WATCH: New ISIS Philippines Video Shows Execution of 3 Men

From Heavy (Jun 21): WATCH: New ISIS Philippines Video Shows Execution of 3 Men    

[WARNING GRAPHIC VIDEO FOLLOWS]

WATCH: New ISIS Philippines Video Shows Execution of 3 Men

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In a new video purportedly released by the Islamic State titled “The Solid Structure,” ISIS releases its first propaganda snuff film from Mindanao, Philippines. The video proclaims the island in the Philippines as an official “wilayat,” or state of ISIS, and tells Asian Islamists that if they can’t get to Iraq or Syria, to go there.

Also notable in the video is that the execution portion appears to have been filmed in front of a green screen.

Mindanao had already included the unofficial affiliate of the Islamic State called “Abu Sayyaf.” According to The International Business Times, senior Abu Sayyaf leader Isnilon Hapilon and other masked men pledged their allegiance to ISIS in a summer of 2014 video.

Islam is the Philippines’ second largest religion after Catholicism. It is mainly practiced in the southernmost island of the three island nation, called Mindanao.

Mindanao is an autonomous region of the Philippines, mainly due to religious tension with the other majority Catholic islands. Some extremists there are attempting to overthrow the government and join the Islamic State’s “caliphate.” Abu Sayyaf is one of them.

http://heavy.com/news/2016/06/new-isis-islamic-state-daesh-news-pictures-videos-official-new-philippines-wilayat-announcement-execution-video-mp4-download/

3 Abu Sayyaf members killed, Duterte promises 'day of reckoning'

From CNN Philippines (Jun 22): 3 Abu Sayyaf members killed, Duterte promises 'day of reckoning'



As President-elect Rodrigo Duterte vowed to make the Abu Sayyaf pay for their crimes, three members of the group were killed in a clash with the soldiers in Sulu.

At least three Abu Sayyaf fighters have been killed and 10 others were wounded in a clash with government troops in Sulu, the military said Wednesday.

Some 16 soldiers were also wounded in the fighting in Patikul town, Maj. Filemon Tan, spokesman for the military’s Western Mindanao Command said in a statement.

Tan said troops from the 32nd Infantry Battalion encountered around 200 ASG gunmen in Sitio Bud Duwa Bayho, Barangay Pansul Tuesday afternoon, triggering a gun battle that lasted an hour and a half.



The wounded soldiers were taken to a hospital in Busbus, Jolo, he said.

Related: Basilan clash: What we know so far

Addressing a meeting of business leaders in Davao City also on Tuesday, President-elect Rodrigo Duterte said there will soon be a “day of reckoning” with the Abu Sayyaf and promised to dismantle the group.

“I cannot do it just immediately,” Duterte told a meeting of businessmen in Davao City. “But there will be a time, there will be a reckoning. And when it comes, I will just say 'Surrender unconditionally. Release all prisoners, hostages or we fight’.”

The group has gained notoriety for ransom kidnappings, beheading hostages and bombings.

Read: Who are the Abu Sayyaf?

The Abu Sayyaf beheaded Canadian hostages Robert Hall and John Ridsdel after no ransom was paid to spare their lives. Hall and Ridsel were abducted from a resort on Samal Island in September 2015 along with Norwegian Kjartan Sekkingstad and Filipina Tess Flor. Sekkingstad and Flor are still being held by the terror group.

Related: PH gov't condemns ‘brutal and senseless’ murder of ASG hostage

The Abu Sayyaf are also holding three other hostages.

“AFP continues to intensify the conduct of focused military operations in Sulu to pin down the Abu Sayyaf Group and rescue the remaining hostages,” Tan said.

http://cnnphilippines.com/regional/2016/06/22/3-Abu-Sayyaf-members-killed-Duterte-day-of-reckoning.html

Abu Sayyaf in Basilan recruiting new members using IS tag - source

From InterAksyon (Jun 22): Abu Sayyaf in Basilan recruiting new members using IS tag - source



Abu Sayyaf sub-leader Isnilon Hapilon is seen swearing allegiance to the Islamic State in this image grabbed from video posted on the internet

A Basilan-based faction of the Abu Sayyaf has reportedly begun recruiting new members using the name of the Islamic State, a police intelligence source said.

“The recruitment of new members under the name of (IS) is centered in the hinterland villages in the towns of Tipo-Tipo and Al-Barka, both in Basilan,” and is undertaken by the group of Abu Sayyaf sub-leader Isnilon Hapilon, said the source, an officer based in Camp Crame who insists on being identified only as Pokemon and has provided accurate information on the extremists in the past.

In 2014, a video was posted on the internet of Isnilon leading his men in swearing allegiance to IS.

Pokemon said Isnilon’s band appears to be awash in cash, indicating they may have their own source of funds aside from the ransoms for victims of the Abu Sayyaf’s frequent kidnappings.

“They have already recruited at least 20 new members, mostly belonging to the Yakan” tribe, Pokemon said.

“They are promising their new recruits the amount of P5,000 and an M-16 rifle per meeting ... and so far they have (held) three meetings,” he added, citing information he said was relayed by inside informants.

The Abu Sayyaf used to be linked to Al-Qaeda, the terror network founded by Osama bin Laden, but lately has been said to identify more with IS.

Other armed groups reported to have pledged allegiance to IS are the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters, which broke away from the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, and the Rajah Solaiman Movement, which also used to be associated with Al-Qaeda.

http://interaksyon.com/article/129401/abu-sayyaf-in-basilan-recruiting-new-members-using-is-tag---source

Opinion: Duterte and the CPP-NPA protection racket

Opinion piece from the Ad Lib column by Greg B. Macabenta in the Business World (Jun 21): Duterte and the CPP-NPA protection racket

If taxes are to be collected only by the government, then Rodrigo Duterte, incoming president of the Republic of the Philippines, actually acknowledges the existence of another government within the country: the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army. You see, the CPP-NPA also collects “taxes” from businesses and Duterte has publicly urged companies operating in Davao province and the rest of Mindanao to pay this additional imposition on them, on top of what they pay the Bureau of Internal Revenue. It may be assumed that this Duterte Doctrine will be applied nationally when he assumes the presidency.

We know that if we don’t pay taxes to the government, we’ll find ourselves in trouble, pay a hefty fine, see our earnings garnished or even go to jail. What about the “taxes” -- referred to as “revolutionary taxes” -- imposed by the CPP-NPA? How much is collected and what are the consequences if a business doesn’t come across?

The following is a report on CPP-NPA “taxation” in Davao province from a 2011 Asia Report 2011 by the International Crisis Group entitled, “The Communist Insurgency in the Philippines, Tactics and Talks”:

“The NPA obtains significant amounts of money from the Davao region. The military estimates that the NPA collected P39.5 million ($890,000) there in 2010, nearly half of the P95.5 million ($2.15 million) it raised from revolutionary taxes throughout the country during the year. Most of the funds are collected in the Compostela Valley, where there are many mines.

