PAL opens flights to Sulu

Jolo is the capital of Sulu and is located at the southernmost portion of the Philippines, lying between the Sulu Sea and Celebes Sea, Sulu is composed of over 157 islands and islets.

It boasts of a number of fine beaches, one of which is the famous Tubbataha Reef, a 33,200 hectare underwater splendor frequented by divers all over the world.

Tubbataha Reef Marine Park was honored by UNESCO in 1993 as the first natural site in the Philippines to be inscribed in the prestigious World Heritage List.

Effective September 10, PAL flies between Zamboanga and Jolo three times a week on AirPhil Express-operated flights under our Code Share Agreement.

Police commandos injured in Sulu road accident

SULU, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / Aug. 18, 2010) – Three police commandos responding on a burst of gunfire were seriously injured after a police truck carrying reinforcements ran over them on a village in the southern Filipino province of Sulu, officials said Wednesday.

Officials said members of the Special Action Force were positioned on a road in the village of Adjid in Indanan town when the truck driver lost control of the wheel and plowed to a group of commandos.

The commandos, who came from the town of Panglima Estino, were in a convoy of two trucks and patrol jeeps passing the village on their way to barracks when shots rang out. Fearing it was an ambush by rebels, a group of commandos jumped out of their truck and took cover, but the second truck carrying the reinforcement rammed those on the road, officials.

The wounded officers were rushed to a military hospital in the capital town of Jolo.

It was not immediately known whether the shots were directed at the police convoy or an indiscriminate firing by farmers, who traditionally armed themselves to protect them from bandits and rebels.

Last year, the provincial police chief, Julasirim Kasim, was killed in an ambush by Abu Sayyaf militants in the village of Kulasi in Maimbung town in Sulu. (With a report from Nickee Butlangan)

Documentary film shows a better and peaceful Sulu

JOLO, SULU — For hundreds of years, Sulu has been held hostage by poverty, distraught and instability brought about by the seemingly infinite war between the Muslim rebel groups and the Armed Forces. It is one of the scariest places in the Philippines as deemed by many.

But through the many years of suffering, the people of Sulu are now slowly seeing hope. This is what the the documentary film “Sulu” aims to show Filipinos and the rest of the world.

Directed by Al Jacinto, the film tells of young writer Arthur Sakaluran Abasalo who is born of a Muslim mother taking a trip to Sulu despite the dangers posed by Muslim rebels.

When in there, Abasalo saw how changed the province was having more livelihood opportunities, increased efficiency in the health and education sectors, progressive tourism and above all, peace and order.

In the film, Abasalo narrated how delighted he is to see this progress in Sulu.

“Iba na ngayon. Iba na pala.Nakita ko yung mga tao malaki na ang pinagbago. Yung mga mahihirap nabibigyan na ng biyaya,(It’s different now. I saw how people changed. The poor are given more opportunities).”

Talking to the locals and taking walks around town, he saw how the once conflict-stricken province is taking a turn for the better. “Masayang-masaya ako dahil nakita ko ang pag-unlad ng Sulu (I am very happy to see the progress of Sulu),” he says.

Seeing this documentary is a breath of fresh air. I could honestly say I’m as happy as Abasalo. The people of Sulu have suffered enough and it’s good to know that they are finally stepping away from the shadows of war and terror.

I hope this goes on especially today when we’ve just chosen our new leaders.

Kudos to director Al Jacinto and to all the people behind this wonderful film. May this serve as an inspiration to Filipinos that change does come and that our dream of a better nation might just be within our reach.

Al Jacinto is the Editor in Chief of The Mindanao Examiner. “Sulu” was first shown at the Kontra-Agos Resistance Film Festival held in 2007 at Robinsons Galleria. It was also also an entry in the “Cinema Rehiyon 2010: Alter Nativo”, which showcased the works of emerging filmmakers from various provinces in the Philippines. (Edzelle Peña)


Reference:

Link: http://loqal.ph/arts-and-entertainment/2010/07/03/documentary-film-shows-a-better-and-peaceful-sulu/

Link: http://www.spot.ph/2010/02/03/cinema-rehiyon-2010/

Link: http://loqal.ph/

‘Whiners who cry fraud deserve to lose’ - Philippine Daily Inquirer

MANILA, Philippines — Losing candidates who cry fraud and claim to have received offers to cheat in the May 10 automated polls “do not deserve to be elected” for not reporting the cases immediately, according to President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s former election lawyer.

Romulo Macalintal, who defended Ms Arroyo against fraud allegations in the 2004 elections, Tuesday described as “impossible” stories of fraud attempts now coming out in Congress.

He scolded the complainants for their “sins of omission” for reporting the cases only after they lost.

“You really deserve to lose the elections if that’s what you did. You do not deserve to be elected. You do not have the right to say that you are looking after the welfare of our nation,” Macalintal said.

“Because if you have concern for our country, that would have been what you did—have them arrested,” he said.

