Propaganda statement posted to the National Democratic Front Website (Jun 2): Statement of the NDFP negotiating pane
We, the Negotiating Panel of the National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP) urge the Negotiating Panel of the Government of the Republic of the Philippines (GRP) to come back to the negotiating table and realize the fifth round of formal talks as soon as possible.
The GRP and NDFP must act in consonance with the Filipino people’s clamor for peace negotiations and their demand for social, economic and political reforms to address the roots of the armed conflict and lay the basis for a just and lasting peace.
The GRP and NDFP must stand together to oppose and fight terrorism, terrorist groups and acts of terrorism.
We must condemn and must be resolved and determined to counteract the Maute group and Abu Sayaff which are wreaking havoc in Marawi City. These are terrorist groups linked to local reactionary forces, affiliated with ISIS and supported by US-CIA and other foreign entities.
By terrorism we mean actions that intimidate, terrorize and harm civilians solely or mainly in violation of human rights and international humanitarian law.
The level of counteraction against terrorism, as well as the nature, scope and duration must be appropriate and proportional to the degree of danger and threat and/or harm by the terrorist group concerned in Marawi City. Upon the success of the counter-terrorist measures, these must cease to allow normalcy and full respect for human rights as soon as possible.
In specific areas of cooperation and coordination, the armed forces of the GRP and NDFP shall be bound by a ceasefire agreement between them, pending the issuance of ceasefire declarations that are unilateral but simultaneous and reciprocal.
Preparations for the fifth round of formal talks must be undertaken through bilateral teams of the GRP and NDFP so that precious time is not lost. In this connection, all panelists, legal and political consultants and other personnel in the peace negotiations must be allowed to return to the Philippines and subsequently attend the fifth round of formal talks.
Signed in Noordwijk aan Zee, The Netherlands on June 1, 2017.
On behalf of the NDFP Negotiating Panel:
Fidel V. Agcaoili
Chairperson
https://www.ndfp.org/statement-ndfp-negotiating-panel/
Friday, June 2, 2017
MILF: Stand With Marawi. Save The Peace Process. Defend Our Rights: MPW
Posted to the Moro Islamic Liberation Front Website (Jun 2): Stand With Marawi. Save The Peace Process. Defend Our Rights: MPW
The Mindanao Peace Weavers (MPW) along with its convening networks and allied peace partners condemned in the strongest terms the terror that is besieging Marawi City.
In a statement, they said, “We are deeply saddened that this tragedy occurred during the Holy Month of Ramadhan, a period of spiritual reflection for Muslims. But for the people of Marawi, it is currently a disquieting time when danger, violence, and death are at their doorsteps.
They appealed to the heart and conscience of President Duterte to see the face of humanitarian crisis.
They also invoked the state’s responsibility to protect and fulfill the rights of internally displaced persons (IDPs) during evacuation until their safe and dignified return to Marawi City.
“In hindsight, we believe that a combination of keen foresight and leadership coupled with political will and military intelligence, the government can address the crisis situation in Marawi without resorting to a declaration of Martial Law”, they said.
“We are disheartened with the extent of civilian casualties - most of whom are women and children - caught in the crossfire while fleeing to safer grounds’, they said in the statement.
“The Marawi crisis is considered the tipping point of the Martial Law declaration. But we pray that martial rule won’t be the last straw before we lose the gains in the peace processes through the years. Despite the safeguards that are already embodied in the 1987 Constitution, we still dread the thought of Martial Law turning draconian in the days and weeks to come. Because, as a country, we committed to listen to the wisdom of history – “Never Again” – was our collective mantra in the aftermath of the Marcos dictatorship. Yet now in a seeming instance, Martial Law is upon us again” they also said in the statement.
In the same statement, the group said that, “We are seriously alarmed with the declaration of the 60-day Martial Law in the whole of Mindanao. Appalled by the sudden turn of events, we as advocates of civil liberties remain wary of the factual basis and intention of this proclamation”, they said.
The group’s urgent appeals were as follows:
For President Rodrigo Roa Duterte, Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process Jesus Dureza, National Security Adviser Hermogenes Esperon, Jr, DND Sec Delfin Lorenzana, AFP Chief Gen. Eduardo Ano, ARMM Governor Mujiv Hataman, Western Mindanao Command Chief MGen Carlito Galvez Jr, DSWD Sec Judy Taguiwalo, Peace Negotiators in the Bangsamoro peace process and the GRP-NDFP peace process, BTC Chair Ghadzali Jaafar, Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno, Senate President Aquilino Pimentel, Jr, Speaker of the House Pantaleon Alvarez, Peace and Order Councils of ARMM, Lanao del Sur and Norte, Regions 10, 11 and Region 12, and humanitarian groups :
1. Support the appeal towards a “humanitarian passage”-- a half-day “cease and desist from all forms of armed action”and invoke universally-accepted protocols on displacement and civilian protection accorded to IDPs and at the same time with deference to the observance of the Holy Month of Ramadhan.
2. Provision of humanitarian corridor/s within Marawi City or adjacent towns where IDPs have sought/can seek refuge, to ensure their safe passage, safety, security and unhampered access to humanitarian aid in these buffer zones.
3. For the security actors, in concert with the Marawi city government and trusted local mediators to address the hostage situation and secure the safety of Fr Teresito Suganob, his staff, parishioners and any other residents who are still being held captive by the Maute militants.
4. Mobilize broad support for prompt and adequate humanitarian assistance in coordination with the ARMM-HEART and the local multi-stakeholder convergence on emergency support and crisis response in the cities of Marawi, Iligan and Cagayan de Oro.
5. Immediately stop the airstrikes, indiscriminate firing and artillery shelling directed at civilian dwellings and public structures wherein trapped IDPs are seeking sanctuary. Forcing them out with the razing of these structures effectively puts them further at risk and in harm’s way.
6. We appeal to President Duterte to continue upholding the primacy of the peace process. Corollary to this, we are respectfully requesting that the declaration of Martial Law be rescinded. While the military action in Marawi and adjacent towns continues, we hope this will not affect the momentum and continuance of both the Bangsamoro and the GRP-NDFP peace tables and the unimpeded implementation of all signed interim and final peace agreements;
7. We urge both the government forces and the New Peoples Army (NPA) to withdraw/reposition their troops and discontinue any armed offensives especially in remote villages and ancestral domains of IPs. Sporadic attacks, harassments and militarization further contribute to an explosive situation in the midst of a Martial Law imposition;
8. Lastly, we call on all citizens to remain vigilant, defend your rights, organize and engage our communities to actively monitor the situation on the ground, and help contribute in conflict mitigation and de-escalation.
Finally, as the President himself recognized and admitted in the past, no military solution can ever resolve the deep socio-economic and political problems that have blighted our land and bred terror and extremism that we are confronting today. What is needed is recognition of the legitimate grievances, historical injustices and ongoing justice issues perpetrated on our peoples and addressing the root causes of armed conflict through structural change.
The Mindanao Peace Weavers (MPW) along with its convening networks and allied peace partners condemned in the strongest terms the terror that is besieging Marawi City.
In a statement, they said, “We are deeply saddened that this tragedy occurred during the Holy Month of Ramadhan, a period of spiritual reflection for Muslims. But for the people of Marawi, it is currently a disquieting time when danger, violence, and death are at their doorsteps.
They appealed to the heart and conscience of President Duterte to see the face of humanitarian crisis.
They also invoked the state’s responsibility to protect and fulfill the rights of internally displaced persons (IDPs) during evacuation until their safe and dignified return to Marawi City.
“In hindsight, we believe that a combination of keen foresight and leadership coupled with political will and military intelligence, the government can address the crisis situation in Marawi without resorting to a declaration of Martial Law”, they said.
“We are disheartened with the extent of civilian casualties - most of whom are women and children - caught in the crossfire while fleeing to safer grounds’, they said in the statement.
“The Marawi crisis is considered the tipping point of the Martial Law declaration. But we pray that martial rule won’t be the last straw before we lose the gains in the peace processes through the years. Despite the safeguards that are already embodied in the 1987 Constitution, we still dread the thought of Martial Law turning draconian in the days and weeks to come. Because, as a country, we committed to listen to the wisdom of history – “Never Again” – was our collective mantra in the aftermath of the Marcos dictatorship. Yet now in a seeming instance, Martial Law is upon us again” they also said in the statement.
In the same statement, the group said that, “We are seriously alarmed with the declaration of the 60-day Martial Law in the whole of Mindanao. Appalled by the sudden turn of events, we as advocates of civil liberties remain wary of the factual basis and intention of this proclamation”, they said.
The group’s urgent appeals were as follows:
For President Rodrigo Roa Duterte, Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process Jesus Dureza, National Security Adviser Hermogenes Esperon, Jr, DND Sec Delfin Lorenzana, AFP Chief Gen. Eduardo Ano, ARMM Governor Mujiv Hataman, Western Mindanao Command Chief MGen Carlito Galvez Jr, DSWD Sec Judy Taguiwalo, Peace Negotiators in the Bangsamoro peace process and the GRP-NDFP peace process, BTC Chair Ghadzali Jaafar, Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno, Senate President Aquilino Pimentel, Jr, Speaker of the House Pantaleon Alvarez, Peace and Order Councils of ARMM, Lanao del Sur and Norte, Regions 10, 11 and Region 12, and humanitarian groups :
1. Support the appeal towards a “humanitarian passage”-- a half-day “cease and desist from all forms of armed action”and invoke universally-accepted protocols on displacement and civilian protection accorded to IDPs and at the same time with deference to the observance of the Holy Month of Ramadhan.
2. Provision of humanitarian corridor/s within Marawi City or adjacent towns where IDPs have sought/can seek refuge, to ensure their safe passage, safety, security and unhampered access to humanitarian aid in these buffer zones.
3. For the security actors, in concert with the Marawi city government and trusted local mediators to address the hostage situation and secure the safety of Fr Teresito Suganob, his staff, parishioners and any other residents who are still being held captive by the Maute militants.
4. Mobilize broad support for prompt and adequate humanitarian assistance in coordination with the ARMM-HEART and the local multi-stakeholder convergence on emergency support and crisis response in the cities of Marawi, Iligan and Cagayan de Oro.
