Date: March 2003

A Brazen Act of Terrorism

The warnings were there, but not even the government's cautious watch could prevent the March 4 Davao City bombing that left 21 people dead and over 150 others wounded in what President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo described as "a brazen act of terrorism."

Before the incident, there were signs that terrorist attacks would shake the country anew. Deadly blasts targeting civilians have always followed when government troops launched fresh assaults on Muslim extremists in Mindanao - the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) and the Abu Sayyaf.

This time, it was Davao City (Southern Mindanao). Previous targets have been Metro Manila, General Santos City (Southern Mindanao), Zamboanga City (Western Mindanao), Cotabato City (Central Mindanao) and almost all other cities in Central Mindanao. The record of terrorism in the southern Philippines relates so many incidents that security analysts have lost their sensitivity to new threats.

On March 6, the MILF rebels attacked three towns in Lanao del Norte province (Central Mindanao), strafed the houses with bullets and killed 11 civilians. The rebels also claimed to have captured seven government soldiers in a subsequent battle.

Prior to this, a group of Muslim extremists attacked the Christian village of Tubod in Kalawit town, Zamboanga del Norte province (Western Mindanao), set houses on fire, and killing 16 residents on February 19.

The incident was reminiscent of the first large attack by the Muslim extremist Abu Sayyaf group on Christian civilians. In April 1995, the Abu Sayyaf (Bearers of the Sword) raided the Christian town of Ipil in Zamboanga Sibugay province (Western Mindanao) and burned its houses and establishments. The group also shot dead at least 54 residents of the town.

Last week's deadly blast just outside Davao City's international airport was not to be the last. Another explosion killed one person at a plaza in Tagum City (Southern Mindanao), just hours after the Davao City bombing on March 4. A bomb also exploded inside a shopping mall in Cotabato City on March 5.

Moreover, the Davao bombing was not the first in a large Philippine city. Just on February 20, a car bomb killed one person, wounded six others, damaged the Cotabato airport and destroyed nearby buildings. On April 21, 2002, 15 innocent civilians were killed while 60 others were injured when a bomb exploded outside a shopping mall in General Santos City (Southern Mindanao). The Abu Sayyaf quickly claimed responsibility over the bombing, although the military was convinced that a larger Muslim rebel group, the MILF, could have been involved.

On October 17, 2002, two of the seven bombs planted around Zamboanga City (Western Mindanao) exploded, leaving seven people dead and 144 others injured. On the night of October 2 of the same year, a bomb, allegedly planted by the Muslim extremist Abu Sayyaf group, exploded in front of a karaoke bar in Zamboanga City (Western Mindanao), killing an American soldier and two Filipinos and wounding 19 others, including another American soldier.

On October 10, 2002, a bomb, which was allegedly planted by an extortion group, exploded inside a bus terminal in Kidapawan City (Central Mindanao), leaving 8 people dead and 25 others injured.

Metro Manila has not been spared from the attacks. On December 30, 2000, a series of at least six bombings shook the metropolis. The deadliest blast was on a train of the Light Rail Transit (LRT), which killed 22 innocent passengers and wounded hundreds of others. The Metro Manila bombings took place as government troops were hunting the MILF rebels.

On October 19, 2002, a bomb exploded aboard a public bus, killing three passengers and wounding 19 others in Balintawak, Quezon City (Northern Metro Manila). A fragmentation grenade also exploded in Makati City but injured no one on October 17.

Among the 21 persons killed in the Davao blast was William Hyde, a 56-year-old American Baptist missionary, who had been serving in the country for over 25 years. He was from Iowa and a friend of the Burnham couple who was abducted by the Abu Sayyaf group in 2001. Three other American nationals were injured in the incident. US President George W. Bush denounced the attack and vowed to help the Philippines in resolving the case. There are around 120,000 American nationals in the Philippines.

Among the Filipino victims was 35-year-old Arman Picar, who became known as the lone Filipino national light heavyweight boxing champion. Picar once fought Julio Cesar Vasquez of Argentina for the World Boxing Association (WBA) junior middleweight crown at MGM Grand in Las Vegas in 1994.

Prior to the Davao bombing, authorities had placed the military and the police in Mindanao on red alert to pacify any hostility emanating from the planned deployment of American troops in Sulu. There were intelligence reports that both Muslim extremist MILF and the Abu Sayyaf groups were planning to sow new terror activities in the south because of the US military deployment.

