Malu Fernandez's "From Boracay To Greece!" ...And How A Travel Writer Speaks About Hardworking OFWs

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U.S. Solons Inspect American Troops In Southern Philippines

U.S Representative Silvestre Reyes (D-Texas), protected by a Filipino and an American agent, gets off his bullet-proof car Saturday Aug. 25, 2007 in Zamboanga City in southern Philippines where Abu Sayyaf militants tied to al-Qaeda terror network, detonated a bomd Tuesday and wounding 14 people. Reyes, Chairman of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence and a member of the House Armed Services Committee, is accompanied by Reps. Rodney P. Frelinghuysen (R–New Jersey), Heather Wilson (R–New Mexico), Gregory W. Meeks (D–New York), C.A. "Dutch" Ruppersberger (D–Maryland) and met with Filipino Mayor Celso Lobregat and U.S. military commanders in Zamboanga City. (Mindanao Examiner Photo Service)

ZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / 25 Aug) – Five American lawmakers arrived in Zamboanga City in southern Philippines, where hundreds of U.S. troops are stationed.

Rep. Silvestre Reyes, Chairman of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence and a member of the House Armed Services Committee, was accompanied by Reps. Rodney P. Frelinghuysen (R–New Jersey), Heather Wilson (R–New Mexico), Gregory W. Meeks (D–New York), C.A. “Dutch” Ruppersberger (D–Maryland).

They met with Zamboanga City Mayor Celso Lobregat before heading to a small U.S. base inside the Western Mindanao Command headquarters. Security was tight during their visit and Filipino soldiers and U.S. agents protected the lawmakers.

Reyes described the delegation’s visit as a welcome opportunity to travel to the Philippines to see, first hand, the close cooperation between the Philippines and the United States on several fronts.

“We look forward to meeting with a number of senior officials from the Philippine government, as well as our counterparts in the Philippine Congress,” he said.

“We hope to learn more about the many strong aspects of the U.S.-Philippines relationship, and to talk about ways that we can make our relations even stronger.”

U.S. troops are in Zamboanga City and Jolo island on the invitation of the Filipino government to train local troops in anti-terrorism warfare.

The visit of the U.S. lawmakers came four days after a suspected Abu Sayyaf bomb exploded in downtown Zamboanga and injured at least 14 people.

The Abu Sayyaf group which is tied to al-Qaeda terror network in on the U.S. list of foreign terror list and Washington offered as much as $5 million reward for any of the group’s known leaders.

“Recent events remind us that our two nations are not just historical allies, but allies in today’s fight against terrorists,” Reyes said.

Philippine authorities said the Abu Sayyaf is coddling two Indonesian Jemaah Islamiya militants Dulmatin and Umar Patek in Jolo island. Jakarta tagged the duo as behind the 2002 Bali bombings that killed 202 people, including 88 Australian tourists.

While in Zamboanga City, the mayor briefed the U.S. politicians about the local demography and prospects of investments. And the solons were also introduced to the members of the City Council and two Filipino lawmakers, Reps. Erico Fabian and Maria Isabelle Climaco.

After the meeting with the mayor, the solons then met with Filipino and American military commanders and also inspected U.S. troops.

Reyes said they would review the U.S. military assistance to the Philippines when they return home. He assured that the U.S. Congress will not cut any financial aid it is giving Manila to fight terrorism.

“We will continue to pour support to boost whatever efforts both countries have done to fight terrorism,” he said at a news conference at the Zamboanga City Hall.

The presence of U.S. troops in southern Philippines have triggered speculations that Washington is putting up military bases to protect its interests in the restive, but mineral-rich region.

Reyes said the U.S. is not putting up any bases in the Philippines.

Focus on the Global South, a Bangkok-based international research institute that has been monitoring U.S. military actions in the Philippines, said an American-based construction unit has been spending $14.4 in Mindanao.

In a little-reported development that has come to the attention of the institute, the US Naval Facilities Engineering Command (NAVFAC) had in June 6, 2007, awarded a six-month $14.4-million contract to a certain “Global Contingency Services LLC” of Irving, Texas for “operations support” for the Joint Special Operations Task Force-Philippines (JSOTF-P).

According to its own website, the NAVFAC is the unit within the US military that is in charge of providing the US Navy with “operating, support, and training bases.” It “manages the planning, design, and construction and provides public works support for US Naval shore installations around the world.” Among their business lines are “bases development” and “contingency engineering.”

The JSOTF-P is the unit established by the US Special Operations Command that has been stationed in the southern Philippines since 2002 and which Focus on the Global South believes has established a new kind of US basing in the country.

According to the announcement by the Pentagon, the contract awarded to Global Contingency Services LLC includes “all labor, supervision, management, tools, materials, equipment, facilities, transportation, incidental engineering, and other items necessary to provide facilities support services.”

Global Contingency Services LLC is a partnership between DynCorp International, Parsons Global Services, and PWC Logistics. The $14.4 million contract is actually part of a bigger $450-million five-year contract for Global Contingency Services to “provide a full range of world-wide contingency and disaster-response services, including humanitarian assistance and interim or transitional base-operating support services.”

According to Focus’ research, the JSOTF-P has not only been involved in the Philippine military’s operations in the south, it also represents the new kind of more austere, more low-profile kind of overseas presence that the US has been striving to introduce as part of its comprehensive restructuring of its forward-deployment.

A Philippine commission on the Visiting Forces Agreement on Friday denied the report and said the U.S. is not building any bases in the south, but living quarters for troops training local soldiers.

But Focus on the Global South on Saturday said the Philippines is listed by the U.S. Overseas Basing Commission as developing “cooperative security locations.”

The Philippines is also described by the U.S. Congressional Research Service, a US government body, as a supply base for military operations throughout the region. U.S troops refer to their bases in Mindanao as “Advanced Operating Base-920.

Focus on the Global South said it believes that consistent with U.S. and host-government practice in other countries hosting American bases facing domestic opposition, the Washington and Manila are deliberately seeking to keep the nature of U.S. military presence in the country secret.

”According to the U.S. Department of Defense’s definition, “Cooperative Security Locations” – of which the Philippines are confirmed by the OBC to be hosting – are facilities technically owned by host governments that would only be used by the U.S. in case of actual operations; though they could be visited and inspected by the U.S.