Macalintal did not identify the losers, but those crying fraud and alleging offers from poll cheats included Surigao del Norte Rep. Ace Barbers, Laguna Gov. Teresita Lazaro, Quezon City Rep. Matias Defensor and Sulu Rep. Munir Arbison.

Hearsay

Parañaque Rep. Roilo Golez Tuesday said not all statements of fraud allegations coming out in the House hearing were substantial.

Golez, who won his reelection bid, said during the hearing that he was concerned that the formal inquiry had been beset with statements of hearsay rather than of personal knowledge.

He cited the statements of lawyer Homobono Adaza that he had talked to a person who told him about a supposed offer to rig the elections for P1 billion.

Golez said he preferred that the stories be told in their entirety and not left hanging. Anybody who says somebody told him something should name the person, he added.

“If a story could not be completed, it should not be started at all,” he said.

‘Impossible’

But Cagayan de Oro Rep. Rufus Rodriguez said it was not hearsay for Adaza to say that he had talked to a person and to ask that that person be summoned to the House hearing.

Macalintal said candidates alleging offers of machine-switching or electronic vote manipulation might well have been victims of scams by syndicates pretending to have the means and connections to cheat in their favor for hefty fees.

“It’s a good thing they did not pay up. If there were some who did, they are stupid. They were just duped,” Macalintal told reporters at a Church-organized forum in Intramuros, Manila.

“I do not believe that there was such switching of PCOS (precinct count optical scan) machines or of memory cards. Could you imagine the phenomenon of doing that in every precinct? There could be a pandemonium of sorts. It is impossible that those syndicates could have done that,” he said.

The candidates should have arranged entrapment operations to catch the syndicates, Macalintal said. That would have been “the best opportunity” for them to do good for the nation, he added.

“But what did they do? They go to Congress and when asked who came to them, they’ll say, ‘I don’t know, I already forgot the number.’ My God, this is a very, very important matter and then you lose the number?” he said.

IT experts

Macalintal also decried IT (information technology) experts coming forward with their own theories about how PCOS machines and memory cards could have been cheated.

During the same forum, one such expert, Roberto Verzola of Halalang Marangal, claimed that the discrepancies in transmitted data and election returns spotted last week by the Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting (PPCRV) indicated that there was a “malicious code” in the PCOS machines that automatically shaves or pads votes for certain candidates.

The PPCRV, however, said the discrepancies were too small to cause concern. Results from 29 precincts of more than 43,000 precincts showed differences in transmitted and printed results.

Can’t be proven

“These types of alleged cheating cannot be proven by anyone who calls himself an IT expert. No IT expert could prove the alleged fraud in this election,” Macalintal said, adding that experts had no evidence to back their claims.

Macalintal said that proving fraud could only be done through a manual ballot count, though he saw no basis to conduct one yet as the validation of election results had yet to uncover major discrepancies. (Tarra Quismundo. With a report from Leila Salaverria)


Link:http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/inquirerheadlines/nation/view/20100526-272068/Whiners-who-cry-fraud-deserve-to-lose

Massive cheating, fraud, intimidation cap elections in Sulu province

An elderly Badjao native shows his vote Monday, May 10, 2010 in the village of Kulasi in Maimbung town in Sulu province where thousands of tribesmen who cannot read nor write cast their votes in the Philippines’ first ever automated elections. Many Badjao natives say they were paid up to P1,000 in exchange for their votes and a huge number of those who cast their votes were minors and without election papers. Elections in the town were marred with massive cheating, fraud, vote-buying. Journalists covering the polls in Maimbung were also harassed and prevented by supporters of the local mayor who is seeking re-election from taking video and photos of the exercise inside polling precincts. (Mindanao Examiner Photo)

SULU, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / May 11, 2010) – Accusations of massive cheating, fraud and vote-buying capped Monday’s general elections in the southern Philippine province of Sulu.

Journalists covering the country’s first ever automated elections were also harassed in the village of Kulasi in Maimbung town where thousands of Badjao tribesmen who cannot read nor write cast their votes.

Supporters of the local mayor who is seeking re-election prevented one television journalist from taking video and photos of the exercise inside polling precincts for a still unknown reason.

Many natives said they were paid up to P1,000 in exchange for their votes. And a huge number of those who cast their votes were minors and without election papers. Elections in the town were marred with massive cheating, fraud and vote-buying.

Last hour elections were disrupted by clashes between poll watchers of opposing candidates after poll inspectors allowed minors to vote. Police fired warning shots to prevent the escalation of violence.

Many voters in the village just washed off their ink markings on their fingers and voted several times in different polling precincts.

Two teenagers – both 16 years old - told a police officer outside the Lidung Elementary School where the elections were held that they were paid P500 each to vote for candidates whose names were written on a piece of paper. They said the ink markings put by poll inspectors on their fingers were easily washed off.

“We just scrubbed our finger and the ink washed away and we were able to vote twice in separate polling precincts. We were paid P500 each,” one teenager told the police officer.

And policemen and soldiers cannot do anything because they were not allowed near the polling places. All they did was to monitor the elections and keep the people safe from possible attacks of Abu Sayyaf militants whose group is tied to al-Qaeda and Jemaah Islamiya.

