Malaysia seeks verification from PHL of JI leader's death

1. Arm Forces of the Philippine shall prove the death of Jemaah Islamiyah and Abu Sayyaf leader Zulkifli Abdul Hi. 

Malaysia is asking verification from Philippine authorities on the death of Jemaah Islamiyah and Abu Sayyaf leader Zulkifli Abdul Hir, who Philippine authorities said was among those killed in a military operation on Thursday this week.

Home Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Tun Hussein said police were liaising with their Philippine counterparts on handing DNA samples of Zulkifli's family for verification, Malaysia's The Star newspaper reported.

“Our team is now in Manila and is working closely with Philippine authorities. Police will arrange for the return of the body to Malaysia for burial if it is confirmed to be that of Zulkifli Abdul Hir,” he said.

Hishammuddin said police were also awaiting confirmation of the death of Bacho and Jeknal Adil, both members of the Darul Islam (DI) Sabah militant group.

Authorities in Malaysia have taken a DNA sample from a brother of Zulkifli, Mohd Tariq who works in Kuala Lumpur, according to a separate report on The Star.

Zulkifli, who was on the Federal Bureau of Investigation's Most Wanted Terrorists' list, was reportedly killed in an air strike in Jolo on Thursday.

Also known as Marwan, Zulkifli, 46, was one of the world's most wanted men with an FBI bounty on his head.

Born in Muar, Zulkifli had trained as an engineer in the United States.

The Jemaah Islamiyah is a terrorist network linked to recent terrorist attacks in Asia, including the 2002 Bali bombings.

Preemptive measures

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak said terrorist activities had failed to find a footing in Malaysia due to pre-emptive measures taken by authorities.

“This is one of the reasons why there are no serious terrorist threats in Malaysia. One of the reasons we have succeeded is because we have both proactive and pre-emptive measures in place to tackle the issue,” he said.

In Manila, regional military spokesman Lt. Col. Randolph Cabangbang said soldiers were still combing the jungle camp for Zulkifli's body, where 15 people were reportedly killed in the dawn air strike.

A military spokesman in Manila, Lt. Col. Marcelo Burgos, had initially reported that Zulkifli was among the fatalities. — LBG, GMA News

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Double Operations in Mindanao: Terrorist Leaders Dead

1. While the government initiating peace talk with Moro rebels US and Philippines military conducting their operations in some part of Mindanao.

2. Tell when this terrorist operation end? When and where they hide? Who created them?

3 wanted terrorist leaders killed in Sulu

Thursday, February 2, 2012

MANILA (2nd update 5:48 p.m.) -- The military said it killed three most-wanted leaders of the al-Qaeda-linked terrorist groups Abu Sayyaf and Jemaah Islamiyah at dawn Thursday in one of the most significant successes against militants on their southern island stronghold.

Those killed included Abu Sayyaf leader Umbra Jumdail, a Filipino; Malaysian Zulkifli bin Hir, also known as Marwan; and Singaporean Abdullah Ali, who uses the guerrilla name Muawiyah, said military spokesman Colonel Marcelo Burgos.

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Marwan is considered a top leader of the regional terrorist network Jemaah Islamiyah. Marwan carried a $5 million reward for his killing or capture and Muawiyah $50,000, both put up by the US government.

Burgos said the military carried out the attack early Thursday morning in Parang town on Jolo Island, the stronghold of the Abu Sayyaf and their allies from the Indonesian-based terrorist network Jemaah Islamiyah.

The Abu Sayyaf is behind numerous ransom kidnappings, bomb attacks and beheadings that have terrorized the Philippines for more than two decades.

US-backed Philippine offensives have been credited for the capture and killing of hundreds of Abu Sayyaf fighters and most top leaders since the 1990s. Jumdail, also known as Dr. Abu, had eluded troops in numerous offensives and emerged as a key figure in the radical movement.

The Filipino militants gave refuge to Jemaah Islamiyah operatives in Jolo and Basilan, the most senior among them Muawiyah and Marwan, who escaped authorities in their own countries.

In Malacanang, officials gave the Armed Forces of the Philippines a pat on the back for neutralizing three most-wanted leaders of the al-Qaeda-linked terrorist groups.

