A-piece-ment miffs BIFF

DIE HARD III / Herman Tiu Laurel / 8/12/2013 / Daily Tribune

The so-called BangsaMoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF) are reported to be miffed over the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF)'s monopolization of all the pieces of the Mindanao pie from BS Aquino III's policy of "a-piece-ment," i.e. for being left out of the loot. But can we be sure that this is the real reason for the BIFF'S beef with the rest of Philippine society, so much so that this alleged breakaway group has now been rocking innocents to their core with its improvised explosive devices (IEDs).
The personalities behind this "rebel terror" group, as well as their real identities and motives, are as a myriad and labyrinthine as the international networks of al-Qaeda, which US intelligence services organized (and continue to utilize) for terror destabilizations and destructions all over the world — from Libya to Syria, and to our very own Mindanao. Last I heard from a most competent source, the Uighur al-Qaeda branch is already in Central Mindanao.

The nerve wracking IED bombings in Mindanao should compel all Filipinos to rethink government's approach to the Islamic separatist problem — the same used by Fidel Ramos, then adopted by Gloria Arroyo and, now, BS Aquino III — which can be summed up as "a-piece-ment," that is, to give way to rebel demands and parcel away, piece-by-piece, more and more of Mindanao and its rich resources to these separatist groups. And as this happens, Malaysian and US-British sponsors of these "a-piece-ment" talks wait in the wings to get control of these resources as they always have, as in the case of their tyrant-run client states in the Middle East. This "a-piece-ment" strategy was disrupted briefly by President Joseph Estrada's "only one flag" policy that led to the bulldozing these separatists' claimed camps and headquarters.

Back then, Estrada already had the MILF on the run, with its leader fleeing to the bosom of Malaysia to ponder the end of his separatist and tribal ambitions — but not before he thought of writing to the great imperialist infidel, George "Dubya" Bush, in meek supplication to lift his defeated force. Thus, on the wings of the great eagle, the MILF was lifted back to life while Estrada was deposed by a conspiracy of US-backed corrupt military putschists and "civil socialites" that paved the way for the decades-long "a-piece-ment" negotiations and, now, the final 75/25 percent slicing of those parts of Mindanao and the Sulu Sea in favor of the MILF. Other groups understandably cried foul — most notably the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) for the treacherous terms over North Borneo (Sabah) and other aspects of the deal. Thus, the MNLF has threatened a new war over these issues.
Security expert Rommel Banlaoi informs us that there are even more groups — most likely Jemaah Islamiyah (JI)-linked al-Qaeda — that may be considered suspect in the bombings.

In my interview with Banlaoi, cut short by the arrival of the station crew from Solar News, I was being shown documents pointing to another group that read like "Indama," although I could not be sure because of the rush. For sure, future discussions and analyses with Banlaoi will be reported in this space. What is incontrovertible about the situation in Mindanao is that after President Estrada's policy of "one country, one flag" was dismembered by the succeeding Edsa II governments of Arroyo and BS Aquino, separatist-terror now seems to proliferate, with Malacañang having no alternative policy to its "a-piece-ment."

Whatever defense policy emanating from Malacañang these days only centers on a build-up of weaponry in relation to the China-Vietnam-Philippine maritime territorial disputes. US navy cutters are bought with Malampaya funds to defend the seas but are immediately brought to the repair docks, while attack helicopters are on the purchase orders, etc. But the West Philippines Sea, or South China Sea, or what others now call the Asean Sea, is all acoustic and no war—while a real war with IED terror and savage BIFF-MILF renegades and other paramilitary forces is raging. Is Malacañang going to send the rickety BRP Ramon Alcaraz to Cotabato or Cagayan to Oro to hunt down the terrorists? Wouldn't the hundreds of millions for weaponry be better spent for intel to wipe out such separatist terror forces first?

The territorial waters issue with other claimants is better resolved through honest interaction and dialog, as we have seen in the resolution of the imbroglio with Taiwan. Manila-Taipei relations have normalized with the objective National Bureau of Investigation investigators releasing their findings and recommending the appropriate filing of charges against erring Philippine Coast Guard members. The saber-rattling of the past could not have produced any good. Now, thousands of overseas Filipino workers are able to leave purgatory and go on with their productive employment in Taiwan (where the minimum wage is around P28,000 a month).

The same beneficial results would definitely arise from a dialog on RP's West Philippine Sea claims with China, especially with Ambassador Ma Kequing's call for both sides to "meet halfway." But what's keeping productive peace with Asian neighbors from being actualized? It's clearly Malacañang's fear of the US and some quarters profiting from RP arms purchases.

Lessons must be learned: "A-piece-ment" in Mindanao is a failure; a comprehensive national security strategy is needed to define priorities; and the free reign of separatist terror groups must be eliminated as Estrada did by shifting national focus to that through a quick resolution of disputes with China, Vietnam, Taiwan, Malaysia, and other claimants by sharing in the disputed territories' economic benefits while agreeing to disagree peacefully over sovereignty issues.

