Jaafar: It’s final, only KL gets MILF report

From the Philippine Daily Inquirer (Mar 12): Jaafar: It’s final, only KL gets MILF report



MILF vice chair for political affairs Ghadzali Jaafar. RYAN LEAGOGO/INQUIRER.net
It’s final: Only Malaysia, facilitator of the peace talks between the Philippine government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), will get a copy of the rebel group’s full report of its investigation of the Mamasapano incident.

“And that’s final,” Ghazali Jaafar, MILF vice chair for political affairs, told the Inquirer on Wednesday, in remarks that somehow doused hopes of the Department of Justice (DOJ) to secure a copy.

Jaafar declined to disclose details of the report of his group’s probe of the clash involving members of the Philippine National Police Special Action Force (SAF) on a mission to take down Malaysian bomb expert Zulkifli bin Hir, alias “Marwan,” in Mamasapano, Maguindanao province, on Jan. 25.

But he said an executive summary of the report, which “is being processed now,” would be given to the International Monitoring Team (IMT), which oversees the ceasefire agreement between the government and the MILF.

Forty-four SAF commandos, 18 MILF rebels and five civilians were killed during the fighting, jeopardizing efforts for the passage by Congress of the proposed Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL) as a governing body in Mindanao under a peace deal.

Peace talks protocol

In an interview after a media forum at the National Press Club in Intramuros, Manila, Jaafar reiterated the MILF Central Committee’s decision to submit its investigation report to Kuala Lumpur “in accordance with the protocol of the peace talks that Malaysia is facilitating.”

Last week, Justice Secretary Leila de Lima asked the MILF for a copy of the report to balance the DOJ’s investigation of the Mamasapano incident.

De Lima cited the difficulty of looking into the MILF deaths because the DOJ investigators did not know who were killed and had not seen proofs of death which, she stressed, were important in criminal cases.

She told reporters that she would send another letter to the MILF leadership to reiterate the DOJ request.

“Maybe they can get a copy of the report from the IMT, but I’m not suggesting that,” Jaafar said.

During the media forum, the MILF official appealed to Christian churches in the country to “work together with us with this upright cause (pushing for the peace process in Mindanao with the passage of the proposed Bangsamoro Basic Law) and for all of us to pray for the success of a just and dignified peace process in Mindanao.”

Reading a prepared statement, he urged media practitioners to “continue conducting their noble mission of uniting instead of dividing, of calming instead of fanning the flames of unrest.”

History of oppression

To government leaders, he said: “Lead us to a peaceful and progressive Mindanao as it paves the way to a better Philippines.”

Jaafar pointed out that during the past 108 years, more than 126,400 Muslim Filipinos had been “liquidated and obliterated” by the government. From March 8, 1906, to Oct. 19, 1980, alone, “6,447 Muslim Filipinos were unjustly exterminated by acts of inhuman slaughter,” he said.

“These are the vital parts of history that are first needed to be known and refreshed for us to better understand the real situation we are in today. How can one appreciate the present and prepare for the future if he doesn’t know the relevant historical past?” he asked.

Muslim Filipinos “are also citizens of the Republic of the Philippines,” Jaafar said. “Peace and harmony are what we all are yearning for.”

In pushing for the passage of the proposed BBL, he said “we have been given a chance to have a time for healing, a time when we have the opportunity to have our hearts bound together and to put an end to all these seemingly never-ending military and political warfare, which only brought forth anguish and hatred.”

A time for forgiving

“It’s time to stop firing our guns and start treating one another as equals and brothers, a time when we stop insisting our selfish desires and start understanding what the other party aspires, a time when we stop seeking revenge and instead, start choosing to forgive the ones who caused us losses and sufferings,” he said.

“The BBL is not a tool for insurgency. It is a move, a first step to unite all the people of Mindanao to forge a common peace for the sake of progress.”

The news forum was hosted by veteran journalists Lolly Acosta and Joel Palacios.

http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/678330/jaafar-its-final-only-kl-gets-milf-report

Japan eyes growing role in disputed sea, forges security ties with PH, Vietnam

From the Manila Bulletin (Mar 12): Japan eyes growing role in disputed sea, forges security ties with PH, Vietnam

Seventy years after its imperial forces were kicked out of the South China Sea, Japan is quietly moving back into the region, forging security ties with the Philippines and Vietnam as both Southeast Asian nations try to cope with China’s territorial ambitions.