“This is terrible. This election exercise is comparable to none. There is massive cheating, fraud and intimidation,” one watcher of the government’s Lakas-Kampi-CMD coalition said.

One elderly Badjao tribesman, who cannot read or write, also showed a piece of paper where the names of local candidates – from congressman to council members – were written on a white piece of paper.

Speaking through an interpreter, he said he was given money in exchange for his votes. It was unknown how illegal voters, many of them unregistered with the Commission on Elections, were able to cast their votes, but suspicion fell heavily on poll inspectors who were composed mostly of state teachers in cahoots with local politicians.

There were also several reports of fist fights among poll watchers of opposing politicians in some polling areas.

In Sulu’s Tongkil town, one supporter of Lakas-Kampi-CMD was mauled by policemen who were acting as bodyguard of a local politician. The victim, who suffered huge cuts on the face and head, was rushed to hospital in the capital town of Jolo.

In Luuk town, six voting machines were destroyed inside polling precincts by supporters of local candidates who were demanding the Commission of Elections to resort to manual counting of votes and would not release the machines to authorities.

Poll observers fear the results would be padded in favor of the local candidates.

In nearby Tawi-Tawi province, journalists covering the elections in Panglima Sugala town were also harassed by bodyguards of a local politician. They were not allowed to take videos and photos of the elections. Poll fraud and cheating were also reported in the town, said one female journalist.

“We were harassed. They have not respected the non-partisan role of the media in this electoral exercise,” she said.

The media watchdog, National Union of Journalists of the Philippines, said it is documenting all reports of harassments against journalists. (Mindanao Examiner)

More troops deployed in Sulu

A Philippine military convoy cuts its way through a busy road in Jolo, the capital town of Sulu province, on Saturday, May 8, 2010. Troops have been deployed to guard Monday's general elections in the country's first automated polls. Abu Sayyaf militants whose group is tied to al-Qaeda and Jemaah Islamiya is actively operating in the restive southern region. (Mindanao Examiner Photo)

SULU, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / May 8, 2010) – The Philippine military on Saturday deployed more troops in the restive southern province of Sulu to secure polling areas ahead of general elections next week.

Abu Sayyaf militants and Moro rebels are actively operating in the province where US troops are helping Filipino soldiers in defeating terrorism. “I hope there will be no violence so elections can push through peacefully,” said Brigadier General Rustico Guerrero, the commander of military forces in Sulu.

Sulu is one of five provinces under the Muslim autonomous region where elections are traditionally violent.

Abu Sayyaf militants had attacked civilians to prevent them from voting in previous elections, but Guerrero said troops have been deployed to secure the locals and the polls.

The governor of Sulu, Sakur Tan, who is seeking re-election, survived an assassination attempt last year after Abu Sayyaf militants detonated a roadside bomb as the politician’s convoy was passing in Patikul town, wounding several people. Police have linked Tan’s political foes to the failed assassination.

More than 50 million Filipinos are to choose their new leaders in the country’s first ever automated elections on Monday. (Mindanao Examiner)

More troops deployed in Sulu

A Philippine military convoy cuts its way through a busy road in Jolo, the capital town of Sulu province, on Saturday, May 8, 2010. Troops have been deployed to guard Monday's general elections in the country's first automated polls. Abu Sayyaf militants whose group is tied to al-Qaeda and Jemaah Islamiya is actively operating in the restive southern region. (Mindanao Examiner Photo)

SULU, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / May 8, 2010) – The Philippine military on Saturday deployed more troops in the restive southern province of Sulu to secure polling areas ahead of general elections next week.

Abu Sayyaf militants and Moro rebels are actively operating in the province where US troops are helping Filipino soldiers in defeating terrorism. “I hope there will be no violence so elections can push through peacefully,” said Brigadier General Rustico Guerrero, the commander of military forces in Sulu.

Sulu is one of five provinces under the Muslim autonomous region where elections are traditionally violent.

Abu Sayyaf militants had attacked civilians to prevent them from voting in previous elections, but Guerrero said troops have been deployed to secure the locals and the polls.

The governor of Sulu, Sakur Tan, who is seeking re-election, survived an assassination attempt last year after Abu Sayyaf militants detonated a roadside bomb as the politician’s convoy was passing in Patikul town, wounding several people. Police have linked Tan’s political foes to the failed assassination.

More than 50 million Filipinos are to choose their new leaders in the country’s first ever automated elections on Monday. (Mindanao Examiner)

AFP, PNP magbibigay ng dagdag proteksyon sa PCOS, balota sa Western Midnanao

Dumating na rin sa wakas sa Cotabato City ang mga balota na gagamitin sa automated elections sa susunod na buwan. Ang mga balota ay gagamitin sa Cotabato City at Maguindanao province. Sinigurado naman ng militar at pulisya na may sapat na proteksyon ang mga balota at Precinct Count Optical Scan machines. (Mindanao Examiner Photo - Mark Navales).