5. Immediately stop the airstrikes, indiscriminate firing and artillery shelling directed at civilian dwellings and public structures wherein trapped IDPs are seeking sanctuary. Forcing them out with the razing of these structures effectively puts them further at risk and in harm’s way.
6. We appeal to President Duterte to continue upholding the primacy of the peace process. Corollary to this, we are respectfully requesting that the declaration of Martial Law be rescinded. While the military action in Marawi and adjacent towns continues, we hope this will not affect the momentum and continuance of both the Bangsamoro and the GRP-NDFP peace tables and the unimpeded implementation of all signed interim and final peace agreements;
7. We urge both the government forces and the New Peoples Army (NPA) to withdraw/reposition their troops and discontinue any armed offensives especially in remote villages and ancestral domains of IPs. Sporadic attacks, harassments and militarization further contribute to an explosive situation in the midst of a Martial Law imposition;
8. Lastly, we call on all citizens to remain vigilant, defend your rights, organize and engage our communities to actively monitor the situation on the ground, and help contribute in conflict mitigation and de-escalation.
Finally, as the President himself recognized and admitted in the past, no military solution can ever resolve the deep socio-economic and political problems that have blighted our land and bred terror and extremism that we are confronting today. What is needed is recognition of the legitimate grievances, historical injustices and ongoing justice issues perpetrated on our peoples and addressing the root causes of armed conflict through structural change.
Duterte bestows ISIS status on Maute group
Posted to VERA Files (May 29): Duterte bestows ISIS status on Maute group (By Charmaine Deogracias)
Before May 23, 2017, the band of bandits operating in the Lanao area called Maute Group was nothing but an armed network of clans with familial ties to the Moro Islamic Liberation Front. But the Maute Group is now an international terrorist organization, thanks to President Rodrigo Duterte and his declaration of martial law in Mindanao.
What is referred to in military and police reports as a local
The group has now been renamed Maute ISIS. Armed Forces of the Philippines chief of staff Eduardo Año on Friday said the AFP is considering classifying the group as an international terrorist organization.
So far, only the Abu Sayyaf and the New People’s Army are the Philippine groups listed in the US Department of State roster of Foreign Terrorist Organizations.
Research conducted by VERA Files shows that before Mindanao was placed under martial law, police and military intelligence reports have already noted the diminishing strength of the Maute group and as well as its so-called vision to establish an Islamic State wilayah or province in Mindanao.
Both the AFP and the Philippine National Police have maintained that the group is a network of armed clans based in Lanao del Sur. They had relatives in the MILF and connections with local politicians, and maintained training and financial relations with the Southeast Asian terror network Jemaah Islamiya.
But Maute had no established direct ties with the Islamic state of Iraq and Syria. Only when President Duterte declared martial law in Mindanao did Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana label the group Maute ISIS.
“It is actually Maute ISIS because they are the same,” Lorenzana said in a press conference in Moscow after Duterte declared martial law in Mindanao. He said he had reason to believe, based on the reports he received from Baghdad, that photos of the ongoing clashes in Marawi City were simultaneously streamed in the ISIS website in the Middle East. To Lorenzana, this constitutes international backing from ISIS.
The PNP placed the Maute Group’s manpower at 267 composed mainly of relatives with 117 different high-powered firearms. From that high, the military reported killing 85 Maute Group-linked personalities in a series of operations in February 2016, and 37 more in a set of military offensives on April 22 to 24 this year.
“Originally the Maute is composed of close relatives but due to their depleted number of members, they are accepting outside of their clan. Thus, penetrating them is possible,” a PNP intelligence brief obtained by VERA Files said.
The report identified the known clans in Lanao del Sur that comprise the group: Maute, Romato, Mimbantas and Macadatu.
“Currently, the Maute Group has gathered a force not only from the above mentioned clans but from other groups in Central Mindanao such as MILF/Bangsamoro Islamic Armed Force (MILF/BIAF), Moro National Liberation Front/Bangsamoro Armed Forces (MNLF/BAF), Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Movement/Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFM/BIFF), Abu Sayyaf Group/Al Harakatul Al-Islamiya (ASG/AHAI), Ansar al-Khalifa Philippines (AKP) and individuals who want to experience (Hijra) fighting in the name of religion,” the police brief stated.
The Maute Group has been linked to suspects arrested for the Davao night market bombing on September 2, 2016 that killed 15 people and wounded more than 60 others.
Datu Mohammad Abduljabbar Sema, the alleged logistics supplier for that bombing operation, was arrested in Malaysia in November 24, 2016 and remains in Malaysian custody. He is the son of Muslimin Sema, chairman of the largest MNLF faction and former Cotabato mayor. His mother incumbent Rep. Bai Sandra Sema belongs to the influential Sinsuat clan of Maguindanao. His brother, Omar Yasser Sema was appointed by Duterte to the Bangsamoro Transition Council.
The BTC is tasked to revise the proposed Bangsamoro Basic Law that will create the new Bangsamoro region to replace the Autonomous Region for Muslim Mindanao. ARMM was part of the peace agreement between the government and the MNLF in 1996 while the BBL is part of Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro signed in 2014 between the government and the MILF, a breakaway of the MNLF.
The MILF’s First Vice Chair Ghazali Jaafar has been chosen by the MILF Central Committee to chair the BTC. Military reports said he is related to Maute matriarch Ominta “Farhana” Romato.
Meanwhile, the eldest of the Maute brothers, Mohamadkhayam “Otto” is married to the daughter of Alim Aziz Mimbantas, former MILF vice chairman for Military Affairs.
According to a military dossier of the Maute family, Otto graduated with a degree in civil engineering from the University of the East where he also met his wife Adlia Mimbantas. He is reportedly directing the operations and intelligence of the Lanao-based Maute group.
However, the police brief also suggested that enjoining the MILF to engage the Maute can “possibly limit the movements of the Maute members in the mountainous areas of Kararaw complex where one of the camps of MILF is situated. Traversing in other places will be difficult for them.”
In the peace deal with the MILF, the government established a mechanism that requires prior coordination of military and law enforcement activities within MILF-controlled areas. It is as yet unknown how martial law in the whole of Mindanao will affect the peace process with the MILF.
The military for its part began monitoring the Maute group after Indonesian JI leader Ibnu Ghalib Ibghol al-Jitli alias Ustadz Sanusi was killed in a safehouse owned by the Maute patriarch Engineer Cayamora Maute in Marawi City on November 21, 2012. Evidence showed that the Maute family was aiding the transfer of JI funds from Indonesia to Sanusi through their accounts, provided sanctuary and protection, and established connections with ranking JI leaders in Indonesia.
Until early this year, police and military intelligence reports indicated that Maute’s links have mainly been with the JI. It had no reported personal or institutional ties to the ISIS in either Raqqa in Syria or Mosul in Iraq. Foreigners killed along with Maute members in military offensives last year have remained unidentified.
The Jemaah Islamiyah Links
According to a military intelligence report, Sanusi alias Ghalib/Ishrak/Feris/ Monsoy Pamalaoy was believed to be the leader of the JI Mindanao, and when he was killed in a government operation in November 2012, the Maute brothers, Abdullah and Omar, took over the leadership of the group under the auspices of the unidentified JI and foreign jihadist personalities.
Abdullah, the amir of the group, is third of the 12 Maute siblings, composed of seven boys and five girls. Omar, who studied at Al-Azhar University in Cairo, Egypt, is the second among the Maute brothers and also a leader of the group. He married Minhati Midrais, an Indonesian national who is associated with a certain Yunais, also an Indonesian who is a brother of Sanusi.
Both Omar and Abdullah were trained by the JI in the 1990s when then MILF leader Hashim Salamat hosted the training of Southeast Asian militant extremists in Camp Abubakar in Maguindanao. They were trained by Omar Patek and Zulkifli bin Hir alias Marwan who came to Mindanao to seek refuge inside MILF enclaves, the military report said.
In addition, the police intelligence brief also disclosed that aside from Sanusi, the Mautes have links with other foreign terrorists like Ahmad Faisal bin Imam Sarijan alias Zulkipli, former leader of the JI cell Wakalah Hudeibiah, and alias Tolha, a member of Koleyah Harbiyah Dauskarayah (KHD-1), a project of the markaziyah (JI Central Command) for an officer cadet training course.
The police also noted that one of the Maute daughters is believed to have served as courier for individuals passing messages to their contacts in Mindanao as she frequented the jail of JI member Taufiq Rifqi who was detained for the 2003 Cotabato airport bombing.
Reports have it that that Abdullah Maute had received P5 million from foreign donors in Indonesia and Jordan. The 35-year old Abdullah graduated as an aleem or religious scholar, a doctor of Qu’ran at the Mutah University in Mutahal, Karak, Jordan.
Abdullah was among four LTG sub leaders seen in a video footage posted on social media on March 20, 2016 where he spoke in the Maranao dialect about their group’s mission, objectives, recent encounters with government forces. Together with Owayda Marombsar alia Abu Dar/Abdul Najid, they introduced their group as Dawla Islamiyah and pledged their allegiance to the ISIS or Daesh under the leadership of Khalif Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi Al-Hussaini Al Kurashi.
The Abu Sayyaf Connection
Both military and police intelligence reports obtained by VERA Files show an alliance between Maute and the Sulu or Basilan based ASG only on the tactical level and their common subsistence through criminal acts. When one group is under pressure from military operations, the other will create diversionary tactics.
When early this year, the military targeted Basilan-based ASG leader Isnilon Hapilon, whom the U.S. State Department has put up a $5 million bounty for his head, he went to Lanao del Sur to seek refuge, the report said.
Prior to that, on December 31, 2016, Hapilon sent members of his group to meet with Maute group negotiator Abdulatip Kanguan for talks on a possible merger in establishing a caliphate in Central Mindanao.
“However, the meeting did not prosper due to the conflict of their beliefs in war,” the police intelligence report said. “The Maute still continues to execute their plan of bombings in Midsayap, Cotabato City, General Santos City, Iligan City and Cagayan de Oro City.”
Joseph Franco, an analyst specializing in countering violent extremism counterinsurgency, and counterterrorism, said that while Hapilon pledged allegiance to IS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi in 2014 and was accepted, there was still reluctance on the part of the of the IS leadership to declare a province in Mindanao probably due to the Hapilon faction’s inability to exercise control over territory.