“They would most likely be ran and maintained by host-nation personnel or even private contractors; useful for pre-positioning logistics support or as venues for joint operations with host militaries. They are, however, considered as U.S. military facilities by the Pentagon,” it said. (Mindanao Examiner)

Troops Kill Sayyaf Man In Jolo Island; Refugees Get Relief Aid

War refugees in Basilan and Jolo islands in southern RP receive relief aid from the Department of Social Welfare and Development in Muslim autonomous region under Bai Racma Imam, who led the distribution of hundreds of food bags. Regional governor Zaldy Ampatuan and Jolo island governor Sakur Tan and Basilan governor Jum Akbar are closely working with government agencies to address the situation of some 20,000 people who fled their homes. (Mindanao Examiner Photo Service/ Mark Navales)

JOLO ISLAND, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / 24 Aug) – Philippine soldiers killed a suspected Abu Sayyaf militant after he resisted arrest in the southern island of Jolo, where security forces are fighting the terrorist group tied to al-Qaeda.

Security officials said the militant was involved in kidnappings and killings in Jolo island, one of five province under the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM).

Thousands of soldiers were pursuing the Abu Sayyaf on the island, blamed for the killing of more than a dozen Marines in fierce fighting since last month. Over 7,000 civilians have fled their homes because of the hostilities.

Jolo island Governor Sakur Tan has ordered social workers to attend to the refugees and make sure that none of them get sick, especially the children.

“We are concerned about the health of the refugees and the security situation on the island, although the skirmishes are in the hinterlands,” Tan said.

ARMM Social Welfare Secretary Bai Rachma Imam led the distribution of relief aid Thursday and Friday in Jolo and Basilan island where troops are also battling a faction of Abu Sayyaf.

Some 13,000 people also evacuated in Basilan for fear that they would be caught in the cross-fire.

President Gloria Arroyo ordered the military to crush the Abu Sayyaf, blamed for Tuesday’s bombing in Zamboanga City that injured 14 people. (Mark Navales)

NPA Rebels Deny Surrender Of 21 Fighters In South RP

DAVAO CITY, Philippine (Mindanao Examiner / 24 Aug) – The New People’s Army rebels on Friday strongly denied that 21 of its members had surrendered to the military in southern Philippines.

The Philippine Army under Brig. Gen. Carlos Holganza paraded the rebels in Davao City on Wednesday and told the mayor Rodrigo Duterte and journalists that the 21, all Manobo tribesmen, were NPA members.

Holganza said the rebels also surrendered their weapons.

Boyet Makatindog, of the NPA Front 34 in southern Mindanao, said the 21 were not NPA rebels, but members of the so-called Mindanao Manobo Defense Force, a notorious paramilitary group, blamed for banditry in the provinces of Davao and Agusan.

He said the group is headed by brothers William and Jimmy Man-anohog. He said William Man-anohog, who was wounded in a clash last month with a rival faction, earlier surrendered to the military.

Makatindog branded the surrender of the 21 tribesmen as a publicity stunt by Holganza. “The were weapons are theatrical props given by the Army to bolster the lie peddled during the so-called surrender ceremony which was timed to coincide with the anniversary celebration of the 1001st Infantry Brigade under Holganza,” he said.

He said the NPA has been running after the bandit group because it has been victimizing innocent villagers and farmers.

“They are engaged in banditry, extortion, harassment and other criminal activities. It is a well known fact in the provinces that William and his brother and their gang are criminals. They are behind the murder of four members of a Lumad family,” Makatindog said.

“Misrepresenting civilians as NPAs is a worse and worn-out propaganda trick, but misrepresenting criminals and bandits as NPAs at the expense of the public, the media, and even Davao City Mayor Duterte, is the worst.” (Mindanao Examiner)

Dapitan City Fast Becoming Major Tourist Destination In Mindanao

Gloria De Dapitan is fast becoming a famous entertainment converging place for both local and foreign tourists in the Shrine City of the Philippines – Dapitan, where the national government sets its eyes on in terms of developing Mindanao's next tourism potential.

ZAMBOANGA DEL NORTE, Philippines – More than P100 million have been poured in development projects in Dapitan City in the southern Philippines, where the country’s national hero Dr Jose Rizal was exiled by the Spaniards in 1982.

Known as the "Shrine City of the Philippines," Dapitan is now fast becoming a major tourist destination in the Philippines, a former Spanish colony.

Mayor Dominador Jalosjos Jr., said they are developing sites where Rizal had first landed and already spent more than P3 million for the project located along Sunset Boulevard. He said they still need P25 million more to complete the project.

While in exile, Rizal – who was implicated in a rebellion against the Spanish government in the Philippines -- built a school, a hospital and a water supply system in Dapitan.

Rizal spent his last four years in exile in Dapitan. His original estate in Dapitan has been declared a national shrine and is being administered by the National Historical Institute, hence, the city moniker, "Shrine City of the Philippines."

By the year 2020, Dapitan is poised to become the Dr. Jose Rizal Heritage Center of the Philippines, owing to the wealth of Rizal memorabilia and memorable places associated with the hero.

“We are planning to conduct a unique and the one and only activity about Rizal's life,” Jalosjos said, even as they have yet to decide whether to make the dates of Rizal's arrival or departure significant with the foreseen completion date of the project.

Jalosjos said it would be followed by the development of the famous boulevard and construction of a 20-kilometer road connecting it to the major thoroughfares in the city.

Owners of the “Gloria de Dapitan,” which stood on a three-hectare lot along Sunset Boulevard, have earmarked another P100 million fresh investments for the expansion of the commercial and a leisure park.

The prime commercial complex of Dapitan City, “Gloria de Dapitan” was opened on December 3, 2005. “Gloria de Dapitan” houses various business establishments including sports and recreational amenities.

It features among others a full air-conditioned 8-lane bowling center, a gym computer arcade, internet café, billiards and dart halls, disco pub, coffee shop and bakery, a high-salon, boutique, souvenir shops, pharmacy, foreign exchange and various food outlets.

It also boasts of side attractions like the carousels, bump cars and a carnival, all within the fenced perimeter with parking area monitored by 24-hour security.