“In 2009, the military estimated that the province could provide the group with as much as P20 million ($460,000) per month. This is sufficient for guerrillas to allocate surplus funds for their dependents, a luxury units elsewhere cannot afford. The NPA can raise large amounts from the Compostela Valley because of its relationship with small-scale miners. These men resist government efforts to establish larger mines, instead turning to the NPA, which approves the opening of small-scale operations. NPA regulars may even be mining themselves. The CPP, while officially opposing destruction of the environment, considers such limited extraction acceptable as it is not used for export. The NPA targets small businesses as well. The owner of a fleet of trucks transporting gravel and sand from a quarry in the Davao area pays P5,000 ($115) per year for each truck. The NPA also levied a tax of four pesos (ten cents) per kilogram on banana vendors in New Bataan in the Compostela Valley, until the military increased its presence. Other businesses may be taxed a percentage of their total profits.

“In December 2010, seven large mining companies in Caraga threatened to pull out of the region over NPA ‘taxes’, underscoring how control over resources is at stake in the conflict. According to the 4th infantry division, the NPA has increased tax levied on mining companies from P15 million ($340,000) to P20 million ($450,000) a month. The group has also demanded the firms supply computers, radios and guns...

“Dole Food Company’s banana plantations in Surigao del Sur were regularly attacked in 2010. On 26 November, the NPA destroyed around 22,000 plants, with an estimated value of $250,000 in Tago town. Further south in the same province, the NPA cut down around 1,600 plants in Barobo town on 13 December. Both areas had been attacked earlier in the year as well. The NPA argues that because firms such as Dole exploit the region’s resources and people, its attacks are justified.”

Of course, the CPP-NPA will always find a way to “justify” the “taxation” and the “penalties.” In fact, as reported by the media, only recently, Fidel Agcaoili, spokesman of the National Democratic Front (NDF) declared in a forum at the Ateneo de Davao University, “You have to understand [that] revolutionary movements, meron silang political power operating in the countryside and elsewhere. And they have the right, [as] any state... they have the right to impose tax on any form of business that operates within its own territory.”

To support his rationale, Agcaoili added: “Di ba sabi ni President Duterte, ‘Bayaran na lang ninyo!’ Siya nagsabi noon, hindi ako (Wasn’t it President Duterte who said : ‘Just pay it!’ He said that, not me).”

Agcaoili was referring to a statement Duterte made at a trade expo in Davao City in 2013. In that speech, Duterte attempted to rationalize his being “cooperative” with the CPP-NPA: “Crimes I can deal with it. But with the revolutionary (groups), I give it to the (national) government.”

Duterte made that statement as mayor of Davao City. In effect, he admitted that the problem was much bigger than his capabilities as a local executive. But what happens now that Duterte is about to take over the reins of the national government? How will he deal with the situation?

Or is it possible that the much-feared crime fighter -- the one who has vowed to get rid of criminality in six months from his assumption of the presidency -- does not consider “revolutionary” taxation a crime?

How different is the CPP-NPA “revolutionary tax” from the operations of the Mafia in the US and in Sicily, where 80% of businesses reportedly pay “pizzo” or protection money to the gangsters? And how different is the CPP-NPA from the drug cartels in Ciudad Juarez in Mexico which, according to Wikipedia, collect protection money from businesses with the threat of “burning down the business, kidnapping the owners or killing everyone inside with assault rifles.”

To quote a comic paraphrasing Juliet’s line in Romeo and Juliet: “Utot by any other name would smell bantot.” (Fart by any other name would still stink). You can say that about the CPP-NPA “revolutionary tax.” The name is simply an attempt to deodorize what, in fact, is a bigtime protection racket.

Wikipedia adds: “Protection rackets tend to appear in markets where the police and judiciary cannot be counted on to provide legal protection, either because of incompetence (as in weak or failed states) or illegality (black markets).”

In a media report, Lt. Gen. Ricardo Visaya, the outgoing chief of the Southern Luzon Command of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, and reportedly a “strong contender” for the post of Chief of Staff, was said to have told his troops to “continue their military pressure on the NPA.” According to Visaya, “Until no official and clear-cut guidelines have been issued, until no formal talks have been made, we continue with our current operations in Bicol.”

In this regard, what can Visaya say about the CPP-NPA claiming parts of the country as their “territory” for which reason it has the ”right” to collect taxes? Before Visaya attempts to answer that question, he should perhaps read this excerpt from the 2011 “Asia Report.” It had this to about Visaya’s prospective commander-in-chief:

“In Davao, the Duterte family is a powerful third force in the conflict between the military and the NPA. Rodrigo Duterte, the current vice-mayor, was first elected mayor in 1988, at a time when the ‘sparrow’ units were carrying out killings on the streets of Davao, and the military-backed anti-communist vigilante squads known as the Alsa Masa meted out punishment in return. He subsequently served six terms, and when he could no longer stand for office, his daughter Sara Duterte stepped in and was elected mayor in 2010... Although violence has dramatically declined under Duterte, and the numerous urban squatter communities that served as the communists’ support base no longer exist, the CPP-NPA continues to operate within Davao City... Duterte, who used to employ a former member of the NDF as his chief of staff, in effect grants the guerrillas permission to operate in certain areas of the city. He also ensures leftist activists are safe from extrajudicial killings; in exchange, they do not protest against the ‘Davao death squad.’”

In other words, Rodrigo Duterte, incoming president of the Philippines, has been and could continue to be the biggest protector of the CPP-NPA as it continues to operate its highly profitable protection racket.

[Greg B. Macabenta is an advertising and communications man shuttling between San Francisco and Manila and providing unique insights on issues from both perspectives.]

 http://www.bworldonline.com/content.php?section=Opinion&title=duterte-and-the-cpp-npa-protection-racket&id=129338

Duterte asks for more time to address terrorism in Mindanao

From the Philippine Daily Inquirer (Jun 21): Duterte asks for more time to address terrorism in Mindanao

Philippines’ president-elect Rodrigo Duterte AFP FILE PHOTO

 

Incoming President Rodrigo Duterte on Tuesday vowed to address the problem of terrorism in Mindanao but asked for more time.

“This Abu Sayyaf (issue), just give me the luxury of time. I cannot do it just immediately. There are things which I need, which we don’t have now,” Duterte told business executives during a consultative workshop with his incoming Cabinet members here.

He said solving terrorism in Mindanao would attract more investors in the Philippines.

The tough-talking local executive said he needs to jumpstart the peace talks with the Moros before confronting the Abu Sayyaf bandits.

“I have to have a firm commitment from our Moro brothers about the continuity of the (peace) talks. As soon as I get that guarantee na talagang peaceful, that you are not protecting terrorists, when I have it in my hands, I will be ready to confront the Abu Sayyaf,” he said.

He shared his dream of having a unified Filipinos living in a peaceful Philippines.

“My dream really is one day, all Filipinos would just say Filipinos and we do not at all mention if he’s left or right, he’s a Moro rebel or a Moro terrorist, and he can live in peace,” he said.

“I have six years to do it. I do not know how many concessions God can (give), but he made me a President, so I hope He helps me,” he said.

 

http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/791719/duterte-asks-for-more-time-to-address-terrorism-in-mindanao

Palparan refuses to enter plea in second kidnap rap

From the Philippine Daily Inquirer (Jun 22): Palparan refuses to enter plea in second kidnap rap
Retired Maj. Gen. Jovito Palparan refused to enter a plea in a second kidnapping and serious illegal detention charge filed against him during his arraignment on Tuesday, prompting the court to issue a “not guilty” plea on his behalf.