Tokyo’s security cooperation is broad-based: It is supplying maritime patrol boats to the two countries while Japan will hold its first naval exercises with the Philippines in the coming months. Japanese military doctors are even advising Vietnamese submariners on how to deal with decompression sickness.

Japan is providing this help, and more, in a calibrated escalation of involvement to avoid a backlash from Beijing, said Japanese sources with knowledge of the assistance.

South China Sea with flags of occupying countries/Courtesy of CIA. Cropped and flags added by Estarapapax – Central Intelligence Agency. Licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons

Manila and Hanoi are the two capitals most at odds with Beijing over the South China Sea. Japan itself is embroiled in a bitter row with China over uninhabited islands in the East China Sea, further to the north.

Tokyo has no territorial claims in the South China Sea, but worries about becoming isolated should China dominate a waterway through which much of Japan’s ship-borne trade passes.

Japan’s assistance follows a speech last May by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who said Tokyo would help Southeast Asia maintain freedom of navigation and overflight in the region.

The cooperation is also in line with a more muscular security policy advocated by Abe, who wants to loosen the restraints of Japan’s pacifist post-war constitution, and dovetails with Washington’s “rebalance” toward Asia.

“The trend is becoming clear and I don’t think they (Japan) are going to back down from it, despite Chinese concerns,” said Ian Storey, a regional security expert at Singapore’s Institute of South East Asian Studies.

In a statement to Reuters, China’s Foreign Ministry said it hoped Japan would “speak and act cautiously” over the South China Sea, adding Tokyo was not a party to the dispute.

ARTIFICIAL ISLANDS

During World War Two, the Imperial Japanese Navy operated submarines from the Spratly archipelago in the heart of the South China Sea.

The Spratlys is where China is now creating artificial islands from reefs and atolls so fast that Beijing will be able to extend the range of its navy and air force before long, experts say.

Some experts believe the new islands will allow China to create and police an air defense identification zone (ADIZ), where planes would have to identify themselves to Chinese authorities, although Beijing has routinely denied such speculation.

China sparked condemnation from Japan and the United States when it imposed an ADIZ above the East China Sea in late 2013. While the militaries from both countries have ignored that zone, it might not be so easy for smaller Southeast Asian nations to do so should one exist in the South China Sea.

“An ADIZ would be a catastrophe. It would severely limit air and maritime activity,” a senior Japanese policymaker told Reuters on condition of anonymity.

NEW BOATS, EXERCISES

The planned joint naval exercises off the Philippines are part of a security agreement signed in Tokyo in January, which also outlined regular vice ministerial defense talks and exchanges of senior officers.

The first of 10 coastguard vessels Japan is building for the Philippines will be delivered by the year-end.

Japan might also fund infrastructure improvements around a Philippine military base on Palawan Island, one of the closest major land masses to the Spratlys, said a Japanese source with knowledge of the plan.

Armed Forces of the Philippines (AF) spokesman Colonel Restituto Padilla applauded Tokyo’s engagement, adding it would be “natural for Japan and the Philippines to join forces to help each other secure these sea lanes.”

Japan has not gone that far, although Defense Minister Gen Nakatani said last month that a policy of not sending patrol aircraft over the South China Sea might need to be reviewed given the importance of the waterway to Tokyo.

Nakatani’s comments came after a top US Navy officer said Washington would welcome Japanese air patrols in the region.

Vietnam’s government did not immediately comment on Japan’s assistance, which will include six used navy patrol boats for Hanoi as well as advice on treating decompression illness as

Vietnam takes possession of additional sophisticated submarines from Russia.
“There are a lot of other things the Vietnamese want,” said a Japanese Defense Ministry source without elaborating.

Elsewhere, Japanese Defense Ministry officials have held very preliminary talks on joint weapons production with Malaysia and Indonesia, the sources said.
Abe has also been drawing closer to Australia.

