraw the troops to avoid inflicting further harm on innocent civilians. "They should stop the bombing because the Abu Sayyaf (gunmen) are no longer there. They are not hitting their target...they're hitting the civilians," Alvarez said. Pangasinan Rep. Hernani Braganza said the government's failure to neutralize the Abu Sayyaf despite the full-scale military offensive was "unpardonable."
"Worse, the Abu Sayyaf continues to taunt the government by conducting media interviews through cellphone," Braganza said. Apart from the three Malaysians, the Abu Sayyaf gunmen are also holding American Jeffrey Craig Edwards Schilling, Filipino dive instructor Roland Ullah and 12 preachers of the Jesus Miracle Crusade led by televangelist Wilde Almeda. Reyes has assured the people that the hostages are still alive and safe.- With reports from Paolo Romero, Marichu Villanueva, Christina Mendez, Jose Rodel Clapano, Aurea Calica, Jose Aravilla, John Unson, wire services
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Diigo, October 7, 2000, The Philippine Star, Gov't may eventually hold peace talks with MILF abroad, by Paolo Romero And John Unson,
Malacañang appears to be softening its stand against holding peace talks with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) in another country. Defense Secretary Orlando Mercado told a press briefing yesterday that the MILF's demand "can be considered," therefore increasing the possibility of a resumption of the stalled talks.
"Maybe it could be done in such a manner where it will be conducted abroad without according them (MILF) the status of belligerency," Mercado said. Al-Haj Murad, the MILF's military commander, said new talks should be held abroad because "Mindanao and the country are no longer conducive to peace negotiations."
Murad appeared before reporters for the first time since March, when the military launched a massive offensive to oust the MILF from its camps in Mindanao. The military reported that Murad was wounded or killed when soldiers captured the MILF headquarters, Camp Abubakar in Maguindanao, last July 9. "I am alive and kicking," he said. He was accompanied by about 150 guerrillas.
Murad held a news conference in a forest hideout just five kilometers from his former office, now turned into an Army outpost, at Camp Abubakar in Maguindanao.
Murad said the government should show sincerity in pursuing peace by dropping preconditions for the resumption of talks, removing bounties on MILF leaders' heads, and respecting previous agreements, including a 1997 ceasefire accord.
"The MILF still believes that the solution to the Mindanao conflict is a negotiated political solution," Murad said. "We remain open to everything," he added. "We do not say we don't want autonomy. If it will solve the (Muslim) problem, then we will accept it. If independence is the ultimate solution, then we will fight for it." Murad said they are willing to resume negotiations in a country that belongs to the 56-nation Organization of Islamic Conference, an influential group of Muslim states.
The MILF has been trying to get OIC support for its secessionist struggle but was earlier rebuffed. The OIC brokered a 1996 historic peace deal between the former main Muslim rebel group, the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF), and the previous Ramos administration. The MILF broke away from the MNLF in the late 1970s.
Murad said the MILF welcomes a planned visit in mid-October by an OIC mission that will observe the implementation of the 1996 accord. The mission will also look into the continuing clashes between the military and the MILF, even though the OIC recognizes the MNLF as the sole representative of Mindanao's Muslims.
"We are thanking the international community for looking into the problem in Mindanao," Murad said. President Estrada said yesterday that military operations against the MILF in some areas would be over as soon as the military destroys the rebels' capability to launch massive attacks. He did not give an estimate of how much longer the operations will take.
Last week, Mr. Estrada issued Proclamation 390 ordering an unconditional resumption of peace negotiations with the MILF and offered amnesty to the rebels.
However, the rebels rejected the offer, calling it a propaganda ploy and vowed to step up attacks against the government. "This is nothing but a simple call for surrender," Murad said. Nur Misuari, governor of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao and chairman of the MNLF, has offered to help jumpstart the talks.
Misuari said he has been in touch with MILF leaders, including rebel chieftain (his former lieutenant) Hashim Salamat, for the past weeks. But he said he needs the President's authorization before he can discuss anything concrete with the MILF.
