'Winner-take-all' tack won't solve Asia rows: US commander

From Rappler (May 23): 'Winner-take-all' tack won't solve Asia rows: US commander

Security experts agree that regional collaboration on security is more crucial now, and that a Code of Conduct in the South China Sea should have been forged long ago

Compromise, and not a “winner-take-all” attitude, would help resolve worsening maritime disputes in the West Philippine Sea (South China Sea), a visiting US military commander said on Friday, May 23.

Security experts discussed the outlook of security in Asia, emphasizing the need for regional collaboration and the urgency to move towards multilateralism, at the World Economic Forum on East Asia, held for the first time in Manila.

US Pacific Fleet commander Admiral Samuel Locklear III said the region had become the world's "most militarized" amid rapid economic growth, deepening the importance of dialogue to ensure the disputes did not lead to armed conflict.

"What's going to underlie that most importantly is a commitment to the rule of law, a commitment to international forums to solve problems and to solve disputes," Locklear told a WEF meeting.

"You can't have winner take all attitude. The future will require compromise, dialogue," he said, referring to China. Right now, he added, "the only person that can contain China is China."

A Code of Conduct (COC) in the South China Sea should have been created a long time ago, agreed analysts, as tensions increase in the ASEAN region amid heightened aggression by China in disputed territories.

Parag Khanna, a Senior Fellow at the New America Foundation in Singapore, agreed with the view. “We needed COC yesterday. We need proactive resource sharing, and executing them now rather than waiting for dialogue to emerge.”

Department of Foreign Affairs Undersecretary Laura del Rosario also weighed in, acknowledging the need for ASEAN to come up with a COC immediately.

"We are not acting fast enough and there are so many changes happening now. When we finally discuss COC, from what point are we going to discuss it? There are so many changes like movements on claims, build up, construction… once parameters have changed, that will influence COC," she said.

ASEAN signed a Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea (DOC) with China but because it is not binding, leaders agree it is not enough.

In the recent ASEAN summit, China took center stage as regional leaders issued a joint statement expressing concern over the superpower's recent actions and calling for a peaceful resolution of maritime disputes. There has also been an increased push to finalize the COC among ASEAN leaders.

Changing interests

Locklear cited the reasons for ASEAN to collaborate now more than ever, even if talks surrounding the COC have "been lingering for a while." He cited the rapid economic growth of the region, the rise of China and the need to access resources.

"Once that happened, there was a desire for independent nations to find what their access, their economic zones looked like," he said. "When you lay all this together, it gets very complicated. There are very ambiguous lines."

"Tribunals are making decisions but COC should've been here several years ago because the status quo is changing."

Khanna agreed, saying disputes are growing, "because there was not a need to harness natural resources as urgently as now."

Now that "stakes are higher," he said, he agreed that ASEAN needs to find a way to work together, but expressed concern the region has no "strategic maturity to back [its talks]."

Solid institution

Del Rosario said the challenge lies in being able to balance the interests of each nation with that of the region, something ASEAN has yet to strike and a reality which can lead to divide.

"If ASEAN continues to take its role as a central force…then we might be able to finally create a more stabilizing force in the region," she said. "But if we cannot somehow get a stronghold on an ASEAN regional interest versus our national interest, then we might always get into tension among ourselves."

Aside from the COC, analysts said inclusiveness should be practiced in ways never done before.

Shigeo Iwatani, Secretary General of Trilateral Cooperation Secretariat in Seoul, said because of diversified cultural forces, ASEAN needs to create a kind of dialogue that will establish collaboration particularly in security.

"My feeling is that it is about time that we should consider to establish certain legally-based institutional framework to talk about political issues," he said. "To create trust among member countries, they can meet as often as they want to talk about these issues….They need a more solid institution."

Del Rosario supported the suggestion, saying there is a need to redefine and reexamine what ASEAN means by regional centrality, especially as interests are changing.

Iwatani acknowledged the difficulty of establishing yet another forum for dialogue.

"It will take time but it is more necessary," he said.

Various ASEAN countries, especially the Philippines and Vietnam, are in the middle of territorial disputes against China.

In an attempt to settle its dispute with China, specifically over the Spratly Islands, Manila has since filed a pleading before an arbitral tribunal.

Vietnam's own tensions with China have also heightened, following China's provocative move to deploy an oil rig near the Paracel Islands. Vietnam has since condemned China's actions and called for international support.

http://www.rappler.com/nation/58771-us-commander-south-china-sea-dispute

WEF IN MANILA | On territorial disputes: Let business do the talking, experts say

From InterAksyon (May 23): WEF IN MANILA | On territorial disputes: Let business do the talking, experts say



West Philippine Sea international expedition drill sites

Territorial disputes had been with us for centuries but it seems to be rising now in Asia-Pacific, with China's need to fuel its growth has pushed it to set aside its good relations with neighbors.