Canberra recently sent a Defense Ministry official to Tokyo to help Japan build ties in Southeast Asia, the Japanese Defense Ministry source said. An Australian defense spokesperson said an official had been posted to the Japanese ministry for 18 months, but did not give details on the person’s role.

http://www.mb.com.ph/japan-eyes-growing-role-in-disputed-sea-forges-security-ties-with-ph-vietnam/

Local communists still looking for new leaders

From the Manila Times (Mar 11): Local communists still looking for new leaders

THE Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) and its armed group, the New People’s Army (NPA), are said to be still looking for new leaders who will take the place of Benito Tiamzon and wife Wilma.

The Tiamzons’ arrest by police and military operatives in March last year in Cebu City, according to security officials, was a big blow to the communist movement in the country.

The two are detained at the Philippine National Police Custodial Center in Camp Crame in Quezon City, along with other high-profile detainees, including two senators facing plunder charges in connection with the multi-billion pork barrel scam masterminded allegedly by businesswoman Janet Lim-Napoles.

At the time of their arrest, Benito was the acclaimed leader of the NPA while his wife was the secretary general of the communist armed group, which has been waging more than four decades of protracted war against the government.

A source from the police intelligence community who uses the code name Pokemon told The Manila Times on Tuesday that the NPA is still searching for possible replacements for the Tiamzon couple.

“They [NPA] are still looking and searching for possible replacements for the Tiamzons and up to now they cannot find suitable replacements for the two,” the source said.

The Times source added that at the time that security forces arrested the couple, Wilma was allegedly the safekeeper or caretaker of 76 bank accounts belonging to the communist rebel movement.

“Wilma is the holder of these accounts in which, according to our assets in the group, funds coming from foreign donors are deposited monthly by their ‘foreign donors,’” the source said.

The source added that based on information that was relayed to them by their assets in the underground movement, the accounts under the care of the Tiamzons are receiving monthly donations of as high as $5,000 a month.

“The accounts are still alive and are still receiving each month $5,000 from their foreign donors… you can just imagine how many millions of pesos the group is receiving each month,” the source said.

The source, however, did not say from what countries or organizations the donations were coming.

The CPP-NPA is set to celebrate its 46th founding anniversary on March 29.

http://www.manilatimes.net/local-communists-still-looking-for-new-leaders/168732/

Abus get P20 M for Malaysian’s release

From the Philippine Star (Mar 11): Abus get P20 M for Malaysian’s release



File photo

The Abu Sayyaf bandit group based in Sulu reportedly got P20 million for the release of a Malaysian police officer it seized in Semporna, Sabah last year.

Sources told The STAR that Constable Zakia Aliep, 26, a member of the Royal Malaysian Marine police, was freed last Friday following negotiations reportedly facilitated by Malaysian authorities.

“Malaysian authorities, without coordinating with the local officials in Sulu as well as the military and police on the ground, picked up Aliep in Indanan town at about 11 p.m. after paying P20 million in ransom to his kidnappers earlier in the day,” one of the sources said.

Arriving in Sandakan, Malaysia in a pumpboat on Saturday, the victim was presented to Chief Minister Datu Seri Musa at around 7: 30 a.m. before being reunited with his family in Kampung Sumngai Kayu.

The Abu Sayyaf killed Aliep’s partner, Corporal Ab Rajah Jamuan, 32, during a raid at Palau Mabul, Sabah on July 12, 2014.

Sources said aside from the P20 million, the bandits also reportedly got P40 million in ransom for Gau Huayun, whom they snatched in June 17 last year in Kampung Air Sapang in Kunak district.

While Malaysian authorities claimed their police commandos rescued Huayun, ground security sources said that the victim was only freed after the bandit group was paid P40 million.

Another source said the Malaysians’ alleged meddling in Philippine affairs violated the state’s sovereignty.

The source said that by paying the kidnappers, Malaysian authorities are providing the bandit group funds to support its criminal activities.http://www.philstar.com/nation/2015/03/11/1432107/abus-get-p20-m-malaysians-release

Army bomb experts foil BIFF bombing attempt

From the Philippine Star (Mar 11): Army bomb experts foil BIFF bombing attempt



Satellite image rendering from Google Earth shows Columbio town in Sultan Kudarat

Army bomb experts on Wednesday promptly defused a powerful roadside bomb planted by suspected members of the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF) at a busy spot in a farming village in Columbio, Sultan Kudarat.

