US troops in Mindanao not leaving, just relocating – BAYAN

From GMA News (Jun 27): US troops in Mindanao not leaving, just relocating – BAYAN

The disbanding of the US Joint Special Operations Task Force Philippines in Mindanao after 12 years of operations does not mean that US forces are leaving the country, the broad militant alliance BAYAN said Friday, a day after Defense Secretary Voltair Gazmin announced the scaledown.

“The most likely scenario is that they will be relocating their operations in other parts of the country thanks to the de facto basing pact known as the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement,” said the statement by BAYAN’s Renato Reyes Jr.

BAYAN noted the JSOTFP deployment made the Philippines the "second front' in Bush "war on terror" in 2002. From then on, they have not left the Philippines and were engaged in an actual combat in Philippine soil.

“The deployment of the JSOTFP shows what is inherently wrong, anomalous and lopsided in the Visiting Forces Agreement. The US forces were allowed uninterupted and permanent presence in Mindanao for more than 12 years even without a basing treaty. They were no longer visitors, given the length of their stay. The US troops engaged in combat operations disguised as anti-terror training exercises, in clear violation of our Constitution. This is because the VFA does not even specify what kind of activities US forces may engage in while in the Philippines,” said the alliance.The JSOTFP clearly provided the template for the EDCA, according to Reyes.

“It made use of rotational troops to achieve permanent presence in the country, while utilizing exisitng Philippine facilities like Camp Navarro in Zamboanga.” BAYAN warned that with EDCA in place, the same practice can now be replicated anywhere in the country. The US Special Forces from Mindanao can now be stationed in other provinces to conduct combat operations, military exercises, surveillance and other activities. They can now also store or preposition their equipment anywhere in the country, through Philippine military bases.

To make things worse for the Filipinos, said BAYAN, the EDCA shifts the burden and social cost of hosting US troops to the Philippines and the Filipino people.

“In a shameless display of dependence to the US, Philippine defense officials quickly clarified that the US forces were not leaving the country and were just being scaled down.”

BAYAN vowed to continue opposing US military presence in the country, from Mindanao to any area that would be used under the EDCA.

On Thursday, Defense chief Gazmin said the work of Filipino troops had improved sharply since their US counterparts, primarily special forces, started rotating through the south around 2002, adding that the Americans had also learned "jungle warfare" from the Filipinos.

A DND statement said, "The task force will no longer exist, but many of the capabilities will remain," under what it termed an "augmentation team".
http://www.interaksyon.com/article/90026/us-troops-in-mindanao-not-leaving-just-relocating--bayan