ISABELA CITY, 18 July 2003 — Basilan province, the island where the notorious Abu Sayyaf extremist group was born, is now a safe place to visit, according to its governor.
Gov. Wahab Akbar made the pitch on Wednesday during a visit by Japan’s economic counselor to Manila as he vowed to turn Basilan from an economically backward province into one of the country’s major destination for tourists and investors.
“We have lush virgin forests and pristine, white beaches and falls. Basilan Island has many scuba diving sites and we are so rich in natural resources,” he said.
Counselor Takashi Hoshiyama met with Akbar on Wednesday when he came to Basilan to inaugurate a $90,000 two-story social rehabilitation building funded by the Japanese government.
The construction of the building started in March and was finished only this month. “We hope this building will be of help to many people in Basilan,” Hoshiyama said in his speech.
He pledged more Japanese support on infrastructure and livelihood program for Muslims not only in Basilan but in other parts of the southern Philippines, but warned that the series of bombings on civilian targets in the region was a major security concern for his government.
Tokyo had been the biggest aid donor to Manila for the past decades.
“The unstable security situation is a kind of menace to Japanese assistance and to our citizens engaged in aid projects. The government should do a lot to improve the peace and order in the Philippines,” Hoshiyama told reporters.
Australia and the United States and other European countries have expressed concern over threats of terrorism in the Philippines. Many nations have banned their citizens from traveling to Mindanao, including Basilan and Zamboanga City.
Hoshiyama acknowledged the efforts of Akbar, a former fighter of the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF), whose iron-fist campaign has helped liberate the island from the stranglehold of the Abu Sayyaf.
But he was quick to say that Japanese nationals cannot stay longer in Basilan because of Tokyo’s travel restriction. “We hope the security situation in Basilan and other parts of the southern improved. If the bombings continue, then it would be hazardous to us. We have to protect our aid workers. Security is not stable in the entire Mindanao region,” he said.
Basilan used to be a stronghold of the Abu Sayyaf extremist group, which had been linked to the Al-Qaeda international terrorist network. Police and military have blamed the Abu Sayyaf for many kidnappings of mostly foreigners in the southern Philippines.
Akbar assured Hoshiyama, however, that local security forces have secured most parts of Basilan and the campaign is continuing.
Two years ago, Akbar invited American special forces and military engineers to join Philippine forces in a civic-military campaign aimed at flushing out extremists and providing economic livelihood for the people.
Akbar said he will ask foreign ambassadors to come and see for themselves the stable security condition of the island.
“I will invite the diplomats, local and foreign tourists and they can come to Basilan with their families and have a nice rest or they can go fishing or diving and enjoy paradise at its best, pure tranquility and away from the pollution and bustling noise of the metropolis,” he told reporters.
