SENATORS slammed on Thursday the “nonchalant” stance taken by government peace negotiators Marvic Leonen and Ging Deles over the death of 19 soldiers attacked by Moro rebels in Basilan on Tuesday
An irate Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile suggested a suspension of the peace talks with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front until the MILF leadership turns over “those responsible for the murder of our soldiers.”
“They better break it up and conduct an operation unless the MILF will surrender those people who committed that. Imposible na that was not cleared with the hierarchy of the MILF. If it was not cleared, then it is the duty of MILF to run after these renegade members of the MILF. If they are really sincere in negotiating peace with the Republic,” Enrile told Senate reporters.
“Are we willing to be fooled by these people and sacrifice the lives of our soldiers?”
Reacting to statements by Leonen and Deles that the deadly attack was an “isolated incident” that should not deter holding of peace talks with the MILF, Enrile asserted that there can be no peace negotiations “when they [MILF] are engaging us in combat. There is a cease-fire and they are engaging us in combat, what peace process are you talking about?”
Former Senate President Aquilino Pimentel Jr. said: “The lives of 19 soldiers were unnecessarily snuffed out for something that could have been prevented. There is supposed to be a buffer force between the Armed Forces and the rebel Muslim group and that buffer force is supposed to be led by Malaysia.”
Conflict of interest
PIMENTEL pointed out that this could be a fatal flaw in the peace process. “I think the worst choice that we can have is to get Malaysia involved as a peacekeeping force on behalf of the OIC because Malaysia has definite interests that conflict with the interest of our country.”
Pimentel cited, for instance, the Sabah issue which he described as “a simmering problem between the Philippines and Malaysia.”
“Second, there are Malaysian interest eyeing the development of marsh lands in the Cotabato area. They are training in Sabah which is jurisdictionally as of now under the administration of Malaysia. Doon sila nag-training nung una. I think that if our excuse is that we need a Muslim country that belongs to Southeast Asia as sort of a peacekeeping force para hindi magkabakbakan ang puwersa ng gobyerno at ng mga Muslim rebels, Indonesia would be the better choice.”
Historically, Pimentel added, “Indonesia has always tried to discourage the infiltration of fighters, as well as sending of arms over to the Muslim rebels but not Malaysia. Malaysia does not have that reputation.”
In a separate statement, Sen. Francis Escudero explained that while he shared the determination of the government peace negotiators to pursue talks with the MILF, the peace panel should not gloss over the incident.
“I do not agree with the nonchalant manner our own negotiators dismissed the incident as simply ‘isolated’. Nineteen of our soldiers were killed. That’s 19 widows and countless children who will grow up without their fathers who were out there to serve the country and our people,” Escudero said.
He recalled that Leonen, chairman of the government peace panel, said in a statement that, “We are certain that this is an isolated incident. This armed confrontation was not intended by both government and MILF.” Government representatives to the peace negotiations are preparing to meet their MILF counterparts next month.
At the very least, Escudero said, government negotiators should come out strongly against these killings. “It is imperative for our negotiators to pursue efforts to finally find peace in Mindanao. But they should also give equal importance to the lost lives of our soldiers who were vital instruments in protecting our people from rogue elements,” he pointed out.
At the same time, Escudero said, “I commend our soldiers for their gallantry and bravery and for fighting for our freedom. I want to know if our soldiers were killed in a legitimate encounter or were they again butchered like pigs like what happened with our five Marines.”
2 PMA graduates among fatalities
TWO graduates from the Philippine Military Academy (PMA) and two from the Armed Forces Officers Candidate School (OCS) were among those killed in Tuesday’s 10-hour firefight against joint forces of the MILF and Abu Sayyaf Group in Al-Barka, Basilan.
The military identified the two PMA graduates as 1Lt. Vladimir Maninang of Class 2007 and 2Lt. Jose Delfin Khe of Class 2010, while the two others from the OCS were 1Lts. Colt Alsiyao and Frank Junder Caminos.
The other fatalities include Sgts. Ronald Santa Rita and Bonifacio Mabalot; Cpl. Roderick Cabanua; Pfcs. Mark Ted Quiban, Reny Arciag, Romel Ondovilla, Roberto Recafranca, Jones Regor Robert Miguel, Jordan Olivar, Emerson Tugas, Ervin Dequito and Jordan Magno; and Pvt. Garry Colonia.
Wounded were 1Lt. Joy Boliguen; 2Lt. Fidel Susarno; Pfcs. Jeff Sherwin Domingo, Alex Recafranca, Benjamin Marquez, Arnel Balili, Mario Flora, Joseph Muyco, Jestoni Layson, Renante Malinao, Michael Natividad and Rossel Alsaga; and Pvts. Leo Boniol and Toney Rey Espenida.