This has been the observation by panelists during the World Economic Forum (WEF) East Asia on Friday, with four experts in foreign relations and security taking up the thorny issue of territorial rows across the seas surrounding the region.

"We didn't have these disputes before because the economies weren't growing as fast as they are now and they didn't need to harness those raw materials as much as they do now," said Parag Khanna, senior fellow at the New America Foundation, during the WEF arena session titled Asia Security Outlook.

Samuel J. Locklear III, commander of the US Pacific Command, agreed that the race to achieve staggering economic growth makes nations draw where their economic zones lie and those are dictated by whatever resources they need to fuel their development. He said the case with China now has been complicated by the "ambiguous" nine-dashed line.

"Overtime has things have changed, you have to baseline somewhere and the US position is that you have to have the baseline and maintain status quo, which was the DMZ (demilitarized sone) and not move from that," the admiral said.

"But the code of conduct should have been here several years ago and it appears to be not closer here today. Underneath it, the status quo has changed," Locklear said.

Commercial approach

Khanna agreed that the code of conduct would help but he worried that the discourse focuses more on institutions such as ASEAN, ASEAN+3. These institutionalization of cooperation have to be backed up by some kind of concrete agreements like resource-sharing being executed now rather than waiting for a dialogue to emerge.

This was done by Russia and Norway and by Saudi and Kuwait by demilitarizing their contested territories and agreed to resource-sharing. Thailand and Malaysia were locked in a territorial spat in the 1970s was resolved by agreeing to harvest resources from the same well.

Khanna said this could be made possible by involving, for example, countries' national oil companies through special purpose vehicles where they can collectively talk about revenue-sharing. The language of commerce can go around the controversial nine-dashed line.

"When national pride and sovereignty on these maps are at stake, it is incredibly difficult to arrive at some compromise. But if you take a shared commercial approach where everyone would enjoy the benefits for the short-term based on the needs, demand.," the WEF Global Young Leader said.

This code of conduct, however, is difficult to establish since in the first place, nations have different interpretations of international laws governing territories, said Shigeo Iwatani, secretary-general of the Trilateral Cooperation Secretariat.

"But if you look at the content of the international law, countries have different ideas [about it]. We should have more principles more concrete," the Japanese official said.

Stretegic partnerships are important, Philippine Foreign Affairs Undersecretary Laura del Rosario said but governments must not forget to engage its citizens in territorial issues as Asians are more educated and they cannot be left out of the discourse.

Commercial agreements not pushing through

In 2005, the Philippines, Vietnam and China signed a tripartite agreement among their respective state-run oil firms for joint marine exploration in South China Sea (which Manila now calls West Philippine Sea). The accord states that all signatories should abide by the shall abide by their respective government's commitment to fully implement the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and the ASEAN-China Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea.

The Philippine Supreme Court, however, was asked to nullify the deal as petitioners claimed it runs against the country's Constitution as it allows foreigners to exploit the natural resources under its jurisdiction. The case is still pending.

In the same vein, Philex Petroleum Corp, the majority-owner of the consortium set to drill at Recto Bank, which is within gas-rich Service Contract 72, has been trying to revive talks with China National Offshore Oil Co. Ltd. (CNOOC) for a joint exploration of the area. Because of the rising tensions between Manila and Beijing, the potential has not been brought to fruition and Philex has decided to drill exploration wells on its own.

http://www.interaksyon.com/business/87476/wef-in-manila--on-territorial-disputes-let-business-do-the-talking-experts-say

Indonesia tells South China Sea claimants to avoid using military force

From InterAksyon (May 23): Indonesia tells South China Sea claimants to avoid using military force

Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has called on all claimants to disputed territories in the South China Sea to avoid using military force in pressing their claims.

In his joint statement with President Benigno Aquino III on Friday, Yudhoyono said claimants should return to the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea or the DOC, to which China is also a signatory.

Yudhoyono, who is on a State Visit to Manila while also attending the World Economic Forum-East Asia, said all parties should endeavor to hasten the crafting of the Code of Conduct, which will be a binding document to govern overlapping maritime claims among members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.

"There are challenges [at] the geopolitical level in East Asia, and South East Asia is filled with tension, including in the South China Sea. The position of Indonesia and the position of Asean is clear: any tension must be resolved peacefully without the use of military force," Yudhoyono said.