Maria Consuelo Locop, general manager of the “Gloria de Dapitan,” said part of the expansion is the construction of two 300-seater cinemas with a huge supermarket at the basement. Locop said they would also add 10 more lanes to the Exodus Bowlodrome to qualify for the hosting of the duckpin bowling national tournament.

Emilio Ubando Jr., local tourism officer, said pension houses have began expanding their establishments to accommodate more visitors.

Vice Mayor Patri Chan has laid down the annual plan for the series of activities for the Kinabayo and Handuraw Festivals. Chan said these activities, observed annually from July 19-25, will lure tourists to stay longer in the city.

"Whenever tourists come, we have tour packages ready for them and so they stay longer in Dapitan and enjoy the serene beauty of the beaches, the good food and friendly people. Our place is truly a paradise,” Chan said.

He said the Kinabayo Festival, a revelry that attracts thousands of Catholic devotees, tourists and Filipinos abroad back home, is the most awaited of all the festivities in Dapitan because of its religious past.

Councilor Apple Marie Agolong, chairperson of the City Council’s tourism committee, oversees major events of the annual celebration in an effort to promote the local tourism industry.

Agolong said locals and tourists flock Dapitan yearly because of famous Christian festival “Patnunob” at St. James Church followed by the “Sinug” procession that goes around the city.

Dapitan is a 2nd class city with a population of 68,178, according to the 2000 Census. The largely Catholic city is politically divided into 50 villages.(Allan Gail Carlos)

RP Muslim Groups Call For Peaceful Solution In Troubled South

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Sayyaf Targets Journalists, Civilians In South RP

A ferry from Basilan island in southern Philippines prepares to dock in Zamboanga City. Security forces are battling Abu Sayyaf militants in Basilan island where some 12,000 people have fled their homes because of the hostilities. Military authorities say Friday Aug. 24, 2007 that it uncovered an Abu Sayyaf plot to kidnap journalists and civilians in Basilan and Jolo islands and use them as shield against pursuing soldiers. (Mindanao Examiner Photo Service)

ZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / 24 Aug) – Abu Sayyaf militants whose group is tied to al-Qaeda terror network may be planning to seize journalists and civilians and used them as shield against security forces pursuing them in the southern Philippines, the military said Friday.

Militants have kidnapped and killed journalists and civilians in the past and the military is taking the new threats seriously.

Security officials were worried that any new kidnappings may affect the offensive against the Abu Sayyaf in Basilan and Jolo islands. The military blamed the Abu Sayyaf for a bomb attack Tuesday in Zamboanga City that left 14 people injured.

Colonel Rustico Guerrero, Marine commander in Basilan island, said the operation against the militants is ongoing and that troops were tracking down the Abu Sayyaf which has split into smaller groups.

"Our soldiers are tracking down the terrorists in the hinterlands. They don't stay in one place or encampment anymore as troops are pursuing them," he said.

Lt. Gen. Eugenio Cedo, chief of the Western Mindanao Command, said he ordered troops to intensify their hunt for the Abu Sayyaf in Basilan and Jolo islands. "We will give them no space. We will destroy them," he said.

President Gloria Arroyo was in Basilan on Thursday and inspected about 200 soldiers who were among some 5,000 sent on the island to crush the Abu Sayyaf.

She spoke and shook hands with troops and ate lunch together with them on a long table laid out on a grassy area in Tabiawan village.

"Thank you very much for all your sacrifice. We are fighting terrorism here," she said.

She said the troops in Basilan island must be accorded honors for the heroism in fighting the Abu Sayyaf. "You are all worthy of praises and honor," she said.

The fighting in Basilan island had already killed over 40 Marines since last month and security forces are also battling another faction of Abu Sayyaf group and insurgents in the neighboring island of Jolo, where 15 Marines were slain.

Arroyo, accompanied by Armed Forces chief Gen. Hermogenes Esperon also met military commanders in Zamboanga City on Thursday where she gave orders to destroy the Abu Sayyaf group, blamed by authorities for the spate of terrorism and kidnappings of foreigners in the southern Philippines.

Esperon said the military will hit any confirmed Abu Sayyaf locations in Basilan and Jolo. "I tell you it will only be a matter of time before we get their leaders.

This is it, our operations will not stop until the Abu Sayyaf is neutralized," he said.

Both the United States and Philippine governments have linked the Abu Sayyaf movement to Usama bin Laden. And Washington tagged the Abu Sayyaf group as a foreign terrorist organization and offered as much as five million dollars reward for the capture of its known leaders.

The Abu Sayyaf and Moro National Liberation Front insurgents are said to be protecting Jemaah Islamiya bombers Dulmatin and Umar Patek. Both Indonesians were implicated in the 2002 Bali bombings that killed 202 people, including 88 Australian holiday-makers. (Mindanao Examiner)

Manila Society Columnist Quits Over OFW Bashing: Report

MANILA, Philippines (ABS-CBN) - Complaints sent via the Internet and through other types of media led a Manila-based society columnist to resign from her job following her negative comments about overseas Filipino workers in the Middle East, ABS-CBN Middle East News Bureau reported Thursday.

Bureau chief Dindo Amparo reported that Filipinos in the Middle East proved they can make a difference by uniting for a cause against columnist Malu Fernandez.

In her column titled "From Boracay to Greece," which saw print on "People Asia" magazine, Fernandez detailed her unusual and spur of the moment Holy Week vacation in Greece.

Fernandez said that following a friend's advice, she flew on economy class to Greece. The plane made a stopover in Dubai, the United Arab Emirates. It was her written observations during the flight and while in the city that got Fernandez in trouble.

“I forget that the hub was in Dubai and the majority of OFWs were stationed there. The duty-free shop was overrun with Filipino workers selling cell phones and perfume. I wanted to slash my wrist at the thought of being trapped in a plane with all of them,” she wrote.

Fernandez said this was aggravated when one of her fellow passengers spoke to her and said, “Hey there? Where are you from? Are you a domestic helper as well?"

The columnist went further by insinuating that due to the large number of OFWs in the plane wearing cheap perfumes, the expensive brand she had on immediately evaporated into thin air.

“I had resigned myself to being trapped like a sardine with all these OFWs smelling of AXE and Charlie cologne while my Jo Malone evaporated into thin air,” Fernandez said.