ZAMBOANGA CITY (Mindanao Examiner / April 25, 2010) – Magbibigay umano ng sapat na siguridad ang militar at pulisya upang maproteksyunan ang mga balotang gagamitin sa halalan sa susunod na buwan.

Naunang dumating ang mga Precinct Count Optical Scan o PCOS machines sa Zamboanga City kamakalawa at sinundan naman ito kahapon ng mga balotang nakalaan sa Zamboanga Sibugay, Basilan, Sulu at Tawi-Tawi.

Sinigurado ng Western Mindanao Command na may sapat na proteksyon ang mga ito.

“Municipal treasurers will receive and transport their ballots to their respective areas. The Task Force Zamboanga (ng Western Mindanao Command) and the Zamboanga City Police Office will provide the necessary security during the turn-over of the ballots,” ani kahapon ni 1st Lt. Steffani Cacho, ang tagapagsalita ng Western Mindanao Command.

Sinabi pa nitong nakahanda na rin ang Commission on Elections regional office sa Western Mindanao at Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao sa anumang karagdagang abiso ng COMELEC Central Office ukol sa mga susunod na delivery ng mga balota.

Nuong nakaraang linggo ay 14 na PCOS machines ang kulang sa delivery ng COMELEC sa Zamboanga City na 424 lamang. Mabuti na lamang at muling binilang ang mga ito sa isang warehouse sa Zamboanga at doon lamang nabatid na kulang ito.

Nagpalusot ang COMELEC na naiwan lamang sa kanilang warehouse sa Laguna province ang 14 na PCOS. Kung hindi nabisto ay posibleng magamit ang 14 PCOS machine sa anomalya. Tinatayang 76,000 PCPS machines ang kailangan sa kauna-unahang automated elections sa bansa.

Wala pa rin tiwala ang publiko sa COMELEC dahil sa mga sari-saring bintang sa poll body mula ng mabuko itong may sabwatan sa pandaraya nuong 2004 presidential elections na kung saan ay nagwagi sa Pangulong Gloria Arroyo. (Mindanao Examiner)

Sulu politicians sign peace covenant; vow peaceful electionsd

Lakas-Kampi candidate Sulu Governor Sakur Tan, who is seeking reelection, flashes a thumb-up sign while opposition leader anformer governor Benjamin Loong, of the NPC, smiles after the signing Sunday, March 21, 2010 of a peace covenant at the Notre Dame College in Jolo town in Sulu province.Local politicians have pledged to support the government’s campaign for peace, orderly and honest elections in the May national polls. (Mindanao Examiner Photo)

SULU, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / Mar. 21, 2010) – Local politicians have signed Sunday a peace covenant and pledged to support the government’s campaign for peace, orderly and honest elections.

Some 300 people witnessed the signing of the so-called “Covenant for Hope Sulu 2010” initiated by civil society, religious and various organizations, including the police and military.

Those who led the signing were Sulu Governor Sakur Tan, who is running again and former governor Benjamin Loong, now running for vice governor and their party members.

Notably absent was Sulu Representative Munir Arbison, now on his third and last term and is running against Tan, the government’s candidate for the May national polls. And so was former rebel chieftain Nur Misuari, who twice ran and lost in previous gubernatorial elections.

Both Tan and Loong said they are supporting government calls for honest and clean elections. “We have been advocating for clean, honest and orderly elections. We are peaceful in Sulu,” Tan told reporters after the covenant signing.

Tan was applauded many times by those who attended the signing when he introduced his line up, mostly incumbent mayors and their deputies.
For Loong’s part, he also pledged to abide by the covenant. “We will abide by the covenant for peaceful elections,” he said.

Commission on Election’s Vidsfar Julie said poll workers will remain apolitical. “We will remain neutral and apolitical in the coming elections and I hope the politicians will also make true their promises for honest and peaceful elections,” he said.

Sulu military chief Brigadier General Rustico Guerrero said the signing of the covenant is a step forward to ensure peaceful elections in the province, one of five under the Muslim autonomous region.

“We are working side by side with all sectors because we are also for peaceful and orderly elections. We will also remain neutral and non-partisan,” he said.

Those who attended the signing of the covenant were Catholic priests Jose Ante and Romeo Villanueva; regional military commander Lieutenant General Benjamin Dolorfino, of the Western Mindanao Command, Doctor Hannbal Bara, of the Sulu People’s Congress, Sulu provincial police commander Senior Superintendent Joseph Ramac.

And also Doctor Sahie Udjah, of the Ulangig Mindanao, Inc. and Farida Hadjulani, of the Sulu Tanjuh Organization, and Father Emmanuel Sison, of the Notre Dame of Jolo College. (Mindanao Examiner)

Philippine security forces pursue Sayyaf, JI terrorists

A police commander talks on his radio as they prepare to patrol Sulu province in the southern Philippines, where security forces are pursuing al-Qaeda-linked Abu Sayyaf militants blamed for the spate of attacks that had killed and injured civilians in the past. (Mindanao Examiner Photo)

SULU, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / Mar. 3, 2010) – Security forces have stepped up its patrol in the southern province of Sulu as police and military continue operations against the al-Qaeda-linked Abu Sayyaf group, officials told the Mindanao Examiner on Wednesday.