"It is time to call upon all parties who have interests to maintain order and stability in the region," the Indonesian leader added.

His statement comes on the heels of a flurry of comments at the WEF-East Asia, mainly from Vietnam and the Philippines, about China's increasing aggression in the South China Sea, where it placed an oil rig in territory claimed by Vietnam and well within the latter's EEZ, and protested Manila's arrest of poachers of endangered sea turtles off Palawan province.

Vietnam's Prime Minister said Thursday Hanoi was mulling over "legal actions" and other defense options against Beijing, which has ignored its please to move out despite repeated representations.

Model for resolving border rows

Yudhoyono cited the recently signed agreement on the delimitation of boundaries between ASEAN neighbors Indonesia and the Philippines, which have overlapping exclusive economic zones in the Celebes and Mindanao Seas, as a model of how to resolve border disputes peacefully.

Aquino described the document, signed by Jakarta and Manila officials with him and Yudhoyono as witnesses, as a "milestone agreement."

The text of the agreement and the accompanying chart with delimited boundaries was finalized recently, after two decades of spade work between the two countries, which enjoy a long history of comity as two of the five original ASEAN founding members.

Indonesia helped broker the 1996 historic peace agreement in Mindanao between the Fidel Ramos government and the Moro National Liberation Front. Years earlier, when President Benigno Aquino's mother Corazon ascended to power after the 1986 EDSA People Power revolt, it was Indonesia that first welcomed her government to ASEAN's summit.

Referring to the accord that he and Yudhoyono witnessed in Manila Friday, Mr. Aquino said: "This is a milestone agreement that is founded on the principles of international law, particularly the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Seas. It serves as solid proof to our steadfast commitment to uphold the rule of law and pursue the peaceful and equitable settlement of maritime concerns."

The President also expressed confidence that by 2016, Jakarta and Manila will be able to double bilateral trade, which stood at $3.51 billion last year.
"We both share the belief that much more can be done to maximize the prospects of equitable growth," Aquino said.

Yudhoyono said an agreement was also reached as part of preparations for a forum for business communities from both Indonesia and the Philippines to sit together and discuss investment opportunities.

http://www.interaksyon.com/article/87459/indonesia-tells-south-china-sea-claimants-to-avoid-using-military-force

Family of foreigners kidnapped in Basilan – police

From InterAskyon (May 23): Family of foreigners kidnapped in Basilan – police



A family of three foreigners was kidnapped by gunmen from a bar in Isabela City, Basilan late Thursday night, police said on Friday.

Reports reaching Campe Crame said Kashmar Iraham, 48, his wife Dina Lim, 46, and their daughter Yahong, 18, were seized by at least 10 men dressed in camouflage fatigues from the Dalbi Videoke Bar in Isabela’s port area around 9:45 p.m.

The three were then forced into a pump boat.

The reports did not give the nationality of the victims nor did it identify which group had staged the abduction.

http://www.interaksyon.com/article/87469/family-of-foreigners-kidnapped-in-basilan--police

Five killed, two captured in AFP-NPA clash in Bicol

From InterAksyon (May 23): Five killed, two captured in AFP-NPA clash in Bicol



At least five rebels were killed and two others were captured by soldiers conducting combat operations in Sitio Hukdong, Barangay Balukawe, Matnog, Sorsogon on Thursday.

The soldiers encountered the group of 30 suspected members of the New People’s Army (NPA) and engaged them in a firefight lasting several hours.

Several high-powered firearms were recovered.

Brig. Gen. Joselito Kakilala, commander of the 903rd Infantry Brigade, said the clash started at around 5:44 a.m. involving elements of the 31st Infantry Battalion and the NPA’s Provincial Yunit Guerilya.

"Our soldiers recovered the bodies of five dead rebels and captured two others. Our side suffered no casualty,” Kakilala said, adding that the recovered firearms include two M14 rifles and two MI1 rifles and an M203 grenade launcher.

Kakilala identified the slain rebels as a certain alias Randy, alleged leader of the rebel band; Sonny Pajarillo alias Nick, second in command; a certain alias Ryan, medical staff; alias Butchokoy, security aide; and Elias Garduque alias Yoyong, security aide.

"The captured rebels are Maricel Remon alias Russel, political officer, and Intia Garduque,” Kakilala said.

http://www.interaksyon.com/article/87475/five-killed-two-captured-in-afp-npa-clash-in-bicol

China warns Japan, Philippines accuses China in maritime spat

From InterAksyon (May 23): China warns Japan, Philippines accuses China in maritime spat

China warned Japan on Friday to stay out of a growing dispute with its neighbors over the South China Sea, as the Philippines implicitly accused Beijing of delaying talks aimed at a solution.