The second lawsuit was filed by two Bulacan farmers, who testified against Palparan in the trial for the 2006 abduction of missing University of the Philippines students Sherlyn Cadapan and Karen Empeño.

Brothers Raymond and Reynaldo Manalo have accused Palparan, fugitive M/Sgt. Rizal Hilario and five militiamen of abducting them in San Ildefonso town on Feb. 14, 2006.

Cadapan and Empeño were abducted in Hagonoy town on June 26, 2006.

Palparan

In the first kidnapping trial, the Manalo brothers testified to have seen Cadapan and Empeño undergo torture while being kept in safehouses and military camps under the command of Palparan.

Judge Francisco Felizmenio of the Bulacan Regional Trial Court Branch 19 has issued warrants of arrest against Hilario and five militiamen.

Hilario was also charged with the kidnapping of Cadapan and Empeño, along with Palparan, Lt. Col. Felipe Anotado and S/Sgt. Edgardo Osorio.

Palparan had been attending trial for the Cadapan and Empeño kidnapping since his arrest in August 2014. He became a fugitive after the kidnapping charges were filed in 2011.
http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/791722/palparan-refuses-to-enter-plea-in-second-kidnap-rap

CPP/NDF: On the positive outcome of Oslo talks

Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) propaganda statement posted to the National Democratic Front (NDF) Website (Jun 18): On the positive outcome of Oslo talks

Communist Party of the Philippines
June 18, 2016

 

Group picture after the signing of the Oslo Joint Statement. Photo by Ayik Casilao

The Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) congratulates the National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP) Negotiating Panel and representatives of the incoming Duterte regime for attaining positive results in the June 14-15 preliminary talks held in Oslo, Norway. The meeting was facilitated by the Royal Norwegian Government.

The CPP fully supports the agreements made during the preliminary talks. The positive atmosphere and outcome was reflected in the joint statement issued on June 15.

The CPP is elated that an agreement was reached to pursue peace negotiations starting the third week of July on the basis of previously signed agreements. The CPP welcomes the plan to accelerate negotiations to complete the remaining substantive items of socio-economic reforms, political and constitutional reforms, and ending hostilities and disposition of forces.

The CPP also supports the plan to reconstitute the list of personnel who will be protected under the Joint Agreement on Safety and Immunity Guarantees (JASIG) and release all political prisoners through an Amnesty Proclamation to be concurred to by the Philippine congress.

The CPP is also pleased that the Duterte panel will recommend to have all NDFP consultants released in order to allow them to participate in peace talks. Their plan to recommend the release of political prisoners on humanitarian grounds is also highly commendable.

The CPP also welcomes the plan to discuss an interim ceasefire and its
modalities.

The attitude of the incoming Duterte regime toward peace negotiations with the NDFP is big departure from that of the Aquino and Arroyo regimes. Under the previous two regimes, peace negotiations were regarded mainly as a psywar operation that was a secondary to and served only the counter-revolutionary war of suppression.

Considering how the incoming Duterte regime is vigorously pursuing talks with the NDFP, even before being formally inaugurated into office, the CPP and all revolutionary forces expect peace negotiations with the Duterte regime to move forward with unprecedented speed.

If the Duterte regime will continue to pursue this path, the CPP expects peace negotiations to attain historic achievements over the coming period. The CPP and revolutionary forces under the NDFP are looking forward to discuss and forge agreements with the Duterte regime with the aim of serving the nationalist and democratic interests of the people and pursuing their democratic empowerment.

The CPP and all revolutionary forces reiterate its full support to the NDFP Negotiating Panel, its head Luis Jalandoni, NDPF Senior Political Consultant Jose Ma. Sison, and NDPF panel members Fidel V. Agcaoili, Julie de Lima Sison, Coni Ledesma and their consultants and assistants.

http://www.ndfp.org/positive-outcome-oslo-talks/

‘IT WILL BE A MASSACRE’ PHL won't go to war with China over Scarborough Shoal —Duterte

From GMA News (Jun 21): ‘IT WILL BE A MASSACRE’ PHL won't go to war with China over Scarborough Shoal —Duterte

The Philippines will not go to war over the Scarborough Shoal even if it wins the arbitration case it filed against China's excessive claims in the disputed South China Sea, President-elect Rodrigo Duterte told business leaders on Tuesday.

In his first speaking engagement in weeks, Duterte even expressed an apparent disagreement with the Philippines joining US' patrols in the disputed waters supposedly to press freedom of navigation in the area.

"Kung nandiyan na 'yung aircraft carrier sa South China Sea na 'yan, patrolling, and the Americans would say, 'Come join us in our expedition,' ah, sorry," Duterte said while waving his hand.

"I will not go to war because of the Scarborough Shoal lang," he added.

Duterte said that if the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague ruled in favor of the Philippines and its 200-kilometer Exclusive Economic Zone under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, he'd only send civilian coast guard vessels.

He said he already told US Ambassador Philip Goldberg of this plan when they met in Davao City recently.

"Sabi niya, 'What do you intend to do?' If there's the arbitral judgment, I will go there, coast guard lang.  Hindi pang giyera 'yan. You guard the coast, that's coast guard," Duterte said.

"Kung magpadala ako ang navy diyan, a kalokohan 'yan.... We are not in a position. That's a massacre," he added.

‘Not a territorial issue’

Duterte said the Scarborough Shoal wasn't a territorial issue.

"It is an issue of our exclusivity sa economic zone. That you place there obstructions that will impede or obstruct our right to develop and fish anywhere there, 'yun ang contention," Duterte said.

"That is our ache but that is not a thing to just say we will go to war," he added.

Duterte said that the Philippines would be better off solving the insurgency  that has kept development from happening particularly in Mindanao.

"We are better off solving the internal problem first.... Then we can open up tourism and investment," Duterte said.

"Maraming isda diyan sa Tawi-tawi. They are dying of boredom.  Naghihintay lang sila," he added.

300 MIGs

Duterte said the money the Aquino administration used to buy 12 FA-50 fighter jets could have been used instead to buy helicopters with night vision capability.

"Sayang ang pera doon. You can't use it for anti-insugency which is the problem of the moment. You can only use it only for ceremonial fly-bys," Duterte said.

Duterte said choppers with night vision could have been used to run after Abu Sayyaf Group bandits who kidnapped foreigners and a Filipino woman recently in Davao del Norte.

He indicated that the Philippines could not match China's air force.

"[Beyond] that Scarborough Shoal, anak ng jueteng, according to the intelligence, there are 300 MIGs (fighter jets) there, which can reach Manila in six minutes," Duterte said.

"Why would I go to war? Ang battle ground mo Palawan? Loko-loko ka pala eh. If you want to do battle sa San Francisco, okay lang," he added.

‘Are you with us?’

Duterte said he asked Goldberg if the superpower US would indeed side with the Philippines if an armed conflict erupted in the region.

"Are you with us or are you not with us?" Duterte said.