“We commend the AFP with this victory in the continuing fight against terrorism,” deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte said. (AP/With Jill Beltran) SUNSTAR

JI, Sayyaf terrorists killed in US-led military ops in the Philippines
Thursday, February 02, 2012 05:17:27 PM

Zulkifli bin Hir.

ZAMBOANGA CITY (Mindanao Examiner / Feb. 2, 2012) – The Philippine military, aided by a US spy plane, bombed a terrorist hideout early on Thursday in the southern island of Sulu and killed as many as a dozen gunmen, among them two Jemaah Islamiya bombers and a senior Abu Sayyaf leader, officials said. Officials said two military planes struck the hideout of Umbra Jumdail – dropping bombs on the hinterland village of Lanao Dakula in Parang town at around 2.30 a.m. – and destroying the target. One military official told the Mindanao Examiner that an unmanned US drone helped tracked down the terrorist hideout before a pair of ageing Philippine Air Force OV10 planes bombed the Abu Sayyaf hideout where Malaysian Zulkifli bin Hir, also known as Marwan, and Indian Abdullah Ali, alias Muawiyah, were also hiding. Zulkifli and Abdullah are included in the US wanted list and carried a $5 million and $50,000 bounty respectively, while Jumdail also had a $140,000 reward for his capture dead or alive. “We have reports that Jumdail, Marwan and Muawiyah were killed in the air strikes and along with many other terrorists and possibly at least a dozen are believed killed in the operations,” Senior Superintendent Antonio Freyra, commander of police forces in Sulu, said in a separate interview. Freyra, who led police commandos in the ground operation, said the terrorist hideout was totally destroyed. “Nothing is left of the camp and everything disintegrated at ground zero, but there is a report that some terrorists were able to take away some of the bodies. Two of six bodies recovered by the Abu Sayyaf were left behind for a still unknown reason. Our informants also spotted rebel leader Ahadun Adak with at least 21 followers near the area,” he told the Mindanao Examiner. The Abu Sayyaf has been coddling Jemaah Islamiya terrorists tagged as behind the spate of bombings in the southern Philippines. (Mindanao Examiner)

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Mindanao Phobia

1.The price of the kidnapping in Mindanao.

UK warns its citizens to avoid going to Mindanao

ABS-CBNnews.com

MANILA, Philippines - After the kidnapping of two Europeans in Tawi-tawi earlier this week, the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) warned British nationals to avoid traveling to Mindanao due to the "high threat from terrorism."

"We advise against all travel to south-west Mindanao and the Sulu archipelago because of on-going terrorist activity and clashes between the military and insurgent groups," the FCO said, in a February 1 advisory on its website.

South-west Mindanao covers the following areas: the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM, which includes Lanao del Sur, Maguindanao, and the islands of Basilan, Sulu and Tawi-Tawi) plus thep rovinces of Sarangani, North and South Cotabato, Sultan Kudarat, Lanao del Norte, Zamboanga del Sur and Zamboanga Sibugay.

The FCO advised against all but essential travel to the rest of Mindanao because of ongoing terrorist activity. It noted there have been at least 10 bombings in the areas since November 2011.

The FCO emphasized the high terrorism threat. "Attacks could be indiscriminate, including in places frequented by expatriates and foreign travellers. Such places could include, but are not limited to, airports, shopping malls, places of worship etc," it said.

British nationals were also warned about the threats of kidnapping in the Philippines, especially in the southern region.

"Kidnapping could occur anywhere, including on coastal and island resorts and dive boats and sites in the Sulu Sea," the FCO said.

Last February 1, Swiss national Lorenzo Vinciguerra, 47, and Dutchman Ewold Horn, 52, were seized by armed men in Parangan in the township of Panglima Sugala in the Tawi Tawi island.

Last December 5, an Australian citizen was kidnapped in Zamboanga Sibugay.

Aside from the threats to personal safety, the FCO advised against travel to areas in Mindanao that were affected by Tropical Storm Sendong last December, specifically Iligan City and Cagayan de Oro. It noted there is a heightened risk of diseases and an outbreak of leptospirosis in Cagayan De Oro.