"I need the mandate. I cannot just discuss things with them without authority from the President," he told reporters. The MILF demand for holding peace talks in a foreign venue has proved to be a stumbling block to the resumption of negotiations. Malacañang has consistently rejected the demand, saying the conflict in Mindanao is a domestic issue. Mr. Estrada suspended talks with the MILF on June 30 after the rebels refused to abandon their secessionist goal, stop terrorist attacks and lay down their arms. Rebel leaders have rejected the President's conditions which they said mounted to surrender. – With Perseus Echeminada, Edith Regalado, AP
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Diigo, October 12, 2000, The Philippine Star, 'Robot' sends surrender feelers,
Abu Sayyaf leader Ghalib Andang, alias Commander Robot, wants to yield, the military said yesterday. Military spokesman Brig. Gen. Generoso Senga said Andang, whose group is believed to be holding hostage three Malaysians and a Filipino, has sent surrender feelers.
This developed as the government called on Abu Sayyaf extremist guerrillas holding five hostages to surrender immediately without any conditions, warning that the military offensive will not stop until the terrorist group is destroyed.
There have been unconfirmed reports that Andang, leader of a large Abu Sayyaf group that also snatched 21 tourists and workers from the Malaysian island resort of Sipadan on April 23, plans to seek amnesty from the government before turning himself in.
Maj. Gen. Narciso Abaya, commander of Task Force Trident carrying out the assault, also urged the Abu Sayyaf gunmen to lay down their arms to avoid further bloodshed. "They should surrender, but they should not impose any conditions because no condition will be accepted," Executive Secretary Ronaldo Zamora said. "We are trying to persuade the Abu Sayyaf group to surrender peacefully. Of course, they will undergo due process of law. But at least, they will have the chance to live and lead new lives," Abaya said.
So far, 23 Abu Sayyaf fighters including one of their leaders have given themselves up to the authorities in Jolo, Sulu. The surrenderees were believed part of Andang’s force.
The Abu Sayyaf bandits were still holding three Malaysians, an American and a Filipino. Five Abu Sayyaf gunmen who surrendered earlier said their comrades were tired and hungry and were contemplating surrender.
The surrenderees also said they were already low on ammunition. Senga said the offensive will continue despite the series of surrenders. "Many of them (Abu Sayyaf) are very tired, afraid and hungry and suffering from low morale. They are feeling the pressure, but what hits them most is the psychological pressure knowing that the military will soon catch up with them," Senga said.
Military officials said some Abu fighters have also hidden their weapons and merged with the mainstream of society to escape the military assault. Government forces clashed three times with small bands of Abu Sayyaf gunmen on Monday in Talipao town, but there were no reports of casualties on either side.
On Tuesday, the troops encountered Abu Sayyaf gunmen in Barangay Lumapid, also in Talipao. The 30-minute fight came after 16 Abu Sayyaf rebels surrendered to the military. The military was also trying to verify reports that some of the Abu Sayyaf guerrillas have fled to nearby islands with their captives.
Sulu Gov. Abdusakur Tan said the fighting has forced some 82,000 people out of their homes in the mountains and jungles of the island province due to regular bombing runs and shelling on suspected Abu Sayyaf positions.
Military officials also said the troops have killed 129 guerrillas and captured 53 others since the offensive was launched Sept. 16. On the other hand, the government forces suffered five soldiers and three militiamen killed, and 16 troops wounded.
Armed Forces chief Gen. Angelo Reyes has admitted the military committed a blunder by predicting the assault would be completed within three days to one week. Reyes said they expected the Abu Sayyaf, who style themselves as freedom fighters struggling for an independent Islamic state in Mindanao, will put up a fierce resistance, and not flee to evade the attacking soldiers.
"There will be no amnesty for criminals, not even livelihood projects for them, if they refuse to give up," Abaya said. He said the only condition by the government is that if they surrender, they should also yield their firearms.