(Tune in to 1098 AM, Tuesday to Friday, 5 p.m. to 6 p.m.; watch GNN Destiny Cable Channel 8, Saturday, 8 p.m. and replay Sunday, 8 a.m., this week on "Mindanao or WPS: Security priority"; visit http://newkatipunero.blogspot.com; and text reactions to 0923-4095739)

Changes

DIE HARD III / Herman Tiu Laurel / 8/7/2013 / Daily Tribune

There is an air of change wafting through Metro Manila these days. It can be sensed in several spheres of Filipino life at the heart of this nation. What is bringing this about is probably the onset of the search for alternatives by the Filipino people, who have patiently lived under the post-1986 ruling powers' promises of heaven-and-earth but got the opposite, coupled with the emergence of the Edsa III consciousness among the displaced middle class out of the decades-long decay in their economic and social standing. This Edsa III awareness may not be wholly understood by the middle classes themselves but is signified by the outstanding comeback of President-Mayor Joseph Estrada, especially after his recent impact clean-up and traffic easing projects in the City of Manila.

In the media community, too, this air of change is being reflected in the many new "kapihans" emerging in the metropolis, challenging the old, tired media breakfast and coffee klatches that began in the 80s and 90s that have overextended their natural lives, surviving only for the sponsorships that the state gaming bodies and a few other government financial and social institutions provide. Among these new and exciting "kapihans" that have sprouted is the Aristocrat Kapihan every Monday morning (in the historic Aristocrat on Roxas Boulevard, naturally) organized by veteran mediaman Melo Acuña of Radio Veritas; another is the Mabuhay Forum at the Mabuhay Resto fronting the demolished Army Navy Club, every Tuesday, by former press club prexy Fred Gabot and Fil-Am Gawad Kalinga leader, lawyer Rose Cabrera.
These two new media kapihans are both fresh and energizing, oxygenated by the breeze of Manila Bay and far from the smog of Mabini, M.H. Del Pilar, Ortigas, Greenhills, Morato, etc.

The organizers also offer new media presence as Melo Acuña brings in the foreign correspondents from Focap (Foreign Correspondents Association of the Philippines) as well as members of the diplomatic corps (as in the last forum on Philippine-China issues with a Bloomberg correspondent and Mr. Cang Hoang Nghia of the Vietnamese Embassy present), which is also the case with the group of Ricky Sunga and Fred Gabot, the latter of whom networks events at the Mabuhay Forum with a chain of Filipino-American newspapers in the different US states that he is connected with.

There is another forum I almost forgot — the Bayleaf Media Forum with Greggy Licaros and Jonathan de la Cruz, which we'll have more of in future columns.
From such gatherings I have mentioned, I noted significant changes in the perspectives of media that would reflect changes in the public's mind on major issues as well.

In the Aristocrat Kapihan on the issue of the West Philippine Sea with Sen. Leticia Shahani, Chito Sta. Romana, Jay Bataongbacal of the Institute for Maritime Affairs and Law of the Sea of the UP Law Center, and Richard Javad Heydarian of the Ateneo, both resource persons as well as the audience manifested the dominant view that "bilateral" talks between the Philippines and China is the practical and almost inevitable conclusion, even if the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea case filed by RP prospers in the long run. That was also the point of Tess Villapando, a Church lay media worker.

The Mabuhay Forum, organized under the auspices of the Manila City Hall Press Club and established in the 50s, is, we are told by Fred Gabot, the forerunner of the National Press Club by three or four years. The last topic of discussion there that I attended was the Botong Francisco painting pull-out from city hall for the purpose of restoration but without the proper documentation. Previous to this was the discussion on Mayor Estrada's action to free Manila's major streets from traffic jams, with the removal of "colorum" and unauthorized buses. The next issues will likely be the Manila Bay reclamation project and the proposed privatization of public parking slots. Be that as it may, media covering the Manila beat sense a new openness, transparency and decisiveness at city hall today.

Over and above all these, however, is the most startling change in the mood and perspective of the nation now reflected in social networking sites. This change I would reiterate I trace to the premise I stated above — the failure of the Edsa I promises and the outstanding example presented by the alternative leadership that Joseph Estrada represents and has exhibited. A screenshot of ABS-CBN News' Facebook page shows various endless threads that say, "I remember her (Cory) as someone who contributed to the misery of the Filipino people; an oligarch doormat who doomed the Filipinos to poverty … May she burn in hell — if it existed; the one who put the Philippines to its greatest misery. She gave… ABiaS-CBN and… other companies back to the Lopezes without anything in return…"

Indeed, the truth shall set us free.