“But even if Hapilon could somehow control wide swathes of Mindanao, changes in the strategic priorities of IS may make it moot. There is speculation that IS may already have abandoned its wilayah-based expansion model. Instead of being declared an emir, Hapilon was referred to as a ‘wali’ or governor of an IS ‘division,’ with the Philippines being considered part of ‘the land of jihad’ and not as the ‘land of the caliphate,’” Franco said in his paper “Mindanao No Place for a Caliphate,” published by the East Asia Forum last month.
Reached by VERA Files, Franco explained that for ISIS to declare a wilayah, there must be a designated leader, a pledge to Baghdadi, and effective control of territory. The first two conditions are easily met, but the third may be very difficult.
“The fact that Hapilon moved from Basilan meant that his control there was tenuous. If you look at the Mautes on the other hand, they are for all intents and purposes a private army of the clan. They used the ISIS brand in utilitarian fashion. To look scary,” Franco said.
He added that Hapilon’s leadership is also tenuous because there is no single ASG. The Sulu-based ASG such as the Abu Rami and Sawadjaan factions will never pledged loyalty to Hapilon. They are more preoccupied with the kidnappings. If they pledged loyalty to Hapilon, that means they would remit their KFR income to the Basilan ASG and the Maute Group, which is unlikely to happen.
Franco also wrote the paper “The Battle(s) for Butig: Contextualizing the Maute Group,” where he argued that the Maute group is more of the clan’s private militia latching into the IS brand theatrically to inflate perceived capability.
He also said that it is ridiculous for ISIS to move their caliphate to Mindanao, even so now with the impending fall of Mosul and Raqqa.
Duterte on Thursday reported to Congress as mandated by law his basis for declaring martial law in Mindanao. He revealed Maute group's plans to establish an Islamic state in the entire region with Marawi City as its capital.
“The idea of an IS caliphate is unlikely to perish with the retaking of Mosul and Raqqa. But the physical manifestation of the IS vision requires a confluence of history and socio-economic realities. It is irresponsible to assume that an illicit institution could be transplanted from the plains of the Levant to the jungles of Mindanao,” said Franco who is with the Centre of Excellence for National Security of the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies at the Nanyang Technological University in Singapore.
http://verafiles.org/articles/duterte-bestows-isis-status-maute-group
Before May 23, 2017, the band of bandits operating in the Lanao area called Maute Group was nothing but an armed network of clans with familial ties to the Moro Islamic Liberation Front. But the Maute Group is now an international terrorist organization, thanks to President Rodrigo Duterte and his declaration of martial law in Mindanao.
What is referred to in military and police reports as a local
The group has now been renamed Maute ISIS. Armed Forces of the Philippines chief of staff Eduardo Año on Friday said the AFP is considering classifying the group as an international terrorist organization.
So far, only the Abu Sayyaf and the New People’s Army are the Philippine groups listed in the US Department of State roster of Foreign Terrorist Organizations.
Research conducted by VERA Files shows that before Mindanao was placed under martial law, police and military intelligence reports have already noted the diminishing strength of the Maute group and as well as its so-called vision to establish an Islamic State wilayah or province in Mindanao.
Both the AFP and the Philippine National Police have maintained that the group is a network of armed clans based in Lanao del Sur. They had relatives in the MILF and connections with local politicians, and maintained training and financial relations with the Southeast Asian terror network Jemaah Islamiya.
But Maute had no established direct ties with the Islamic state of Iraq and Syria. Only when President Duterte declared martial law in Mindanao did Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana label the group Maute ISIS.
“It is actually Maute ISIS because they are the same,” Lorenzana said in a press conference in Moscow after Duterte declared martial law in Mindanao. He said he had reason to believe, based on the reports he received from Baghdad, that photos of the ongoing clashes in Marawi City were simultaneously streamed in the ISIS website in the Middle East. To Lorenzana, this constitutes international backing from ISIS.
The PNP placed the Maute Group’s manpower at 267 composed mainly of relatives with 117 different high-powered firearms. From that high, the military reported killing 85 Maute Group-linked personalities in a series of operations in February 2016, and 37 more in a set of military offensives on April 22 to 24 this year.
“Originally the Maute is composed of close relatives but due to their depleted number of members, they are accepting outside of their clan. Thus, penetrating them is possible,” a PNP intelligence brief obtained by VERA Files said.
The report identified the known clans in Lanao del Sur that comprise the group: Maute, Romato, Mimbantas and Macadatu.
“Currently, the Maute Group has gathered a force not only from the above mentioned clans but from other groups in Central Mindanao such as MILF/Bangsamoro Islamic Armed Force (MILF/BIAF), Moro National Liberation Front/Bangsamoro Armed Forces (MNLF/BAF), Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Movement/Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFM/BIFF), Abu Sayyaf Group/Al Harakatul Al-Islamiya (ASG/AHAI), Ansar al-Khalifa Philippines (AKP) and individuals who want to experience (Hijra) fighting in the name of religion,” the police brief stated.
The Maute Group has been linked to suspects arrested for the Davao night market bombing on September 2, 2016 that killed 15 people and wounded more than 60 others.
Datu Mohammad Abduljabbar Sema, the alleged logistics supplier for that bombing operation, was arrested in Malaysia in November 24, 2016 and remains in Malaysian custody. He is the son of Muslimin Sema, chairman of the largest MNLF faction and former Cotabato mayor. His mother incumbent Rep. Bai Sandra Sema belongs to the influential Sinsuat clan of Maguindanao. His brother, Omar Yasser Sema was appointed by Duterte to the Bangsamoro Transition Council.
The BTC is tasked to revise the proposed Bangsamoro Basic Law that will create the new Bangsamoro region to replace the Autonomous Region for Muslim Mindanao. ARMM was part of the peace agreement between the government and the MNLF in 1996 while the BBL is part of Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro signed in 2014 between the government and the MILF, a breakaway of the MNLF.
The MILF’s First Vice Chair Ghazali Jaafar has been chosen by the MILF Central Committee to chair the BTC. Military reports said he is related to Maute matriarch Ominta “Farhana” Romato.
Meanwhile, the eldest of the Maute brothers, Mohamadkhayam “Otto” is married to the daughter of Alim Aziz Mimbantas, former MILF vice chairman for Military Affairs.
According to a military dossier of the Maute family, Otto graduated with a degree in civil engineering from the University of the East where he also met his wife Adlia Mimbantas. He is reportedly directing the operations and intelligence of the Lanao-based Maute group.
However, the police brief also suggested that enjoining the MILF to engage the Maute can “possibly limit the movements of the Maute members in the mountainous areas of Kararaw complex where one of the camps of MILF is situated. Traversing in other places will be difficult for them.”
In the peace deal with the MILF, the government established a mechanism that requires prior coordination of military and law enforcement activities within MILF-controlled areas. It is as yet unknown how martial law in the whole of Mindanao will affect the peace process with the MILF.
The military for its part began monitoring the Maute group after Indonesian JI leader Ibnu Ghalib Ibghol al-Jitli alias Ustadz Sanusi was killed in a safehouse owned by the Maute patriarch Engineer Cayamora Maute in Marawi City on November 21, 2012. Evidence showed that the Maute family was aiding the transfer of JI funds from Indonesia to Sanusi through their accounts, provided sanctuary and protection, and established connections with ranking JI leaders in Indonesia.
Until early this year, police and military intelligence reports indicated that Maute’s links have mainly been with the JI. It had no reported personal or institutional ties to the ISIS in either Raqqa in Syria or Mosul in Iraq. Foreigners killed along with Maute members in military offensives last year have remained unidentified.
The Jemaah Islamiyah Links
According to a military intelligence report, Sanusi alias Ghalib/Ishrak/Feris/ Monsoy Pamalaoy was believed to be the leader of the JI Mindanao, and when he was killed in a government operation in November 2012, the Maute brothers, Abdullah and Omar, took over the leadership of the group under the auspices of the unidentified JI and foreign jihadist personalities.
Abdullah, the amir of the group, is third of the 12 Maute siblings, composed of seven boys and five girls. Omar, who studied at Al-Azhar University in Cairo, Egypt, is the second among the Maute brothers and also a leader of the group. He married Minhati Midrais, an Indonesian national who is associated with a certain Yunais, also an Indonesian who is a brother of Sanusi.
Both Omar and Abdullah were trained by the JI in the 1990s when then MILF leader Hashim Salamat hosted the training of Southeast Asian militant extremists in Camp Abubakar in Maguindanao. They were trained by Omar Patek and Zulkifli bin Hir alias Marwan who came to Mindanao to seek refuge inside MILF enclaves, the military report said.
In addition, the police intelligence brief also disclosed that aside from Sanusi, the Mautes have links with other foreign terrorists like Ahmad Faisal bin Imam Sarijan alias Zulkipli, former leader of the JI cell Wakalah Hudeibiah, and alias Tolha, a member of Koleyah Harbiyah Dauskarayah (KHD-1), a project of the markaziyah (JI Central Command) for an officer cadet training course.
The police also noted that one of the Maute daughters is believed to have served as courier for individuals passing messages to their contacts in Mindanao as she frequented the jail of JI member Taufiq Rifqi who was detained for the 2003 Cotabato airport bombing.
Reports have it that that Abdullah Maute had received P5 million from foreign donors in Indonesia and Jordan. The 35-year old Abdullah graduated as an aleem or religious scholar, a doctor of Qu’ran at the Mutah University in Mutahal, Karak, Jordan.
Abdullah was among four LTG sub leaders seen in a video footage posted on social media on March 20, 2016 where he spoke in the Maranao dialect about their group’s mission, objectives, recent encounters with government forces. Together with Owayda Marombsar alia Abu Dar/Abdul Najid, they introduced their group as Dawla Islamiyah and pledged their allegiance to the ISIS or Daesh under the leadership of Khalif Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi Al-Hussaini Al Kurashi.
The Abu Sayyaf Connection
Both military and police intelligence reports obtained by VERA Files show an alliance between Maute and the Sulu or Basilan based ASG only on the tactical level and their common subsistence through criminal acts. When one group is under pressure from military operations, the other will create diversionary tactics.
