Military readies 24/7 campaign vs Abu Sayyaf: incoming AFP chief Visaya

From InterAksyon (Jun 28): Military readies 24/7 campaign vs Abu Sayyaf: incoming AFP chief Visaya

The campaign to eliminate the Abu Sayyaf menace in Sulu and Basilan will be implemented 24/7 to hunt down the bandits but this will go along with community development works with the help of affected local government units, said incoming Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Chief of Staff Lieutenant General Ricardo Visaya.

In an ambush interview late Monday afternoon at Camp Aguinaldo, Visaya told reporters a comprehensive plan has been readied for implementation right after he assumes the post of military chief on July 1.

He said President-elect Rodrigo Duterte will be having his first command conference as commander-in-chief after the turnover of command for his operational guidance to the AFP.

“In our military operations, we’ve to separate the terrorists from the civilian communities in order to cut off their logistics and contain them in areas conducive for battle where there would be no civilian collaterals. Once that separation is done we’ve to build safety measures to make sure these terrorists don’t have a chance to return and mingle or blend again into the community for cover,” Visaya said.

Taking the cue from Duterte’s position on the problem by giving the terrorists two options, “talk or fight,” Visaya said that while the use of force is still the most viable instrument to eliminate armed threat groups there is also room for change and peaceful solution to Muslim radicalism in Mindanao.

“For example in Sulu, we’ve have enough soldiers already deployed there and we don’t have to deploy more. As of now, up to 11 battalions or roughly 5,500 soldiers are already there, more than enough against the ASG which according to the latest report has only 500 or a thousand or more maybe. All we’ve to do is craft a practical and doable plan in a comprehensive manner on how to deal with the Abu Sayyaf problem, and we’ve already that plan,” he said.

First time

This is the first time that a high-ranking military general who is set to take the military top post gave a more convincing and realistic estimate about the present strength of the ASG in contrast to the more or less 300 estimate of the current and previous military leaderships.

Visaya said the campaign to end the ASG menace in Basilan and Sulu “is not all about bomb and bullets” but also bringing economic development into the communities that are prone to recruitment to rebellion or Muslim radicalism because of poverty.

“We’ve to support and help the government bring social services to the people and clear affected areas from security threat groups in order for economic development to come in for the communities. We fight and eliminate threat groups in our communities, that we will do, but we also help and support the government’s fight against poverty besetting our people,” the general said.

He said what keeps the military from taking the “killer blow” against the ASG is because of civilian support for them.

“Forget about the problem of the terrain because that is part of our training in the military, to have mastery of the terrain in order to eliminate the enemy. Our biggest dilemma is the support being given by civilians to the activities of the ASG because these terrorists are either family members or relatives of civilians living in the community. As I told you a while ago, this is the real challenge how to defeat the Abu Sayyaf and I think this is the context of the commander-in-chief when he laid down two options for the ASG: talk or fight,” Visaya said.

Pressed if that means Duterte has veered away from the government policy of “no negotiation with terrorists,” Visaya said he doesn’t want to speculate on the matter.

“I can’t talk about that. We will wait for the guidance of our commander-in-chief. He will be presiding over our command conference right after the turnover of command on July 1,” Visaya said.

Meanwhile, Visaya said part of the comprehensive plan is the rescue of all the hostages from the hands of the ASG.

“As much as possible, we’ve to continue efforts to rescue all the hostages. We also support other channels such as negotiation without ransom for their safe release,” he said.

On April 26, the ASG beheaded John Ridsdel, a Canadian, after his family failed to deliver the demand for P300 million ransom for his safe release. This was followed by the beheading on June 13 of Robert Hall, also a Canadian, because the P300 million ransom was not delivered.

But recently, Marites Flor, Filipina girlfriend of Hall, was released by the ASG and incoming Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace process (OPAPP) claimed no ransom money was paid.

Still in the hands of ASG is Kjartan Sekkingstad, a Norwegian.

All the four victims were abducted in September last year by armed men at a resort in the Island Garden City of Samal (IGACOS) and brought to Sulu.

Aside from Flor and Sekkingstad, 5 to 6 kidnap victims, including Dutch bird watcher Elwood Horn, are still in the hands of the ASG.

http://interaksyon.com/article/129652/military-readies-247-campaign-vs-abu-sayyaf-incoming-afp-chief-visaya