Officials said the operations are aimed at capturing senior leaders of the militant group blamed for the spate of attacks in Sulu, one of five provinces under the Muslim autonomous region.

“We have increased our patrol to protect villagers from possible attacks by the Abu Sayyaf, especially now that many terrorist leaders had been killed in past and recent operations,” said Senior Superintendent Joseph Ramac, the provincial police chief.

Police last week captured a senior Abu Sayyaf member Mujibar Amon in Indanan town after villagers secretly tipped off authorities about his presence.

Amon is one the country’s most wanted terrorists who was involved in last year’s kidnappings of three Red Cross workers and many more, including the cross-border raid in Malaysia’s Sipadan island report where 21 mostly European and Asian holidaymakers were abducted and brought to Sulu in 2000.

He was tagged as among those who also kidnapped US tourist Jeffrey Shilling in 2000 in Sulu.

Authorities are also tracking down members of the Indonesian militant group Jemaah Islamiya who are believed hiding in Sulu and among them are Dulmatin, Umar Patek and Mauiya – all wanted for the Bali bombings in 2002 that killed over 200 people, mostly Australian holidaymakers.

Last month, an Abu Sayyaf commander Albader Parad, who was involved in the kidnappings of three Red Cross workers last year, was killed in a military raid in his hideout in Sulu’s Indanan town.

Senior Superintendent Bienvenido Latag, the regional police chief, said the killing of Parad and the capture of Amon was a big to the Abu Sayyaf. “This is another blow to the terrorist group and we will continue to pursue the terrorists no matter where,” Latag said.

Sulu Governor Sakur Tan said he is supporting the government offensive against the Abu Sayyaf and Jemaah Islamiya. “Sulu is a peaceful province. It is only these terrorists groups which are destroying our beautiful province. My people are fed up with their atrocities,” he said.

Tan put Sulu under a state of emergency last year after Abu Sayyaf militants kidnapped the aid workers. He also ordered security forces to dismantle all private armies of political warlords in the province.

Last year, police also recruited some 2,000 civilians to form part of the Police Auxiliary Unit to help authorities fight terrorism and guard villages against rebel attacks.

Police and military also linked the Abu Sayyaf to Tan’s failed assassination last year outside his office in Patikul town. Militants bombed Tan’s convoy on May 13 that wounded 10 people, including a local town mayor Hatta Berto.

Tan just came from his office and on his way home when a motorcycle bomb exploded near his vehicle. Police later captured two Abu Sayyaf bombers Juhan Alimuddin and Sulayman Muin who confessed to investigators that they were hired by Tan’s political foe to kill the governor. (Mindanao Examiner)

Hundreds of new Sulu teachers take oath

Sulu Governor Sakur Tan speaks before hundreds of teachers who took their oath as professional on Monday, March 1, 2010, the biggest number of people who passed the licensure examination given last year in Sulu province. (Mindanao Examiner Photo)

SULU, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / Mar. 1, 2010) – Close to 500 teachers took their oath as professional on Monday, the biggest number of people who passed the licensure examination given last year in Sulu province.

Lawyer Senando Esteban, regional director of the Professional Regulation Commission, extolled the new teachers to be competitive and honest in their profession.

“We are the molders of the youth. We should continue to be a good model and most of all serve the public with dignity, honesty and integrity,” he said.

He also cited Sulu Governor Sakur Tan for his role in bringing the licensure examination for teachers in the province. The teachers took their examination in October and the result was released only last month.

Many of the teachers said the review they took last year helped them a lot in passing the licensure examination. It was also Tan who brought professional educators to Sulu to help the teachers in their review.

Previously, teachers would go to Zamboanga City and spend as much as P40,000 to review in private centers.

Another licensure examination for teachers is also set in April in Sulu province. Tan was also able to bring licensure examinations for nursing and policemen among others to Sulu, one of five provinces under the Muslim autonomous region.

For his part, Tan urged the new teachers to work hard and encourage more locals to finish college so they can find a better job in the future and help in nation-building.

“I am happy because of the huge number of new professional teachers. Let us now work hard and encourage our young to study more and in the future help in nation-building,” he said.

Eufremio Canaria, assistant superintendent of the Department of Education, said it was the first time that close to 500 teachers passed the licensure examination. “This is something to be proud of because these teachers really work hard so they can pass the strict licensure examination. They reviewed a lot and prepared hard for the examination and they did it,” he said.