The bombing attempt was preceded by an explosion Tuesday night near the headquarters of the 6th Civil-Military Operations Battalion of the 6th Infantry Division at the strategic PC Hill in the center of Cotabato City.

No one was hurt in the bombing, also blamed on the outlawed BIFF, but the incident triggered panic among folks in the surroundings.

The improvised explosive device found at Barangay Maligaya near the town proper of Columbio was fashioned from explosive powders packed in a cylindrical container full of jagged cast iron fragments.

The IED was rigged with a blasting mechanism that can be set off from a distance.

Police investigators and Army intelligence operatives managed to immediately clear the spot where the IED was found from villagers after learning of its presence from farmers.Responding bomb experts safely disposed the IED off after a 30-minute operation.

http://www.philstar.com/nation/2015/03/11/1432461/army-bomb-experts-foil-biff-bombing-attempt

2 Marines, 6 bandits killed in BIFF retaliation attempt

From the Philippine Star (Mar 11): 2 Marines, 6 bandits killed in BIFF retaliation attempt




Farming villages at the border of Maguindanao's Mamasapano and Sharif Saidona towns were under threat by the outlawed Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters. Google Earth
MAGUINDANAO, Philippines — Two Marines were killed while two others were wounded as government forces foiled on Tuesday night an attempt by bandits to attack a farming enclave at the border of Maguindanao's neighboring Mamasapano and Sharif Saidona towns.

Barangay leaders said the bungled plan of the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters to harass civilians and encircle an evacuation site in the area was meant to avenge the deaths of more than 40 BIFF gunmen killed in military offensives that started February 28.

The slain Marines, Sgt. Francis Flores and another, initially identified only as Cpl. Mias, both belonged to the 8th Marine Battalion, a component unit of the 1st Marine Brigade based in the seaside Lebak town in nearby Sultan Kudarat province.

Two other Marines, a certain Sgt. Tejada, and Pfc. Mandegoria, were wounded in the ensuing encounters, now undergoing medication at a hospital.

Local officials, among them key members of the municipal peace and order councils in Mamasapano and Sharif Saidona, confirmed the Marine-BIFF encounters, which also left six bandits dead.

"Five BIFF members were also seriously wounded in the skirmishes," said one of the sources.

Four of the six BIFF members killed by pursuing Marines were identified by community elders as Condanding Amir, Salik Manili, Usop Dimasangkay and Oting Inshua, all followers of Commander Mohamad Tambako.

Marine units had earlier cleared from BIFF occupation four guerilla enclaves in Mamasapano, including the group's training camp in Dasikil area in the same town, where recruits studied fabrication of improvised explosive devices and powerful roadside bombs that can be detonated from a distance.

The Marine-BIFF encounters late Tuesday erupted when bandits opened fire at a group of Marines out to validate the reported presence of gunmen converging in an open field, as if preparing for an attack.

The Marines launched the nighttime patrol after having been tipped off by Moro farmers on the presence of gunmen gathering suspiciously in a cornfield, connected by farm trails to schools in Barangay Libutan in Mamasapano where there are thousands of evacuees cramped in makeshift relief sites.

The BIFF is known for targeting civilians and public conveyances to retaliate for losses in encounters with the military.

An Army captain in the 6th Scout Ranger Company and three members of the 33rd Infantry Battalion were killed in a series of encounters with BIFF bandits in the southwest of Sharif Saidona town last Saturday.http://www.philstar.com/nation/2015/03/11/1432462/2-marines-6-bandits-killed-biff-retaliation-attempt

DND creates panel to look into alleged chopper deal anomaly

From GMA News (Mar 12): DND creates panel to look into alleged chopper deal anomaly

Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin has created an investigating committee to look into the alleged irregularities in the defense department's procurement of 21 refurbished UH-1 or Huey helicopters  amounting to P1.2 billion.

This, even as Defense spokesman Peter Paul Galvez said the reported irregularities are highly unlikely.

“The SND (Secretary of National Defense) does not tolerate the alleged report of those anomalies and ill activities,” Galvez said.

Galvez also said the committee will be under Defense Undersecretary for Legal and Legislative Affairs and Strategic Concerns Pio Lorenzo Batino.

“'Yung committee will be headed, I believe si Usec Batino. Tapos I believe they will be given approximately 90 days [to finish the investigation],” he said.