The soldiers were members of the 13th and 19th Special Forces Companies of the Army who figured in the firefight against more than 400 armed men in Sitio Bakisung, Barangay Cambug, Al Barka.
Natividad was the last missing soldier and was recovered alive by search-and-rescue teams sent by the 4th Scout Ranger Battalion and the 4th Special Operations Battalion. He was immediately brought to the military hospital in Zamboanga City.
“Natividad swam for his life in a swamp. He was wounded and very weak when recovered by the soldiers,” a military spokesman said.
The Army information office said Scout Rangers found Natividad in a swamp near the scene of the gun battle.
MILF asks IMT to investigate
THE MILF has requested the International Monitoring Team (IMT) to immediately conduct an investigation on the gun battles in Al Barka, Basilan, that have reportedly spread to Payaw, Zamboanga Sibugay, on Thursday morning.
The MILF’s call came amid the Army’s allegation that the Moro front is “coddling terrorists,” an accusation immediately belied by chief peace negotiator Mohagher Iqbal, who described the military’s claim as “passé” and “overused.”
Bantay Cease-fire, an independent truce monitor, said it was still validating reports that more than 40 soldiers were killed in the fierce 10-hour gun battle on Tuesday and was reportedly still going on as of this writing.
Iqbal claimed that more than 60 soldiers attacked an MILF position in Al Barka and corroborated the Bantay Cease-fire initial report that said around 40 soldiers were killed in the encounter.
Reports of around 2,000 families evacuating to safer places was also being validated by the Bantay Cease-fire.
Iqbal said the request the MILF sent to the IMT has yet to wait for the “concurrence” of the government before the IMT, led by Maj. Gen. Dato’ Mahdi bin Yusop, could act on it.
The spread of the fighting in Zamboanga Sibugay, Iqbal said, has all the more “reduced the trust and confidence” of the government and MILF peace negotiators, who are supposed to meet next month following an impasse in the negotiation caused by the so-called heaven and earth gap between the respective proposals of both camps.
In July of 2007, 12 soldiers were also killed and beheaded in Al Barka, Basilan, which was immediately investigated by a Malacañang-organized independent fact-finding commission composed of government, MILF and Bantay Cease-fire representatives.
Death of 19 a ‘supreme sacrifice’
MILITARY officials said on Thursday the death of 19 soldiers in Basilan was part of its “supreme sacrifice” in upholding the primacy of the peace process even though there was glaring violation of the cease-fire agreement on the part of the MILF.
“What happened was a very unfortunate incident and it was a supreme sacrifice for the primacy of peace. There was an ongoing investigation and we’re waiting for results from our Coordinating Committee on the Cessation of Hostilities (CCCH). Suspending the cease-fire remains to be resolved by higher headquarters and we are waiting for signal,” Col. Dickson Hermoso, military affairs chief of the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process (Opapp), said in a press briefing in Camp Aguinaldo.
Reportedly, the idea of suspending the cease-fire was aired by Liberal Party Rep. Rodolfo Biazon of Muntinlupa City, chairman of the Committee on National Defense of the House of Representatives.
Even the Army spokesman, Col. Antonio Parlade Jr., personally recommended the suspension of the peace negotiations.
Hermoso also said the statement of chief government negotiator Leonen who said the Basilan incident was an “encounter” has already been corrected.
The Armed Forces spokesman, Col. Arnulfo Marcelo Burgos Jr., said the military is already preparing to file a protest before the joint CCCH of the government and the MILF.
“We’re lodging a strong protest before the joint CCCH for deliberate violation of the cease-fire by the MILF…for harboring criminals and terrorists. We will also file murder and frustrated murder charges before a regular court against the perpetrators,” Burgos said.
Burgos said 11 of the fatalities will be brought on Friday to the Army Headquarters in Fort Bonifacio, Taguig City, to be given full military honors.
The troops engaged more than 400 MILF gunmen led by Dan Laksaw Asnawi and Abu Sayyaf subleader Nurhassan Jamiri.
Asnawi was among the 31 fugitives who bolted from the Basilan provincial jail in December 2009. He was also involved in the beheading of 14 Marines in Al Barka in 2007.
Hermoso reiterated that the place of the firefight is not a designated Area of Temporary Stay for MILF forces contrary to claim by the MILF leadership and that the government troops were in the area to respond to information about the presence of an armed group.
(With Z. Solmerin and R. Elusfa)