China claims almost the entire South China Sea, rejecting rival claims to parts of it from Vietnam, the Philippines, Taiwan, Malaysia and Brunei in one of Asia's most intractable disputes and a possible flashpoint. It also has a separate maritime dispute with Japan over islands in the East Sea.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Thursday expressed concern about regional tensions that he said were stoked by China's "unilateral drilling" after China moved a giant oil rig into disputed waters, a moved denounced by the Philippines, Vietnam and the United States.

"The relevant Japanese statement neglects reality and confuses the facts, and takes a political motive to interfere with the situation in the South China Sea for a secret purpose," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei told a daily briefing.

"We require the Japanese side to consistently take realistic actions to protect the region's peace and stability."

The Philippines blamed a slowdown in talks on ending the disputes on "construction" changing the ground rules, an apparent reference to China.

The Philippines is pushing for a "code of conduct".

"The code of conduct has been long in coming, we have been discussing this for the past seven or eight years, and we're also wondering why there is a delay," Philippine Foreign Ministry Undersecretary Laura del Rosario said.

"Are we changing the environment so that when we are ready to discuss the code of conduct, the environment has changed?"

Del Rosario, speaking at a security outlook session of the World Economic Forum, said there had been "changes" on the ground since talks began, without specifically mentioning China.

"There are a lot of build-ups, a lot of construction going on, until we realize people are already doing some kind of a fencing."

Last week, the Philippine foreign ministry released aerial surveillance pictures of a reef showing what it said was Chinese reclamation and the building of what appeared to be an airstrip.

A Malaysian diplomatic source said China was deliberately slowing down the talks.

"China has been reluctant to even talk about the code of conduct," the diplomatic source said. "It's a carrot to dangle in the distance. We are dealing with a superpower."

Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung said his government was considering various "defense options" against China, including legal action, following the deployment of a the oil rig.

Dung's comments, given in a written response to questions from Reuters, were the first time he has suggested Vietnam would take legal measures, and drew an angry response from China.

Anti-Chinese violence flared in Vietnam last week after the $1 billion deepwater rig owned by China's state-run CNOOC oil company was parked 240 km (150 miles) off the coast of Vietnam.

Hanoi says the rig is in its 200-nautical mile exclusive economic zone and on its continental shelf. China has said the rig was operating completely within its waters.

"We prepared all possible measures, including legal measures," Nguyen Thi Thanh Ha, head of Vietnam's Foreign Ministry legal department, said on Friday.

"Using legal measures is better than armed conflict."

http://www.interaksyon.com/article/87484/china-warns-japan-philippines-accuses-china-in-maritime-spat

Philippine rebels worry over delay in peace deal implementation

From the Mindanao Examiner BlogSpot site (May 23): Philippine rebels worry over delay in peace deal implementation

 

MILF soldiers guard a village in the southern Philippine province of Maguindanao. (Mindanao Examiner Photo)

The rebel group Moro Islamic Liberation Front, which signed a peace agreement with Manila in March, has expressed serious concern over the delay in the signing of the proposed Muslim homeland law by President Benigno Aquino.

Aquino has already received on April 14 the Bangsamoro Basic Law or BBL drafted by the 15-member Bangsamoro Transition Commission. It was supposed to be signed by Aquino on May 5 after a battery of government lawyers review the draft law to ensure that nothing in its provisions violate the Constitution.

Once Aquino signs the BBL, it can be ratified and implemented in time for the 2016 local and national elections. The BBL will pave the way for the establishment of the Bangsamoro region in 2016 that would replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao or ARMM.

The creation of Bangsamoro autonomous region would have to be decided on a referendum in the ARMM and in areas where there are large Muslim communities probably before the year ends. The new Bangsamoro region will replace the current Muslim autonomous region that has suffered from decades of poverty, corruption, and conflict.

“We are seriously worried about the delay in signing of the BBL by President Aquino and this further delay the implementation of the peace agreement – the Comprehensive Agreement on Bangsamoro – and it creates problems not only to the Aquino government, but the MILF as well. It’s a political problem and government has to address this quickly because we are running out of time here,” a senior rebel leader, who asked not to be identified, told the regional newspaper Mindanao Examiner.

Presidential peace adviser Teresita Deles has previously said that the BBL is likely to be certified as an urgent bill by Aquino and would be submitted to Congress for passage, and subjected to a plebiscite. But some lawmakers and various groups were saying that the accord was unconstitutional and vowed to challenge it in court.