Galvez said Gazmin was "disappointed" with the report on possible anomaly.

“He is disappointed, but siyempre he also wants to know the nature of the story bakit ganyan. We need to address all these issues quickly at saka marami kasi tayong projects so pinapangalagaan natin 'yung projects natin,” he said.

A report on the Manila Times quoted a source as saying that the procurement of the choppers was “tailor-fitted” for a “favored” bidder.

It added that after three failed bid attempts, the favored bidder managed to bag the deal “through negotiation” with officials of the Department of National Defense (DND).

Galvez said the DND, particularly its Bids and Awards Committee, has been transparent in all its activities.

http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/story/451137/news/nation/dnd-creates-panel-to-look-into-alleged-chopper-deal-anomaly

BOI turns in Mamasapano report: ‘We can look SAF 44 families in the eyes’

From GMA News (Mar 12): BOI turns in Mamasapano report: ‘We can look SAF 44 families in the eyes’

After weeks of investigation and a few delays in its completion, the Board of Inquiry on the Mamasapano incident on Thursday submitted its report to Philippine National Police leadership with its chairman expressing confidence the panel got the whole truth as regards the "misencounter" that caused the deaths of more than 60 people in late January.

Police Director Benjamin Magalong, the chief of the PNP Criminal Investigation and Detection Group and the chairman of the BOI, even said that the committee was not influenced by President Benigno Aquino III's remarks blaming former Special Action Force chief Director Getulio Napeñas Jr. for the commandos' clashes with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front.

"Walang pressure. Hindi namin 'yon pinansin," Magalong told reporters as the panel prepared to submit its report to PNP Officer-in-Charge Deputy Director-General Leonardo Espina.

Magalong said the members of the investigation panel could look "look straight into the eyes of the family members of the SAF 44."

"We are confident that we were able to seek out the truth," Magalong said.

 

"Haharap kami sa tao na hindi mahihiya, kasama sa mga pamilya ng namatayan," he said.

Forty-four members of the PNP-SAF were killed after one of its teams neutralized suspected international terrorist Zulkifli bin Hir alias Marwan in alleged MILF territory in Mamasapano, Maguindanao on Jan. 25. The mission was done without coordination with the Moro rebels despite the government's existing peace agreement with the MILF.

A total of 67 individuals died in the clashes including 18 MILF fighters and five civilians.

Ahead of the release of the BOI report, Aquino on Monday said Napeñas fooled him on the operation.

 

Five copies

Magalong said aside from the copy of Espina, they have also prepared four other sets to be given to Interior Secretary Mar Roxas and the government agencies investigating the clash, including the House of Representatives, the Senate, and the Department of Justice.

 

He added that once they clearance from Roxas, the report will be made public, and copies will be furnished to the agencies investigating the botched operation.

 

The families of the slain SAF commandos will also be given copies once Roxas will give a go signal, Magalong said.

 

"The creation of the BOI was ordered by Roxas, bilang paggalang sa bumuo sa'min, ipagpapaalam muna sa kanya," he said.

 

http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/story/451265/news/nation/boi-turns-in-mamasapano-report-we-can-look-saf-44-families-in-the-eyes

DFA: China raising tension in South China Sea with continued reclamation activities

From GMA News (Mar 12): DFA: China raising tension in South China Sea with continued reclamation activities

The Philippines has called on China anew to desist from its reclamation work in contested areas in the South China Sea, saying its expansion activities are raising tensions in the region.

 

Beijing is currently undertaking land reclamation on seven disputed features in the South China Sea, including in areas that Philippine officials say are within Manila's territory.

 

A latest surveillance photo of Burgos Reef (Gaven Reef), according to Philippine defense officials, showed that China has constructed a building as large as the Mall of Asia in Pasay City – Manila’s biggest shopping mall.

 

“We are strongly opposed to the reclamation for several reasons because very clearly it is intended to change the status quo, the character and feature, including maritime entitlements, of features in the South China Sea,” Foreign Affairs spokesman Charles Jose told reporters on Thursday.

 

China insists its activities are within the scope of its sovereign jurisdiction, saying it its claim over nearly the entire resource-rich waters are “indisputable.”