(Tune in to 1098 AM, Tuesday to Friday, 5 p.m. to 6 p.m.; watch GNN Destiny Cable Channel 8, Saturday, 8:00 p.m. and replay Sunday, 8 a.m., this week on a "Collage of anti-war documentaries"; visit http://newkatipunero.blogspot.com; and text reactions to 0923-4095739)

Ending the next war now

DIE HARD III / Herman Tiu Laurel / 8/5/2013 / Daily Tribune

This week, the world will be remembering the Aug. 6 and nine bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki — murderous incidents where hundreds of thousands of Japanese civilians were massacred by both US bombs and their own morally infirmed Japanese imperial leaders. Amid today's attempts at reasserting Western neo-imperialist hegemony over the globe, we lay witness to the deployment of the "missile defense" system encircling Russia, followed by last year's US "pivot to Asia" threatening China. Japan, either on its own or under US pressure, triggered tension to justify that pivot by nationalizing the Diaoyu Islands (which it calls Senkaku) and reigniting "ultra-Japanism" with rightwing politician Shinzo Abe's push toward junking Japan's "peace constitution."

Here at home, efforts to stir and intensify anti-Chinese sentiments have been in the works for the past two years, led by some US-based Filipino-Americans and Philippine political personalities. All these culminated last week in an attempt by this "Filipino diaspora" at a "global" spate of anti-China rallies in front of several Chinese embassies. In Manila, a group of around 500 — with some Akbayan "hakots" carrying professionally-printed streamers, alongside some "elite" civil socialites — were all led by a US Annapolis Naval Academy graduate who served as a former Gloria Arroyo national security adviser. One leader there announced that they are not against the people of China but against the Chinese government, without understanding that the Chinese people are probably far more sensitive to their own nation's sovereignty than their politicians.

An even worse misunderstanding on the part of those attempting to stir anti-Chinese sentiments into a maelstrom from RP's territorial disputes with the Asian giant is the idea of promoting an alliance with Japan by opening Philippine naval and other military facilities to the World War II villain. There are just too many adverse memories that the terms "Japan" and "military" conjure up even among the generally historically amnesiac Filipinos.

As we are beginning to see on the Internet in the wake of announcements from the Department of Foreign Affairs and the Defense chief, the wounds of Filipina "comfort women" as well as historical accounts and images of the devastation of Manila and the plethora of atrocities under the Japanese military are quickly re-opened.
The latest reaction of the Chinese representative to the Philippines reflects the path China wants to take. Ambassador Ma Keqing last Wednesday suggested that the Philippines meet China halfway in the current standoff in the disputed waters of what I would call "The Asian Sea" (West Philippine Sea or South China Sea), saying the two countries are close neighbors with a friendship that dates back thousands of years. Ma implored the Philippines to "properly handle (such) differences through dialog and consultation, jointly promote cooperation in investment, trade, tourism, agriculture and other areas and enhance exchanges and friendship between the two people." In short, she was proposing that both sides "jaw-jaw" and not "war-war," as British imperialist warmonger Winston Churchill used to say to avoid "lose-lose" situations.

While China is offering more opportunities for dialog and peaceful resolution of tensions with the Philippines, the prospects of which could even surprise anti-China Filipinos with the benefits these can provide the country, China will not be as open and flexible with Japan. China is waiting for any excuse to settle scores with its erstwhile North Asian foe for the oppression and humiliation of World War II — and Japan knows this. While Japan likes to talk tough, it must be noted that the olive branch is being extended by the other hand simultaneously. Led recently by Hiromu Nonaka, former Japanese chief Cabinet secretary, a mission to repair the strained relationship was made as Nonaka recalled the consensus on side-stepping the dispute in allowing more than 40 years of the "common aspiration" for peace and friendship.

There is no reason to believe that Japan wants the tension with China whose market is a major hinge for its own economic recovery and prosperity. In this week of remembering Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the absolute pointlessness of promoting conflict with China and inviting "mutual destruction" through any level of physical conflict among neighbors is highlighted. It is simply utter stupidity — except for those countries that are not in the region, such as the US, whose territories are so far away as to be safe from immediate harm in case of any Asian conflict. It is the US that is pushing the installation of the "missile defense" system in Japan, allegedly to protect against puny North Korea, but which is more believable as a deployment to neutralize China's retaliatory capacity against US assets in the region.

Asia understands that a "next war" in the region will mean devastation for the entire neighborhood; and every effort should be made to overcome the poisoning of minds that US neo-imperialist assets are working at.

As the Unesco Constitution's preamble states: "Since wars begin in the minds of men, it is in the minds of men that the defenses of peace must be constructed…"
We must end the next wars — as well as the next Hiroshimas and Nagasakis — not tomorrow but "today."

(Tune in to 1098 AM, Tuesday to Friday, 5 p.m. to 6 p.m.; watch GNN Destiny Cable Channel 8, Saturday, 8 p.m. and replay Sunday, 8 a.m., this week on a "Collage of anti-war documentaries"; visit http://newkatipunero.blogspot.com; and text reactions to 0923-4095739)