"Sabi niya, 'Only if you are attacked'," he added.

"The law of the sea gives us exclusive rights sa 200 kilometers. If I go there, will that be an attack against China...? Mabuti na iyang prangkahan," Duterte said.

http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/story/570818/news/nation/phl-won-t-go-to-war-with-china-over-scarborough-shoal-duterte

DWDD: POTENTIAL FLASHPOINT | U.S vs. China over Scarborough Shoal

From DWDD AFP Civil Relations Service Radio Website (Jun 20): POTENTIAL FLASHPOINT | U.S vs. China over Scarborough Shoal



MANILA (DWDD) – The United States of America and China might end up in a military confrontation if the latter would push through with its dredging activities in the Scarborough Shoal.

According to retired US Navy Admiral Dennis Blair, China’s maritime expansionism and adventurism in the South China Sea, claiming almost 90% on the territory through their flawed nine-dash line theory is continuously flaring tensions in the region.

Beijing has illegally encroached on territories well-within other countries boundaries and exclusive economic zones and converting former shoals, atolls and reefs into man-made islands in an effort to expand its influence in the South China Sea, through their  military facilities disguised as development projects.

Further, aside from using their Coast Guard, China has also unleashed fishing militias in contested waters, protecting Chinese fishermen engaged in illegal fishing and poaching activities.

A shooting war would ensue if Beijing would pursue its dredging in the Scarborough Shoal, and they would be on the losing end of a maritime clash since both Philippine and American forces are properly placed in the region.

In the past few months, the US and China has been trading tirades on the issue of freedom of navigation and overflight in which Beijing has vested interest, where they plans to impose an Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ) to further take control of vital shipping lanes thus controlling world trade, similar to what they tried to impose in the East China Sea.

America has stepped up with its naval and air patrols within the contested areas, where Chinese planes and ships have been shadowing them in an effort to intimidate, but to no avail, although the possibility of conflict is low.

Admiral Blair believes that the Philippines has a strong legal case over China that they filed in the United Nations Arbitral Tribunal in the Hague, Netherlands since it is clear that the shoal is close in proximity, roughly 150 miles from the nearest Philippine shore compared to 500 miles from Beijing.

The decision is expected to handed down late June or early July. Although China has earlier stated that they won’t recognize the decision of the UN court because this will nullify their claim in the disputed region.

Meanwhile, the alliance between the US and the Philippines remains strong with the 1951 Mutual Defense Treaty and further enhanced by Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (ECA) where we could implore their help militarily if the need arises, like if we are attacked by an external party. AES / MCAG

http://dwdd.com.ph/2015/potential-flashpoint-u-s-vs-china-over-scarborough-shoal/

MILF: MILF-Kapalawan Province holds Ramadhan Symposium

From the Moro Islamic Liberation Front Website (Jun 21): MILF-Kapalawan Province holds Ramadhan Symposium



The Kapalawan Province of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) conducted an Islamic Symposium at Kitulaan High School Convention Hall, Kitulaan, Carmen, North Cotabato on June 18, 2016.

Speakers were Sheik Lucman Sultan, Ustadz Abdulrahem Cua, Ustadz Raez Sansaluna, Ustadza Norhaya Hadji Yusof and the Provincial Director, Committee on Information, Kapalawan Province. 

In his message, Ustadz Abdulrahem Cua explained that Islam covers all aspects of life, such as politics, economics, social, cultural, spiritual, etc. Islam has Five Pillars and Six Articles of Faith.

The Five Pillars of Islam are: 1. Declaration of Kalimah Shahaadah (Ash-hadu allaailaaha illallah, wa ash-hadu anna Muhammadar Rasuluullah or Declaring that “There is no god worthy to worship except Allah and that Muhammad is His Messenger”; 2. Salaah (Praying Five Times a Day); 3. Zakat or Giving Charity or Alms to the Poor; 4. Siyaam or Fasting during the Holy Month of Ramadan and 5.  Performing Al-hadj wal Umrah) or Pilgrimage to Holy City of Makkah).

The Six Articles of Faith are as follows: 1. Al-iimaanu billah (Belief in Allah); 2. Al-iimanu bi malaaikatihii (Belief in the Angels); 3. Al-iimanu bi kutubihii (Belief in all His Holy Books); 4. Al-iimanu bi Rusulihii (Belief in all His Prophets); 5. Al-iimanu bil yawmil Aakhir (Belief in the Day of Judgment); 6. Al-iimanul Bil Khairihi wa shariihii minallahi Taallah or Belief that all good and bad things emanate from Allah, Ustadz Cua enumerated.

Aside from explaining the Five Pillars of Islam and Six Articles of Faith, Ustadz Cua further told the audience that today we are observing the holy month of Ramadhan which is the Fourth Pillar of Islam.

He talked on how to attain Taqwa. Allah says in the Qur'an "Oh you who believe, Fasting has been prescribed for you as it has been prescribed for people before you so that you will (learn how to) attain Taqwa (Surah Al-Baqarah, 2:183) of Qur'an al-kareem. Indeed the person who has attained Taqwa has attained excellence in the worship of his/her Lord, Ustadz Cua said.

On his part, Sheik Sultan told the participants of a great reward for those who fast during the holy month of Ramadhan. Being generous and studying the Qur'an is recommended during all times, but it is especially stressed during the month of Ramadhan.

“Abu Huraira reported that Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W) said: "Whoever establishes prayers during the nights of Ramadhan faithfully out of sincere faith and hoping to Attain ALLAH's rewards (not for showing off), all his/her past sins will be forgiven (Bukhari)", Sheik Sultan said.

In discussing his topic on the GPH-MILF Peace Process, the Kapalawan Provincial Director, Committee on Information presented the Moro situation and said that at the turn of the 20th century, the Moro people held 98% of lands in the Mindanao and its islands, except in the areas garrisoned by Spain in the Northern part which is dominated by the Indigenous un-Islamized 23 ethnic tribes.

They own all the lands in Mindanao and its islands on the eve of the colonization. Today, the Moros and Indigenous People owned less than 17% of lands in remote and un- fertile mountain areas.

Some main reasons why Moro people loss their ancestral lands and taken by Christian Settlers from Luzon and the Visayas were various Public Acts, Mining Acts, Cadastral Acts, Republic Acts, Legislative Acts, Commonwealth Acts and other government issuances.

These laws by Filipino lawmakers of Luzon and Visayas were enacted without the consent and knowledge of the Moros. For example, Public Act 719- April 4, 1903, declaring NULL AND VOID all lands granted by Moro Sultans, datus or tribal chiefs of indigenous people to their constituents.

This act dispossessed Moros of their lands. Another law- Public Act 926- October 7, 1903, which declared all lands not registered under Act 496 as "PUBLIC LANDS". All public lands are available for homestead, lease or sale by individual. Public Land Act 2894 in the year 1919 allows Filipinos to own 24 hectares while Moros and IP's only 10 hectares.

Under this Act, Christians settlers can own land titles even before coming to Mindanao and Sulu. Commonwealth Act 141 of November 7, 1936 states that Christian settlers were allowed to own 42 hectares while Moros and Indigenous peoples allowed only 4 hectares and corporations are allowed to own up to 1,024 hectares, the Information Director further expounded.