 

Alarmed with what it calls China’s expansionist moves in the South China Sea, Manila sued Beijing before a Netherlands-based tribunal operating under a United Nations convention, to try to declare as illegal its enormous claim. China rejected Manila’s case.

 

“Another reason why we are opposed to their reclamation is that they are raising tensions and it undermines peace and stability in the region,” Jose said.

 

Further, Jose warned that the massive reclamation is causing “widespread destruction of the region’s marine biodiversity” and could “irreparably damage the entire ecological balance in the South China Sea.”

 

China, Jose said, must “exercise self-restraint in the conduct of activities” pursuant to a 2002 non-aggression pact it signed with Southeast Asian nations on the South China Sea disputes.

 

The accord calls on all claimants to stop new occupation of territories in the South China Sea. However, the document lacks the power to sanction states that will violate its provisions.

 

“We call on China to stop the reclamation work and to adhere to international law, particularly the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea,” he said, referring to a maritime treaty signed by the Philippines, China and 162 other governments.

 

Jose said the Philippine government is not inclined to lodge a new diplomatic protest against China.

 

“It’s a continuation of the reclamation work that they already started and which we already protested against,” he said. 

 

http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/story/451257/news/nation/dfa-china-raising-tension-in-south-china-sea-with-continued-reclamation-activities

AFP extends anti-BIFF offensive yet again

From the Manila Standard Today (Mar 12): AFP extends anti-BIFF offensive yet again

THE Armed Forces of the Philippines again extended for another three days its offensive against the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters which has so far resulted in the death of 96 BIFF rebels and six government troops, the military reported on Wednesday.

AFP spokesperson Lt. Col. Harold Cabunoc said AFP chief General Gregorio Pio Catapang Jr. ordered the third extension of the offensive that has already lasted for nine days and caused injury to 31 government troops and “more than a hundred” rebels.

Cabunoc said the extension was requested by Major General Edmundo Pangilinan, commander of the Army’s Sixth Infantry Division.

“We will continue the relentless pursuit operations against the lawless armed groups until they are effectively neutralized and unable to conduct atrocities against civilian communities,” Pangilinan said.

Air and ground attacks supported by artillery fires have killed 25 more combatants as battle rages between the military and beleaguered lawless Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF) and their terrorist cohorts in some parts of Maguindanao.

“Twenty-five people were killed in the series of firefights in various areas in Maguindanao since late afternoon yesterday,” military Public Affairs Office (PAO) chief Lieutenant Colonel Harold Cabunoc said Wednesday.

Cabunoc said the fighting are in the boundaries of Datu Salibo and Datu Piang and in Barangay Pusao, Sharif Saidona Mustapha and government troops are supported by four MD520 attack helicopters and artillery units.

“As of today, the troops accounted 23 enemies killed among the BIFF bandits who were engaged by the troops in the swampy areas of Datu Piang and Datu Salibu towns,” Cabunoc said.

The government fatalities included two Marines who were killed in clearing operations at the area called, SPMS (Salvu, Pagatin, Mamasapano and Shariff Aguak) Box on Tuesday, according to the Army’s Sixth Infantry Division.

“The pursuit operations were still ongoing in the marshland where the bandits split into small groups. Sporadic clashes erupted in the area at 10 a.m. today,” Cabunoc said.

http://manilastandardtoday.com/2015/03/12/afp-extends-anti-biff-offensive-yet-again/

Apology acknowledged: suit vs. NPA to continue

From the Mindanao Times (Mar 11): Apology acknowledged: suit vs. NPA to continue
 

THE POLICE Regional Office-XI and the Davao City Police Office will still file a case against New People’s Army rebels, led by Kumander Bobby, for attacking the a police vehicle responding to a traffic incident on Sunday afternoon.

Speaking yesterday during AFP-PNP presscon, Supt. Antonio Rivera, spokesperson of PRO-XI, said they are still to pursue in filing case against the armed group. “We are happy that they admitted the incident,” he said. “But we will pursue the filing of case against those who are involved.”

As of now, only Kumander Bobby of Guerilla Front 3 was identified but the Marilog police is trying to pin others who attacked the vehicle.

Sr. Inspector Milgrace Driz, spokesperson of DCPO, also said city director, Sr. Supt. Vicente D. Danao Jr., directed them to gather evidence and account the witnesses to build up the case and file the suit as soon as possible.