The Aquino government insisted the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro is legal and that the deal was based on the Constitution. “The CAB is legal,” said lawyer Anna Basman, head of the CAB legal team.

She said they are open to engaging and informing everyone on the different provisions on the CAB.

“Our Constitution itself provides the justification for the asymmetry and reserved a separate set of provisions for two particular areas in the country – Muslim Mindanao and the Cordilleras. This progressive and enlightened section recognizes the uniqueness of the peoples belonging to these areas and provides for their rightful exercise of self-governance. The Bangsamoro Basic Law as the enabling law for the establishment of the Bangsamoro precisely aims to operationalize this constitutional objective,” Basman said.

Christian leaders of Zamboanga and Isabela in Basilan, also a province under the ARMM, also vowed to fight for their inclusion in the new Bangsamoro homeland, although many of the residents there are Muslims and supportive of the peace deal. The other provinces in ARMM are Sulu, Tawi-Tawi, Maguindanao and Lanao del Sur, and the cities of Marawi and Lamitan.

In the Lanao town of Wao, Christian villagers vowed to reject their inclusion to the new Bangsamoro region. Villagers said shortly after the deal was signed in March 27, Muslim groups have emerged and started claiming farmlands owned by Christians as theirs and invoking their ancestral rights in Lanao del Sur. Some villagers said several groups of Maranao, one of several Muslim tribes in Mindanao, have started putting up markers and began claiming farmlands as their ancestral domain. The markers had been destroyed by landowners.

Now, many residents have started arming themselves for fear that once the new Bangsamoro autonomous government is installed, Muslims will take away their lands which they inherited from their clan. Majority of the town’s 40,000 inhabitants is Christians.

In Sultan Kudarat province, villagers in the town of President Quirino were also facing the same dilemma, but many also have purchased illegal weapons to protect their families and lands from unjustified takeover by Muslims who warned them that they should leave the town immediately once the Bangsamoro autonomous region is installed because they would take over their farms.

Indigenous tribesmen in the ARMM were also worried about their future and asked the government to ensure their rights and ancestral domain, but others have rejected their inclusion into the proposed Bangsamoro region. Miriam Coronel, the chief government peace negotiator, and Deles's group continue to hold dialogues in Muslim areas, explaining the provisions in the CAB. 

The MILF - a breakaway faction of the Moro National Liberation Front which signed a peace deal with Manila in September 1996 - is the country’s largest Muslim rebel group fighting for decades now for self-determination.

In 2008, rebel forces launched simultaneous attacks in southern Philippines after the Supreme Court stopped the signing of the territorial deal between the Arroyo government and the MILF, which is fighting for a separate homeland in Mindanao, because many of its provisions were unconstitutional. The MILF said the peace panels have initially signed the Muslim homeland agreement in Malaysia, which is brokering the talks.

The controversial deal also sparked massive protests from politicians opposed to the agreement that would have granted about four million Muslims their homeland in more than 700 villages across Mindanao.

http://www.mindanaoexaminer.net/2014/05/philippine-rebels-worry-over-delay-in.html

Filipina businesswoman, Chinese daughter abducted in troubled province

From the Mindanao Examiner BlogSpot site (May 23): Filipina businesswoman, Chinese daughter abducted in troubled province

Philippine police said gunmen abducted a woman and her daughter in Isabela City in the troubled southern province of Basilan.

Police said at least 10 gunmen in military uniform snatched the 45-year Dina Lim Irahan and Yahong Lim Tan, 19, late Thursday near the port area and dragged them to a waiting speedboat. The woman family owns the Dalby’s Videoke House in Isabela City.

No other details about the abduction was released by the police and no individual or group claimed responsibility for the latest abduction in Basilan, one of five provinces under the restive Muslim autonomous region where the Abu Sayyaf group is actively operating.

In March, five masked gunmen, believed to be members of the Abu Sayyaf, seized a 60-year school principal Benita Enriquez Latonio, of the Manggal Elementary School in Basilan’s Sumisip town and demanded the release of about two dozen Moro National Liberation Front rebels led by Commander Ugong who took part in the attacks in Zamboanga City in September last year that killed and wounded over 400 people.

Latonio was eventually freed days later after authorities rejected the Abu Sayyaf demand.

Authorities have repeatedly linked the Abu Sayyaf to al-Qaeda and Jemaah Islamiya which had been blamed in deadly attacks not only in the Philippines, but also in Indonesia, Thailand, Singapore and Malaysia in an effort to establish a regional Islamic caliphate in Southeast Asia.

http://www.mindanaoexaminer.net/2014/05/filipina-businesswoman-chinese-daughter.html

4 wounded in roadside bombing in Southern Philippines

From the Mindanao Examiner BlogSpot site (May 23): 4 wounded in roadside bombing in Southern Philippines

Four civilians in a police car were wounded in a roadside bombing set off by communist rebels on Friday in the southern Philippine province of Compostela Valley, the army said.