Many of the teachers said they previously failed the examination as many as six times until reviews were held in Sulu two years ago by Tan who hired private tutors to help them. (Mindanao Examiner)

Multi-Awarded Tausug Holds 5th Solo Art Exhibit in Zamboanga City

Multi-awarded Muslim painter Rameer Tawasil gestures as he leads guests to his 5th Solo Art Exhibit at the Ateneo de Zamboanga University’s Gallery of the Peninsula and the Archipelago in Zamboanga City, Wednesday, February 24, 2010. Dubbed as “Tawasil: In retrospect. Celebrating 20 years in Visual arts, Architecture and Design,” the exhibit also coincided with the celebration of the National Arts Month and the 3rd anniversary of the Gallery of the Peninsula and the Archipelago. Tawasil and Fr Antonio Moreno, the president of the Ateneo de Zamboanga University, led the opening of the exhibit. (Jung Francisco - Mindanao Examiner Photo)

ZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / Feb. 24, 2010) – Muslim Tausug painter Rameer Amilasan Tawasil opened Wednesday his 5th Solo Art Exhibit at the Ateneo de Zamboanga University in the southern Filipino port city of Zamboanga.

Tawasil, who is famous for his many paintings depicting Islam and Peace, displayed his many works, some date back in the 1980s, at the Gallery of the Peninsula and the Archipelago.

Dubbed as “Tawasil: In retrospect. Celebrating 20 years in Visual arts, Architecture and Design,” the exhibit also coincided with the celebration of the National Arts Month and the 3rd anniversary of the Ateneo de Zamboanga University’s Gallery of the Peninsula and the Archipelago.

Tawasil and Fr. Antonio Moreno, the president of the Ateneo de Zamboanga University, led dozens of guests in the opening of the exhibit late Wednesday. It will run until March 27.

“This is an event that every must see. The works of Rameer Tawasil really will inspire us all,” Moreno said.

Tawasil for his part thanked the Ateneo de Zamboanga University for the holding of his art exhibit. “All these works are special to me and I wanted everybody to see the exhibit and I just hope that these works will inspire more people to love arts and spread peace through pieces of arts they make,” he said.

Tawasil was born in the village of Karungdung in the town of Kalinggalan Caluang in Sulu province. He obtained his Bachelor of Science in Architecture at the Western Mindanao State University.

According to the website muslimmindanao.ph which is maintained by the Asian Institute of Journalism and Communication and initially funded by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, the multi-awarded Tawasil is best known for using bright, strong, and bold colors in his paintings.

It said the foundation of his art is "okkil” (in Tausug; “okir” in Maranao), a design form indigenous to the Muslim groups in Mindanao as seen in their woodcarvings, brassware, and textiles, among others.

His masterpieces adorn galleries in London and Kuching, Malaysia and private collections in Germany, Korea, the United States and the Philippines.

Tawasil has been involved in more than 30 art group shows in abroad and the Philippines and his local exhibitions have been held at the main gallery of the Cultural Center of the Philippines, Vargas Museum in the University of the Philippines, National Commission for Culture and the Arts Gallery, Metropolitan Museum of Manila, and various private galleries, it said.

He has had three past solo exhibits since 2003 in Zamboanga City and the fourth was in Davao City which was sponsored by the Canadian International Development Agency.

A recipient of Japan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs Award, Tawasil also received the Zamboanga Hermosa Recognition Award, Culture and the Arts Category in 2003. In 2006 he was given the Peace Citation Award by the Peace Advocates Zamboanga for his rendition of the "peace dove" logo which has become a peace campaign symbol locally and globally and has been included in the international collection of peace doves.

Tawasil also organizes art shows and directs musical concerts on his advocacy on peace and the environment. He also conducts art workshops on recycled and environmental art.

He sits as a member of the Zamboanga City Government's Committee on Visual Arts, Council for the Culture and Arts and History. (Jung Francisco contributed to this report.)

Reduced voting precincts eyed for Sulu province

MANILA - Philippine authorities are eyeing a clustered voting scheme in Sulu, one of five provinces under the Muslim autonomous region, in which the number of voting precincts will be reduced as a security measure to ensure peaceful and honest elections in May, reports said.

The Manila Times quoted Brigadier General Rustico Guerrero, commander of military forces in Sulu, as saying the 'cluster system' would allow voters in the province to cast their votes on designated polling precincts - around 70 of the 410 precincts - so as to ensure the safety of the electorate and maximize the number of deployed soldiers and policemen who are tasked to secure the elections.

Guerrero said that there are some 3,000 soldiers and policemen in Sulu while over 300,000 are expected to cast their votes for the local and national polls.

“We have asked the Commission on Elections to allow us to implement this clustering system because it will help us better secure the safety of the voters and the teachers despite our limited number,” Guerrero told reporters during the forum on Leadership Innovations in Public Service: Bridging Leadership Presentations organized by the Asian Institute of Management and Australian Embassy in Manila.

Guerrero said that clustering the precincts will make authorities perform their tasks more effectively.

“It will be hard if we all use the 410 precincts and we still have to be on alert for other continuing threats such as the Abu Sayyaf, lawless elements and other players that affect the elections, which are the politicians,” he said.

“We are also doing this [appeal for clustering] to avoid instances in the past wherein some voters cannot go to certain precincts because of security concerns brought by the rivalry among politicians. As such, we hope that the Comelec can approve our request a month before the elections,” he added.

The Abu Sayyaf is actively operating in Sulu province and had been blamed for the kidnapping last year of three workers of the International Committee of the Red Cross - Italian Eugenio Vagni, Swiss Andreas Notter and Filipina Mary Jean Lacaba - and the capture of broadcast journalist Ces Drilon in June 2008.