On the part of the military, an officer of the Eastern Mindanao Command acknowledged the admission by the NPA that it made a mistake.

“We are happy that they apologized because they recognize that what they did was wrong. But inspite of their apology, we will still continue our pursuit operations,” Col. Romeo Brawner, EastMinCom spokesperson.

Mayor Rodrigo R. Duterte relayed the apology of the NPA after the chief executive contacted the rebel group for an explanation.

At a command conference hours after the attack, Duterte said he talked with the NPA leader who admitted to him the rebel unit “committed a mistake” in attacking the police vehicle.

He even admired the rebels for owning up to the attack which wounded SPO2 Roger T. Sevilliano, PO1 Marlon Coprada and Joel Ahao.

Police said they were responding to a traffic accident when about 30 members of the NPA ambushed the mobile patrol unit in Barangay Baganihan, Marilog District.

However, in their phone conversation, the rebel leader said the landmine was “accidentally” activated, resulting in the explosion that wounded the police officers.

On Tuesday, Duterte gave financial assistance and paid for the hospital expenses of the wounded officers who are recuperating in the Southern Philippines Medical Center.

http://mindanaotimes.net/apology-acknowledged-suit-vs-npa-to-continue/

China slams ASEAN chief for South China Sea comments

From InterAksyon (Mar 12): China slams ASEAN chief for South China Sea comments



ASEAN secretary-general Le Luong Minh is seen in Naypyitaw, Myanmar in this November 11, 2014 file photo. REUTERS

China expressed anger on Wednesday at the Vietnamese head of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) for comments he made on the disputed South China Sea, rejecting Chinese claims based on the so-called nine-dash line.

Le Luong Minh, ASEAN secretary-general and a veteran Vietnamese diplomat, told the Manila Times last week that the grouping rejects China's policy of using the dotted line to assert its sovereignty over myriad islets and reefs in the sea.

ASEAN's economic integration could also be affected by "any hostility or conflict" that could break out, he added.

Vietnam has repeatedly complained about what it sees as aggressive Chinese moves in the seas.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei said that China had always supported ASEAN's economic integration, but that ASEAN was not a party to the South China Sea dispute.

"Mr. Le Luong Minh is the ASEAN secretary-general, and on the South China Sea issue has many times made partisan statements that do not accord with the facts nor suit his position," Hong told a daily news briefing.

"This is a serious deviation from the neutral position ASEAN and its secretary-general ought to have on the relevant issue, and damages the image of ASEAN as a regional international organization," he added.

The secretary-general should ensure ASEAN stands by its promises of neutrality and not "use public office for private gain", Hong said.

It was not clear why China had waited so long to respond to the remarks, which were published last Wednesday.

China claims about 90 percent of the South China Sea, displaying its reach on official maps with its nine-dash line that stretches deep into the maritime heart of Southeast Asia.

Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan also have claims to parts of the potentially energy-rich waters that are crossed by key global shipping lanes.

http://www.interaksyon.com/article/106749/china-slams-asean-chief-for-south-china-sea-comments

Three Usman kin believed killed as BIFF suffers more casualties in close-quarter fighting

From InterAksyon (Mar 12): Three Usman kin believed killed as BIFF suffers more casualties in close-quarter fighting



Military units train howitzers in artillery campaign against positions of the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters. AFP file photograph.

Reports reaching Manila indicated that the latest casualties from the running skirmishes with the renegade Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF) include three relatives of terrorist Abdul Basit Usman.

Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) spokesman and Civil Relations Service (CRS) commander Brig. Gen. Joselito "Joey" Kakilala said on Thursday that the casualties on the BIFF side were reported after several hours of unstoppable close-quarter battles from Wednesday morning up to noon in Shariff Aguak, Maguindanao.

"Our commanders in the field had just reported to AFP General Headquarters about developments on the ground. The number of enemy casualties keeps mounting as close-quarter battles are ongoing," Kakilala said.

Last Tuesday, 23 BIFF died, and two government soldiers were killed in action at Datu Saibo and Datu Paing.

Kakilala said two of the killed terrorists were believed to be nephews of Usman and another one was reportedly a relative.

He identified Usman's nephews as Rene Masabpi and Kunudi Simeon.