It said the four men – Felix Cudilla, Criz Palumar, Ogie Furtaleza and Gaga Mariputin – were on their way to the village of Upper Ulip in Mon kayo town where New People’s Army rebels earlier torched a backhoe excavator owned by Candido Balunos.

The army said the victims were on to investigate the attack when rebels detonated the bomb and hitting the police car. It was not immediately known if they were with a group of policemen, but the army said Cudilla was driving the prowl car when it was attacked.

Troops were deployed to pursue the attackers.

The attack occurred a day after rebels also bombed an army unit in the village of Dagohoy in Davao del Norte’s Talaingod town and killing three soldiers who were members of the Scout Ranger. Several more were wounded in the attack, according to Aris Francisco, a spokesman for the NPA forces operating in the provinces of Compostela Valley, Davao and Agusan.

The soldiers were sent to track down NPA rebels who captured an infantryman, Corporal Rogelio Rosales, who is a member of the 60th Infantry Battalion operating in Davao and Compostela Valley provinces.

Rosales, who had been captured on May 3 in the village of Florida in Kapalong town, was freed by rebels two weeks later after Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte helped negotiate for the soldier’s freedom.

Last month, NPA rebels also released army Sergeant Jeric Curay, who was captured at a checkpoint in the village of Andap in Compostela Valley’s Laak town on April 4. Curay, a member of the 72nd Infantry Battalion, was also handed over to Duterte, who negotiated with the NPA for prisoner’s safe release.

The NPA has been fighting for decades now for the establishment of its own communist state in the country.

http://www.mindanaoexaminer.net/2014/05/4-wounded-in-roadside-bombing-in.html

Western Mindanao Command culminates kiddie sports clinic

From the Mindanao Examiner BlogSpot site (May 23): Western Mindanao Command culminates kiddie sports clinic



Children participants to the Western Mindanao Command's sports clinic in Zamboanga City.

The military’s Western Mindanao Command culminated its “Kiddie Summer Sports Clinic” which was participated by more than 150 children in Zamboanga City in southern Philippines, officials said Friday.

Military spokeswoman Captain Maria Rowena Muyuela said the sports program was led by Lt. Gen. Rustico Guererro, chief of the Western Mindanao Command, and Maj. Ombra Arip, of the Special Service.

She said the activity was part of the Command’s sports program aimed at fostering camaraderie, team building and promotion of a healthy life style among the participants, mostly children from families of soldiers and civilian employees.

“The activity was conducted not only for the kids to compete but rather educate them on the significance of a healthy lifestyle through sports activity as well as teaching them team work and friendship,” Muyuela said.

http://www.mindanaoexaminer.net/2014/05/western-mindanao-command-culminates.html

Shipping Issues in West Philippine Sea continue to rise

From the Philippine News Agency (May 23): Shipping Issues in West Philippine Sea continue to rise

The West Philippine Sea or the South China Sea is the main route of all merchant ships. Each day, thousands of oil tankers, bulk carriers, container ships and other cargo vessels of various displacements sail the sea.

This trading route was commonly used by many Asian countries, the Philippines, Vietnam and China that often used this marine route as their major trading route.

With reasons like these, international efforts must ensure commercial shipping lanes in the region to have an unmitigated operation, experts say.

The trading routes can be affected by the territorial disputes that is happening between China and their neighboring countries.

China’s ongoing conflicts with their neighboring countries show the idea. In July 2012, China established the city of Sansha on one of the Paracel Islands as part of Hainan province to control many island groups and undersea atolls in the South China Sea. Beijing’s move enraged Vietnam and the Philippines.

According to many regional experts and analysts, China doesn’t have the intention of disrupting the shipping lanes, even though they emphasize their territorial mindset to their neighbors.

“The Philippine government had many chances to ratify the archipelago territory treaty but failed to do so due to internal politics,” said Karsten von Hoesslin, a Singapore-based senior analyst.

Rommel C. Banlaoi, chairman of the board and executive director of the Philippine Institute for Peace, Violence and Terrorism Research said, “China claims almost 80 percent of all the waters and land features in the South China Sea and opposes any oil and natural gas exploration and development in a maritime area that she claims as part of its sovereign territory.”

