COUP PLOT BREWING WITHIN AFP, MALACAÑANG ADMITS
MANILA, OCTOBER 26, 2011 (TRIBUNE) By Virgilio J. Bugaoisan - Citing certain unnamed forces as stoking the fire of discontent within the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), Malacañang admitted yesterday the existence of a plot for another military uprising and that President Aquino is reportedly keeping a keen eye on the development.
Deputy presidential spokesman Abigail Valte (photo) confirmed reports of a brewing coup plot amid reports of discontent among many soldiers on the way President Aquino handled the Al-Barka and Zamboanga Sibugay attacks by the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF).
And in an apparent move to appease the soldiers who are unhappy with Aquino's earlier pronouncements taking
taking the side of the MILF, Malacañang is now talking tough but only against the so-called "lawless elements" who are behind the attacks that killed 19 soldiers in Al-Barka and 10 policemen and soldiers in Zamboanga Sibugay and supposed coddlers in the MILF, thus keeping itself in a state of denial over the possibility that the MILF is behind the spate of violence.
According to Valte, Aquino is aware of certain groups who are allegedly provoking some members of the military to launch a coup d'etat using the Al-Barka incident as a way of soliciting the sympathy and support of the soldiers.
Valte, however, refused to go into the details of the alleged coup plot but stressed that this is now closely being monitored by Aquino, who himself was nearly killed in one of the six coup attempts that hounded the administration of former President Cory Aquino, his mother.
"There are those who wish to take advantage of the situation for political leverage. We are aware that there are efforts to do this," Valte said.
" I will ask. I did not ask that as much but what we can confirm is that we are aware there are such people who are exerting efforts to take advantage of the issue," she added when asked if the so-called mastermind of the coup plot has enough resources to support a military uprising.
Valte said that with the president's call for "all-out justice", the military has been given the green light to conduct operations against groups allegedly led by Long Malat and Dan Laksa Asnawi who now appear as the convenient fall guys in the Al-Barka incident as soldiers who survived the attack insist that MILF elements were the ones responsible for the carnage.
But to make it appear that Malacañang is not shielding or condoning the MILF, Valte warned the group to either cooperate or step aside during the course of the military operations against the so-called "lawless elements" within its ranks.
"The pursuit of the lawless elements will continue. The President was very categorical—you cooperate or you stand aside. The President was very categorical: regardless of affiliation, if you violate the law, you will be liable and we will come after you," Valte said .
According to Valte, the President clearly wanted the military to engage only the so-called "lawless elements" and MILF men who would coddle them but not the MILF members who also want peace although it was obvious that there's hardly a distinction between an MILF who wants peace and an MILF who prefers war.
" Let us be clear: The MILF is not being targeted as an entity," she stressed.
The Senate is also poised to investigate the charges of alleged operational and tactical lapses of the AFP that led to the death of 19 soldiers during an encounter with MILF elements last Oct. 18 in Basilan.
Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV initiated the filing of a resolution for the the upper chamber's committee on national defense and security, in joint with the committee on peace, unification and reconciliation to probe the circumstances surrounding the clashes between the MILF and government troops against the backdrop of ongoing peace talks.
Trillanes added the inquiry should also look into possible "accountability and culpability on the part of the MILF leadership for the bloodbath which transpired amidst ongoing peace negotiations between the Philippine government and the separatist group."
"Someone has to be made accountable for the deaths of our troops in Mindanao. Possible operational and tactical lapses on the part of the AFP might have led to the gruesome death of our soldiers, which to my count has reached at least 29 soldiers in the recent clashes," said Trillanes, a former Navy officer.
The senator noted in particular the Oct. 18 encounter in the village of Cambug in Al- Barka town, Basilan, a known bailiwick of the MILF.
Troops from the Army's 13th and 19th Special Forces Company were reportedly sent to the area to verify reports that armed men headed by Dan Lakaw Asnawi were holding kidnap victims.
According to the military, Asnawi's group was among the MILF rebels involved in the beheading of 14 Marines in Ginanta village, also in Al-Barka, in 2007.