Ustadza Hadj Yusof stressed that fasting in Ramadhan is a way to Paradise or Jannatul Firdous. That Ramadhan can save Muslims from the Hellfire and their sins are forgiven.

“Paradise contains what no eye has ever seen, what no ear has ever heard, what never crossed the mind of a human being, and that contains all what a soul desires”, Ustadza Yusop said.

Ustadz Sansaluna supplemented the three speakers by reminding the participants that during the month of the Ramadhan, all devils are chained, the doors of Hell are closed and doors of Heavens are opened. Ramadan is the month where the Noble Qur'an was revealed.

Some eight hundred (800) Moro participants attended the symposium that ended at 12:00 noon. The vice-chairperson of SWC- Kapalawan Province acted as Master of the Ceremonies.

http://www.luwaran.com/home/index.php/news/20-central-mindanao/777-milf-kapalawan-province-holds-ramadhan-symposium

Update: 3 Abu Sayyaf bandits killed, 16 gov't troops hurt in Sulu clash

From the Philippine News Agency (Jun 22): Update: 3 Abu Sayyaf bandits killed, 16 gov't troops hurt in Sulu clash

Three suspected Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG) bandits were killed while 16 government troopers were wounded during a clash in Patikul town, Sulu Tuesday afternoon.

In the same encounter, another 10 bandits were reported wounded.

Western Mindanao Command (WESMINCOM) spokesperson Major Filemon Tan said the encounter with the estimated 200-strong ASG took place around 2:20 p.m. at Sitio Bud Duwa Bayho in Patikul.

Troopers from the 32nd Infantry Battalion led by Lt. Col. Ramon Flores were conducting clearing operations when engaged by the bandit group, triggering an hour and half of fighting, after which the ASG brigands scampered to different directions.

"The soldiers who were wounded in the encounter were immediately brought to Trauma Hospital KHTB, Busbus, Jolo, Sulu for prompt medical treatment," Tan said.

He said the troops continue to intensify the conduct of focused military operations in Sulu to pin down the ASG brigands and rescue the remaining hostages.

The ASG brigands are still holding captives a number of hostages, including foreigners.

Among the foreign hostages are Ewold Horn, a Dutchman birdwatcher the ASG brigands have kidnapped in February 2012 in Tawi-Tawi and Norwegian Kjartan Sekkingtad.

The ASG brigands kidnapped Sekkingtad on September 21, 2015 at a resort in the Island Garden City of Samal, Davao del Norte together with John Ridsel, Robert Hall and Filipina Marites Flor, Hall's girlfriend.

The ASG brigands beheaded Ridsel last April 25 and Hall last June 13 for failure to meet their ransom demands which runs to millions of pesos.

http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=&sid=&nid=&rid=897300

Kumander ng 7ID, panauhing pandangal sa Golden anniversary ng Dinalungan

From the Philippine Information Agency (Jun 22): Kumander ng 7ID, panauhing pandangal sa Golden anniversary ng Dinalungan (7ID commander, guest of honor at the Golden Anniversary of Dinalungan)

Si Army 7th Infantry Division Commander Major General Angelito De Leon ang nagsilbing panauhing pandangal sa katatapos na Golden anniversary ng bayan ng Dinalungan.

Sa kanyang mensahe, sinabi ni De Leon na ang patuloy na pagkakaisa at pagtutulungan, kalakip ang kapayapaang umiiral ang susi sa pagasenso ng munisipyo.

Nagsimula ang anibersaryo sa isang misang pinangunahan ni Fr. Erlito Poblete.

Ito ay sinundan ng parada ng mga kasundaluhan, kapulisan, mga kawani, guro, estudyante, at lokal na opisyal.

http://news.pia.gov.ph/article/view/611466487967/kumander-ng-7id-panauhing-pandangal-sa-golden-anniversary-ng-dinalungan

The Battle With China At Scarborough Shoal: Why Republican Senators Should Ratify UNCLOS

From Forbes (Jun 20): The Battle With China At Scarborough Shoal: Why Republican Senators Should Ratify UNCLOS (By Anders Corr)

I worked in military intelligence for five years, including on nuclear weapons, terrorism, cyber-security, border security, and counter-insurgency. I covered and visited Asia and Europe, and worked in Afghanistan for one and a half years. I have a Ph.D. in Government from Harvard University, and a B.A. and M.A. in international relations from Yale University (Summa cum laude). My company, Corr Analytics, provides political risk analysis to commercial, non-profit, and media clients, and publishes the Journal of Political Risk. I am editing a series on the South China Sea conflict, and have covered and visited Africa, the Middle East and Latin America.

The author is a Forbes contributor. The opinions expressed are those of the writer.

• China’s four-year occupation of the shoal, since April 2012, is a smear on the U.S. as a reliable ally.
• The U.S. and our allies need to get tough to stop the remarkable 20th and 21st century loss of  land and maritime territory to China.

 

A mid-sized Chinese Coast Guard vessel guns its engines to create waves near our fishing boat at Scarborough Shoal on June 12, 2016 — Philippines Independence Day. This violently rocked our boat. Pictured on the Hannie John are a fisherman securing barrels of diesel, and an activist struggling to maintain his footing. Other activists are shown in the background. Anders Corr.

 

The South China Sea conflict is heating up again ahead of the July 7 ruling from the Permanent Court of Arbitration in the Hague. The ruling will hopefully use the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) to invalidate China’s expansive nine-dash line, end the China-led arms race in Asia, and stop environmentally destructive artificial island-building in the South China Sea .

Republican Senators are partly to blame for Asia’s current instability. China defends its maritime expansion, which violates UNCLOS, by pointing to the failure of the U.S. to ratify the convention. President Obama and Senate Democrats strongly support ratification, and would do it tomorrow if given the chance. Yet about 34 Republicans in the Senate — enough to block the ⅔ required for ratification — continue their short-sighted refusal to take this crucial step.

Partly as a result, China has built artificial islands in the Spratlys, stocked them with weaponry, and maintained a naval and coast guard presence at Scarborough Shoal, just 123 miles from the strategic naval port of Subic Bay in the Philippines. Scarborough Shoal is also called Bajo de Masinloc and Panatag Shoal by the Philippines. China has plans to dredge and build an artificial island on Scarborough, and build floating nuclear power plants to service the islands. Airstrips on China’s new islands are now being used by military jets that can as a result reach more deeply into the territories of our ASEAN allies.

I know about China’s aggressive occupation of Scarborough first-hand. I visited the largely submerged shoal for about four hours on June 12. Two Chinese cutters loaded with guns, and three other Chinese Coast Guard boats, threatened our 90′ Philippine wooden fishing boat as soon as we arrived, including through charges that brought us within a few yards of their much larger steel boats. At times the Chinese came so close to ramming us at high speed that our crew — 15 Philippine activists, 12 Philippine fishermen, and me — went scrambling for life jackets and hand-holds.   ”Maiwo Maiwo!” the Chinese yelled at us, which means “Halt! Halt!” And in English they yelled, “Go Home!” and, “This is China!”