Many conflicts had already happened in the past because of the usage of the West Philippine Sea as a trading route, along with the undying Spratly Islands dispute.

http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=1&sid=&nid=1&rid=646381

2 more rebels surrender to Army unit in Misamis Oriental

From the Philippine News Agency (May 23): 2 more rebels surrender to Army unit in Misamis Oriental

Two more New People's Army (NPA) fighters have voluntarily surrendered to the 58th Infantry Battalion in Barangay Minalwang, Claveria town, Misamis Oriental Thursday.

In a statement Friday, 58th Infantry Battalion commander Lt. Col. Jose Eriel M. Niembra identified the surrenderees as Reyram Mansangcagan and Ariel Lindaan, members of the NPA's Guerilla Front 4B, Northern Central Mindanao Regional Committee.

They surrendered with them one .303 Springfield rifle and an M-16 automatic rifle.

Niembra said that the two rebels decided to give up after realizing the futility of armed struggle and desire to be with their families.

He added that the duo were even surprised at the respect and consideration shown to them by 58th Infantry Battalion troopers when they surrendered.

Questioning revealed that the two became full-time NPA fighters in 2013.

Upon joining, NPA leaders promised them monthly allowances and large tracts of land should the movement succeed.

However, nothing came out of these promises and incessant hardship in the mountains and causeless fighting coupled with the banditry works forced upon them by their leaders, prompted them to surrender.

“The people in the countryside are all tired of the atrocities and extortion of the New People’s Army. The populace and barangay officials are fully cooperating with the military, they are not only giving exact information on the presence of NPA bandits but convincing them as well to lay down their arms and return to mainstream society, thus, the surrender of the two former NPA members," Niembra stressed.

“Military operation against NPA bandits will push through with enthusiasm and dedication for the welfare of the people in Gingoog City specifically the province of Misamis Oriental, those who opt to lay down their arms and rejoin mainstream society are all welcome anytime this will be compensated with the local government programs and the Armed Forces of the Philippines' Guns for Peace program,” he concluded.

http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=1&sid=&nid=1&rid=646374

Ranking US officials to lead Memorial Day rites on May 25

From the Philippine News Agency (May 23): Ranking US officials to lead Memorial Day rites on May 25

US Ambassador to the Philippines Philip S. Goldberg, Pacific Command head Admiral Samuel J. Locklear III, and III Marine Expeditionary Force and Marine Forces-Japan commander General John Wissler will lead the US Memorial Day ceremony at the Manila American Cemetery and Memorial in Fort Bonifacio this coming Sunday, May 25.

Ceremonies will start at 8 a.m.

Philippine government officials, representatives from the diplomatic and consular corps, and members of the American and Filipino veterans’ communities will participate in the program of remembrance for men and women who served in the US military and lost their lives in defense of freedom and democracy.

http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=&sid=&nid=&rid=646405

Filipino army officer’s identification document found in Lahad Datu, court told

From the Borneo Post (May 22): Filipino army officer’s identification document found in Lahad Datu, court told
KOTA KINABALU: An identification card (IC) belonging to a high ranking Filipino army official was found at a skirmish area in Kampung Tanjung Batu, Lahad Datu on March 7, last year, the High Court here was told yesterday.

ASP Mursalim Mohd Salleh said the document was among 21 types of ICs bearing Philippine citizenship.

“I remember that one of the cards was under the name, ‘General Musa’,” he said.

When identifying the cards tendered in court, he said one had the words which read, ‘General Headquarters Bangsa Sulu Royal Security Force’ under the name, ‘General Musa A Abdullah.’

He told the court that the cardholder’s post was stated as ‘Vice Chief of Staff’ and was signed by ‘Raja Muda Datu Agbimuddin Kiram, Royal Defence Minister.’

Mursalim also told the court that six of the ICs displayed the words, ‘Sultanate of Sulu and North Borneo (Sabah)’, with most bearing the signature of Datu Agbimuddin.

The other cards displayed the words, ‘General Headquarters Royal Security Force’; ‘Headquarters 3rd Royal Security Force (Cobra) Brigade’; ‘Headquarters Mindanao Allied Force (MAF) Inc’, ‘General Headquarters Royal Armed Forces’ and one with words that read, ‘Office of the President of the Philippines. Office of the Presidential Advisor of the Peace Process’.

Mursalim noted that among the identification documents were health cards, association membership cards, community college card, high school card and a voter’s identification card.

Earlier, he identified 14 documents which he had seized at the village, including a blank piece of paper, two blank withdrawal slips of Bank Islam and lyrics of a religious song in the Suluk language.

