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“Wipe them all out” clamor should await an independent probe on Maguindanao bloodbath

January 27, 2015

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 Just my opinion

By Raïssa Robles

At least 50 members of the Philippine National Police Special Action Forces and eight Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) fighters, were killed in a clash that nobody wants to detail. The clash took place way before dawn on Monday January 26 (although some say Saturday) and went on for hours – some news reports say for 11 hours.

Did President Benigno Aquino know of the commando operation that went horribly wrong and resulted in dozens of needless deaths? The commandos were US-trained, had night vision goggles and heavy weapons.

There were a total of 392 raiders out to arrest . But they had no air support, no army back-up, no extraction procedure to make a safe and quick get-away  presumably after collaring  Zulkifli bin Hir, alias “Marwan”, and a certain Abdul Basit Usman who were reportedly hiding in the area.

Interestingly, the Jemaah Islamiyah bomber Marwan had already been declared dead three years ago in February 2012 after the military dropped bombs in Sulu. I wonder if someone had collected the reward for Marwan’s death then.

No official has owned up to issuing the mission order for the operation.

In fact,  interior and local governments Secretary Mar Roxas said he wasn’t told that 392 members of the elite police Special Action Force (SAF) were going on a clandestine mission. Nor was the OIC of the Philippine National Police, Deputy Director General Leonardo Espina told. I wonder if the suspended PNP Director General Alan Purisima knew about it.

One explanation that some have offered is the attempted arrest of two terrorist bombers was a “freelance” operation – a form of moonlighting to earn the reward money being dangled by the US State Department for the neutralization of two of their most wanted men.

Fr. Eliseo Mercado, who has been actively involved in the peace process for over 20 years, suspects as much. He wrote on his Facebook account:

May they rest in the Lord. Now let us watch the investigation and there should be concrete actions to do justice…
1. Who authorized the said operation;
2. Who provided the intelligence report;
3. Why no coordination with the AFP that has operational control over the area;
4. Who gathered the SAF from all over yet failed to coordinate with 6th ID of the PA; and
5. What is the business of the 6 US Special Forces on the scene and helping on the identification of the casualties.. taking specimen for DNA testing.

The US is orchestrating this war against terror and our security forces have become the front liners by simply putting bounty. Marwan carries 5 million dollars bounty and Basit is one million or a total of 6 million dollars.
They thought it would be a walk in the park just like the case of Youssef when they collected a bounty of 15 million dollars…

Would the probe end in the usual ‘bury your dead; lick your wounds; and move on as if nothing happened..?

The probe has to be impartial and cannot be left to a “Board of Inquiry” inside the National Police Commission. We don’t want them to simply bury the bodies this time.

We need explanations. We need justice. We need people to take the rap for this tragedy, including an acknowledgment from the MILF leadership that they have to change their ways. They cannot just sit around and let a clash like this last hours.

I suggest that both the MILF chief and President Aquino be equipped with satellite phones dedicated to quickly calling each other to prevent such conflicts from spiraling into a slaughter. Unless they already have these and didn’t use them. Patay.

This time, the stakes are at an all time high. The peace process that successive Philippine governments have worked so hard to put in place is in danger of becoming the ultimate casualty.

There are some very old men – who should be wiser with age but are not – who are now clamoring for retaliation. Today I heard former Manila Mayor Alfredo Lim say on nationwide radio that the government should “retaliate” for the deaths of the SAF personnel and scuttle the peace agreement to teach the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) a lesson.

Today I also heard Lim’s successor, Manila Mayor Joseph Estrada warn ABS-CBN anchor Karen Davila that “the MILF cannot be trusted” and say “we have to wage war to earn peace.” Estrada recounted that when he was the President, “Six children were burned to death and two soldiers were beheaded. That is the time I put on my fatigue uniform. I went to Kauswagan. I looked at the children and the soldiers and that was when I declared all out war.”
Now I understand why under Lim’s watch the Mendiola massacre happened and the Luneta bus hostage tragedy took place.

As for Mayor Estrada, when Karen asked him why he chose to declare an all out war on the Muslim rebels but remained soft on the communist rebels, Estrada explained that it was because the communists merely wanted to overthrow the government but the Muslims wanted to dismember the country and he was against the latter. Ironically for Estrada, it was the left that helped overthrow him from the presidency.

The trouble with Estrada and Lim’s attitude is that the Muslims can also use the same justification. I remember that following the Philippine government’s signing of the 1996 peace agreement with the Moro National Liberation Front, a deadly war with the MILF was triggered by an army cannon firing into a rebel camp and killing a little girl. That girl should have been married with children by now if not for the Mindanao conflict.

I’ve also noticed that Monday’s killings have raised to the surface some very deep-seated anti-Muslim sentiments among the predominantly Christian population. I think we have been thoroughly brainwashed by the Spanish colonizers even though we aren’t aware of it. And part of the peace process would be acknowledging this and finding ways to bridge this.

Personally, my attitude is that Muslims are Filipinos and if you want them not to secede you must treat them – not as an other-people – but as Filipinos.

In closing, I’d like to share a short piece that fellow journalist Dana Batnag wrote in the aftermath of the tragedy. Like me, Dana is tired of covering a seemingly endless conflict. I’m sharing it with her permission:

“I’m at the point of wondering if we should have bombings all over the country and skirmishes every day and in every corner. If we should say goodbye to our loved ones every morning, wondering if they will be back. If we should have all our possessions packed in a bag, ready to go at a moment’s notice. If we should always be on alert for the sound of fighting, so that we can rush to the nearest evacuation center.