"Our troops were still trying to identify the third one, and all of them were reportedly buried somewhere in Sitio Ilang, Barangay Tina, Shariff Aguak."

Meanwhile, AFP Public Affairs Office (PAO) chef Lieutenant Harold Cabunoc said the all-out offensive against the BIFF will continue as more fresh troops, including elite forces are inserted into the battle fronts.

"The main objective is to decimate the BIFF and their terrorist cohorts, such as Usman and reportedly, five foreign terrorists fleeing with them," Cabunoc said.

Maj. Gen. Edmundo Pangilinan, commander of the Army's 6th Infantry Division, attributed the good results of the all-out offensive against the BIFF to the "cooperation" of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front in sharing intelligence information with the assaulting government forces.

http://www.interaksyon.com/article/106786/three-usman-kin-believed-killed-as-biff-suffers-more-casualties-in-close-quarter-fighting

Army, PNP defuse land mines planted along military route in Sultan Kudarat province

From the Philippine News Agency (Mar 11): Army, PNP defuse land mines planted along military route in Sultan Kudarat province

Police and military Army bomb experts on Wednesday defused six land mines planted by suspected New Peoples Army guerillas operating in Columbio, Sultan Kudarat, the military here said.

While Columbio is known to be an area of operation of communist guerillas, the 6th Infantry Division is not discounting the possibility the outlawed Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF) now the subject of massive military manhunt could be involved.

The bombing attempt came hours after an improvised bomb was set off by unidentified men in front of the Army's civil military office in Cotabato City, about 40 kilometers north of Columbio town.

No one was hurt in the bombing which occurred at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday.

The Sultan Kudarat police provincial office, in a statement, said the land mines were planted about 70 meters away from the bridge going to Barangay Maligaya, in Columbio, Sultan Kudarat at past 7:30 a.m.

Police said it could be intended to soldiers as the road network was regularly used by the military as its route in conducting patrol operations in the hinterlands of Columbio.

Alert civilians reported the land mines to the police and Army detachment nearby which immediately called for bomb experts.

Army and police personnel have been on heightened alert since the government launched offensives against BIFF in nearby Maguindanao. The town is located in the border of Maguindanao.

http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=2&sid=&nid=2&rid=743665

2 NPAs surrender in Agusan del Sur

From the Philippine News Agency (Mar 12): 2 NPAs surrender in Agusan del Sur

BUTUAN CITY -- Two members of the New People's Army (NPA), who belonged to their guerrilla front operating at a southern province of this region, surrendered to the municipal police station of the area on Wednesday morning, police report said.

The surrender came as the rebel group came as the NPA will celebrate its anniversary by the last week of this month.

According to the police report from Agusan del Sur Police Provincial Office to the regional police headquarters here on Thursday, the two NPAs, known only by their aliases, surrendered to the government troopers in Veruela of the said province.

The police report said the two alleged NPAs, identified through their aliases as "Ewin or Ka Lim" 22, and "Kim or Ka Utol" 17, both residents of Brgy. Sta Emelia, Veruela town, are members of the Samahang Yunit Propaganda (SYP) 2 from Guerilla Front 3, under the command of a certain alias "Rigor." The two voluntarily showed themselves up in Veruela Municipal Police Station, 8 a.m. Wednesday accompanied by barangay captain Adelo P. Micutuan and Armietex Prochina, private secretary of Veruela Mayor Salimar Mondejar. The two rebels did not bring their firearms when they surrendered to the authorities.

The two accordingly yielded upon the intercession of Mayor Mondejar, personnel of Agusan del Sur Provincial Public Safety Company based at La Fortuna of the said town, Veruela police and from the 26th Infantry Battalion, Philippine Army.

Both rebel returnees are now under the custody of Veruela police and will soon be turned-over to the Philippine Army for custodial debriefing.

The rebel returnees would soon avail of the Comprehensive Local Integration Program (CLIP) of Agusan del Sur after undergoing some process.

Police said that the surrender of the two rebels may show that there is a growing demoralization within the rebel ranks.

The PNP assured that rebels who wishes to lay down and go back to the society mainstream are welcomed and will be assisted by the government troopers together with the local government units and other stakeholders.

http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=2&sid=&nid=2&rid=743738