ZAMBOANGA CITY, 2 August 2007 — A former Moro rebel leader-turned-politician has named four suspects in the beheading of 10 government soldiers in Basilan island.

Wahab Akbar, now a congressman, volunteered to run after the beheaders, who he said behaved like Abu Sayyaf extremists but were not really part of the group.

In a speech late on Tuesday at the House of Representatives in Manila, Akbar identified four of the alleged beheaders as Umair Indama, Nurhasan Jamiri, Bujari Jamiri, and Suaib Kalibon.

The military has not made any comment so far on Akbar’s remarks, saying only that negotiations were being undertaken for the surrender of the suspects in the July 10 killings, which is threatening to derail peace talks between the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF).

Lt. General Pedrito Cadungog, deputy chief of staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), said yesterday that troops are under orders again to defer offensive actions to give way to negotiations.

The military suspended a planned offensive last week amid pressure from Japan and Canada, who expressed concern that their aid projects in Mindanao could be adversely affected should another war erupt.

Mitso Sakaba, press secretary of the Japanese foreign ministry, reiterated his government’s concern yesterday and called for moderation from both sides.

MILF leaders earlier warned that that their forces would fight it out if the military pushes through with the offensive.

The rebel group has claimed responsibility for the attack on a convoy of Marines on July 10, in which 14 soldiers were killed and nine injured in a nine-hour gunbattle that ensued.

But the group denied responsibility for the beheading of 10 of the fallen soldiers.

The military said the soldiers were returning to their base in Lamitan town after an unsuccessful search for kidnapped Italian priest Giancarlo Bossi in nearby Al-Barka town when they were ambushed. Bossi, who was abducted on June 10 in Zamboanga Sibugay in mainland Mindanao, was released days later in Lanao del Norte, far away from Basilan.

Last week a local court issued warrants for the arrest of 130 people, mostly MILF members, alleged involved in the attack.

The military is planning to enforce the arrest orders by means of an offensive sweep, sparking evacuations in a number of villages.

Barbaric Act

In his speech, Akbar said he has witnesses against the beheaders, including one who severed a soldier’s finger to get his ring. “The subject cannot get the ring because it was too tight so the subject ended in amputating the hand of the Marine, bringing the hand of the Marine home, then cutting his finger to just get the ring,” he said.

He said he has witnesses to back up his claims and that the four men had been involved in previous kidnappings for money in Basilan.

In a phone interview with the Inquirer yesterday, Akbar said the suspects were also responsible in the kidnapping of a daughter of Dr. Elbigario Gonzales, president of the Western Mindanao Estate University, last year and a series of car thefts in the province.

He said the perpetrators were “contaminated members “of the Abu Sayyaf Group but were not really part of the group.

“My informants were able to identify only four of the suspects but it could be five, six or seven. We haven’t verified the others yet,” Akbar said. “They practice what the Abu Sayyaf Group is practicing but they are not Abu Sayyaf. Maybe Abu Sayyaf-like attitude.”

While saying the beheadings were no doubt “barbaric,” Akbar said a military offensive would only result in further unnecessary bloodshed and punishes innocent civilians.

Acting Defense Secretary Norberto Gonzales said the enforcement of the arrest warrants against the suspects was legal and should not affect the peace process between the government and MILF.

Akbar insisted that the local authority would be more responsible and effective in running after the suspects than the military “because the military might just be caught unaware because of lack of coordination with the people involved.”

“To pursue the imminent military operations as the hasty solution would add ignominy to the situation,” said Akbar, whose first wife is the governor of Basilan and whose second wife is mayor of Isabela, the capital town. “We’ve been successful during the time of the Abu Sayyaf — giving information, directing the strategy on how to run after the ASG. Local authorities should be involved in order not to involve innocent people,” he said.

‘Win-Win Approach’

Instead of sending more troops to pursue the killers, Akbar appealed to the military to adopt a “win-win formula,” which is to support funding for farms instead of arms; funding for plantation, instead of operation, and funding for rubber sap instead of bullets.

Dr. Manar Saliddin, a dentist in Basilan, said they dreaded the day when the military and the police would arrest just any suspect, similar to what they did in 2001.

“Among those arrested were my father Munap Saliddin and my younger brother Moner Saliddin. My ailing father was released, but my brother is still in jail and what saddened us is that my brother is languishing in jail without committing any crime. If I were around during the crackdown, I may have been included in the arrest too,” Saliddin said.

Akbar also appealed to the media to stop branding his province as the “Land of Abu Sayyaf” since he said the group could no longer be found in their area.

The island was supposedly cleaned of Abu Sayyaf fighters by a US-backed combined civic-military operation in 2002 and 2003.

Akbar lamented how the beheading of the 10 Marines has been prominently mentioned in the news while the death of an imam who was found stabbed in the neck with a soldier’s bayonet after being shot has been conveniently forgotten.

He likewise protested how he has been repeatedly portrayed in the news as an Abu Sayyaf supporter, which he has strongly denied. (With a report from the Inquirer News Service)