British nationals are also advised to avoid flying with Philippine-certified airlines. There has been an EU ban on all carriers certified in the Philippines since April 2010, because the Philippine regulatory authority has been unable to verify that these airlines comply with international safety standards.

In 2011, over 130,000 British tourists visited the Philippines.

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Little Fruit of Bangsamoro Struggle

1. A little fruit of Bangsamoro struggle. They need more Mr. President.

Displaced Families in Central Mindanao rebuild lives through PAMANA

MANILA — A total of 295 shelter units built by the government under its PAMANA housing program were turned over Tuesday to the families displaced by armed conflict in Central Mindanao following the aborted signing of the controversial Memorandum of Agreement on Ancestral Domain (MOA-AD) in August 2008.

The Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process (OPAPP) said that PAMANA is short for Payapa at Masaganang Pamayanan or Peaceful and Resilient Communities.

Collaborating in the implementation of the project was the Department of Social Welfare and Development and the municipal government units in Pigcawayan, North Cotabato.

PAMANA is the Aquino administration’s program and framework for peace and development in conflict areas and communities covered by existing peace agreements. It aims to reduce poverty, improve governance and empower people through interventions that enhance peace and socio-economic conditions.

Instead of tents, small white houses made of plyboard stand in neat rows on the 10-hectare land lent by the municipal administrator.

With their new homes, these internally displaced persons (IDPs) are now ready to rebuild their lives reuniting with families.

OPAPP pointed to the case of an IDP identified as Tauntik, a 42-year-old father who thought he would not see his pregnant wife and two children anymore.

But the couple was reunited later and was a recipient of the PAMANA shelter program.

OPAPP cited another recipient,identified only as "Mamot" who said he was grateful for this government’s initiative. “We are now protected from the sun and rain unlike those days when we were living in a tent."

Healing the spirit

Even before the armed clashes between government forces and lawless elements occurred in their area, 34-year-old Alenith and her family took off from their home in Ganta, Kabuntalan and traveled to Cotabato to avoid getting caught in the crossfire.

Returning after a few days, they found the community deserted and many houses destroyed. “I suffered a nervous breakdown. My children were traumatized, always seeing armed men crossing the river,” she said. “We fetched some things from our house and went here (Libungan Toretta) to stay.”

Alenith related that various government and non-government assistance poured in Libungan Toretta. Among those she mentioned was the United Nations Children’s Fund’s trauma healing program. “Finally, my kids and I were healed from our traumas. As a volunteer, I also helped other IDPs suffering from the same problem.”

She narrated how hard it was to live in a makeshift tent made of scraps of wood and other materials. “But now, we have our own house. I am really thankful.”

Dreaming that someday her children will live better lives, Alenith said she hopes that a peace agreement between the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front will be forged soon. “So that there will be no more bloody clashes,” she said.

Holding on to dreams

Twelve-year-old Salama said she did not mind being in third grade again as long as she would be able to continue her schooling, and eventually realize her dream of becoming a teacher.

When armed skirmishes in her hometown Kabuntalan erupted, her family escaped to Cotabato. “I was a grade three pupil then. I had to stop my schooling because of the war,” she said.

Salama recounted that fateful day in August when clashing forces entered their school grounds. “I was so scared that I cried. Our teacher yelled at us, telling us to take cover, but we wanted to go home because we were worried about our parents and siblings,” she related. “My family went to Cotabato to be safe. My aunt and I followed them there. After a while, we decided to go here (Libungan Toretta) where we lived in a tent for several months.”

After two years, Salama was able to resume schooling in third grade. With a house to call their own and newfound friends to stay, she feels contented.

“I want a happy life,” she said. “And I want to live here because nobody is fighting with another.”

Pursuing a just, lasting peace

The government, while addressing the needs of war-torn communities, continues to pursue a negotiated political settlement with rebel groups, particularly with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) and the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army-National Democratic Front (CPP-NPA-NDF).

“This administration is bent on resolving the decades-old armed conflict in the country,” said Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process Teresita Quintos Deles. (PNA)

RMA/RBC/utb

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Sulu CSOs laud civil 'Noble Warriors of Marine Corps’ for CRT project

1. The sincerity of the military forces significance to the peace in Sulu.


A local civil society organizations (CSOs) based in Sulu hailed the Philippine Marine Corps, particularly the 9th Marine Battalion, for its Community Relations Training (CRT) project in the southern Philippine province of Sulu.