Based on prices from the Jo Malone Web site, a 100 ml bottle of cologne ranges from 30-59 British pounds (around 2,800-5,500 Philippine pesos).

WHO'S THE DIVA?

Fernandez's statements spread like wildfire on the Internet and earned the ire of communities of Filipino workers abroad, especially in the Middle East.

The migrant workers immediately issued statements and sent e-mails to blogs expressing their anger against Fernandez.

The statements can be found at this special blog (http://selvo.wordpress.com/2007/08/08/mahaderang-matapobre-sa-ofws/#comment-1042).

To make matters worse, Fernandez wrote in her succeeding column in the "Manila Standard Today" that she was only being true to herself.

"Many people often find my direct attitude to be rude or obnoxious. I really don't mean to be anything but true to myself," she said.

"Now, I seriously ask you, am I being a diva or are people around me just lacking in common sense? Perhaps it's a little of both!" she added.

Her statements further enraged the Filipino workers. She later apologized.

“I am humbled by the vehement and heated response provoked by my article. To say that this article was not meant to malign, hurt or express prejudice against the OFWs now sounds hollow after reading through all the blogs from Filipinos all over the world,” Fernandez said in her latest statement on the online version of Manila Standard Today.

She added: “I am deeply apologetic for my insensitivity and the offensive manner in which this article was written, I hear you all and I am properly rebuked.

It was truly not my intention to malign hurt or express prejudice against OFWs.”

Fernandez admitted being insensitive and offensive, as she apologized to the OFWs for whatever she had written.

Sought for an interview by ABS-CBN, Fernandez declined.

She, however, sent a letter, saying, "I take full responsibility for my actions and my friends and family have nothing to do with this. To date I have submitted my resignation letters to both the Manila Standard and People Asia, on that note may this matter be laid to rest.”

NOT YET FINISHED

Meanwhile, abs-cbnNEWS.com received dozens of feedback e-mails against Fernandez after news broke out about her anti-OFW statements.

“We are already having a hard time here working under the hot climate, then we get a strong below the belt blow by our own kabayan who has totally no idea on being an OFW,” Francis Sangalang wrote from Dubai.

Another OFW, who declined to be named, said: “I seldom come across articles that bring my blood pressure up to a record high. This article by Malu Fernandez has led me to set a new personal record. To say that this is ‘nakakakunsumi’ (troubling) is an understatement of the highest degree.”

The special blog was also created to compile comments against Fernandez. The comments ranged from defending her column as being about perfumes to to downright below the belt statements.

Contract worker Florencio Laron wrote from Saudi Arabia and said, "All I have to say is that may breeding siya (masama nga lang) (only, it's bad) and she [doesn’t] deserve to be a Filipino.”

An anonymous e-mail sender, meanwhile, said, “Her side comments were uncalled for. She should have kept them to herself. This is bigotry at its purest. What’s worst is she did it to her fellow Filipinos. The bad part is her pathetic attempt to justify what she wrote.”

Information from the Web site of the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration said a total of 462,545 OFWs or 58 percent of the total number of Filipinos employed abroad were in the Middle East as of last year.

Last year, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas said OFWs sent a total of US$12.6 billion in remittances to their families in the Philippines.

2,000 Teachers Take Licensure Exams In Jolo Island

JOLO ISLAND, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / 23 Aug) – Some 2,000 teachers are expected to take licensure examination in Jolo island in the southern Philippines, Governor Sakur Tan said.

Tan said the Licensure Exam for Teachers (LET) will be held on Sunday in Jolo town and that the provincial government has been working round-the-clock to prepare for the event.

“We have been working with this and we expect some 2,000 teachers, mostly from public schools, to take the LET on Sunday,” Tan said before leaving for Zamboanga City to meet President Gloria Arroyo.

Arroyo flew to Zamboanga and Basilan island earlier in the day to hold meetings with military and police commanders about the ongoing operations against insurgents in the south, including Jolo and Basilan island.

Presidential peace adviser Jesus Dureza on Thursday also led a convergence meeting of several agencies to fast track the integration and consolidation of government interventions directed at pursuing “humanitarian invasion” in Jolo and Basilan islands.

“Resources are now being made available by national government agenciesand intensive efforts are underway to address rehabilitation anddevelopment needs of the people and communities in these provinces,”Dureza said.

On Monday, Arroyo issued Administrative Order No. 192, whichdirected the infusion of massive development efforts in Basilan and Jolo islands to balance ongoing police and military operations directed at terroristgroups, such as the Abu Sayyaf and its allies.

She also tasked Dureza to facilitate integration of all national government initiatives under a package called the Health, Education, and Livelihood Progress (HELP) for Jolo and Basilan. (Mindanao Examiner)

War And Development Vs Insurgency In Jolo Island

ZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / 23 Aug) – Manila will pursue a vigorous development and economic programs in an effort to defeat insurgency in the southern Filipino island of Jolo in the Sulu Archipelago, the Philippine News Agency said.

The island’s Governor Sakur Tan said Thursday that President Gloria Arroyo ordered government agencies to help develop Jolo and turn it into a progressive province in the Muslim autonomous region.

“Economic development has always been our primary weapon in addressing terrorism and other problems in the province,” said Tan, who was with the President in Zamboanga City.

Arroyo flew to Zamboanga City to preside over a military conference about the ongoing government operations against the Abu Sayyaf in Jolo and Basilan islands.

The National Disaster Coordinating Council said some 2,751 families have been affected by military operation in Jolo island.

“Despite military offensive, life goes on for everybody in my province. The government is really working hard to achieve peace and development not in the province, but in Mindanao as well,” Tan said.

He said Arroyo has instructed the Department of Trade and Industry to assist the province in the promotion and marketing of its products and other produce.

“There will be a C-130 plane that will transport our produce all the way to Manila and to department stores and supermarkets like Shoemart and Rustans.”