When early this year, the military targeted Basilan-based ASG leader Isnilon Hapilon, whom the U.S. State Department has put up a $5 million bounty for his head, he went to Lanao del Sur to seek refuge, the report said.
Prior to that, on December 31, 2016, Hapilon sent members of his group to meet with Maute group negotiator Abdulatip Kanguan for talks on a possible merger in establishing a caliphate in Central Mindanao.
“However, the meeting did not prosper due to the conflict of their beliefs in war,” the police intelligence report said. “The Maute still continues to execute their plan of bombings in Midsayap, Cotabato City, General Santos City, Iligan City and Cagayan de Oro City.”
Joseph Franco, an analyst specializing in countering violent extremism counterinsurgency, and counterterrorism, said that while Hapilon pledged allegiance to IS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi in 2014 and was accepted, there was still reluctance on the part of the of the IS leadership to declare a province in Mindanao probably due to the Hapilon faction’s inability to exercise control over territory.
“But even if Hapilon could somehow control wide swathes of Mindanao, changes in the strategic priorities of IS may make it moot. There is speculation that IS may already have abandoned its wilayah-based expansion model. Instead of being declared an emir, Hapilon was referred to as a ‘wali’ or governor of an IS ‘division,’ with the Philippines being considered part of ‘the land of jihad’ and not as the ‘land of the caliphate,’” Franco said in his paper “Mindanao No Place for a Caliphate,” published by the East Asia Forum last month.
Reached by VERA Files, Franco explained that for ISIS to declare a wilayah, there must be a designated leader, a pledge to Baghdadi, and effective control of territory. The first two conditions are easily met, but the third may be very difficult.
“The fact that Hapilon moved from Basilan meant that his control there was tenuous. If you look at the Mautes on the other hand, they are for all intents and purposes a private army of the clan. They used the ISIS brand in utilitarian fashion. To look scary,” Franco said.
He added that Hapilon’s leadership is also tenuous because there is no single ASG. The Sulu-based ASG such as the Abu Rami and Sawadjaan factions will never pledged loyalty to Hapilon. They are more preoccupied with the kidnappings. If they pledged loyalty to Hapilon, that means they would remit their KFR income to the Basilan ASG and the Maute Group, which is unlikely to happen.
Franco also wrote the paper “The Battle(s) for Butig: Contextualizing the Maute Group,” where he argued that the Maute group is more of the clan’s private militia latching into the IS brand theatrically to inflate perceived capability.
He also said that it is ridiculous for ISIS to move their caliphate to Mindanao, even so now with the impending fall of Mosul and Raqqa.
Duterte on Thursday reported to Congress as mandated by law his basis for declaring martial law in Mindanao. He revealed Maute group's plans to establish an Islamic state in the entire region with Marawi City as its capital.
“The idea of an IS caliphate is unlikely to perish with the retaking of Mosul and Raqqa. But the physical manifestation of the IS vision requires a confluence of history and socio-economic realities. It is irresponsible to assume that an illicit institution could be transplanted from the plains of the Levant to the jungles of Mindanao,” said Franco who is with the Centre of Excellence for National Security of the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies at the Nanyang Technological University in Singapore.
http://verafiles.org/articles/duterte-bestows-isis-status-maute-group
DWDD: 1 NPA Killed, 3 Rifles Recovered in Agusan Sur Encounter
From DWDD AFP Civil Relations Service Radio Website (May 30): 1 NPA Killed, 3 Rifles Recovered in Agusan Sur Encounter
A dead New Peoples Army, two AK 47 and an M16 rifle were left by the NPAs Guerilla Front 21A after an hour of the firefight with the 3rd Special Forces Battalion in Sitio Goshen, Brgy New Tubigon, Sibagat, Agusan del Sur at around 3:30 in the afternoon of Monday, May 29.
The remnants of the 20-man platoon of the NPAs scampered to different directions with some bringing with them their 4 more wounded companions as reported by the locals. 5 backpacks with documents of high intelligence value were also left as stated in a report of LTC RUDY PARALLAG to COL CRISTOBAL ZARAGOZA of the 401st Brigade.
The dead male NPA was brought by the troopers to the Charlotte Funeral Homes in San Vicente of Sibagat for documentation by the SOCO and identification by his relatives for his decent burial.
MGEN BENJAMIN MADRIGAL of the 4th Infantry Division congratulated the Special Forces troopers for their relentless tracking of the armed group who were reported earlier by the residents of the barangay that are already fed up feeding the bandits out of fear every time the group is in their area.
http://dwdd.com.ph/2017/05/30/1-npa-killed-3-rifles-recovered-in-agusan-sur-encounter/
A dead New Peoples Army, two AK 47 and an M16 rifle were left by the NPAs Guerilla Front 21A after an hour of the firefight with the 3rd Special Forces Battalion in Sitio Goshen, Brgy New Tubigon, Sibagat, Agusan del Sur at around 3:30 in the afternoon of Monday, May 29.
The remnants of the 20-man platoon of the NPAs scampered to different directions with some bringing with them their 4 more wounded companions as reported by the locals. 5 backpacks with documents of high intelligence value were also left as stated in a report of LTC RUDY PARALLAG to COL CRISTOBAL ZARAGOZA of the 401st Brigade.
The dead male NPA was brought by the troopers to the Charlotte Funeral Homes in San Vicente of Sibagat for documentation by the SOCO and identification by his relatives for his decent burial.
MGEN BENJAMIN MADRIGAL of the 4th Infantry Division congratulated the Special Forces troopers for their relentless tracking of the armed group who were reported earlier by the residents of the barangay that are already fed up feeding the bandits out of fear every time the group is in their area.
http://dwdd.com.ph/2017/05/30/1-npa-killed-3-rifles-recovered-in-agusan-sur-encounter/
DWDD: BRP Tarlac Sails to Aid Mindanao Conflict
From DWDD AFP Civil Relations Service Radio Website (May 30): BRP Tarlac Sails to Aid Mindanao Conflict
BRP Tarlac (LD 601), the first of the Philippine Navy’s Amphibious Landing Dock formerly known as Strategic Sealift Vessel (SSV), sails for Mindanao today, May 29, 2016, to transport military vehicles and supplies to AFP units in the South.
For this mission, LD 601 accommodated 30 military vehicles and supplies weighing 253 tons. These cargos will be distributed to the different AFP units in Mindanao to cater to the transport and logistical requirements of the ongoing military operations against terrorists.
The ship, with its capability to accommodate more than 4,000 tons of cargo and 500 personnel onboard, is utilized not only to support military operations but also for mass evacuation and even international humanitarian assistance during disasters and crisis.
http://dwdd.com.ph/2017/05/30/brp-tarlac-sails-to-aid-mindanao-conflict/
BRP Tarlac (LD 601), the first of the Philippine Navy’s Amphibious Landing Dock formerly known as Strategic Sealift Vessel (SSV), sails for Mindanao today, May 29, 2016, to transport military vehicles and supplies to AFP units in the South.
For this mission, LD 601 accommodated 30 military vehicles and supplies weighing 253 tons. These cargos will be distributed to the different AFP units in Mindanao to cater to the transport and logistical requirements of the ongoing military operations against terrorists.
The ship, with its capability to accommodate more than 4,000 tons of cargo and 500 personnel onboard, is utilized not only to support military operations but also for mass evacuation and even international humanitarian assistance during disasters and crisis.
http://dwdd.com.ph/2017/05/30/brp-tarlac-sails-to-aid-mindanao-conflict/
US long-range patrol aircraft operating in Philippines
From Update Philippines (Jun 1): US long-range patrol aircraft operating in Philippines
The Philippine armed forces is getting minimal help from the United States military for its operation in Marawi City.
National Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana said some American assets are in the country but are being used for other purposed. He added that the government forces have enough equipment to contain terrorists in Marawi City.
He said during a press conference in Malacañang earlier this day that Philippines is getting assistance “through the operation of their (US) drones, the shadows, they have three birds operating there and they are giving us intelligence, information. But I don’t think they have some here in Marawi that is too far away from Zamboanga where operate the shadows, malayo kasi masyado.”
“They still have, yung kanilang long-range aircraft na nandito ngayon [in Philippines], but very little [operation] for Marawi. A lot for other areas like South China Sea, Sulu Sea, Basilan marami silang binibigay sa atin (information). But here [for Marawi], just very minimal,” he added.
“I don’t think we need to ask because we already have a lot of equipment to contain this Marawi incident,” Secretary Lorenzana noted.
https://www.update.ph/2017/06/us-long-range-patrol-aircraft-operating-in-philippines/17910
The Philippine armed forces is getting minimal help from the United States military for its operation in Marawi City.
National Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana said some American assets are in the country but are being used for other purposed. He added that the government forces have enough equipment to contain terrorists in Marawi City.
He said during a press conference in Malacañang earlier this day that Philippines is getting assistance “through the operation of their (US) drones, the shadows, they have three birds operating there and they are giving us intelligence, information. But I don’t think they have some here in Marawi that is too far away from Zamboanga where operate the shadows, malayo kasi masyado.”
“They still have, yung kanilang long-range aircraft na nandito ngayon [in Philippines], but very little [operation] for Marawi. A lot for other areas like South China Sea, Sulu Sea, Basilan marami silang binibigay sa atin (information). But here [for Marawi], just very minimal,” he added.
“I don’t think we need to ask because we already have a lot of equipment to contain this Marawi incident,” Secretary Lorenzana noted.
https://www.update.ph/2017/06/us-long-range-patrol-aircraft-operating-in-philippines/17910
Japan patrol vessel arrives in Davao City
From Update Philippines (Jun 2): Japan patrol vessel arrives in Davao City
PCG photo
Japan Coast Guard Patrol Vessel-Large With Helicopter (PLH-08) Echigo today arrived at Sasa Wharf, Davao City. The Japanese patrol vessel will participate in the 12th Maritime Law Enforcement Exercise (MARLEN).
According to Philippine Coast Guard the 105-meter patrol vessel has a standard cruising speed of 22 knots and a range of 1,500 nautical miles. The vessel has a complement of 50 people.