Dr. Amildasa Annil, president of Ulangig Mindanao Network (UMI), greatly remarked the engagement of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) with civil society organizations.

He particularly mentioned particularly Major General Rustico Guerrero who introduced the peace building initiative in the provinces of Basilan and Sulu.

"It was when the 2010 synchronized national and local elections significantly, pull off a 'zero casualty' record in the electoral history of Sulu," the NGO leader said.

Annil made the remarks during the graduation ceremony of the 2nd batch of CRT trainees for community relations course held at the Sulu Area Coordinating Centre on Tuesday, January 24, 2012.

The occasion was attended by His Excellency Trevor Lewis, British Deputy Ambassador; Ky Johnson, Deputy Country Representative of The Asia Foundation to the Philippines; and a representative of Steven Rood, TAF Country Representative.

It was also attended by government panel members in the GPH-MILF Prof. Miriam Ferrer and Bai Jasmin Lao as well as Maj. Gen. Guerrero, Commandant of the Philippine Marine Corps, as guest speaker.

The United Kingdom (UK) Department for International Development supports the CRT project through The Asia Foundation and its local non-governmental organization (NGO) partner, the Ulangig Mindanao, Incorporated.

CRT is the first peace building initiative in broad collaboration with the civil society immersing with the grassroots at community level.

Annil said that while the AFP is yet to induct its National Peace Support Programs and the government is preoccupied in the peace processes before and now, civilian and military peace partnerships are taking place in Sulu.

“Peace cannot wait for an impending peace talks between government and the Moro fronts to conclude, we have to curb protracted wars and save lives,” Dr. Amildasa Annil, president of Ulangig Mindanao Network said.

The first CRT crafted by the 9th Marine Battalion launched at Bud Datu’ historical shrine last December 2011 is now on its 2nd phase. The National AFP Peace Programs has adopted the project as one of its major courses.

The CRT is part of the AFP’s reflective reform program for combatant units currently deployed in Sulu in a locally designed framework to enhance security sector’s relation with the community.

Colonel Romulo Quemado, Deputy Commander of the 9th Marine Battalion Landing Team (MBLT) in collaborationwith UMI who innovated the CRT concept said, “We need the help of the people of Sulu for the AFP to understand the over-all context of our operational environment while enhancing our community relations to achieve better understanding of the people we have sworn to serve and protect."\

He said the CRT project contributed a lot in changing the image of the AFP and in restoring broken relations brought about by long standing conflicts between the military and the people.

The CRT also contributed to AFP achievements of small but significant victories when Marine Corps in Sulu tops the recent performance and satisfactoriness survey done by an independent party. Being the exemplars of the best in Soldiery, the CSOs afforded them the prestige of “The Filipino Noble Warriors and Guardians Peace," according to him.

Meanwhile, leaders of civil society organizations in Sulu lead by Task Force Kahanungan Network of Ulangig Mindanao signed an open communiqué to President Benigno Aquino III commending the performance of the AFP in Sulu.

They expressed appreciation to the accomplishments of General Guerrero, commandant of the Marine Corps; Col. Remegio Valdez, Commander of the 3rd Marine Brigade; Col. Martin Pinto, Deputy Commander of the 3rd Marine Brigade; Col. Orlando De Leon, Commander of the 2nd Marine Brigade; Col. Eric Macaambac, Commander of 9th MBLT; Col. Romulo Quemado, ExO MBLT 9 and Operation Officer, Joint Task Force Sulu Island Command; and Lt. Col. Mabini Abduhadi, Community Relation Officer, 3rd Marine Brigade.

The Ulangig Mindanao and its network organizations with the guidance and assistance  of The Asia Foundation continue to develop more meaningful engagement projects with the security sectors specially the Philippine National Police (PNP) being the lead institution in combating criminalities and lawlessness.

By Hader Glang

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Civil society network seeks pro-environment practices

1. Justice! Justice! Justice!

CAGAYAN DE ORO -- A network of civil society organizations from different regions in Mindanao is seeking environmental justice for over a thousand victims of Tropical Storm Sendong (international name: Washi).