“We’ve just got a call from the Asia-America initiatives, this is the initiative of PGMA of bringing together all efforts of agencies of government in addressing problems of the provinces of Sulu and Basilan,” Tan said. (Jocelyn Alvarez, of the PNA and Mindanao Examiner)

Arroyo Braves Sayyaf Island, Inspects Troops

Philippine President Gloria Arroyo shakes hands Thursday Aug. 23, 2007 with Marines in Basilan island who killed dozens of Abu Sayyaf militants in fierce clashes last week. Arroyo flew to the strife-torn island to meet with the soldiers involved in the offensive against the al-Qaeda-linked Abu Sayyaf group that has killed 57 soldiers in deadly battle in Basilan and nearby Jolo island since last month. Security is tight during Arroyo's visit in Basilan. (Mindanao Examiner Photo Service)

BASILAN ISLAND, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / 23 Aug) – President Gloria Arroyo braved Thursday the southern island of Basilan, where troops are battling Abu Sayyaf militants tied to al-Qaeda terror network.

Arroyo inspected about 200 soldiers and shook hands and spoke with them. “Thank you very much for all your sacrifice. We are fighting terrorism here,” she said.

She said the troops in Basilan island must be accorded honors for the heroism in fighting the Abu Sayyaf. “You are all worthy of praises and honor,” she said.

The fighting in Basilan island had already killed over 40 Marines since last month and security forces are also battling another faction of Abu Sayyaf group and insurgents in the neighboring island of Jolo, where 15 Marines were slain.

Arroyo, accompanied by Armed Forces chief Gen. Hermogenes Esperon and Western Mindanao Command chief Lt. Gen. Eugenio Cedo, also pledged to raise the soldiers’ combat pay, but did not say how much.

Each soldier is currently receiving about P240 of combat pay every month.

Arroyo was in Zamboanga City earlier in the day with Defense Secy. Gilbert Teodoro and Marine chief Maj. Gen. Nelson Allaga and Army chief Lt. Gen. Romeo Tolentino where she presided over a closed-door meeting at the Western Mindanao Command headquarters.

Arroyo told reporters that the operation against the Abu Sayyaf and its allies will continue in Basilan and Jolo islands, where about 20,000 have fled their homes because of the fighting. She also met with Jolo Gov. Sakur Tan and told him that relief aid is on its way to help feed the thousands of war refugees.

A bomb explosion in nearby Zamboanga City on Tuesday left at least 14 people wounded and Esperon said the blast was possible carried out by the Abu Sayyaf in retaliation to the government offensive.

“There is a strong possibility that the blast was connected to the fighting. We must stay vigilant,” he said.

Authorities have tightened security in the southern region. Troops in Basilan island have put up checkpoints and roadblocks in highways during Arroyo’s visit.

Soldiers were spotted frisking civilians and searching vehicles for weapons and bombs.

Both the United States and Philippine governments have linked the Abu Sayyaf movement to Usama bin Laden. And the Washington tagged the group as a foreign terrorist organization and offered as much as five million dollars reward for the capture of its known leaders.

The Abu Sayyaf and Moro National Liberation Front insurgents are said to be protecting Jemaah Islamiya bombers Dulmatin and Umar Patek. Both Indonesians were implicated in the 2002 Bali bombings that killed 202 people, including 88 Australian holiday-makers. (Mindanao Examiner)

Dubai Pinoy Press Cry Foul On Travel Story

STATEMENT FROM THE FILIPINO PRESS CLUB-DUBAI ON THE DEROGATORY ARTICLES OF MALU FERNANDEZ.

Ms Malu Fernandez’s travel columns “From Boracay to Greece” (People Asia, June 2007) and “Am I being a diva? Or do you lack common sense?” (Manila Standard Online, July 30, 2007) continue to draw negative reactions from Filipinos here in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

While we, the Filipino Press Club in the UAE, believe in press freedom and the wide latitude given to writers in expressing their conscience, we believe that Ms Fernandez and her editors overstepped the bounds of responsibility with these stories.

The incident recounted in her flight via Dubai to Manila in which she berated fellow Filipinos (who had already endured the misfortune of working away from their families) on board Emirates for wearing “cheap” perfumes had no significant bearing to her story.

This particular anecdote did not provide any form of entertainment, learning opportunity or even delightful trivia to the readers. To suggest all Dubai-based OFWs smell awful because they are unable to afford expensive perfumes like the one she’s wearing is high-brow snobbery.

It is the same snobbery stamped on the psyche of some members of the Philippine society's elite that has caused the yawning gap between our rich and poor, and the economic exodus of which millions of us Filipinos have now become a part.

To enlighten Ms Fernandez and her editors, Consul General Maria Theresa Taguiang from the Philippine Embassy in Abu Dhabi cited unofficial estimates (as of December 2006, submitted to the Philippine Congress) that there are now 250,000 Filipinos in the UAE. Of that figure, 24 percent are professional workers, 35 percent are skilled, 24 percent unskilled and 16.89 percent household workers (housemaids, personal drivers, nannies, cooks, tutors, gardeners, among other household staff).More local as well as foreign companies in the UAE are employing Filipino workers because of their proficiency in English and admirable work ethics.

A print medium that aspires for relevance in today’s competitive media world cannot hide under the skirt of press freedom for its licentiousness to insult a group of people.

One’s freedom to poke her fingers begins where someone else’s nose begins.Ms Fernandez’s unrepentant response to the barrage of angry reactions from OFWs and their loved ones (“I obviously write for a certain target audience and if what I write offends you, just stop reading”), simply adds fuel to the fire.

A nation like the Philippines that aspires for renewal and regeneration needs a responsible press with a high level of sensitivity to all sectors that comprise it.

We strongly demand that the publishers of People Asia and Manila Standard Today to take full responsibility and do the right thing: give Ms Fernandez and her editors a disciplinary action and apologize to the people insulted by these articles. (THE FILIPINO PRESS CLUB-DUBAI/Emails: jhilotin@gulfnews.com, agutierrez@gulfnews.com)

(A mutual support group of Filipino professional journalists from the print, broadcast and web-based media in the United Arab Emirates)

NPA Rebels Raid Southern Philippine Town

COTABATO CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / 22 Aug) – New People’s Army rebels stormed Wednesday a small southern Philippine town and seized weapons from a police station before raiding a private plantation and took more firearms, authorities said.

About two dozen rebels, disguised as army soldiers, entered the police base in San Isidro town in Davao Oriental province and pretended to surrender a captured NPA fighter, but once inside they disarmed everybody and ransacked the arsenal.

They also attacked a mango plantation and seized more weapons after overpowering the security guards. The rebels escaped after the raid.