“She was complexly built in February 1990 and was constructed in order to deal with the expansion of Japanese territorial sea and the economic exclusive zones and other responsible sea area bound by the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and the International Convention on Maritime Search and Rescue of 1979,” the PCG said.
Philippine Coast Guard, Japan Coast Guard, Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and the Regional Cooperation Agreement on Combating Piracy and Armed Robbery against Ships in Asia (ReCAAP) will be holding exercises at vicinity waters off Talicud Island, Igacos, Davao Del Norte on 3 June 2017.
Rubber boat drills are also being conducted as part of the engagement between two coast guards.
https://www.update.ph/2017/06/japan-patrol-vessel-arrives-in-davao-city/17917
PCG photo
Japan Coast Guard Patrol Vessel-Large With Helicopter (PLH-08) Echigo today arrived at Sasa Wharf, Davao City. The Japanese patrol vessel will participate in the 12th Maritime Law Enforcement Exercise (MARLEN).
According to Philippine Coast Guard the 105-meter patrol vessel has a standard cruising speed of 22 knots and a range of 1,500 nautical miles. The vessel has a complement of 50 people.
“She was complexly built in February 1990 and was constructed in order to deal with the expansion of Japanese territorial sea and the economic exclusive zones and other responsible sea area bound by the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and the International Convention on Maritime Search and Rescue of 1979,” the PCG said.
Philippine Coast Guard, Japan Coast Guard, Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and the Regional Cooperation Agreement on Combating Piracy and Armed Robbery against Ships in Asia (ReCAAP) will be holding exercises at vicinity waters off Talicud Island, Igacos, Davao Del Norte on 3 June 2017.
Rubber boat drills are also being conducted as part of the engagement between two coast guards.
https://www.update.ph/2017/06/japan-patrol-vessel-arrives-in-davao-city/17917
President Duterte presented with Israeli Missile Launch System
From Update Philippines (Jun 1): President Duterte presented with Israeli Missile Launch System
Government photo
President Rodrigo Duterte on Wednesday, May 31 toured the newly commissioned Tarlac-class Amphibious Landing Dock BRP Davao del Sur (LD-602). The commissioning was among the highlights of Navy’s 119th Anniversary Celebration at Sasa Wharf in Davao City.
The Philippine Navy now operates 2 Tarlac-class Amphibious Landing Dock. The said class of vessels can carry 500 troops, two rigid-hull inflatable boats, two landing craft units, and three helicopters. They can also house and launch Amphibious Assault Vehicles (AAVs), truck-based mobile hospital, and different types of military vehicles.
Government photo
Aboard BRP Davao del Sur, President Duterte was presented with the capabilities of the warship, including the armed AW-109 naval helicopter on board.
He was also presented with a display unit of Israeli Rafael Advanced Defense Systems’ Spike ER (extended range) Missile Launch System (MLS).
Government photo
Spike ER MLS incorporated in Rafael’s Mini Typhoon remote weapon station will be installed to the three recently commissioned Multi-Purpose Attack Crafts (MPAC) of Philippine Navy, expected before the year ends.
Moreover, Philippine Navy’s first two AW-159 anti-submarine warfare (ASW) helicopters will be armed with Rafael’s Spike Non-line-of-sight (NLOS) MLS, an ultra long range version. These helicopters, being built by Leonardo formerly AgustaWestland, are expected to be delivered 2018.
https://www.update.ph/2017/06/president-duterte-presented-with-israeli-missile-launch-system/17899
Government photo
President Rodrigo Duterte on Wednesday, May 31 toured the newly commissioned Tarlac-class Amphibious Landing Dock BRP Davao del Sur (LD-602). The commissioning was among the highlights of Navy’s 119th Anniversary Celebration at Sasa Wharf in Davao City.
The Philippine Navy now operates 2 Tarlac-class Amphibious Landing Dock. The said class of vessels can carry 500 troops, two rigid-hull inflatable boats, two landing craft units, and three helicopters. They can also house and launch Amphibious Assault Vehicles (AAVs), truck-based mobile hospital, and different types of military vehicles.
Government photo
Aboard BRP Davao del Sur, President Duterte was presented with the capabilities of the warship, including the armed AW-109 naval helicopter on board.
He was also presented with a display unit of Israeli Rafael Advanced Defense Systems’ Spike ER (extended range) Missile Launch System (MLS).
Government photo
Spike ER MLS incorporated in Rafael’s Mini Typhoon remote weapon station will be installed to the three recently commissioned Multi-Purpose Attack Crafts (MPAC) of Philippine Navy, expected before the year ends.
Moreover, Philippine Navy’s first two AW-159 anti-submarine warfare (ASW) helicopters will be armed with Rafael’s Spike Non-line-of-sight (NLOS) MLS, an ultra long range version. These helicopters, being built by Leonardo formerly AgustaWestland, are expected to be delivered 2018.
https://www.update.ph/2017/06/president-duterte-presented-with-israeli-missile-launch-system/17899
Military won't meet June 2 deadline to end Marawi siege
From Rappler (Jun 2): Military won't meet June 2 deadline to end Marawi siege
The military says it will not suspend air strikes in Marawi
CLASHES CONTINUE. Government troops take position against enemy snipers as they escort rescued workers and trapped residents near the town center of Marawi on June 1, 2017. Photo by Ted Aljibe/Agence France-Presse
Security forces will not meet the Friday, June 2 deadline set by Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana to gain full control of Marawi City from the terrorist Maute Group.
"Based on reports we are getting, I don't think we can meet the deadline today to completey free Marawi of every single armed element in every street," Armed Forces of the Philippines spokesman Brigadier General Restituto Padilla said in a Palace news briefing on Friday.
"Until such time that every member of this armed group, this rebellious group that still wants to make a stand inside Marawi, exists, we cannot totally say we have cleared Marawi," added Padilla.
Lorenzana, the administrator of martial law, had set the June 2 deadline for security forces to end the Marawi siege.
Padilla said that as of the latest reports from ground commanders, members of the Maute Group still occupy some commercial establishments in the city.
"The enemy continues to occupy commercial buidlings as their defensible enemy lairs and this is the subect of military action being conducted for the past few days until now," said the military spokesman.
The armed group has also taken control of some religious buildings, like madrasas, which it uses to stage attacks against the military.
Mosques are being used as "sniper nests" to limit the movement of government forces.
Terrorists have even resorted to the use of civilians, including children, as human shields, making it even trickier for soldiers to neutralize them.
"Compounding the situation on the ground is the use of these forces, these armed elements, of children and civilians as human shields," said Padilla.
Air strikes continue
Ground commanders in Marawi have also decided to continue their air strikes despite the May 31 air strike that accidentally killed 10 soldiers.
Lorenzana had said on Thursday that air strikes may be suspended following the mishap.
Asked if the military will suspend the air strikes, Padilla said, “No, we are not.”
“We continue to apply commensurate military power on these existing threats and pockets of resistance and will continue to do so including the use of air strike,” he said.
The aircraft and crew involved in the ill-fated air strike have been pulled out of Marawi operations and brought back to their headquarters for debriefing and counselling.
“The worst scenario that can be likened to the worst nightmare for every pilot who tries to assist his fellow uniformed services on the ground is to have a case or incident like this,” said Padilla.
The Philippine army is in contact with the families of the 10 casualties and will provide assistance.
As of 6 pm on Thursday, 120 terrorists were killed. Government troops suffered 36 casualties while the number of civilian casualties remained at 19.
http://www.rappler.com/nation/171755-military-deadline-marawi-siege-june-2
The military says it will not suspend air strikes in Marawi
CLASHES CONTINUE. Government troops take position against enemy snipers as they escort rescued workers and trapped residents near the town center of Marawi on June 1, 2017. Photo by Ted Aljibe/Agence France-Presse
Security forces will not meet the Friday, June 2 deadline set by Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana to gain full control of Marawi City from the terrorist Maute Group.
"Based on reports we are getting, I don't think we can meet the deadline today to completey free Marawi of every single armed element in every street," Armed Forces of the Philippines spokesman Brigadier General Restituto Padilla said in a Palace news briefing on Friday.
"Until such time that every member of this armed group, this rebellious group that still wants to make a stand inside Marawi, exists, we cannot totally say we have cleared Marawi," added Padilla.
Lorenzana, the administrator of martial law, had set the June 2 deadline for security forces to end the Marawi siege.
Padilla said that as of the latest reports from ground commanders, members of the Maute Group still occupy some commercial establishments in the city.
"The enemy continues to occupy commercial buidlings as their defensible enemy lairs and this is the subect of military action being conducted for the past few days until now," said the military spokesman.
The armed group has also taken control of some religious buildings, like madrasas, which it uses to stage attacks against the military.
Mosques are being used as "sniper nests" to limit the movement of government forces.
Terrorists have even resorted to the use of civilians, including children, as human shields, making it even trickier for soldiers to neutralize them.
"Compounding the situation on the ground is the use of these forces, these armed elements, of children and civilians as human shields," said Padilla.
Air strikes continue
Ground commanders in Marawi have also decided to continue their air strikes despite the May 31 air strike that accidentally killed 10 soldiers.
Lorenzana had said on Thursday that air strikes may be suspended following the mishap.
Asked if the military will suspend the air strikes, Padilla said, “No, we are not.”
“We continue to apply commensurate military power on these existing threats and pockets of resistance and will continue to do so including the use of air strike,” he said.
The aircraft and crew involved in the ill-fated air strike have been pulled out of Marawi operations and brought back to their headquarters for debriefing and counselling.
“The worst scenario that can be likened to the worst nightmare for every pilot who tries to assist his fellow uniformed services on the ground is to have a case or incident like this,” said Padilla.
The Philippine army is in contact with the families of the 10 casualties and will provide assistance.
As of 6 pm on Thursday, 120 terrorists were killed. Government troops suffered 36 casualties while the number of civilian casualties remained at 19.
http://www.rappler.com/nation/171755-military-deadline-marawi-siege-june-2
Duterte presides over joint AFP-PNP command conference
From InterAksyon (Jun 2): Duterte presides over joint AFP-PNP command conference
President Duterte greets military brass in a joint command conference with top officers and officials of the Armed Forces of the Philippines and the Philippine National Police at Malacañang Palace. June 01, 2017. Photograph from the Malacañang Photo Bureau.