The ICRC workers were kidnapped after inspecting a water system project in Sulu. While Drilon and her cameramen and a guide were all abducted while on their way to interview Abu Sayyaf leaders. They were all freed after negotiators paid huge ransom to the kidnappers. (Llanesca Panti. The Mindanao Examiner contributed to this report.)

Sayyaf, Moro rebels bomb bridge in Sulu

SULU, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / December 21, 2009) – Suspected Abu Sayyaf militants and Moro rebels bombed a bridge Monday in the southern Philippine province of Sulu where security forces are fighting insurgents, officials said.

Officials said the attack damaged the bridge near a base of the Moro National Liberation Front rebels in Indanan town. There were no casualties in the attack and that troops were sent to pursue the bombers, said Marine Brigadier General Rustico Guererro, commander of military forces in Sulu.

“The bombing affected the residents in the area, especially the farmers who cannot deliver their agricultural produce to the markets. We have sent troops in the area to pursue the attackers who are believed to be Abu Sayyaf and MNLF rebels under Tahil Sali,” the general said.

Officials said two more improvised bombs exploded earlier at a garbage dump in the capital town of Jolo, but there were also no reports of casualties.

No group claimed responsibility for the bombings, but the Bangsamoro National Liberation Army last week warned of more attacks and demanded the pull out of troops from near MNLF areas in Sulu, one of five provinces under the Muslim autonomous region.

It said rebels would launch a bigger attack if troops do not pull out by end of this month.

“We will give the military until December 30 to pull out government forces from near MNLF areas in Sulu. We have a big plan and it will be our gift to President Gloria Arroyo,” said Madarang Sali, the BNLA deputy leader.

The shadowy group has previously claimed responsibility for the string of attacks that killed two US Special Forces soldiers in Sulu in September. US troops have been deployed in Sulu since 2006 and assisting Philippine soldiers in fighting terrorism. (Mindanao Examiner)

Sulu police capture 4 men linked to murder of civilian

Sulu police chief, Senior Superintendent Muhimuddin Ismail, and his forces surround four men who were implicated in the killing a civilian in the southern Philippine province on Thursday, July 30, 2009. (Mindanao Examiner Photo / Nickee Butlangan)

SULU, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / July 31, 2009) – Police captured four people who killed a man and stole his motorcycle in the southern Philippine province of Sulu, officials said.

Officials said the four – Nasser Asiri, Hajad Namli, Musimar Ismael and Umra Jawadi – were captured after police forces raided their hideout in the town of Maimbung on Thursday.

Police said the four men admitted killing Willie Mar Ajijul, 40, after stealing his motorcycle in Indanan town. The town’s police chief, Inspector Amil Baanan, also joined in the operation that led to the capture of the four.

“We are still investigating the four men and whether they have links with the Abu Sayyaf or plain criminals,” said Sulu police chief, Senior Superintendent Muhimuddin Ismail, who led the operations in Maimbung, after citizens tipped off the authorities about the suspects.

The Abu Sayyaf has previously used motorcycles rigged with explosives in its reign of terror in Sulu and Zamboanga City. (With a report from Nickee Butlangan)

Philippine military chief visits wounded troops in Zamboanga City

Philippine military chief General Victor Ibrado visited Monday, June 15, 2009 in Zamboanga City the 17 soldiers wounded in fierce clashes with Abu Sayyaf militants in Sulu province. He also viewed the remains of 7 others killed in the clash. (Mindanao Examiner Photo / Jung Francisco)

ZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / June 15, 2009) - Philippine military chief General Victor Ibrado visited Monday in Zamboanga City government troops wounded in fierce clashes with Abu Sayyaf militants in the southern Sulu province.

He also viewed the remains of seven more soldiers killed in the fighting last week in Sulu's Indanan town. Ibrado said security forces were pursuing Abu Sayyaf militants blamed for the spate of kidnappings and terrorism in the troubled south.

The fighting, which began on Friday, also left at least 8 militants killed, according to the military.
The Abu Sayyaf is still holding an Italian Red Cross worker, Eugenio Vagni, who was kidnapped January 15 along with Swiss national Andreas Notter and Filipino Mary Jean Lacaba.

Both Notter and Lacaba had been freed after a series of negotiations, but there were suspicions that ransoms had been paid to the kidnappers for the release of the two aid workers.

The Red Cross said no ransom was paid for the freedom of Notter and Lacaba. (With a report from Jung Francisco)

Fierce fighting erupts in Sulu Province

ZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / June 13, 2009) – Security forces clashed Saturday with Abu Sayyaf militants holding a kidnapped Italian aid worker in Sulu province in the southern Philippines, officials said.

Officials said the fighting erupted at around 9 a.m. in the village of Sionogan in Indanan town where police and marines pursuing the Abu Sayyaf caught up with some 100 militants. “The firefight is going on,” First Lieutenant Steffani Cacho, a regional military spokeswoman, told the Mindanao Examiner.