Security forces were sent to pursue the rebels, but it was unknown whether soldiers and policemen caught up with the NPA band.

Just early this month, rebel forces also carted away government weapons after a firefight with soldiers and militias in Monkayo town in Compostela Valley province that left three members of the civilian auxiliary force dead.

The NPA is the armed wing of the Communist Party of the Philippines which is fighting the past decades to overthrow the democratic government and install a Maoist state in the country. (Mindanao Examiner)

New Bombing Foiled In Southern RP

PAGADIAN CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / 22 Aug) – Philippine police found an improvised explosive device inside a commuter bus during an inspection Tuesday in the southern city Pagadian, about 210 kilometers from Zamboanga City where a bomb attack injured at least 14 people.

The IED was recovered before it was to explode midnight Tuesday inside the bus which came from Zamboanga City, a police report said.

The report said the device was attached to a timer hidden in a luggage. No passengers claimed ownership of the luggage and police have made no arrest.

The bus was on its way to Cagayan de Oro City in northern Mindanao.

Maj. Gen. Nehemias Pajarito, commander of the Army's 1st Infantry Division, said he sent a team of explosive experts to disarm the bomb.

"We are investigating who were behind this attempt to blow up the bus and the military is closely working with police authorities to prevent terrorism and protect the public," he told the Mindanao Examiner.

A powerful bomb explosion late Tuesday in downtown Zamboanga City has been blamed by intelligence officials to the Abu Sayyaf, implicated in the spate of terrorism and kidnappings of foreigners in the southern Philippines.

Police and military have tightened security in the restive region following Tuesday's blast. Security forces were battling Abu Sayyaf militants and insurgents in Basilan and Jolo islands off Zamboanga City. (Mindanao Examiner)

Tight Security For Arroyo's Visit In Southern Philippines

An old Muslim woman relaxes Wednesday Aug. 22, 2007 at a public park named after U.S. military commander Gen. John "Black Jack" Pershing in Zamboanga City in southern Philippines bombed late Tuesday. At least 14 people were wounded in the blast blamed by authorities to the al-Qaeda-linked Abu Sayyaf group. The attack came ahead of a scheduled visit of President Gloria Arroyo, who will preside over a military conference Thursday to discuss ongoing government offensive against the Abu Sayyaf in Jolo and Basilan islands, where dozens of soldiers had died in fighting since last month. The park was named after the American general who defeated Muslim insurrection in southern Philippines almost a century ago. (Mindanao Examiner Photo Service)

ZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / 22 Aug) – Security forces have been tightened Wednesday in the southern Filipino port city of Zamboanga following a bomb attack that injured at least 14 people.

The blast late Tuesday at a public park in downtown Zamboanga shattered glass windows of department stores around Plaza Pershing. Five U.S. soldiers were also spotted talking to Filipino bomb experts investigating the blast.

Blast investigators said they found fragments of magnet and a clock used as timing device to trigger the explosion and traces of chemicals suspected to be ammonium nitrate.

Police said it would release a sketch of one of three suspects in the bombing after witnesses provided vital information about the blast.

“We have at least three suspects. We already have a cartographic sketch of one suspect,” said Senior Superintendent Manuel Barcena, chief of the local police force.

Barcena said an IED or improvised explosive device was used in the attack. “It was an IED alright. We are still investigating who were behind the blast,” he said.

Military intelligence officials blamed the Abu Sayyaf for the attack.

The attack occurred ahead of President Gloria Arroyo’s visit in Zamboanga City and Basilan island on Thursday where she would preside over a military conference and discuss ongoing government offensive against the al-Qaeda-linked Abu Sayyaf group.

With Arroyo’s arrival, security has been tightened to ensure that the President would be safe while in Zamboanga and Basilan or that her presence will not be disturbed by any more bombings.

But the presence of many soldiers and policemen turned Zamboanga City into a virtual garrison. Troops were spotted patrolling downtown area and undercover agents scattered around here.

It was unknown whether the latest attack was connected to Arroyo’s visit or had anything to do with the military operations against the Abu Sayyaf and insurgents in the neighboring islands of Basilan and Jolo in the Sulu Archipelago, which is part of the five-province Muslim autonomous region, one of the most poorest area in the Philippines torn by strife and poverty.

No individual or group claimed responsibility for the attack, but security forces were battling Abu Sayyaf militants in the two islands where 57 soldiers had died already in the fighting since last month.

The region’s governor Zaldy Ampatuan was never heard of and did not give any statements about the fighting in Basilan and Jolo that have displaced over 20,000 people, mostly Muslims.

In Jolo, Governor Abdusakur Tan has been closely working with different government agencies to address the growing concerns of refugees on the island. He also ordered security forces to arrest all civilians carrying illegal weapons.

Basilan governor Jum Akbar also is spearheading relief operations to feed some 12,500 refugees.

Philippine military chief Gen. Hermogenes Esperon on Monday warned of possible attacks on civilian targets that may be waged by Abu Sayyaf militants or their sympathizers.

Zamboanga City had been targeted in the past by Abu Sayyaf bombers.

The Abu Sayyaf is on the U.S. terror lists and Washington sent hundreds of troops in Zamboanga City and Jolo island to help the local military defeat the group, blamed for the spate of bombings and kidnappings of foreigners in the region. (Mindanao Examiner)

14 Wounded In Southern Philippine Bombing

Scenes from Tuesday's bombing in Zamboanga City in southern Philippines, where security forces are fighting Abu Sayyaf militants tied to al-Qaeda terror network in Basilan and Jolo islands. (Mindanao Examiner Photo Service)

ZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / 21 Aug) – At least 14 people were wounded when a bomb exploded late Tuesday in the southern Philippine port city of Zamboanga, authorities said.

The blast, which occurred at around 7.45 p.m., shook small buildings and shattered glass windows of department stores around a public park called Plaza Pershing where the bomb was planted under a concrete bench.

“It was an IED alright. We are still investigating who were behind the blast,” Senior Superintendent Manuel Barcena, chief of the local police force, told reporters.

The wounded, among them children, were rushed to hospital because of shrapnel wounds. Five U.S. soldiers were also spotted talking to Filipino bomb experts near the park.