Thirty accused, comprising 27 Filipinos and three local residents, are being tried in the case, in which some are facing multiple charges of being members of a terrorist group or waging war against the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, recruiting members for a terrorist group or willfully harbouring individuals they knew to be members of a terrorist group.

They allegedly committed the offences between Feb 12 and April 10 last year.

The hearing before Justice Stephen Chung at the Sabah Prisons Department continues today.

http://www.theborneopost.com/2014/05/22/filipino-army-officers-identification-document-found-in-lahad-datu-court-told/

US, PH troops to build school buildings in Cebu

From the Sun Star-Cebu (May 21): US, PH troops to build school buildings in Cebu

MEN and women from the US and Philippine military are building two classrooms in a school in Barangay Maribago, Lapu-Lapu City, as schools nationwide start preparing for next month’s opening of classes.

Mayor Paz Radaza thanked the US Air Force and Philippine Air Force (PAF) during yesterday’s ground-breaking ceremony at the Buyong Elementary School, saying the City needs to cope with the yearly increase in the number of enrollees.

“Since the start of my administration, I’ve made education part of my top priorities,” she said in a message she delivered before teachers and soldiers.
The US Air Force is funding the project, which is being implemented by its 374th Civil Engineering Squadron.

About 30 members of the squadron, which is based in Japan, are constructing the two-room school building with the help of volunteers from PAF.

Navy, too

The US Navy will also build one classroom in Carcar City as part of the US Government’s support to the Philippines. The project is in partnership with the Naval Forces Central (Navforcen), which had already signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the US Navy 30th Naval Construction Regiment through Lt. Junior Grade Dylan Bush.

The foreign Navy will shoulder the cost of the construction of the classrooms in Valencia, Carcar City.

Target date

Lieutenant Kory Carpenter, the project in-charge from the US Air Force, said their target is to complete the construction by June 28.

Brigadier Gen. Raymundo Elefante, commander of the 560th Air Base in Lapu-Lapu City, said the building will be constructed using high-standard materials.

Carpenter did not disclose the project’s cost, but he assured the structure will be built in accordance with the standards set by the Department of Education (DepEd).

After last year’s earthquake and super typhoon destroyed schools, the DepEd has set a higher standard for school buildings, with each classroom now costing at least P1.2 million from P800,000.

“I hope (the children) get to use the building to further their education,” Carpenter said in an interview with reporters.

Their squadron also implemented a similar project in Legaspi, Albay as part of their Pacific Unity program, he added.

For Lapu-Lapu, they sought the help of officials at the Mactan Benito Ebuen Air Base in finding a recipient.

Not Balikatan

Elefante and Carpenter said the project is not part of the Balikatan Exercises, the ongoing training program of the Philippine and US military.

Last school year, the Buyong Elementary School had 1,300 pupils attending classes in only 17 classrooms.

Dr. Eduardo Ompad, DepEd Lapu-Lapu City Division superintendent, said Grade 1 and Grade 2 pupils will use the donated classrooms.

Bigger schools are implementing double shifting of classes to accommodate the increasing number Grade 1 and Grade 2 pupils, said Ompad.

He said a number of school buildings is being constructed to address the city’s lack of classrooms, but keeping up with the growing population of students remains a challenge.

He said the number of enrollees in public schools increases by 3.5 percent every year.

 Radaza said the city lacked about 500 classrooms and she hopes to reduce the shortage by half by 2016.

“We are slowly achieving this goal,” she said, adding she hopes the donation in Buyong Elementary School will encourage more groups to build classrooms.

Among the nongovernment organizations that are donating classrooms in Lapu-Lapu are the Ramon Aboitiz Foundation, Aboitiz Foundation and East Asia Utilities, Inc.

Meanwhile, Navforcen Commodore Reynaldo Yoma said construction experts from the Philippine Navy will augment the forces of US Navy and will help them during the construction.

Yoma told Sun.Star Cebu said at least 15 personnel from the Naval Construction Brigade (Seabees) will be assigned to the area for the project.

Yoma said they are just waiting for the confirmation from its national headquarters so they can deploy their personnel and start the project.

The agreement also states that Navforcen will allow the US Navy to use their facility at the Rafael Ramos Naval Base as equipment storage.

US Navy troops arrived in Cebu early this week bringing with them construction materials and equipment; some have been to the site to start some ground works.

A groundbreaking ceremony for the project is set to be conducted next week.

Aside from Carcar City, the US troops are also set to construct other classrooms in other towns in Cebu once the first project is completed.

http://www.sunstar.com.ph/cebu/local-news/2014/05/21/us-ph-troops-build-school-buildings-cebu-344108