She did not say if there were government or enemy casualties, but other reports said as many as six people were killed on the military side and more than a dozen more injured in the fighting.

On Friday, the military said at least militants were killed in two days of fierce clashes that also left five soldiers wounded.

The Abu Sayyaf is still holding Eugenio Vagni, of the International Committee of the Red Cross, since January when he and two others – Swiss national Andreas Notter and Filipino Mary Jean Lacaba – were kidnapped after they inspected a humanitarian project at prison in Patikul town.
Both Notter and Lacaba had been freed separately by the Abu Sayyaf. Police and military said there were no reports about Vagni.

Police forces also rescued two Muslim humanitarian workers seized by the Abu Sayyaf in Sulu’s Talipao town on Thursday.

Sulu police chief, Senior Superintendent Muhibuddin Ismail said the two men - Aspin Giminsil, 39, and Kadspar Abduhasan, 22, - were rescued in Talipao after police forces pursued the Abu Sayyaf led by Mukambiyan Sakilan and recovered the hostages.

The duo is working for the Alliance for Mindanao for Off-grade Renewable Energy and Integrated Learning System for Moslem Highlanders. He said the two men, who are natives of Tawi-Tawi province, are humanitarian workers. (Mindanao Examiner)

Gunman kills Sulu village chieftain

SULU, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / June 13, 2009) – An unidentified gunman shot dead a village chieftain outside his house in the southern Philippine province of Sulu, police said on Saturday.

Police said Yusop Isnani was shot in the head late Friday. Isnani, chieftain of the village called Busbus in the capital town of Jolo, was outside his house when the lone gunman shot him at close range.
“We are still investigating the killing. We don’t know who was behind the attack,” said Chief Inspector Usman Pingay, the town’s police chief.

Isnani’s family said the slain leader had no known enemies and was loved by many villagers because of his honesty and dedication to his job. (Mindanao Examiner)

Congressman charged for bomb attack on Sulu gov

MANILA, Philippines (ABS-CBN / June 11, 2009) - The Philippine National Police (PNP) on Wednesday filed criminal charges against a sitting congressman and four other suspects in the failed bomb attack on Sulu Governor Abdusakur Tan lay May 13.

In a report, the PNP said the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) filed charges of attempted murder and frustrated murder against Sulu 2nd District Rep. Munir Arbison "in connection with the attempt on the life" of Tan.

The CIDG filed the same charges before the Regional State Prosecutor in Zamboanga City against four other suspects identified as Cocoy Tulawie, Moamil Askali, Sulaiman Mohammad Muin and Juhan Albani Alihuddin.

Director Raul Castañeda, CIDG chief, said the Arbison, Tulawi and Askali were charged based on the "extra-judicial confession" of Muin and Albani, who were arrested in Patikul town, Sulu province last May 26.

"The two suspects have volunteered to give extra-judicial confession to help investigators piece together details of the May 13 bombing," the PNP said in a statement.

Tan was on his way home from the provincial capitol in Patikul town when a bomb-rigged motorcycle exploded near his official vehicle.

The governor survived the attack. Pandami town Mayor Hatta Berta, who was accompanying the governor, and nine others were hurt in the bomb blast. (ABS-CBN)

Link: http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/nation/regions/06/11/09/congressman-charged-bomb-attack-sulu-gov

HUSTISYA: A Peek Into The Mindanao Examiner Documentary

ZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines - The breaking news say it all, eight Abu Sayyaf terrorists are killed on February 4, 2008, in a clash with government soldiers on a small fishing village of Ipil in Maimbung town in Sulu province.

It was a big score for the Philippine military in the war on terror. At one time, the military even reported that troops clashed with the groups of Abu Sayyaf and Jemaah Islamiya, an Indonesian militant organization blamed for the 2002 Bali bombings. The military celebrated the sweet victory.

But the victory is short-lived. It turned out to be a nightmare. Hours after the clash in the village of Ipil, seven civilians and an off-duty Muslim soldier lay dead.

The military said two soldiers were also killed and five others wounded in the clash. There are conflicting and many versions of what really happened in the village.

The military insisted there was a fire fight and that the village is an Abu Sayyaf hideout, but among those killed were children and teenager, including a village official, a seaweed farmer and a pregnant Muslim woman. Soldiers executed three of the victims, witnesses claimed.

The independent Philippines Commission on Human Rights says those killed were innocent civilians and that there were no Abu Sayyaf terrorists in the village as the military claimed. The human rights report detailed how troops attacked and plundered the houses of villagers. It has recommended the filing of criminal charges against the soldiers involved in the raid.

The families of the victims still cry for justice. The governor of Sulu wants justice too for the victims and vowed to file charges against those who are responsible in the killings.
In the village, some of the witnesses have spoken out about the killings.

In a place where poverty is a big problem, the wheel of justice barely moves, especially for victims of violence and extrajudicial killings.

And because of this, justice seems like a dream, but many are still hoping for a brighter future, where dreams shall become a reality and peace may reign once again in the land they call home.