Soldiers and policemen were searching for bombs after intelligence reports suggested there could be more, but they found nothing.

Police and military bomb experts were seen sifting through the debris to find clues as to what type of explosive was used in the attack. One investigator said he found what appeared to be pieces of magnet, believed part of the improvised explosive device.

Security was tight in downtown Zamboanga and soldiers put up road blocks and inspected civilian vehicles for weapons and explosives. There were no reports of arrests.

No group claimed responsibility for the attack, but security forces were battling Abu Sayyaf militants, whose group is tied to al-Qaeda terror network, on the neighboring island of Basilan, where 16 troops had died already in the fighting since last week.

Philippine military chief Gen. Hermogenes Esperon on Monday warned of possible attacks on civilian targets that may be waged by Abu Sayyaf militants or their sympathizers.

”We have to maintain our presence in areas where there could be sympathetic violence like Lanao and Cotabato,” Esperon said.

Zamboanga City had been targeted in the past by Abu Sayyaf bombers, especially if there were fighting in Basilan or Jolo islands, where the militants are actively operating.

The Abu Sayyaf is on the U.S. terror lists and Washington sent hundreds of troops in Zamboanga City and Jolo island to help the local military defeat the group, blamed for the spate of bombings and kidnappings of foreigners in the region. (Mindanao Examiner)

Marines Take Over Army Functions In Southern Philippines

ZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / 21 Aug) – Philippine Marines chief Major General Nelson Allaga has been named as the next commander of military forces in Western Mindanao, security sources told the Mindanao Examiner.

Sources said another Philippine Marines, Major General Mohammad Dolorfino, chief of the National Capital Region military forces, will replace Allaga when he assumes his new post next week.

Allaga will take over Army General Eugenio Cedo when he retires on August 29 at the age of 56.

Philippine Army commander General Alexander Yano, chief of the Southern Luzon Command, is also named as the new Chief of Army and will take over from General Romeo Tolentino when he retires on Friday.

President Gloria Arroyo, military sources said, has approved the promotions of the three generals on the recommendation of Armed Forces chief General Hermogenes Esperon. (Mindanao Examiner)

Philippine Troops Comb Basilan Jungles For Abu Sayyaf Targets

ZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / 21 Aug) – Philippine troops on Tuesday combed the hinterlands of Basilan island as offensive against the Abu Sayyaf group intensified.

About 5,000 soldiers are pursuing about 200 Abu Sayyaf gunmen and insurgents in Basilan, scene of deadly clashes since last month. More than two dozen soldiers were killed in the fighting aimed at wiping out the al-Qaeda-linked Abu Sayyaf group.

President Gloria Arroyo on Tuesday again ordered the military to crush the Abu Sayyaf - three days after 15 soldiers were slain in clashes near Ungkaya Pukan town.

Government offensive is also ongoing in Jolo island in Sulu Archipelago where troops are battling another faction of Abu Sayyaf and Moro National Liberation Front insurgents blamed for the killing of 27 soldiers this month.

Military officials involved in the offensive in Basilan island were not immediately available and ignored phone calls from journalists covering the fighting.

The Moro Islamic Liberation Front, which is negotiating peace with Manila, also ordered its forces Tuesday to give way for the government offensive in Basilan and avoid armed confrontation with security forces.

Last month, MILF forces killed 14 soldiers in fierce clashes after they entered a rebel stronghold without proper coordination while pursuing Abu Sayyaf militants tagged as behind the kidnapping of an Italian Catholic priest Giancarlo Bossi in Al-Barka town.

Troops were searching for Abu Sayyaf militants in the towns of Tipo-Tipo, Al-Barka and Sumisip, where thousands of civilians have fled for fear they would be caught in the cross-fire.

Security forces have shelled suspected hideouts of the Abu Sayyaf since Saturday after troops captured one of their bases in Ungkaya Pukan town.

But the military paid a high price for the capture of the terror base – 15 Marines were killed in the fighting and a combat copter pilot died after his aircraft crashed near the town. (Mindanao Examiner)

MILF Rebels Assail Delay In Philippine Peace Talks

MAGUINDANAO, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / 21 Aug) – Philippine Muslim rebels on Tuesday assailed the Arroyo government for delaying peace talks aimed at ending more than 30 years of bloody insurgency in the strife-torn region of Mindanao.

The Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) said Manila canceled Wednesday’s peace talks in Malaysia and the last minute decision caught rebel leaders by surprise.

“We are really caught unaware by the government’s decision to cancel the peace talks. The problem now is not with the MILF, not even Malaysia but the Philippine government,” Mohagher Iqbal, the chief MILF peace negotiator, told the Mindanao Examiner.

It was the second time the peace talks have been canceled by the Filipino government. It also postponed a scheduled peace talks in May because of national elections.

Malaysia is brokering the peace talks, but negotiations ended last year in Kuala Lumpur with no concrete agreement. Both sides failed to agree on the most contentious issue -- ancestral domain.

Ancestral domain refers to the rebel demand for territory that will constitute a Muslim homeland. It is the single most important issue in the peace negotiations before the rebel group can reach a political settlement.

Iqbal said the Manila apparently did not submit its guidelines for the resumption of the peace talks that led to its cancellation. He said there is a need to resume the peace talks and tackle the issue on ancestral domain.

The ancestral domain covers the whole of Muslim autonomous region and other areas in Zamboanga del Norte, Zamboanga del Sur, Zamboanga Sibugay, North Cotabato, Sultan Kudarat and Sarangani provinces where there are large communities of Muslims and indigenous tribes. And even Palawan Island in central Philippines.

Government peace negotiators previously offered the MILF the Muslim autonomous region, which is composed of Lanao del Sur, Maguindanao, Basilan, Sulu and Tawi-Tawi which are among the poorest in the country torn by strife and clan wars since its creation in 1989.

The MILF rejected the offer, saying, it would not settle for anything less than total Muslim control over those areas. “Our position remains,” Iqbal said.

The Organization of Islamic Conference, which is supporting the peace talks, also sent dozens of truce observers to Mindanao.

The group is composed of soldiers and policemen from Brunei, Libya and Malaysia. Japan also sent a representative to join the truce observers, but Iqbal said their stay would end next month unless peace negotiators renewed an accord that would allow them another year.

