The Sulu Sultanate on Friday disputed casualty figures released by Malaysian security forces, saying its “royal army” in Sabah had suffered only 10 fatalities, with 10 others captured and four injured.
“The royal security forces only clashed with Malaysian police commandos once and that happened on March 1. That’s why we call it the ‘March 1 Massacre,’” the sultanate’s spokesman Abraham Idjirani said in an interview with radio station dzMM.
Idjirani based his figures on reports from the brother of Sultan Jamalul Kiram III, Agbimuddin Kiram, who led the sultanate’s 235-member force that took over a remote village in Lahad Datu town in Sabah Feb. 9.
Sulu Sultan Jamalul Kiram III and daughter Princess Jacel Kiram address reporters at the sultan’s house in Taguig City. MANNY PALMERO
Idjirani said the 10 Sulu fighters died during the firefight on March 1, but after the clash Malaysian security forces claimed the violence spread the following day to the town of Semporna and 18 others, purportedly Filipino gunmen, were killed.
In the latest assault on Wednesday, Malaysia said they killed 32 followers of the sultan, bringing the total fatalities to 60, including 52 militants. Eight Malaysian policemen were killed in skirmishes last weekend.
But Idjirani said Agbimudding dismissed the Malaysian reports as propaganda, and said some of the deaths might have been innocent Malaysian civilians. He said the sultanate did not suffer additional fatalities because they became extra careful after the March 1 assault.
Philippine Navy officials on Friday said they rescued 121 Filipinos on board two motor launches escaping Sabah toward Tawi-Tawi as Malaysian security forces intensified their attack against the sultan’s forces and rounded up their suspected Filipino supporters.
“The two-motor launch convoy was spotted by our BRP Sultan Kudarat patrol ship at around 6:30 a.m. some 10 nautical miles off Taja Island in Tawi-Tawi. They were coming from Sabah. Our patrolling personnel immediately assisted them and escorted them to Bongao,” Lt. Commander Gregory Gerald Fabic said.
The Navy deployed patrol ships in the territorial boundaries of the Philippines and Malaysia to block possible reinforcements of the Sultanate forces from Mindanao.
“All of them came from Sandakan, Sabah fleeing to Bongao, Tawi-Tawi. They are expected to arrive there tonight,” Fabic said.
The Foreign Affairs Department, meanwhile, asked Kuala Lumpur for access to the 10 followers of the sultan who had been captured last week in Sabah, to ensure their humane treatment.
Department spokesman Raul Hernandez said the request was in line with the Vienna Convention on consular relations.
Malaysian security forces launched the offensive to evict Kiram’s supporters who entered Sabah’s coastal town of Lahad Datu by boat to assert the sultanate’s claim on the territory.
Kiram, whose ancestors once owned several islands in Mindanao and Northern Borneo, purportedly sent his followers to Sabah to reclaim their homeland.
Kiram has declared a unilateral ceasefire but said his men will remain in defensive mode. Malaysia rejected the temporary truce and demanded unconditional surrender of the Filipinos.
Hernandez said the Philippine government will continue to explore all avenues to reach a peaceful solution to the crisis and avoid further loss of lives.
But as Malaysia rejected Kiram’s call to reciprocate their declaration of ceasefire, Hernandez said “it appears the “only option left” for the sultanate to save lives is “to lay down their arms.”
From the Palace, a presidential spokesman said President Benigno Aquino III would not ask Malaysia to reconsider its decision to reject the unilateral ceasefire declared by Kiram.
“The decision has already been made by the Malaysian government. Prime Minister Najib Razak has already spoken on that matter,” presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda said.
Lacierda said Mr. Aquino was looking into “possible avenues still” of letting Najib know that there were “ringleaders.”
“There were others who were deceived. We’ve seen in some reports in media, that some members of the Royal Sultanate forces were promised to be paid six hundred dollars and positions in the Sultanate. That is not being denied [by the Kirams],” he said.
He, however, denied that Mr. Aquino and Najib came to an agreement that the Kirams must “surrender without preconditions.”
The two leaders had the same position on the followers of the sultanate who remain holed up in Sabah.
“Our concern is for a win-win solution for them as well as for us, for them to be able to preserve their lives. And that’s the reason why we have asked them to lay down their arms and that continues up to now,” Lacierda said.
Lacierda said the most the government can do at this point is to seek full access to 10 Filipinos who are reportedly detained by Malaysian forces in Sabah.
Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono on Friday expressed hope that the problem in the Malaysian state of Sabah could be resolved soon after fighting there had already claimed several lives.
As a member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, Indonesia will encourage diplomatic means to resolve the problem, the head of state said.
“I will pursue a diplomatic approach in the near future, because it`s bad (if the incident is prolonged). (But) it does not mean that Indonesia will intervene in Malaysia`s internal affairs. No,” Yudhoyono said.
Also on Friday, two Mindanao-based bishops urged the President to soften his stand against the armed group in Sabah and help them solve the issue.
Jolo Bishop Angelito Lampon said that Aquino should open the lines of communications between the sultan and his followers and stop criticizing them.
Bishop Lampon chairs the Episcopal Commission on Interreligious Dialogue of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines.
“I know the government is trying to focus in Mindanao and its different community development projects but the claim of the Tausugs has long been there. We need a little attention,” the prelate said.
“The Aquino administration must do something to address the grievances of the Tausugs who are currently fighting against Malaysian security forces,” he added.
Cagayan De Oro Archbishop Antonio Ledesma added that he was hoping for a more compassionate response from the government due to the issue’s sensitivity.
“To Malacañang, they should handle the issue with sensitivity and with regard to the discipline of our Muslim brothers,” Ledesma said.
The church leaders feared that the escalating violence in Sabah might affect the ongoing peace talks in Mindanao between the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front.
“I hope this will not affect the Bangsamoro framework agreement because it’s so important for Mindanao today,” he said.
In an interview aired over the ANC cable news channel, Julkipli Wadi, dean of the University of the Philippines’ Islamic Studies said Southeast Asian countries should deploy peacekeeping forces to the area to stop the violence.
Wadi also said international institutions should help the parties involved in the crisis to abide by the United Nations’ call for the implementation of humanitarian law.
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has urged all parties to end violence and resolve the dispute through dialogue.
In Tawi-Tawi, Philippine National Police chief Director General Alan Purisima urged police to intensify their security efforts amid the ongoing conflict between the sultanate’s followers and Malaysian security forces.
“Your familiarity with every name and face, of family and blood relations, of every nook and cranny of the province will be essential in maintaining an atmosphere of calmness and sobriety in order to prevent this issue from being blown out of proportion,” said Purisima, who visited the Sultanate Royal Army camp, accompanied by local officials and respected elders led by Tawi-Tawi Gov. Sadikul Sahali.
Ambassador to Malaysia Eduardo Malaya said the Philippine embassy in Kuala Lumpur remained open despite a number of protests staged over the Sabah incursion.
“We have a job to do, particularly to extend humanitarian assistance to those who have been displaced or otherwise adversely affected by the incident, and to ensure humane treatment to those who have been wounded and captured,” Malaya said.
“The officers and staff of the Philippine embassy are working doubly hard and are focused on these tasks,” he added.
http://manilastandardtoday.com/2013/03/09/sultan-debunks-casualty-report/
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