Army out to re-establish presence, control in Sulu

From the Manila Standard Today (Oct 21): Army out to re-establish presence, control in Sulu

PRESIDENT Benigno Aquino III on Monday ordered non-stop pursuit operations against the Abu Sayyaf Group—even as the military said it will preposition troops in Sulu to re-establish its presence there after eight years of absence in the province.

Aquino said the Abu Sayyaf must not be given any safe areas that would allow them to evade the law.

“The ASG has been a scourge for too long now. It affects our relationships with various neighboring states,” he said.

“It is time that the state engages in non-stop pursuit operations against them. There should be no safe areas for the ASG.”

Aquino also insisted that the government did not pay any ransom to free German hostages Viktor Stefan Okonek, 71, and Henrike Dielen, 55, who were released by the Abu Sayyaf on the night of Oct. 17.

“Nothing came from the Office of the President. I can assure you that. I didn’t authorize anything from the Office of the President,” Aquino said.

But he did not say if money from non-government sources was released to the Abu Sayyaf to free the Germans.

On Sunday, Communications Secretary Sonny Coloma insisted that the German hostages were released due to the intense pressure exerted by the military on the Abu Sayyaf.

The group claims it released the hostages after receiving a P250-million ransom.
Col. Allan Arrojado, the Army’s commander in Sulu and who is in charge of the pursuit operations against the Abu Sayyaf, said the Army had been absent in Sulu for eight years, and that allowed the bandits to become bolder.

Soldiers were first deployed in Sulu, Basilan and Tawi-Tawi in 1969 to neutralize the New People’s Army, the Islamic rebels and bandits, the Moro National Liberation Front, the Moro Islamic Liberation Front and the Abu Sayyaf.

Arrojado said patience and perseverance would be necessary to defeat the Abu Sayyaf following the seizure of three of their camps.

“The positive side of the military’s efforts is that we have intruded into their controlled areas that have not been patrolled over the years,” Arrojado said.

The Army sent troops to Sulu to help the Marines neutralize the terrorist groups linked to Al Qaeda and the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria.

Armed Forces Chief Gregorio Catapang said he was confident his soldiers would intercept the fleeing Abu Sayyaf gunmen.

“Surely we will catch up with them,” he said.

Col. Harold Cabunoc, head of the Public Affairs Office, said there was no time line in the pursuit of the Abu Sayyaf.

“The objective is to bring them to justice,” he said.

But he said the pursuing troops were having a hard time catching up with the bandits as they feared the Abu Sayyaf could have laid land mines and other explosive devices to slow down their pursuers.

http://manilastandardtoday.com/2014/10/21/army-out-to-re-establish-presence-control-in-sulu-2/