We have peace, now, but it is a temporary peace. So many people I know, rational, reasonable people, are willing to sacrifice the peace talks now, without finding out more what led to the killing in the first place. So many are asking for blood, instead of facts.

Let us have war, if you must. But may that war come to your doorsteps first. And when thousands die, I will remember your names and point my finger at you and say, as you weep for your homes and your loved ones and the peace that once was, YOU WANTED THIS.”

Tagged With: alias “Marwan”, Mar Roxas, Philippine National Police Special Action Forces, Zulkifli bin Hir

Comments

  1. noni says

    February 6, 2015 at 6:48 AM

    can i share a screenshot of Dana Batnag’s piece you shared in this article?

    • raissa says

      February 6, 2015 at 6:50 AM

      sure, but pls credit it yo Dana of Jiji Press

  2. duquemarino says

    January 29, 2015 at 2:31 PM

    The carnage in Mamasapano, Maguindanao was a product of a covert operations in the guise of serving an arrest warrant to two high value targets. Just like in the movies, the success of a covert operation is credited to the powers that be. But if it fails, words like “I was not aware,” “I was not informed,” and even denials of participation come out.

    Now, the friction between the Balay and Samar factions is getting intense, at the expense of the president and the country.

    Why was Mar Roxas kept out of the loop and why was a suspended police chief took hand in that covert operations (as alleged in news reports).

    On the other hand, the MILF is not true to their words. News came out that the high value target/s was/were housed at the house of an imam in MILF territory.

    Quo Vadis, Philippines?

    • sykes says

      January 30, 2015 at 2:41 AM

      mukhang may gustong umepal na opisyal. di ko lang alam kung civilian o naka-uniform.

      i remember the Burnham case. natunton yun nung mga sundalong tumutugis sa kanila. this particular troop were tasked from the start to that mission. they were at an elevated area and can see the terrorists with their hostages from an excellent vantage point.

      tinawag sa taas kung pwede nang mag-proceed. may heneral na umepal at nagsabing hintayin ang troops nya. yun ang umatake kaya ayun ang nangyari. may namatay na hostage.

  3. baycas says

    January 29, 2015 at 9:53 AM

    Lei Alviz (GMA-7): Good evening, sir. Sir, categorical answer lang po siguro. May go-signal po ba ninyo ‘yung operasyon po o wala?

    PRESIDENT AQUINO: “Sir, can we proceed with the mission?” I don’t think I was ever asked that question. At the same token, parang it’s a rhetorical question, ‘di ba, Lei? ‘Yung ‘pwede ho ba naming hulihin itong pinapahuli ng korte?’ Pwede ko bang sagutin na ‘hindi’

    Ms. Alviz: So hindi po, sir, kailangan po ng go-signal po ng Pangulo?

    PRESIDENT AQUINO: If they will have to wait for me with every action, then they will have to contend with all the other things that are occupying my attention, kailan kaya natin mahuhuli ‘yung kriminal?

    http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/story/419174/news/nation/full-text-transcript-of-pnoy-s-news-conference-on-the-mamasapano-incident

    • baycas says

      January 29, 2015 at 9:56 AM

      (Quoted text from the transcript particularly LEI ALVIZ’s request for a categorical answer from PNoy is still awaiting moderation. One can read it from here http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/story/419174/news/nation/full-text-transcript-of-pnoy-s-news-conference-on-the-mamasapano-incident )

  4. vander anievas says

    January 29, 2015 at 9:42 AM

    break muna…:)
    kain tayo sa paborito kong kainan.
    Banay-Banay eatery in Lipa. bago kumaliwa sa San Jose proper..
    try maliputo, sinigang or inihaw!
    many recipes to choose from.

  5. caliphman says

    January 29, 2015 at 9:07 AM

    http://allpinoynews.com/what-really-happened-according-to-milf-afp-etc/

    Versions of the saf massacre from the 3 major parties involved. All agree initial firefight was with Milf when SAF raided nipa huts of brigade commander/imam where the terrorists were sheltering. Of course, this and seizing the leader’s guest makes the MILF, his clan, and all his followers run amuck. Toss in poor intelligence along with bad planning, and of course no coordination and weak leadership as factors that overwhelmed bravery, individual physical skills, and unique training culminating in the one sided blood bath. As it turns out, the numbers against the SAF were not much different since there were almost 400 on each side initially. However the main SAF force guarding the escape route found themselves trapped in the open beside a river and exposed to withering fire from rebels hiding in the tall grass and behind trees. Asked in an interview what might not have gone according to plan (tactical), the sacked SAF commander says all the tactical planning was delegated down to his team leaders. Really?

    • JoeC says

      January 29, 2015 at 11:00 AM

      This is a tragic example of what happens in a military operation when there is poor leadership, planning and intelligence from PNoy on down to ground commanders. Also, the SAF was outgunned with the MILF having specially developed, 50 caliber sniper rifles which are identifiable in the stock video footage of the MILF shown by ABS-CBN.

      • JoeC says

        January 29, 2015 at 3:22 PM

        In the right hands, this weapon is lethal and accurate at one kilometer distance, and no Kevlar helmet or vest will stop this bullet. The SAF were pinned down in open fields and could be picked off one-at-a-time with this weapon. What is sad and needs explanation is why did the MILF continue to kill SAF over a period of several hours in this manner while a cease fire was supposed to be in place?

« Older Comments
First they came for the Socialists, and I did not speak out— Because I was not a Socialist Then they came fof the Trade Unionists, and I did not out speak out— Because I was not a Trade Unionist. Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out— Because I was not a Jew. Then they came for me— And there was no one left to speak for me. —Martin Niemöller (1892-1984)

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