President Rodrigo Roa Duterte presided over the joint Armed Forces of the Philippines-Philippine National Police (AFP-PNP) Command Conference at the Heroes Hall in Malacañan Palace on Thursday, June 1, 2017.
President Duterte [center] at prayers before the start of a Command Conference with officers and officials of the Armed Forces of the Philippines and the Philippine National Police. Photograph from the Malacañang Photo Bureau.
Among those joining the Conference were Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea, Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana, National Security Adviser Hermogenes Esperon Jr., Interior and Local Government Acting Secretary Catalino Cuy, AFP Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eduardo Año, PNP Director General Ronald dela Rosa, Presidential Adviser on Military Affairs Arthur Tabaquero, Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) Director General Isidro Lapeña, National Intelligence Coordinating Agency (NICA) Director General Alex Monteagudo, Philippine Coast Guard Chief Joel Garcia, Special Assistant to the President Christopher Lawrence Go and other officials from various law enforcement agencies.
http://www.interaksyon.com/duterte-presides-over-joint-afp-pnp-command-conference/
President Duterte greets military brass in a joint command conference with top officers and officials of the Armed Forces of the Philippines and the Philippine National Police at Malacañang Palace. June 01, 2017. Photograph from the Malacañang Photo Bureau.
President Rodrigo Roa Duterte presided over the joint Armed Forces of the Philippines-Philippine National Police (AFP-PNP) Command Conference at the Heroes Hall in Malacañan Palace on Thursday, June 1, 2017.
President Duterte [center] at prayers before the start of a Command Conference with officers and officials of the Armed Forces of the Philippines and the Philippine National Police. Photograph from the Malacañang Photo Bureau.
Among those joining the Conference were Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea, Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana, National Security Adviser Hermogenes Esperon Jr., Interior and Local Government Acting Secretary Catalino Cuy, AFP Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eduardo Año, PNP Director General Ronald dela Rosa, Presidential Adviser on Military Affairs Arthur Tabaquero, Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) Director General Isidro Lapeña, National Intelligence Coordinating Agency (NICA) Director General Alex Monteagudo, Philippine Coast Guard Chief Joel Garcia, Special Assistant to the President Christopher Lawrence Go and other officials from various law enforcement agencies.
http://www.interaksyon.com/duterte-presides-over-joint-afp-pnp-command-conference/
DND releases arrest order vs 125 suspects in Marawi attack
From InterAksyon (Jun 2): DND releases arrest order vs 125 suspects in Marawi attack
Marines outside a mosque in Marawi City. (photo by Erik De Castro, Reuters)
The Department of National Defense has released an order for the arrest of 125 suspects in the attack on Marawi City.
Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre said his department will also issue an immigration lookout bulletin against the suspects named in the DND order.
Arrest Order No. 1, signed by Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana, who has been designated administrator of martial law declared by President Rodrigo Duterte over Mindanao, orders the heads of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, Philippine National Police and National Bureau of Investigation to “arrest, take into custody and conduct/continue investigation” on the suspects for “violation of Article 134 (Rebellion) of the Revised Penal Code or any crime related thereto.”
The names in the arrest order include not only members of the Maute and Abu Sayyaf groups but supporters and “couriers” as well.
Aguirre said because the order is issued in connection with martial law, under which Duterte has also suspended the privilege of the writ of habeas corpus, the persons on the list can be arrested without warrants anywhere in the country.
He added that the list likely includes some foreigners.
ARREST ORDER NO. 1:
http://www.interaksyon.com/dnd-releases-arrest-order-vs-125-suspects-in-marawi-attack/
The Department of National Defense has released an order for the arrest of 125 suspects in the attack on Marawi City.
Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre said his department will also issue an immigration lookout bulletin against the suspects named in the DND order.
Arrest Order No. 1, signed by Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana, who has been designated administrator of martial law declared by President Rodrigo Duterte over Mindanao, orders the heads of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, Philippine National Police and National Bureau of Investigation to “arrest, take into custody and conduct/continue investigation” on the suspects for “violation of Article 134 (Rebellion) of the Revised Penal Code or any crime related thereto.”
The names in the arrest order include not only members of the Maute and Abu Sayyaf groups but supporters and “couriers” as well.
Aguirre said because the order is issued in connection with martial law, under which Duterte has also suspended the privilege of the writ of habeas corpus, the persons on the list can be arrested without warrants anywhere in the country.
He added that the list likely includes some foreigners.
ARREST ORDER NO. 1:
http://www.interaksyon.com/dnd-releases-arrest-order-vs-125-suspects-in-marawi-attack/
NDFP urges govt to return to negotiating table, suggests ceasefires ‘in specific areas’
From the Mindanao Times (Jun 2): NDFP urges govt to return to negotiating table, suggests ceasefires ‘in specific areas’
NDFP chief negotiator Fidel Agcaoili (file)
Negotiators of the National Democratic Front of the Philippines urged their government counterparts “to come back to the negotiating table and realize the fifth round of formal talks as soon as possible.”
“In this connection, all panelists, legal and political consultants and other personnel in the peace negotiations must be allowed to return to the Philippines and subsequently attend the fifth round of formal talks,” Fidel Agcaoili, chairman of the rebel panel, said in a statement.
Agcaoili also suggested a ceasefire agreement “in specific areas of cooperation and coordination … pending the issuance of ceasefire declarations that are unilateral but simultaneous and reciprocal.”
Earlier, the government panel refused to participate in the fifth round of talks, supposed to start June 26 in The Netherlands, after the Communist Party of the Philippines ordered the New People’s Army to intensify attacks in response to President Rodrigo Duterte’s declaration of martial law over the whole of Mindanao.
On Wednesday, Duterte, angered by the CPP order, threatened to have NDFP negotiators and consultants, most of who are out on bail, arrested when they return to the country.
In calling for the realization of the fifth round of talks, Agcaoili said the government and NDFP “must act in consonance with the Filipino people’s clamor for peace negotiations and their demand for social, economic and political reforms to address the roots of the armed conflict and lay the basis for a just and lasting peace.”
“Preparations for the fifth round of formal talks must be undertaken through bilateral teams of the GRP (Goverment of the Republic of the Philippines) and NDFP so that precious time is not lost,” he added.
At the same time, he said both sides “must stand together to oppose and fight terrorism, terrorist groups and acts of terrorism.”
“We must condemn and must be resolved and determined to counteract the Maute group and Abu Sayaff which are wreaking havoc in Marawi City,” he said.
“By terrorism we mean actions that intimidate, terrorize and harm civilians solely or mainly in violation of human rights and international humanitarian law,” he added.
Agcaoili claimed the local extremists, aside from being affiliated with the Islamic State, are also “linked to local reactionary forces” and “supported by US-CIA (Central Intelligence Agency) and other foreign entities.”
Nevertheless, Agcaoili warned against government overreach, saying: “The level of counteraction against terrorism, as well as the nature, scope and duration must be appropriate and proportional to the degree of danger and threat and/or harm by the terrorist group concerned in Marawi City.”
“Upon the success of the counter-terrorist measures, these must cease to allow normalcy and full respect for human rights as soon as possible,” he stressed.
http://www.interaksyon.com/ndfp-urges-govt-to-return-to-negotiating-table-suggests-ceasefires-in-specific-areas/
NDFP chief negotiator Fidel Agcaoili (file)
Negotiators of the National Democratic Front of the Philippines urged their government counterparts “to come back to the negotiating table and realize the fifth round of formal talks as soon as possible.”
“In this connection, all panelists, legal and political consultants and other personnel in the peace negotiations must be allowed to return to the Philippines and subsequently attend the fifth round of formal talks,” Fidel Agcaoili, chairman of the rebel panel, said in a statement.
Agcaoili also suggested a ceasefire agreement “in specific areas of cooperation and coordination … pending the issuance of ceasefire declarations that are unilateral but simultaneous and reciprocal.”
Earlier, the government panel refused to participate in the fifth round of talks, supposed to start June 26 in The Netherlands, after the Communist Party of the Philippines ordered the New People’s Army to intensify attacks in response to President Rodrigo Duterte’s declaration of martial law over the whole of Mindanao.
On Wednesday, Duterte, angered by the CPP order, threatened to have NDFP negotiators and consultants, most of who are out on bail, arrested when they return to the country.
In calling for the realization of the fifth round of talks, Agcaoili said the government and NDFP “must act in consonance with the Filipino people’s clamor for peace negotiations and their demand for social, economic and political reforms to address the roots of the armed conflict and lay the basis for a just and lasting peace.”
“Preparations for the fifth round of formal talks must be undertaken through bilateral teams of the GRP (Goverment of the Republic of the Philippines) and NDFP so that precious time is not lost,” he added.
At the same time, he said both sides “must stand together to oppose and fight terrorism, terrorist groups and acts of terrorism.”
“We must condemn and must be resolved and determined to counteract the Maute group and Abu Sayaff which are wreaking havoc in Marawi City,” he said.
“By terrorism we mean actions that intimidate, terrorize and harm civilians solely or mainly in violation of human rights and international humanitarian law,” he added.
Agcaoili claimed the local extremists, aside from being affiliated with the Islamic State, are also “linked to local reactionary forces” and “supported by US-CIA (Central Intelligence Agency) and other foreign entities.”
Nevertheless, Agcaoili warned against government overreach, saying: “The level of counteraction against terrorism, as well as the nature, scope and duration must be appropriate and proportional to the degree of danger and threat and/or harm by the terrorist group concerned in Marawi City.”
“Upon the success of the counter-terrorist measures, these must cease to allow normalcy and full respect for human rights as soon as possible,” he stressed.
http://www.interaksyon.com/ndfp-urges-govt-to-return-to-negotiating-table-suggests-ceasefires-in-specific-areas/
ARMY: 4 NPAs surrender, including couple reported to be arrested
From the Mindanao Times (Jun 2): ARMY: 4 NPAs surrender, including couple reported to be arrested
FOUR MEMBERS of the New People’s Army’s militiang bayan in Laak, Compostela Valley surrendered to the Charlie Company of the 60th Infantry Battalion on Tuesday.