Five Philippine activists — most in their 20s and all highly idealistic — tried to swim to the shoal and raise Philippine flags. Two made it past the Chinese speedboats that backed their spraying propellers towards the swimmers as close as 3′, threatening their lives. Had a swimmer moved erratically, or the Chinese pilot lost control of his speedboat for a split second, one of our swimmers could easily have died.

 

After we fished, swam, ate, danced, and raised the flag at the shoal, all under the scowls of Chinese sailors, it was time to go home and post the photos and video we had recorded of Chinese aggression against Philippine nationals in their own exclusive economic zone. We won some public sympathy on social media for the Philippines on June 12, Philippines Independence Day, but China’s boats continue to intimidate regular Filipino fishermen from Masinloc, Palauig, Iba, and Botolan who would hope to fish at Scarborough.

China’s four-year occupation of the shoal, since April 2012, is a smear on the U.S. as a reliable ally. Like our failure to protect Ukraine per the Budapest Agreement of 1994, our allies around the world have taken notice. We should live up to the Mutual Defense Treaty we signed with the Philippines in 1951 and immediately place U.S. naval forces at the shoal to stop China’s planned island building there.


The U.S. and our allies need to get tough to stop the remarkable 20th and 21st century loss of  land and maritime territory to China. Tibet, Xinjiang Province, and now Hong Kong and the South China Sea are being lost through conquest, slight of hand, ethnic and political assimilation, and gradualist salami tactics. India is straining to keep control of Arunachal Pradesh in the Himalayas, and Japan must constantly scramble jets and naval forces to defend the East China Sea and Senkaku Islands.

Every territorial conquest that China makes emboldens and strengthens them more. If the Republicans don’t ratify UNCLOS, and President Obama doesn’t get much tougher much faster on China, our allies could lose valuable and empowering territory, the U.S. could lose allies, and our nation could inexorably slip into second-place among superpowers.

I don’t think that is the Republican intention by continuing to refuse ratification of UNCLOS. But that is the effective tendency to which our failure to embrace a rules-based international order leads. While we are still ahead of China, let’s make the rules. Because if China takes the lead, their rules will not support our values of a diverse and rule-based international order of democratic states bound by human rights.
http://www.forbes.com/sites/anderscorr/2016/06/20/the-battle-with-china-at-scarborough-shoal-why-republican-senators-should-ratify-unclos/#13e4b6b87b32

Samar town mayors to bring complaints of NPA harassment to NDF-govt monitoring committee

From InterAksyon (Jun 21): Samar town mayors to bring complaints of NPA harassment to NDF-govt monitoring committee

The mayors of Pinabacdao and Motiong towns in Samar said they will bring before the Joint Monitoring Committee set up by the government and National Democratic Front of the Philippines the alleged harassment by the New People’s Army during the recent campaign and the May 9 elections.

Motiong Mayor Francisco Langi said Antonio Jabaan, a Nacionalista Party supporter whose brother Salvador ran for vice mayor, was murdered by what town chief of police Senior Inspector Rio Tan described, based on witness accounts, as an NPA member.

Langi also said his son Aldwin lost his bid to replace him as mayor because he got no votes in seven barangays considered their bailiwick. He claimed residents of these villages said communist rebels either forced them to vote for Aldwin’s opponent or ordered them to leave and not vote.

In Pinabacdao, Mayor Mario Quijano also reportedly lost his reelection bid because of similar harassment by the NPA in several villages. And two days before Election Day, rebels allegedly murdered his police security aide.

Langi questioned the military’s declaration of Motiong as a “conflict-manageable and development-ready area,” meaning the town is basically insurgency-free.

But Captain Ian Fabellon, spokesman of the Army’s 8th Infantry Division, said they could not be faulted because the local government issues the declaration and the mayor is one of the signatories to the memorandum of agreement on this.

Langi explained that the declaration was intended to signal the town’s readiness for development but insisted he did not expect the alleged harassment by the NPA. He added that he had not received any demand from the rebels to pay for the so-called “permit to win/campaign” within territory they claim to control.

With formal peace talks between the incoming Duterte administration and the NDFP expected to resume next month, Quijano said: “Sana maisama itong mga issues na ito sa peace talks na gagawin. Dapat maimbestigahan na kung bakit sila nakikisali sa election eh ‘di ba ang sa kanila pinaglalaban nila ang ideology nila (These issues should be included in the peace talks. They should investigate why they interfere in the elections because, aren’t they supposed to be fighting for their ideology)?”

Commission on Human Rights Eastern Visayas director Paquito Nacino said his office has not received any complaint from Motiong or Pinabacdao. Nevertheless, he said they can initiate an investigation on the purported rebel harassment on their own as soon as they receive enough information.

http://interaksyon.com/article/129328/samar-town-mayors-to-bring-complaints-of-npa-harassment-to-ndf-govt-monitoring-committee

‘Negrense outstanding 2016 soldier'

From the Visayan Daily Star (Jun 21): ‘Negrense outstanding 2016 soldier'

A Negrense Army officer was selected by the Metrobank Foundation-Rotary Club Makati as among The Outstanding Philippine Soldiers (TOPS) for 2016.

He is Lt. Col. Eliglen Villaflor of Brgy. Ma-ao, Bago City, Negros Occidental.

Villaflor has been recognized for his high-impact non-traditional military programs and projects in Basilan, being the commander of the 4th Special Forces Battalion, with some of them he had started, while assigned in northern Negros, in the mid 1990s.

“A chieving peace can not be resolved by combat alone, but through working with the communities and winning their support,” Villaflor said.

Thousands have benefitted from his civil military operation initiative, “From Camp to School, From Guns to Books”, where a captured Moro Islamic Liberation Front camp in Basilan was transformed into a school campus.

Villaflor also pioneered Project Masjid where non-Muslim entities participated in the preparation and celebration of Ramadan, with their involvement in cleaning and beautification of mosques and peace keeping and security efforts.

As then commander of the 32nd Special Forces Company, Villaflor was also cited by then Rep. Alfredo Marañon Jr., now the governor of Negros Occidental, for his contribution to local government units in northern Negros, by pioneering the implementation of ACCORD (Army Concern on Community Development Organizing for Development) from 1996 to 1998, mobilizing Army trainees to teach hinterland communities to be self-reliant by using existing resources and linking them with LGUs to address their urgent concerns for countryside development.

In the implementation of high-impact projects in Negros, Villaflor also worked hand-in-hand with the Diocese of Bacolod, especially with Fr. Lyndon Jong, then parish priest of EB Magalona, and numerous non-government and people's organizations.

As commanding officer of the 4th Special Forces Battalion, Villaflor significantly contributed to the campaign against the Abu Sayyaf and other lawless elements — with the recapture of a rebel stronghold and recovery of other encampments and firearms, military records show.

In his two year stint as 4SFB commander, Villaflor also led the capture of Jerry Ibon Alam, one of the prominent most wanted personalities in Basilan, who engaged in the illegal drug trade.

The 4SFB unit also figured in armed clashes with Abu Sayyaf bandits, killing several of them and causing injuries to numerous others, military records further showed.

Villaflor and the other TOPS awardees were presented yesterday by the Metrobank Foundation to acting AFP chief of staff Lt. Gen. Glorioso Miranda during the flag raising ceremony at Camp Aguinaldo in Quezon City.