Meanwhile, Senga said the military will leave the decision to Malacañang whether to allow Malaysian emissaries to enter Sulu to negotiate for the release of the three Malaysian hostages seized last month from the island resort of Pandanan in Sabah. Senga also said the situation in Sulu has improved as more troops were deployed to track down the Abu Sayyaf following the recovery of two French journalists and 12 Filipino Christian preachers.
He estimated the remaining Abu Sayyaf holdouts at anywhere from 400 to 700 men. "Many of our troops were freed (from other rescue missions in Sulu) so we were able to rotate them faster and deploy them in areas where the remaining kidnappers were sighted," Senga said.
He also said the people of Sulu have become more supportive of the military operations against the Abu Sayyaf and that government forces there were able to develop sources in the communities who provide information on the bandits.
"The military should be given ample time so that we can perform our mission the best way we can and finish our job," Senga said. In another development, lawyer Oliver Lozano, legal counsel of Andang, asked Ombudsman Aniano Desierto to drop his planned investigation of Presidential Adviser Roberto Aventajado, chief government negotiator with the Abu Sayyaf who was accused of partaking of the ransom money paid for the release of the European and Malaysian hostages.
Lozano branded as "double hearsay" the charge hurled by former Abu Sayyaf hostage Alvin Flores that Aventajado had a share of the ransom money. In a letter to Desierto, Lozano said both Flores and Andang have no knowledge of the alleged ransom cut by Aventajado. As Andang’s lawyer, Lozano said he imposed one condition to the Abu Sayyaf leader: "We invoke due process to save your life. Do not violate it to destroy the honor of others." — Paolo Romero, Roel Pareño, AFP, AP
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Diigo, November 9, 2000, The Philippine Star, Abu Sayyaf camp seized, by Roel Pareño,
ZAMBOANGA CITY – Soldiers captured a stronghold of the Abu Sayyaf in heavy fighting in Indanan, Sulu, but did not find either of the two hostages, including an American, still being held by the extremist guerrillas, a military official said yesterday. Army Scout Rangers stormed the Abu Sayyaf camp last Tuesday and seized it after a 30-minute battle, Col. Hilario Atendido, spokesman of the Armed Forces' Southern Command said.
Atendido said the Scout Rangers, belonging to the 11th and 17th Scout Ranger Companies, suffered no casualties, but some of the rebels may have been killed or wounded and dragged away by their comrades as indicated by bloodstains left from their retreat into the forests in Indanan.
"This is the first time our troops discovered that the Abu Sayyaf has put up a steady camp," Atendido said. At the Abu Sayyaf camp, he said the Rangers found seven bunkers with running trenches and recovered combat packs, bandoliers, foodstuff, kitchen utensils and personal belongings.
Maj. Gen. Gregorio Camiling, Southcom chief, said an offensive against the Abu Sayyaf, launched Sept. 16 to rescue an earlier 19 hostages, will continue even after the two remaining captives are rescued. "We want to teach them a lesson," Camiling said. "They have no way out but to surrender."
Seventeen of the hostages have been recovered, leaving only American Jeffrey Schilling and Filipino dive master Roland Ullah still in Abu Sayyaf hands. Ullah, the longest-held hostage, was seized in April along with 20 other tourists and workers from the Malaysian resort of Sipadan and brought to Sulu. The rebels later abducted scores of other hostages, including Schilling, a 24-year-old Muslim convert from Oakland, California. The other Sipadan hostages were released in separate groups in exchange for more than $15 million in ransom, hostage negotiators said. — With AP
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Diigo, November 17, 2000, The Philippine Star, Seizure of Sayyaf properties mulled; 3 more die in clash, by Roel Pareño,
ZAMBOANGA CITY — The military might confiscate the housing units and other properties that leaders of the Abu Sayyaf have acquired through the millions of ransom they have amassed from the hostage taking in Sulu province.
Maj. Gen. Narciso Abaya said government lawyers are now looking into the legal process to seize the properties that have been positively pinpointed in Sulu. Abaya said, at least eight housing units were discovered by the military to have been newly acquired by the Abu Sayyaf leaders in Indanan town.
