With all the back slapping lately between the MILF and the MNLF it is easy for some to forget that the MILF was in fact born out of disgust with the MNLF. MILF founder, the late Hashim Salamat, saw MNLF figurehead Nur Misuari as aloof and close to dictatorial in his leadership style. In addition, Misuari was then a closet Marxist who only saw Islam as a useful vehicle with which to motivate the masses. Finally, despite the myth of the "Bangsamoro," a supposedly cohesive people, the thirteen ethno-linguistic groupings of Muslim Filipinos had practically nothing in common above and beyond a professed common faith. The MNLF, which had begun life as a Maranaw (Maranao)-dominated organization, quickly became Tausug-centric under Misuari's stewardship. Salamat, a Maguondanowan, saw no future for his tribe within Misuari's MNLF.
The MILF began life as a putsch against Misuari and his minions but by 1984 was undeniably a wholly seperate group, in form as well as substance. Since then, both groups have often been at odds. Although great strides have been made within the last year, these are entirely within the political echelons. On the ground, the military wings-BIAF for the MILF, and BMA, or Bangsamoro Army for the MNLF-are almost always at each others' throats. This latest incident, in North Cotabato Province, is just one of several currently taking place.
Just before daybreak, Sunday, June 24th, 2012, in the municipality of Carmen's Barangay Tonganon, the two organizations once again took it to the mat. MNLF Kumander Teo Minanimbong attacked Kumander "DTR" Mohammed of the BIAF 110 Base Command. The BIAF of course is the military wing of the MILF, the Bangsamoro Islamic Armed Forces.
Roughly one thousand individuals from that barangay and the nearby barangays of Lapu Lapu and Lawili in the adjacent municipality of Aleosan were forced into fleeing their homes and livlihoods. Most of those "bakwit," or IDPs (Internally Displaced Persons) have taken refuge in Aleosan's Barangay New Panay. As one might surmise by the names of concerned barangays, most of the refugees are Ilonggo, while the warring parties are Muslims. Lately that portion of the North Cotabato and Maguindanao Provincial borders has been beset by a very worrisome trend of ethno-religious warfare, though thankfully-if one can even be thankful in such circumstances- this particular incident is Muslim on Muslim, albeit over competition to rob Ilonggo land.
The 7IB (Infantry Battalion), based in Carmen, and the 40IB, based in Aleosan, have been doing nothing as usual. The AFP takes great pains not to engage any Islamic group in Central and Southern Mindanao, citing the fictitious ceasefire and the almost as fictitious Peace Process. Indeed, at a recent bilateral meeting that I will cover in an upcoming "GPH-MILF Peace Process for the Second Quarter" entry, much self congratulation was given over the meaningless statistic that has the AFP and MILF/BIAF with zero armed contacts since 2012 began. As the BIAF runs around tossing frag grenades and firing RPG-2s and 3s at hapless civilians-and other armed groups, lets hoodwink the public into thinking that the MILF/BIAF is serious about peace.
This paticular sub-conflict concerns nearly 50 contigious hectares of rice paddy and corn fields in Barangay Tonganon's Sitio Maputi. On March 25th, 2012, BIAF 110 Base Command sub-Kumander Karim Sagadan attacked MNLF Kumander Teo Minanimbong in that sitio. The MNLF quickly gained the upperhand and so BIAF sub-Kumander Sagadan sent for reinforcements. Kumander "Tarzan" Dagadas, the overall Kumander of the BIAF's newest Base Comand, the 118, responded in force.
As the sitio quickly emptied of civilians the fighting grew hot and heavy with twenty plus homes burned entirely and more than twenty four guerillas from both sides losing their lives before the 7IB was able to reign in the fighting with an effective cordon. When the fighting simmered down virtually all of Sitio Maputi and most of the adjacent Sitio Gawasan were in shambles and it took a week before residents felt confident enough to vacate the IDP centre on Aleosan's Barangay New Panay.
Then, on May 16th, a chance encounter between small groups from both sides led to a small and ineffectual firefight with no casualties in Barangay Tonganon. The next day, May 17th, larger groups engaged in a one hour firefight before the MILF Central Committee deployed a high ranking delegation to try and convince the 110 Base Command to stand down. The 118 Base Command did not interevene in this round of fighting owing to an untimely IED, or Improvised Explosive Device detonation on a pumpboat carrying Kumander Dagadas.