According to a report released by Karapatan SMR on May 30, a farmer couple was illegally arrested by elements of 60IB on Monday, May 29.
But the military insisted that the couple, along with two others, actually surrendered by seeking refuge first with their tribal chieftains and local leaders who then accompanied them to the army headquarters. Their names are withheld so they could lead normal lives.
The Antay couple and two more NPA militiang bayan surrendered with several firearms, improvised explosive device, and medical paraphernalia. All are members of the Dibabawon and Ata Manobo tribes.
Meanwhile, 60IB and the Laak Municipal Police already assisted the four rebel returnees through documentation at first. They also underwent medical checkup and currently undergoing briefing.
The Municipal Local Government of Laak thru its Social Welfare and Development Office has already committed to assisting the surrenderees in their needs.
Lt. Col. Emmanuel Canilla, commander of 60th IB, condemned the allegations of Karapatan that malign military units and other government institutions without providing any proof.
According to a report released by Karapatan SMR on May 30, a farmer couple was illegally arrested by elements of 60IB on Monday, May 29.
But the military insisted that the couple, along with two others, actually surrendered by seeking refuge first with their tribal chieftains and local leaders who then accompanied them to the army headquarters. Their names are withheld so they could lead normal lives.
The Antay couple and two more NPA militiang bayan surrendered with several firearms, improvised explosive device, and medical paraphernalia. All are members of the Dibabawon and Ata Manobo tribes.
Meanwhile, 60IB and the Laak Municipal Police already assisted the four rebel returnees through documentation at first. They also underwent medical checkup and currently undergoing briefing.
The Municipal Local Government of Laak thru its Social Welfare and Development Office has already committed to assisting the surrenderees in their needs.
Lt. Col. Emmanuel Canilla, commander of 60th IB, condemned the allegations of Karapatan that malign military units and other government institutions without providing any proof.
Canilla also assured communist rebels who surrender to receive the full assistance of the government.
Duterte warns rearrest of NDFP consultants if NPA will help Maute Group
From MindaNews (Jun 1): Duterte warns rearrest of NDFP consultants if NPA will help Maute Group
President Rodrigo R. Duterte warned he will order the rearrest of communist leaders who have been released on bail if the New People’s Army (NPA) will join the local terrorist Maute Group in Marawi even though the leftist movement has declared they are against the said group.
“And if there is breakdown in the peace and order because of the participation of the communists in the war against the ISIS, kung gusto ninyo tumulong sa kabila magpuntahan kayo lahat (if you want to side with the other side, go ahead),” Duterte said during 119th founding anniversary of the Philippine Navy at the Sasa Wharf in Davao City on Wednesday.
“But I am warning the leaders whom I have released and who are now talking to the representatives of my government, do not attempt to come home, I will arrest all of you, throw you in the slammer, pagkukulungin ko kayo at lahat ng matatanda arestohin ko kayo ulit (I will put you all in jail, and rearrest even seniors) and if needed, they will just die there inside the prison,” he said.
But Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) founding chair Jose Maria Sison, Duterte’s former professor in Political Thought, told reporters covering the defunct fifth round of peace talks in The Netherlands that the New Peoples’ Army (NPA), the CPP’s armed wing, has no links with the Maute Group at all.
“Kalokohan yan (That’s non-sense),” he said.
“Malinaw sa kanila na (It’s clear to them) that we have offered that the revolutionary movement, even before, has taken a stand against Maute and Abu Sayyaf as terrorist groups. We are going to join the Maute? I don’t think that was the intent of his speech,” seconded NDFP peace panel chief negotiator Fidel V. Agcaoili
Duterte expressed his frustration over the five decades of communist unrest in the country.
“Alam mo, for all of their bravado, they never occupied even a barangay for 24 hours. And yet when they talk, it’s all full of hubris. Akala mo sino. Sison said that he will order his soldiers to engage us, and here comes a statement that they also want to fight the terrorists. At bakit? Kung manalo ba ang ISIS dito sa Pilipinas, may papel pa kayo sa mundong ito? Huwag tayong magbolahan. You will be marginalized and outcast, because your form of government is always anathema to the rest of the religious zealots in this world,” he said.
NDFP peace panel chief negotiator Fidel V. Agcaoili said they have yet to receive a call from GRP peace panel chair Silvestre Bello III and Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process (PAPP) Secretary Jesus Dureza to discuss the recent development.
If Duterte will make good his warning, Agcaoili said it would mean termination of the peace negotiations, explaining it is a violation of the 1995 Joint Agreement on Safety and Immunity Guarantees (JASIG) that prevents the state forces from arresting any person covered by it and cannot be charged in court “to be able to freely participate and promote peace process in the country.”
In a statement published on May 29, Agcaoili said the JASIG guarantees NDFP negotiators free and unhindered passage in all areas in the Philippines, and in traveling to and from the Philippines in connection with the performance of their duties in the negotiations; and immunity from surveillance, harassment, search, arrest, detention, prosecution and interrogation or any other similar punitive actions due to any involvement or participation in the peace negotiations.
He said, “We deem it necessary to underscore the continuing effectivity of the JASIG in order to prevent any misreading or misinterpretation that would lead prosecutors to move for, and for the courts to cancel, the bail bonds of NDFP consultants still facing charges and for the police and military to arrest NDFP consultants who are set to return to the Philippines following the GRP’s cancellation of the fifth round of formal talks.”
Sison said the JASIG is a legal instrument that contains the mechanism for the terminations of the peace negotiations.
He suspected that the US government’s Central Intelligence Agency that once trained and funded the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) to topple the Syrian government may have played a role in the Marawi crisis because of the Duterte administration’s push for independent foreign policy.
“What is more likely is that, you know Duterte has been taking concrete steps towards independent foreign policy, nagpunta sa China, Russia. Itinaon sa Russia yung Marawi incident. ISIS was the creation of CIA, so that’s more likely the connections,” Sison said.
Abu Sayyaf and the Maute group have reportedly pledged allegiance to ISIS.
Sison said their offer to help the government to fight terrorism remains and is willing to “redeploy some units to help the GRP.”
The GRP and the NDFP peace panels were scheduled to meet from May 27 to June 2 but it did not push through when the government withdrew from the fifth round of talks.
The challenges that resulted in the cancellation of the fifth round of talks, according to Dureza, include noticeable upscale of incidents of offensive attacks by the NPAs throughout the country; the seeming perception of the bigger public that these NPA operations are in open and public defiance of President Duterte who has consistently accommodated them in unprecedented ways; the renewed surfacing of public apprehension questioning the sincerity of the CPP/NPA/NDF in the peace talks; the public admissions of some panel members of the CPP/NPA NDF leaders that they have no control over their forces on the ground; the sudden and perceptible erosion of public support to the peace talks with strong messages received from the public to altogether stop peace negotiations; the clamor now to pursue instead localized peace talks; and the latest and recent President’s public statements that he will no longer sign agreements with the CPP/NPA/NDF if all of these will continue and not addressed.
http://www.mindanews.com/top-stories/2017/06/duterte-warns-rearrest-of-ndfp-consultants-if-npa-will-help-maute-group/
President Rodrigo R. Duterte warned he will order the rearrest of communist leaders who have been released on bail if the New People’s Army (NPA) will join the local terrorist Maute Group in Marawi even though the leftist movement has declared they are against the said group.
“And if there is breakdown in the peace and order because of the participation of the communists in the war against the ISIS, kung gusto ninyo tumulong sa kabila magpuntahan kayo lahat (if you want to side with the other side, go ahead),” Duterte said during 119th founding anniversary of the Philippine Navy at the Sasa Wharf in Davao City on Wednesday.
“But I am warning the leaders whom I have released and who are now talking to the representatives of my government, do not attempt to come home, I will arrest all of you, throw you in the slammer, pagkukulungin ko kayo at lahat ng matatanda arestohin ko kayo ulit (I will put you all in jail, and rearrest even seniors) and if needed, they will just die there inside the prison,” he said.
But Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) founding chair Jose Maria Sison, Duterte’s former professor in Political Thought, told reporters covering the defunct fifth round of peace talks in The Netherlands that the New Peoples’ Army (NPA), the CPP’s armed wing, has no links with the Maute Group at all.
“Kalokohan yan (That’s non-sense),” he said.
“Malinaw sa kanila na (It’s clear to them) that we have offered that the revolutionary movement, even before, has taken a stand against Maute and Abu Sayyaf as terrorist groups. We are going to join the Maute? I don’t think that was the intent of his speech,” seconded NDFP peace panel chief negotiator Fidel V. Agcaoili
Duterte expressed his frustration over the five decades of communist unrest in the country.
“Alam mo, for all of their bravado, they never occupied even a barangay for 24 hours. And yet when they talk, it’s all full of hubris. Akala mo sino. Sison said that he will order his soldiers to engage us, and here comes a statement that they also want to fight the terrorists. At bakit? Kung manalo ba ang ISIS dito sa Pilipinas, may papel pa kayo sa mundong ito? Huwag tayong magbolahan. You will be marginalized and outcast, because your form of government is always anathema to the rest of the religious zealots in this world,” he said.
NDFP peace panel chief negotiator Fidel V. Agcaoili said they have yet to receive a call from GRP peace panel chair Silvestre Bello III and Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process (PAPP) Secretary Jesus Dureza to discuss the recent development.
If Duterte will make good his warning, Agcaoili said it would mean termination of the peace negotiations, explaining it is a violation of the 1995 Joint Agreement on Safety and Immunity Guarantees (JASIG) that prevents the state forces from arresting any person covered by it and cannot be charged in court “to be able to freely participate and promote peace process in the country.”
In a statement published on May 29, Agcaoili said the JASIG guarantees NDFP negotiators free and unhindered passage in all areas in the Philippines, and in traveling to and from the Philippines in connection with the performance of their duties in the negotiations; and immunity from surveillance, harassment, search, arrest, detention, prosecution and interrogation or any other similar punitive actions due to any involvement or participation in the peace negotiations.
He said, “We deem it necessary to underscore the continuing effectivity of the JASIG in order to prevent any misreading or misinterpretation that would lead prosecutors to move for, and for the courts to cancel, the bail bonds of NDFP consultants still facing charges and for the police and military to arrest NDFP consultants who are set to return to the Philippines following the GRP’s cancellation of the fifth round of formal talks.”