Bulig Alang sa Mindanao (Balsa Mindanao) in a forum on Thursday themed “A look into 40 days after Sendong... what lies ahead?” called for a thorough review of policies that allow commercial-scale business operations in ecologically sensitive areas such as Bukidnon, the source of six major river systems in Mindanao.

Balsa Mindanao’s preliminary research findings posited that among the contributors to the gravity of Sendong’s destruction could be the pineapple and small banana plantations around the tributaries of Cagayan River.

“We do not have hard data yet,” said Jomorito C. Goaynon, chairperson of Kalumbay, a regional formation of Indigenous Peoples.

“But the testimonies of our Higaonon brothers who have been living around the area for 50-70 years show that the alteration of the landscape might have contributed to the difference in the effect of heavy rains,” said Mr. Goaynon.

Tribal chief Datu Sumangka, 76 years old, said that the place used to be abundant with trees, although the trees were not as big as those in primary forest areas. He remembers that in the 1960s, a logging company cut trees in Baungon, Bukidnon.

That logging operation, said 55-year-old Isabelo Cabeles, extended to Libona where he lives.

In a document of United Nations Development Programme titled “Green Commodities Facility -- Pineapple Scoping Paper,” pineapple plantations contribute to soil erosion for the lack of cover crops in a vast stretch of land. Tillage practices in preparing the beds for pineapples also add to the land’s susceptibility to soil erosion.

Bukidnon Vice-Governor Jose R. Zubiri, Jr., however, said in the same forum that people should stop blaming his province for the tragedy.

“People are saying that it’s because of mining and logging that we condone in our province,” said Mr. Zubiri.

“But in truth, there is only one logging company operating in Bukidnon -- the BFI [Bukidnon Forests, Inc.],” he added, noting that the mining company is co-owned by the Philippine and New Zealand governments and operates in the town of Libona.

He further argued that blaming the plantations -- a main source of employment in Bukidnon -- is faulty reasoning.

“Even if we plant trees on these fields, water seeks its own level. It would still go down and reach (Cagayan River),” said Mr. Zubiri.

Bukidnon hosts huge pineapple plantations operating under the multinational brand Del Monte.

Based on data from the Bureau of Agricultural Statistics in 2009, Northern Mindanao corners over 40% of the country’s pineapple production at 400,000 metric tons.

At least 90% of this volume comes from Bukidnon, which has roughly 19,000 hectares of the country’s 50,000 hectares of pineapple plantations. -- Louise G. Dumas

BUSINESS WORLD

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UK Envoy Graces Sulu Training

1. At the first glance I thought this training is military exercise.Peace building training for armed forces? Wow! Good job.

By ALI G. MACABALANG

Philippine military war ship, Jolo, Sulu

COTABATO CITY, Philippines – The United Kingdom’s (UK) deputy ambassador to the Philippines has visited Jolo, Sulu to grace the culmination of another episode of training for government armed forces and civilians honed on peace-building strategies in handling the fragile security condition of the island province and its environs, it was learned Saturday.

British Deputy Ambassador Trevor Lewis, in his speech, lauded the local Marine and police contingents and civilian residents for converging and working as a team in rekindling the “torch of peace” in Sulu, a southern island province that suffered the brunt of atrocities during and after the dark days of martial rule.

Lewis assured the financial and technical support of his government to the local peace initiatives launched last year by The Asia Foundation (TAF), the 9th Marine Battalion and the Ulangig Mindanao, Inc. (UMI), a non-government peace advocate group, UMI president Dr. Amilbasa Annil said.

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Sending Back Sendong Children to School

1. Let Filipinos unite themselves and send back the Sendong's children to school.

2. Hope, Government, NGOs and other concern individual and stakeholders working together for the immediate respond to these school children.

3. Let the military divert their budget into school supplies, and let the rebel groups also spend their time for collecting any amount for these poor children.

CDO, Iligan need 3 to 5 years to fully recover from ‘Sendong’

IT will take three to five years before Cagayan de Oro and Iligan City can fully recover from physical devastation it suffered due to Typhoon Sendong.