"We also need to confirm the reports that many of the soldiers involved were allegedly undergoing scuba diving training for the Special Forces when they were hastily ordered to pursue – on behalf of the police – MILF Commander Dan Laksaw Asnawi," Trillanes pointed out.
The MILF claimed that government troops provoked the fighting by attacking the Muslim rebel group in their Al-Barka stronghold, which it said a violation of the existing ceasefire.
But Western Mindanao Command head Lt. Gen. Raymundo Ferrer denied this, saying the military did not intrude into the MILF's stronghold as the incident took place four kilometers away from the separatist group's "area of temporary stay."
Under the ceasefire agreement, government troops should first notify and coordinate with the MILF when they are going to operate in the latter's strongholds in search of criminals to prevent accidental clashes.
"There is an urgent and imperative need to inquire into and investigate the foregoing incidents in order to put into place the appropriate mechanisms and policies relating to the ongoing peace negotiations with the MILF with the end in view of preventing similar incidents in the future," Trillanes said.
Two of President Aquino's allies in the Senate rallied behind his decision to go on an "all-out justice" instead of waging a war with the MILF, intensifying military operations against so-called rouge members of the secessionist group.
"It's short of an all-out war by lifting the ceasefire (agreement) in the some areas to enable (government troops) to conduct hot pursuit operations against those behind the bloodshed, the lawless elements," said Sen. Francis "Chiz" Escudero during a radio interview.
"It's just a matter of semantics probably but I think the President just does not want to use the term 'all-out war' just like what was termed in the past because it would only complicate the already complicated situation," he added.
The senator said he remained opposed to the idea of abandoning peace talks, only of calling for the suspension of negotiations to show to the MILF the public disgust over the incident.
"We should keep our doors for peace open and it can only be achieved through continued negotations," he said.
Sen. Ralph Recto stood behind the decision of Aquino not to go on an all-out war with the MILF although he underscored the need for the Chief Executive to ensure contingency measures.
Recto assailed critics who continue to issue tirades against the Chief Executive for being adamant in his position against going on an all-out war with the MILF, saying that the President's decision should be respected.
In a related development, Sen. Aquilino "Koko" Pimentel urged the government to require the MILF to surrender those behind the killing of 19 soldiers in Basilan last week.
Pimentel warned that the peace talks and ceasefire agreement between the government and the MILF are at risk of being abandoned "if they do not cooperate in bringing to justice the perpetrators of this mass murder."
On the suggestion from some quarters that a third-party peacekeeping force be deployed in Mindanao, Pimentel said that the AFP is in control of the situation and thus there may be no need for peacekeepers.
Pimentel said resolving the Mindanao conflict requires patience because it may be rooted on centuries old resentments.
Japan, a key player in the Mindanao peace process, yesterday called on the Philippine government and Muslim rebels to adhere to the ceasefire agreement and return to the negotiating table.
"It is my sincere wish that all parties respect the ceasefire and call upon the government of the Philippines and the MILF to continue their efforts to advance the peace talks for the peace and prosperity of the whole community," Japanese Ambassador Toshinao Urabe said in a statement.
The clashes and series of attacks against government troops has set concerns on the future of the Malaysian-brokered peace talks, which is currently on a standstill after both sides failed to reach an agreement concerning a rebel demand for a Muslim sub-state during negotiations in Kuala Lumpur in August.
Urabe expressed condolences to the family of those who lost their lives in the attacks.
"The recent firefights are a source of serious concern for me because it is jeopardizing the peace process," Urabe said.
Earlier, the United Kingdom and the European Union, which were also helping in the peace talks, condemned the attacks, but appealed to the government for calm and sobriety.
President Aquino had been under pressure to suspend the ceasefire agreement and launch an all-out war against the rebels. But Aquino rejected these demands and ruled out military action.
He said his government will instead pursue "all-out justice" and operation against the specific perpetrators of the criminal acts.
A final peace agreement between the two sides is expected to end more than 40 years of Muslim rebellion in Southern Philippines that has claimed at least 120,000 lives, brought massive destruction to property, and crippled the region's economy.
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Chief News Editor: Sol Jose Vanzi
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