Sison said the JASIG is a legal instrument that contains the mechanism for the terminations of the peace negotiations.
He suspected that the US government’s Central Intelligence Agency that once trained and funded the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) to topple the Syrian government may have played a role in the Marawi crisis because of the Duterte administration’s push for independent foreign policy.
“What is more likely is that, you know Duterte has been taking concrete steps towards independent foreign policy, nagpunta sa China, Russia. Itinaon sa Russia yung Marawi incident. ISIS was the creation of CIA, so that’s more likely the connections,” Sison said.
Abu Sayyaf and the Maute group have reportedly pledged allegiance to ISIS.
Sison said their offer to help the government to fight terrorism remains and is willing to “redeploy some units to help the GRP.”
The GRP and the NDFP peace panels were scheduled to meet from May 27 to June 2 but it did not push through when the government withdrew from the fifth round of talks.
The challenges that resulted in the cancellation of the fifth round of talks, according to Dureza, include noticeable upscale of incidents of offensive attacks by the NPAs throughout the country; the seeming perception of the bigger public that these NPA operations are in open and public defiance of President Duterte who has consistently accommodated them in unprecedented ways; the renewed surfacing of public apprehension questioning the sincerity of the CPP/NPA/NDF in the peace talks; the public admissions of some panel members of the CPP/NPA NDF leaders that they have no control over their forces on the ground; the sudden and perceptible erosion of public support to the peace talks with strong messages received from the public to altogether stop peace negotiations; the clamor now to pursue instead localized peace talks; and the latest and recent President’s public statements that he will no longer sign agreements with the CPP/NPA/NDF if all of these will continue and not addressed.
http://www.mindanews.com/top-stories/2017/06/duterte-warns-rearrest-of-ndfp-consultants-if-npa-will-help-maute-group/
Bakwits from Marawi: 140,155 residents or nearly 70% of total population
From MindaNews (Jun 1): Bakwits from Marawi: 140,155 residents or nearly 70% of total population
A total of 140,155 residents, representing nearly 70% of this city’s total population, have fled to neighboring towns and cities since the clashes between government forces and the Maute Group here began on May 23, ARMM Assemblyman Zia Alonto Adiong, spokesperson of the Provincial Crisis Management Office, said.
A deserted street in Marawi City, 31 May 2017. Nearly 70% of its total population of 201,785 fled the city due to ongoing clashes between government forces and terrorists. MindaNews photo by CAROLYN O. ARGUILLAS The country’s lone Islamic City, which has 96 barangays and a population of 201,785 based on the 2015 Census of Population of the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), is the most populous area in the five-province, two-city Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM), according to PSA records.
Until May 23, that is.
The number of residents displaced by the ongoing clashes in Marawi City from May 23 until May 30 and the aerial strikes that have been lending support to ground forces has reached 140,155, Adiong said at the press briefing at the Operations Center of the Provincial Crisis Management Committee at the Provincial Capitol here Wednesday.
The number represents 69.5% of the city’s population.
There is no figure yet as to the number of transients trapped in the city since May 23 although transients from the Mindanao State University have been evacuated. Transients include visitors, construction workers, university employees, store vendors, as well as company employees and teachers who happened to be in Marawi when the clashes began. Forty-two teachers from Wao in Lanao del Sur who were attending a seminar were among those trapped but are now back in Wao.
The Provincial Capitol itself is relying on volunteers to take on the jobs left behind by a number of employees who fled Marawi.
Adiong told MindaNews that 21,882 families or 109,510 individuals are home-based; 4,838 families or 24,190 individuals are in evacuation centers and 1,291 families or 6,455 individuals are in Marawi City.
He said there are no reported evacuation of residents in neighboring towns. The evacuees reportedly from Kapai were actually Marawi residents.
The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) as of 6 a.m. on May 31 listed a total 18,609 families or 92,628 persons displaced from Marawi. 
Assemblyman Zia Alonto Adiong, spokesperson of the Provincial Crisis Management Committee at the press briefing on 31 May 2017. MindaNews photo by CAROLYN O. ARGUILLAS
Adiong said to avoid confusion on data, it has been agreed upon that the DSWD in Region 10 (Northern Mindanao) will focus on residents who fled Marawi and evacuated in Lanao del Norte towns while those in Lanao del Sur will be handled by DSWD in the ARMM and the Lanao del Sur PMC.
Lanao del Sur belongs to the ARMM while Lanao del Norte belongs to Region 10.
In Balo-i, Lanao del Norte, thousands of evacuees waved yellow validation slips Tuesday afternoon as they awaited release of their relief goods inside the municipal covered court while thousands more are staying at the municipal gym across. 
Bakwits from Marawi wave their yellow validation slips as they await the release of relief goods at the municipal covered court in Balo-i, Lanao del Norte on Tuesday, 30 May 2017. MindaNews photo by H. MARCOS C. MORDENO
Records collated by the DSWD at the covered court showed a total of 613 households from Marawi who fled to Barangay East Poblacion and Barangay West Poblacion, 323 to Barangay East and 290 to Barangay West.
Most of those who fled Marawi City evacuated for the first time in their lives. A number of those who were awaiting release of relief goods are staying with relatives in these barangays.
There has not been a mass evacuation of this sort in Marawi City, “not even during the 1970s,” lawyer Naguib Sinarimbo, one of the volunteers at the PCMC, said.
“Mahirap maging evacuate lalo na pag wala kang dalang pera” (It’s difficult to be an evacuee especially if you don’t have money), said Sittie Fatima, 28, a mother of five.
A number of them fear returning to Marawi to find their homes gone from the aerial bombardments. “Wala na kaming babalikan” (We will not have homes to go back to), Sittie Fatima said.
The gym behind the barangay hall in Maria Cristina Falls, houses 270 families or, 1,026 individuals who share three toilets and three bathing facilities.
Myrna Sultan, 65, of Barangay Lilod in Marawi, said they stayed three nights in Marawi City from May 23, thinking the fighting would stop the next day. They fled on Friday because in those three nights when they stayed on, “palakas nang palakas, palapit nang palapit ang putukan” (the gunfire was getting louder and nearer).
http://www.mindanews.com/top-stories/2017/06/bakwits-from-marawi-140155-residents-or-nearly-70-of-total-population/
A total of 140,155 residents, representing nearly 70% of this city’s total population, have fled to neighboring towns and cities since the clashes between government forces and the Maute Group here began on May 23, ARMM Assemblyman Zia Alonto Adiong, spokesperson of the Provincial Crisis Management Office, said.
Until May 23, that is.
The number of residents displaced by the ongoing clashes in Marawi City from May 23 until May 30 and the aerial strikes that have been lending support to ground forces has reached 140,155, Adiong said at the press briefing at the Operations Center of the Provincial Crisis Management Committee at the Provincial Capitol here Wednesday.
The number represents 69.5% of the city’s population.
There is no figure yet as to the number of transients trapped in the city since May 23 although transients from the Mindanao State University have been evacuated. Transients include visitors, construction workers, university employees, store vendors, as well as company employees and teachers who happened to be in Marawi when the clashes began. Forty-two teachers from Wao in Lanao del Sur who were attending a seminar were among those trapped but are now back in Wao.
The Provincial Capitol itself is relying on volunteers to take on the jobs left behind by a number of employees who fled Marawi.
Adiong told MindaNews that 21,882 families or 109,510 individuals are home-based; 4,838 families or 24,190 individuals are in evacuation centers and 1,291 families or 6,455 individuals are in Marawi City.
He said there are no reported evacuation of residents in neighboring towns. The evacuees reportedly from Kapai were actually Marawi residents.
The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) as of 6 a.m. on May 31 listed a total 18,609 families or 92,628 persons displaced from Marawi.
Assemblyman Zia Alonto Adiong, spokesperson of the Provincial Crisis Management Committee at the press briefing on 31 May 2017. MindaNews photo by CAROLYN O. ARGUILLAS
Adiong said to avoid confusion on data, it has been agreed upon that the DSWD in Region 10 (Northern Mindanao) will focus on residents who fled Marawi and evacuated in Lanao del Norte towns while those in Lanao del Sur will be handled by DSWD in the ARMM and the Lanao del Sur PMC.
Lanao del Sur belongs to the ARMM while Lanao del Norte belongs to Region 10.
In Balo-i, Lanao del Norte, thousands of evacuees waved yellow validation slips Tuesday afternoon as they awaited release of their relief goods inside the municipal covered court while thousands more are staying at the municipal gym across.
Bakwits from Marawi wave their yellow validation slips as they await the release of relief goods at the municipal covered court in Balo-i, Lanao del Norte on Tuesday, 30 May 2017. MindaNews photo by H. MARCOS C. MORDENO
Records collated by the DSWD at the covered court showed a total of 613 households from Marawi who fled to Barangay East Poblacion and Barangay West Poblacion, 323 to Barangay East and 290 to Barangay West.
Most of those who fled Marawi City evacuated for the first time in their lives. A number of those who were awaiting release of relief goods are staying with relatives in these barangays.
There has not been a mass evacuation of this sort in Marawi City, “not even during the 1970s,” lawyer Naguib Sinarimbo, one of the volunteers at the PCMC, said.
“Mahirap maging evacuate lalo na pag wala kang dalang pera” (It’s difficult to be an evacuee especially if you don’t have money), said Sittie Fatima, 28, a mother of five.
A number of them fear returning to Marawi to find their homes gone from the aerial bombardments. “Wala na kaming babalikan” (We will not have homes to go back to), Sittie Fatima said.
The gym behind the barangay hall in Maria Cristina Falls, houses 270 families or, 1,026 individuals who share three toilets and three bathing facilities.
Myrna Sultan, 65, of Barangay Lilod in Marawi, said they stayed three nights in Marawi City from May 23, thinking the fighting would stop the next day. They fled on Friday because in those three nights when they stayed on, “palakas nang palakas, palapit nang palapit ang putukan” (the gunfire was getting louder and nearer).
http://www.mindanews.com/top-stories/2017/06/bakwits-from-marawi-140155-residents-or-nearly-70-of-total-population/
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