"We have to teach them a lesson that they will not earn any- thing from their kidnappings," Abaya added. He said that most of the villagers in Sulu are now helping the police and military authorities to locate all the properties which were acquired by the Abu Sayyaf during the hostage crisis in Sulu.
The Abu Sayyaf had demanded ransom for the release of at least 42 hostages, mostly foreign nationals, including foreign and local journalists covering the hostage drama. Military intelligence disclosed that the extremists group had amassed more than P300-million in ransom before the government forces launched massive offensive operations and rescued 17 of the 19 remaining captives.
Meanwhile, three more extremists were killed while many others, including four soldiers, were wounded when elite troops from the Army Scout Ranger and police forces stormed 90 fully armed Abu Sayyaf rebels led by Abu Jumdain alias Doctor Abu Wednesday dawn in the jungle of Indanan town, Sulu province.
Doctor Abu, the quack doctor of the Abu Sayyaf bandits who is a trained paramedic and associate of Ghalib Andang alias Commander Robot, escaped during the gunbattle. Doctor Abu was among the 17 prominent Abu Sayyaf leaders that raided last April 23 the Sipadan diving resort and held 21 hostages, mostly Europeans and Malaysian nationals whom they brought to Sulu, with two other resort employees who are Filipinos.
Sulu PNP provincial director Supt. Candido Casimiro said the fierce gunbattle broke out when elements from the 6th, 7th, and 8th Ranger Special companies and Jolo police pounced on the group of Doctor Abu who were holed out at the border of barangays Tanum and Karawan in Indanan town at about 5:30 a.m. Wednesday. Casimiro said the bandits retaliated but they were overpowered by the government forces who were in a vantage position.
Maj. Gen. Narciso Abaya said fierce fighting raged for two hours, resulting in the death of at least three Abu Sayyaf while many others were wounded but managed to escape along with Doctor Abu. Abaya said four soldiers were wounded in the encounter and were immediately flown to Camp Navarro General Hospital inside the Southern Command compound. He declined to give the names of the wounded soldiers, saying that their families have to be notified first.
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Diigo, December 1, 2000, The Philippine Star, Military: Drive vs Abu Sayyaf to go on during Ramadan, by Roel Pareño,
ZAMBOANGA CITY — The Abu Sayyaf will be fasting under the hail of bullets as the military declared it will not suspend operations against the extremist group during the observance of the holy month of Ramadan.
Instead, the military said there will be no let-up in the offensive against the Abu Sayyaf whose prominent commanders continue to elude pursuing government forces in the mountains of Sulu province. Col. Hilario Atendido, spokesman of the Armed Forces Southern Command, said the military is running after the Abu Sayyaf, the self-styled Islamic fighters but are considered terrorist group responsible for the series of kidnappings and attacks.
"We have a firm stand and order to flush out the Abu Sayyaf and neutralize the group even after the recovery of the remaining hostages," Atendido said. Atendido said the troops under the Task Force Trident are still running after more than a hundred bandits led by commanders Ghalib Andang alias Commander Robot, Mujib Susukan, Abu Jumdain alias Dr. Abu Pula, Nadjmi Sadalla alias Global, and Radullan Sahiron.
Sources from Sulu disclosed that Khadaffy Janjalani and his trusted henchman Abu Asmad Salayuddi alias Sabaya have already slipped out of the province along with their American captive Jeffrey Craig Edwards Schilling and landed in Sumisip, Basilan.
The informants disclosed that Janjalani and Sabaya, bringing Schilling along, boarded an outrigger fishing boat from Kaunayan, Patikul town, Sulu three weeks ago and proceeded to Basilan. Government troops continued to scour the coastal and mountain lair in Sumisip to ascertain the presence of Janjalani and Sabaya with their captive. However, the patrol led to the misencounter of government forces and the militiamen where its leader Abdul Midjal was killed last Sunday.— Roel Pareño
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