JOLO, Philippines — The Philippine military launched a new offensive against Muslim militants in the restive south of the country yesterday, President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo announced.
Arroyo insisted the offensive was aimed only at militants and that her government would seek to avoid a wider war and would make efforts to minimize civilian casualties. But with many in the military enraged by the beheading of 10 Marines several weeks ago, and up to 12,000 troops now deployed on Jolo and Basilan islands, fears have been voiced about a massive military crackdown.
Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro said the offensive would target the Abu Sayyaf, a notorious militant group responsible for some of the worst attacks in the Philippines — and one that has been linked by officials to Al-Qaeda.
“The only way it can be stopped is if the Abu Sayyaf and lawless elements put down their arms and surrender,” he told a news conference in Manila.
On Jolo, heavy artillery pounded Abu Sayyaf positions around Patikul, according to an AFP photographer on the scene. He said convoys of heavily armed troops were taking up positions in the eastern part of the island led by armored personnel carriers.
On Basilan, where the Marines have imposed a news blackout, local television reported Marines taking up positions around Tipo-Tipo town. The report said military operations were being hampered as many civilians were refusing to leave their homes and move to safer areas.
The United Nations World Food Program said it has expanded its food aid operations to reach over 10,000 people affected by fighting in Basilan.
The Philippines has been battling an array of armed groups in the vast south of the country, where hundreds of difficult-to-guard islands allow militants to move about largely unobstructed.
In addition to the Abu Sayyaf, there are fighters from two other Muslim groups — the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) and the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) — as well as the Communist New People’s Army (NPA).
The government has had a cease-fire in place with the MILF for three years, but a date for the next round of peace negotiations has not been announced, and Manila has been careful in its dealings with the group.
Arroyo said the government forces “will not overrun MILF areas” and that she would brief envoys from the Organization of the Islamic Conference, where the Philippines is represented by MILF, on ongoing peace efforts.
“The military wants revenge for the deaths of its soldiers, but I can’t see Arroyo giving them a free hand to do that because the consequences might be too great,” said Tom Green of consultancy group Pacific Strategies and Assessments.
Much of the Muslim south of the country has been a hotbed of unrest and resentment ever since US troops tried to subdue Muslim clans in the early part of last century, when the Philippines was colonized by the United States.
Years of fighting saw the government sign a peace accord with the MNLF in 1996 which led to the creation of the Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao. But neglect and corruption have left the region one of the poorest in the country, while the peace deal did not satisfy all Muslims — the MILF continued to fight, while the Abu Sayyaf group was formed.
The US Embassy in Manila meanwhile warned Americans in the Philippines of possible “terrorist” attacks on bus stations and shopping malls in Cotabato city and other population centers on the main southern island of Mindanao.