“We want to resolve the problems affecting Mindanao peacefully and this can only be achieved through the peace process, but if the Philippine government decides to pull out from the peace negotiation, then we will have to evaluate the situation and adapt measures relative to the MILF as a revolutionary organization,” Iqbal said.

Peace talks between the government and MILF started in January 1997, but the absence of a neutral third party bogged down the initiative.

President Gloria Arroyo opened up peace talks with the MILF in 2001 and signed a cease-fire agreement, but despite the truce fighting still continues with the two sides accusing each other of breaking the accord.

However, in February 2003, despite the avowed all-peace policy of President Gloria Arroyo, an all-out war was again declared against the rebels, but both sides later agreed to resume talks.

President George Bush said the United States is willing to pour more development aid in Mindanao should the MILF signed a peace deal with Manila, a key U.S. ally in the global war on terrorism. The MILF also praised Bush for his commitment to Mindanao.

But in March, fighting between security and rebel forces erupted in central Mindanao, killing dozens of people from both sides and sending tens of thousands of civilian fleeing their homes. The MILF said the fighting had nearly disrupted the peace talks.

Manila also implicated the MILF in the beheading of ten of 14 soldiers killed in fierce fighting in Basilan island last month. And the military and police linked the MILF to terrorism, an accusation rebel leaders strongly denied.

Arroyo said economic development remains her administration’s principal weapon in the fight against terrorism and the pursuit of peace and progress in Mindanao, particularly Basilan and Sulu.

“Economic development, which we draw from the arsenal of democracy, remains our principal weapon against terrorism,” she said.

Television network GMA reported Tuesday that Arroyo said peace talks with MILF rebels would resume next month. The announcement was made before the start of the National Security Council meeting in Manila, it said.

The MILF broke away in 1978 with the larger Moro National Liberation Front which signed a peace accord with Manila in 1996. (Mindanao Examiner)

What Is U.S. Base Construction Unit Spending P650 Million On In Mindanao?

MANILA, Philippines – As the controversy regarding the actions of US militarytroops in southern Mindanao snowballs, Focus on the Global South, aBangkok-based international research institute that has been monitoring US military actions in the country, raises another question: What is a US base construction unit spending $14.4 million or about Php 650 million on in Mindanao?

In a little-reported development that has come to the attention of the institute, the US Naval Facilities Engineering Command (NAVFAC) had in June 6, 2007, awarded a six-month $14.4-million contract to a certain “Global Contingency Services LLC” of Irving, Texas for “operations support” for the Joint Special Operations Task Force-Philippines (JSOTF-P).[i]

According to its own website, the NAVFAC is the unit within the US military that is in charge of providing the US Navy with “operating, support, and training bases.” It “manages the planning, design, and construction and provides public works support for US Naval shore installations around the world.” Among their business lines are “bases development” and “contingency engineering.”

The JSOTF-P is the unit established by the US Special Operations Command that has been stationed in the southern Philippines since 2002 and which Focus on the Global South believes has established a new kind of US basing in the country.[ii]

According to the announcement by the Pentagon, the contract awarded to Global Contingency Services LLC includes “all labor, supervision, management, tools, materials, equipment, facilities, transportation,incidental engineering, and other items necessary to provide facilities support services.”

Global Contingency Services LLC is a partnership between DynCorp International, Parsons Global Services, and PWC Logistics. The $14.4 million contract is actually part of a bigger $450-million five-year contract for Global Contingency Services to “provide a full range of world-wide contingency and disaster-response services, including humanitarian assistance and interim or transitional base-operating support services.”

According to DynCorp’s website, this will include “facility operations and maintenance; air operations; port operations; health care; supply and warehousing; galley; housing support; emergency services; security, fire, and rescue; vehicle equipment; and incidental construction.”[iii]

Contingency Response Services LLC describes its work as encompassing“operating forces support,” “community support,” and “base support.”[iv]

According to the Defense Industry Daily publication, the contract also includes “morale, welfare, and recreation support.”[v]
The specific contract for work for the JSOTF-P is expected to be completed in January 2008 but other contracts may follow as part of the $450 million-package.

According to Focus’ research, the JSOTF-P has not only been involved in the Philippine military’s operations in the south, it also represents the new kind of more austere, more low-profile kind of overseas presence that the US has been striving to introduce as part of its comprehensive restructuring of its forward-deployment.

US troops themselves refer to their facility in Sulu as “Advance Operating Base 920.”[vi] They describe their mission as “unconventional warfare” and “counterinsurgency.”[vii] {REFERENCE: Herbert Docena, herbert@focusweb.org}

SOURCES:[i] “Contracts, June 6, 2007,” US Department of Defense, www.defenselink.mil/contracts/contract.aspx?contractid=3532 [ii] For Focus on the Global South’s comprehensive report on theJoint Special Operations Task Force, see Unconventional Warfare: AreUS Special Forces Engaged in an ‘Offensive’ War in the Philippines?[can be downloaded from www.focusweb.org/index.php?option=com_remository&Itemid=105&func=fileinfo&id=23][iii] Press Release, “DynCorp International and JV Partners Win $450million NAVFAC Contract,” DynCorp International, November 2, 2006,www.dyn-intl.com/subpage.aspx?id=197[iv] “Contingency Response Services,” DynCorp International, www.dyn-intl.com/subpage.aspx?id=204[v] Defense Industry Daily, “$14.4M to help US SOCOM in thePhilippines,” June 8, 2007, www.defenseindustrydaily.com/?s=philippines; Ethan Butterfield, “DynCorp lands $450M NavyContingency Services Deal,” Washington Technology, November 3, 2006;www.washingtontechnology.com/online/1_1/29650-1.htm[vi] T.D. Flack, “Special Operations Force aiding an important ally,”Stars and Stripes, March 10, 2007, http://stripes.com/article.asp?section=104&article=43138&archive=true[vii] Col. David Maxwell, “Operation Enduring Freedom-Philippines:What Would Sun-Tzu Say” Military Review, May-June 2005; Members ofthe 1st Special Forces Group, “The History of the 1st SF Group in thePhilippines: 1957-2002,” Special Warfare, June 2002; C.H. Briscoe,“Why the Philippines: ARSOF’s Expanded Mission in the War onTerror’”, Special Warfare, September 2002