This was the observation of Margareta Wahlstrom, United Nations Special Representative for the Secretary-General for Disaster Risk Reduction, as she addressed reporters in a press conference on Disaster and Risk Reduction.


Wahlstrom said she had seen the magnitude of devastation in Cagayan de Oro and Iligan City and that rebuilding efforts have not really started after a month when tragedy struck.


She also expressed concern on the plight of affected schoolchildren and teachers whom she said should undergo debriefing to fight back depression and psychological trauma they suffered brought by the tragedy of Typhoon Sendong.


Earlier, the DepEd said the debriefing and psycho-social therapy both on students and teachers and non-teaching personnel of the department who were affected by deadly Sendong will continue to help bring back normalcy in their lives.


“We have to respond to the immediate needs of both teachers and students and for now, it isimportant that we introduce activities that will bring back normalcy in their lives,” Education Secretary Bro. Armin Luistro said.


Luistro also said that the opening of classes in storm-ravaged areas on January 3, amid a strong criticism that schools were not ready to take in students, also helped a lot since it serves for students to reconnect with their classmates and teachers.


“I felt that students will need to see their friends, gather, pray, grieve together, otherwise I think that trauma would linger on and on,” Luistro said stressing that despite the tragedy life must go on.    Jeffrey C. Tiangco

Journal Online

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Iligan: from Danger to Danger

1. From tiger's mouth to lion's mouth.

Flood survivors in Mindanao rebuild in danger zones

Agence France-Presse

ILIGAN — Less than six weeks after killer floods swept away their slum homes along a Philippine river, Lydia Abulanda and her neighbours are rebuilding despite warnings disaster could strike again.

In a poverty-driven tale repeated with depressing frequency across the storm-plagued Southeast Asian nation, Abulanda said they had no other option but to take their chances again in the danger zone.

“We have nowhere else to go,” the 41-year-old housewife said as she stood amid the shantytown ruins of Ilagan city, where tropical storm Washi swept away entire communities in mid-December.

The government said at least 1,268 people were killed in the storm, but the total number of fatalities may never be known as entire families were washed away, leaving no survivors in unofficial slum areas to report the deaths.

Government officials said many of the victims were slum dwellers who had flocked to dangerous riverbanks because they could not afford to buy land or build homes in safer areas.

Slums hugging riverbanks, exposed coasts and other areas vulnerable to extreme weather are seen across the Philippines, where roughly a quarter of the country’s 100 million people live on a dollar a day or less.

An average of 20 tropical storms or typhoons hit the Philippines each year, many of them deadly, and the floods and winds typically punish the poorest members of society the most.

In Ilagan and other parts of the southern Philippines hit by Washi, the government and aid groups are trying to find safe new homes for thousands of survivors, but many will inevitably end up living back in dangerous areas.

As she visited the flood-hit city last week, the United Nations’ top disaster official said she was troubled by the way people seemingly refused to learn from the disaster.

“Yes, it bothers me that people forget so quickly,” Margareta Wahlstrom, the UN special representative for disaster risk reduction, told Agence France-Presse as she inspected the affected areas.

On both sides of a shattered bridge near Iligan, Wahlstrom saw residents using plywood and tarpaulin to erect shanties on the riverbank where homes had been swept to sea 40 days earlier.

The mayor of Iligan, Lawrence Cruz, told Wahlstrom in a meeting witnessed by AFP that the city government did not have the P300 million ($7 million) needed to buy land for the relocation of survivors.

The government initially sheltered thousands of displaced people in schools and gymnasiums but, with classes resuming in the new year, has been trying to move them out to temporary shelters.

Mother of three Maria Teresa Tampang, 37, said conditions were hard in the makeshift centre where she and about 180 families were living in tents donated by a South Korean aid organization.

“It is really hard in this evacuation area. There are a lot of people getting sick, with recurring coughs,” Tampang said, holding her baby in her arms.

“The tents are hot, even at night. But our bed is the hard ground and that is cold.”

Wahlstrom said she noted overcrowding at evacuation centres and said there was a need to lift spirits.

“It’s critical that people [in the shelters] stop being unhappy,” she said.

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