Metrobank Foundation president Aniceto Sobrepeña said the Search for TOPS is the civilian society's expression of genuine appreciation and gratitude for the men and women in the Armed Forces – for their sacrifices and dedication in pursuing our shared dreams of a safe and peaceful nation.

They are considered our modern-day heroes who showed not only unremarkable courage and nationalism, but concern for other people and their communities as well, Sobrepeña said.

. Each TOPS awardee will receive a cash prize of P500,000 and a trophy during the Metrobank anniversary celebration on June 5.

The search for TOPS honors the valor, gallantry, and self-sacrifice demonstrated by the men and women of the AFP

http://www.visayandailystar.com/2016/June/21/topstory7.htm

DOJ junks illegal drugs rap vs. Marine officer Marcelino

From Update.Ph (Jun 21): DOJ junks illegal drugs rap vs. Marine officer Marcelino

The Department of Justice (DOJ) on Tuesday dismissed the complaint involving illegal drugs which was filed by the Philippine Drugs Enforcement Agency (PDEA) against Marine Lt. Col. Ferdinand L. Marcelino.

Marcelino was arrested by operatives of the PDEA and the Philippine National Police-Anti Illegal Drugs Group (PNP-AIDG) during a raid in Sta. Cruz, Manila last January.

Marcelino was charged with a complaint for violation of Sections 11 and 26 of Republic Act No. 9165, or the “Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002”, pertaining to the manufacturing and possession, and conspiracy in the manufacturing of illegal drugs.

However, in the resolution signed by Senior Deputy State Prosecutor Theodore Villanueva, the DOJ found no probable cause in the complaint filed against Marcelino.

http://www.update.ph/2016/06/doj-junks-illegal-drugs-rap-vs-marine-officer-marcelino/6681

Duterte to United States: Are you with us or not with us?

From Rappler (Jun 21): Duterte to United States: Are you with us or not with us?

The president-elect wonders if the US will help the Philippines defend its claim over the West Philippine Sea once an international court decides favorably on the country's case against China



US-PH TIES. United States Ambassador to the Philippines Philip Goldberg (left) visits President-elect Rodrigo Duterte (right) in Davao City on June 13, 2016. Screen grab from RTVM

If an international court deems the Philippines is right to claim the disputed South China Sea, will the United States help the Philippines exercise its rights?

President-elect Rodrigo Duterte voiced out this concern during a business forum on Tuesday, June 21, in Davao City.

 

He revealed that he has asked this question to US Ambassador Philip Goldberg.

“Because I told Goldberg, ‘Are you with us or are you not with us? Because if I may decide based on the [international court’s] judgment, I will now start to claim there,” said Duterte.

 

The Mutual Defense Treaty, signed by the Philippine and US government in 1952, declares the two parties’ “common determination to defend themselves against external armed attack.”

 

Duterte wondered how the decision to come to each others’ aid would be made if the definition of an “external armed attack” is contentious.

 

“I’ll give you an example. The law of the sea of nations [United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea] gives us the exclusive right over 200 [nautical miles]. If I go there using that privilege of mine, would that be an attack against China or an offense against China?” he said.

 

Would the US help protect Philippine territory if China retaliates? China has implied that it would not recognize any decision by the international tribunal.

 

Duterte has said he is open to pursuing bilateral talks with China if there is no development with the arbitration case for 2 or 3 years. China has said it prefers such a move. The US and Japan, two important players in the maritime dispute, do not, preferring multilateral talks. 

 

Duterte is waiting for the international tribunal to decide on the Philippines’ case.

 

“I’ve repeatedly said we will await for the arbitral judgement. Then I will decide,” he said.

 

http://www.rappler.com/nation/137175-duterte-united-states-south-china-sea

Duterte administration eyes peace pact with NDF “in 9 to 12 months”

From MindaNews (Jun 21): Duterte administration eyes peace pact with NDF “in 9 to 12 months”

The Duterte administration is eyeing the forging of a peace agreement with the National Democratic Front (NDF) “in nine to 12 months” because President-elect Rodrigo Duterte “wants peace in the country within the shortest period,” lawyer Silvestre Bello III, returning government peace panel chair, said.

The formal talks, according to the Joint Statement signed by representatives of the incoming administration and the NDF on June 15 was for the formal talks to begin in the third week of July in Oslo.



A two-page Joint Statement was issued at the end of the two-day talks between the delegation sent by President-elect Rodrigo Duterte (left) and the National Democratic Front (right) in Oslo, Norway on June 14 and 15. Photo from the Facebook account of returning Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process Jesus Dureza

Responding to a query on how long he expects the peace talks will take, Bello told Radyo ng Bayan Davao’s “Tayo’y Magtapatan” program on Monday that he and returning Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process Jesus Dureza and former Agrarian Reform Secretary Hernani Braganza – Duterte’s delegation to Oslo — talked about a time frame of “nine to 12 months.”

“Kayanin” (we will try our best), Bello told MindaNews.

Bello, also the incoming Labor Secretary, told the radio program that they are “always cautious” because Duterte has a self-imposed deadline of three to six months to stop the illegal drugs trade, corruption and criminality. He said the same timeline might be given to them so they have to be “ready for that eventuality, if the President will impose a timeline of three to six months for us to finish negotiations.”

Dureza told MindaNews that “the timeline is to be agreed upon” with the NDF but added, “yes, that’s attainable with working groups doing simultaneous work.”

In the same radio interview, Bello announced that he had proposed to Dureza that his panel will be composed of former members of the government (GPH) peace panel — Braganza, former Human Rights and Elections commissioner Rene Sarmiento, and Ateneo de Manila University School of Law Dean Sedfrey Candelaria.

He said he recommended the three because they had previously served in the peace panel and he would like to “make use of their institutional memory sa peace process.”

On the government side, Bello himself has the longest institutional memory of the GPH-NDF peace process, having been a member of the peace panel in the Ramos administration (1992 to 1998) and as chair of the GPH peace panel under the Arroyo administration from 2001 to 2004.

Bello also said Leoncio Evasco, Jr., Duterte’s national campaign manager and incoming Cabinet Secretary, recommended lawyer Angela Librado, a former city councilor and incumbent barangay captain of Matina, to the panel, representing women, and another lawyer from Cagayan de Oro to represent Indigenous Peoples (IPs).

Evasco told MindaNews he recommended lawyer Noel Felongco, an IP based from Cotabato City but now based in Cebu. Felongco is former Commissioner for Island groups and rest of Visayas at the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP) and is Region 7 Chair of the Partido ng Demokratikong Pilipino (PDP-Laban), Duterte’s political party.

Bello said the names he mentioned persons will compose the GPH peace panel “upon approval of President Duterte.”

The panel’s proposed membership represents Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao, as well as IPs and women.

[

Laywer SIlvestre Bello III, Incoming Labor Secretary and government peace panel chair in the negotiations with the National Democratic Front, waves to reporters as he enters the “Malacanang of the South” in Panacan, Davao City on May 31, 2016. MindaNews photo by TOTO LOZANO

Bello attributed the success of the two-day talks in Oslo to the evident trust of the NDF in Duterte.