Intelligence reports also said that the Abu Sayyaf has deployed some of its members to carry out suicide bomb attacks in urban areas. MILF chairman Hashim Salamat also called on his 12,000 combatants to "fight till death". Aside from targeting civilians, the Muslim rebels destroyed power lines and towers in Mindanao, which put the island in darkness last month.

Initial investigation showed that a 23-year-old MILF rebel was carrying the bomb inside a backpack strapped on his shoulders. Police said he was among those killed in the explosion. It was the first time that a suicide bombing occurred in the country. Many people are discounting this version of events however and believe the military has been quick to find a scapegoat for the attack.

While the Abu Sayyaf claimed responsibility over the attack, the military still believes that the MILF was responsible. Abu Sayyaf was previously a faction of the MILF, and first became known as the fundamentalist arm of Muslim rebellion in Mindanao. The Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF), the original Muslim secessionist group, is the one recognized by the Organization of Islamic Conferences (OIC) and it has already forged peace with the government.

In Manila, the Office of the Muslim Affairs (OMA) claimed that MILF chairman Hashim Salamat was the source of the coded order to bomb the Davao airport. OMA Director Datu Zamzamin Ampatuan said Salamat asked his men to target Christian communities and government interests. The purpose of the attack was reportedly to pressure the government to stop attacking MILF troops and resume the stalled peace negotiation.

The United States was planning to deploy troops in Sulu, a stronghold of the MILF and the Abu Sayyaf. The latter is being linked to the al-Qaeda network of Osama bin laden. US troops are already stationed in Zamboanga City.

The tense situation is not expected to ebb soon. The rebels were threatening to launch attacks on the government if war between the United States and Iraq breaks out. The Philippines is an ally of the US. With US troops present in the country at a time of war in the Middle East, more attacks are to be expected.

Another issue that has been linked to the Davao bombing was President Arroyo's order for the military to exterminate the Abu Sayyaf within 90 days. Texas-based security analyst Strategic Forecasting (Stratfor) described the public order as ill advised, claiming that this would make other parts of the country vulnerable to attacks.

Meanwhile, Defense Secretary Angelo Reyes admitted that Osama bin Laden's al Qaeda network has established contacts in the country as early as 1995. The statement was based on the presence in Manila in 1995 of Pakistani national Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, who has been recently put in custody of the United States for allegedly masterminding the September 11, 2001 attacks.

Reports said Mohammed used 20 aliases during his stay in the country, courted numerous Filipino girlfriends, stayed at five-star Metro Manila hotels, and even established a carpet business in Paranaque City (southern Metro Manila).

Military intelligence reports said Mohammed went to Manila in January 1995 to plot the assassination of visiting Pope John Paul II. Filipino authorities discovered the plot, arrested Abdul Hakim Murad, an associate of Mohammed, but failed to nail down Mohammed, his nephew Ramzi Ahmed Yousef and another associate by the name of Wali Khan who allegedly flew to Pakistan via Thailand.

Murad was arrested at an apartment in Malate, Manila on January 7, 1995 and was later extradited to the US. Yousef was arrested in Pakistan while Khan was nabbed in Malaysia. Mohammed allegedly planned the September 11 attacks in the US.

A more disturbing report was the alleged presence of bin Laden himself in Mindanao in 1997 and 1999 to set up Madrasah schools. His brother-in-law, Kalifa, was also reportedly involved in funding the operations of those schools.

Filipino authorities are now trying to identify the local contacts of al Qaeda in the country. Whether an Indonesian national under the custody of the Philippine government for planning the December 30, 2000 bombings had links to al Qaeda remains to be verified.

But al Qaeda is the least of the government's concerns at this point. With al Qaeda troops reduced to fragments in Afghanistan, the largest threats to security in Mindanao are the local Muslim extremist groups MILF and Abu Sayyaf. The MILF alone has 12,000 combatants, perhaps the largest group of rebels in Southeast Asia. And there are the communist rebels who have reportedly forged local partnerships with the Muslim extremists.

Communist rebels are not known for targeting civilians but they do impose revolutionary taxes on business establishments. They target the facilities and equipment of those who refuse to pay such taxes. The military considers the communist movement, which has over 10,000 members all over the archipelago, as the number one threat to national security.

At present, security around Metro Manila has been on heightened alert to prevent any spillover of attacks from the south. Authorities also tightened security around the 25 airports in Mindanao under triple red alert. Caution is the name of the game.

 

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