“Ito nagbigay sa amin ng breakthrough” (This gave us the breakthrough), he said, adding the NDF returned to the negotiating table because of Duterte.

He said the venue of the resumption of the peace talks will be in Oslo “out of respect for our foreign facilitator” but expressed hopes the next talks would be held in the Philippines.

Five-point agenda 

The Joint Statement cited the five-point agenda for the July talks: the affirmation of previously signed agreements; accelerated process for negotiations, including the timeline for the completion of the remaining substantive agenda for the talks, socio-economic reforms, political and constitutional reforms, and end of hostilities and disposition of forces; reconstitution of the Joint Agreement on Safety and Immunity Guarantees (JASIG) list; Amnesty Proclamation for the release of all detained political prisoners, subject to concurrence by Congress; and mode of interim ceasefire.

The agreement also provides that the government panel under Duterte will recommend to the President the “immediate release of NDFP consultants and other JASIG-protected persons in accordance with the JASIG to enable them to participate in the peace negotiations;” and the “immediate release of prisoners/detainees based on humanitarian grounds.”

NDF peace panel chair Luis Jalandoni told DZMM on May 18 that there are currently 543 political prisoners, 88 of whom are sick and elderly. Out of the total, 18 are NDF peace consultants while three were sentenced to life imprisonment.

Ceasefire
Bello said the ceasefire is a major development in the peace process in that the NDF has not agreed to a ceasefire since the post-Marcos administration of Corazon Aquino in 1986 . “Never na pumayag na pag-usapan namin yung issue ng ceasefire. Ayaw nila yan (They never agreed to talk about a ceasefire. They don’t like that)…. But for the first time … after so many years pumayag sila na pag-usapan ang (they agreed to talk about) bilateral ceasefire.”

He said they will recommend to Duterte to declare a unilateral ceasefire upon the resumption of formal peace talks in July and hopes the NDF will also do the same.
The government and NDF actually signed in November 1968 an agreement for a 60-day ceasefire that would take effect on December 10 that year but the NDF issued a statement on February 18, 1987 declaring it “cannot see any justification for extending” the ceasefire, citing violations by the military. Both parties traded accusations of violations of the agreement.

Duterte, Bello said, “wants peace in the country within the shortest period at mukha namang parang nabighani si (NDF) chairman Luia Jalandoni at chief political consultant Joma (Sison) at ang kanilang mga miembro sa ating President. Mukhang di nila matanggihan si President Duterte (and it looks like NDF chair Luis Jalandoni, chief political consultant Joma and their members were charmed by the President. It looks like they could not refuse President Duterte).

Sison was Duterte’s professor in Political Thought at the Lyceum of the Philippines in Manila.

“Bridge of Hope”

In a statement on June 18, the Philippine Ecumenical Peace Platform (PEPP), which claims to be the largest ecumenical formation of church leaders in the country, said it is “elated over the fact that bridges are being built by both parties in order to have a just and enduring peace in our country.”

It described the Joint Statement the parties signed in Oslo as “a bridge of hope that principled negotiations may bear fruit and address the roots of the armed conflict.”

The Ecumenical Bishops Forum in a statement on June 20 that the ascent of Duterte “who had shown true friendship” with the Moro revolutionary fronts and the NDF “gives hope to the Bangsamoro and the Left that genuine peace based on justice is possible.”

It said it supports the effort of the incoming Duterte administration to forge peace with the Bangsamoro and the Left “and unify the whole Filipino people towards progress and peace.”

Dureza in a statement on June 16 said that after the two-day talks “there is now evident optimism and trust” and a “mutual enthusiasm and hope, not only amongst us negotiators across the table, but most significantly, among us all Filipinos , in whose behalf all these efforts are being done in the first place.”

“Yet, the road ahead to trek is not that always smooth and easy. There will expectedly be humps and bumps along the way. But there is a destination that we must all inevitably reach,” he wrote.

http://www.mindanews.com/peace-process/2016/06/21/duterte-administration-eyes-peace-pact-with-ndf-in-9-to-12-months/

Police still clueless on Maasim blast

From MindaNews (Jun 21): Police still clueless on Maasim blast

Police authorities are eyeing several angles into the grenade explosion in Maasim in Sarangani on Monday night that injured six police officers, including the deputy chief of police, and two civilians.

Supt. Romeo Galgo, Police Regional Office-12 public information officer, said Tuesday the explosion occurred at 8:35 p.m. near the town’s health center inside the municipal government complex.

He said the injured police officers were then securing the area for an activity in line with the ongoing celebration of the town’s Kestebeng Festival.

Citing report from the Maasim police station, he said an unidentified person aboard a motorcycle hurled an object at the waiting shed in front of the health center before the explosion.

“It turned out to be a grenade and it exploded near the spot where the victims were situated,” he told MindaNews.

The victims were identified as Insp. Danilo Abataya, the deputy police station chief of Maasim; Police Officers (PO) 1 Almasir Tingkasan, Romel Badua, Rowell Sobretodo and Sukran Donisa Sugod; and, PO2 Mark Victor Naya.

The injured civilians were nurse Jetphunie Navales and tricycle driver Leonardo dela Peña.

Galgo said the victims sustained various injuries and are currently recuperating in a hospital here.

As to the possible motive, he said investigators are looking at a number of angles, including an attempt to disrupt the town’s festivities.

He said Chief Supt. Cedrick Train, Region 12 police director, visited Maasim on Tuesday morning to personally look into the incident.

“We are considering all possible angles at this time,” he added.

http://www.mindanews.com/top-stories/2016/06/21/police-still-clueless-on-maasim-blast/

16 soldiers wounded in Sayyaf clash in Southern Philippines

From the Mindanao Examiner (Jun 21): 16 soldiers wounded in Sayyaf clash in Southern Philippines
 

More than a dozen army soldiers were wounded in intense battle with Abu Sayyaf rebels on Tuesday in the southern Philippines, officials said.

Officials said at least 3 rebels were killed in the fighting which erupted in Pansul village in Patikul town, a known lair of the Abu Sayyaf in Sulu, one of 5 provinces under the Muslim autonomous region.

At least 16 soldiers were wounded and all are members of the 32^nd Infantry Battalion under Lt. Col. Ramon Flores who clashed with about 200 gunmen. The fighting last nearly two hours before the rebels managed to break into smaller groups and fled the military assault.

The military launched simultaneous operations against the Abu Sayyaf in Sulu after rebels beheaded a kidnapped Canadian hostage Robert Hall recently.

Officials provided no other or additional details of the ongoing operations citing military confidentiality, but the clash coincided with the capture of an Abu Sayyaf rebel – Usman Atalad alias Suhud Limaya – in Zamboanga City.

Atalad, who belongs to an Abu Sayyaf faction in Basilan, also in the autonomous region, was selling fruits in downtown Zamboanga when policemen and air force soldiers arrested him.

The rebel, who is facing a string of criminal charges, is being investigated by authorities in Zamboanga City before being sent back to the province to face the charges in court against him.

http://mindanaoexaminer.com/16-soldiers-wounded-in-sayyaf-clash-in-southern-philippines/