Dagadas was on a craft with four of his guerillas, the boat operator and none other than...Datu Anwar "Ipi" Ampatuan Jr., grandson of infamous local warlord Andal Ampatuan Sr. Grandpa is currently stewing with other clan members in Camp Bagong Diwa. In fact, young Datu Ipi was supposed to be sitting in a cell in that same facility along with the major players in the clan-and all the people they dragged down with them-to stand trial for the Maguindanao Massacre.
The fact that Ipi, or any member of the Ampatuan Clan was taking refuge with the BIAF is incredibly interesting. Andal Ampatuan Sr. gained most of his power by serving the Government as its proxy in its thirty year conflict with the MILF. The MILF has tried to assasinate Andal Sr. several times and succeded in killing his heir apparent. After the Massacre much of the Ampatuan paramilitary withdrew into the bush and initially continued doing battle with the MILF/BIAF.
The IED detonation that wounded Kumander Dagadas took place on March 26th, just a day after the initial battle in Barangay Tonganon, against the MNLF. It doesnt take a whole lot of expertise to connect the dots. Aside from Dagadas, all four of his guerillas and Datu Ipi were also wounded, Ipi being the most serious among them. The boat operator, a civilian, was killed.
The boat was approaching the shore of MILF controlled Barangay Daladap in the municipality of Mamasapano. While still off of Barangay Nabundas in the municipality of Shariff Saydona Mustapha, like Mamasapano, in Maguindanao Province, when the pumpboat ran aground. The IED had not been stowed properly and more to the point-amazingly-had already been primed. The jarring of the craft caused the device to detonate. Datu Ipi was sitting in the bow, the device not far behind him, at the foot of the boat operator. As a result, Ipi caught a gaping wound near his spine.
Datu Ipi was rushed to Notre Dame Hospital in Cotabato City where the AFP's MBLT-7 (Marine Battalion Landing Team #7) immediately put him under guard vis a vis his fugitive status. His clan's attorneys later tried to sell some fantasy about how the BIAF was escorting Ipi to a pre-arranged surrender. Suuuuuuuuure, without an attorney. What actually happened was, immediately after being wounded, Ipi had his mother contacted. Mom, a local politician, contacted Colonel Mayoralgo de la Cruz, Commanding Officer of the 1st Mechanized Brigade and offered the unconditional surrender of Ipi as long de la Cruz rushed Ipi to Cotabato City, site of Central Mindanao's best healthcare. Such a surrender earns Colonel de la Cruz accolades from his superiors as well as banking a large future favor with Mayor Ampatuan, Ipi's mother.
The 27 year old scion is the son of Andal Sr.'s son Anwar Ampatuan Sr., who was Mayor of Shariff Aguak, formerly the provincial capital of Maguindanao Province (the capital having been moved in spite by clan enemy and current Governor, Esnael "Toto" Mangudadatu, target of the Maguindanao Massacre). Anwar Sr. was himself arrested and is one of the clan members currently in stir. Replacing him as Mayor, was his wife-Ipi's mother-Bai Zahara Upam Ampatuan. Then, in the same 2010 Election that brought Bai Zahara to power as Mayor (and the same election that was behind the Massacre), Anwar Sr., despite being jailed, was elected Vice Mayor. Ipi, then a fugitive, was elected Municipal Councilor along with two sisters, Rowella and Anhara.
Thursday, June 28, 2012
Wednesday, June 27, 2012
Kidnap for Ransom for the Second Quarter of 2012, Part III: Jordanian Journalist Baker Abdullah Atyani, Part 3
In parts 1 and 2 I touched upon the inherent risks journalists face when covering insurgent organizations. In the Southern Philippines, the story of an intrepid journalist trying to scoop his or her competitors with an interview of ASG, or Abu Sayyaf Group figures is an old one. Likewise, so is the story about said reporter thinking that that are above the fray, only to find themselves targetted by subjects that they planned on interviewing.
Although I used the example of Ces Drillon, I could just as easily picked one of literally dozens of names. I could have picked self serving media hack Arlyn de la Cruz, abducted in 2002. When not writing about Abu Sayaff for the Manila based "Inquirer," de la Cruz was engaged in a sexual relationship with the ASG's Khadaffy Janjalani. Such "familiarity" should have immunized Ms. de la Cruz from most-if not all damages...right?
I could have chosen Val Cuenca and Maan Macapagal in July of 2000. Indeed, the two were colleagues of Ms. Drilon at ABS-CBN and yet neither Arlyn de la Cruz OR Cuenca and Macapagal's experiences did anything to make Ms.Drilon step back from the abyss. If Phiippine journalists act like imbeciles, how can anyone really disparage an empty headed foreigner for making that same mistake? Whether it is the ten European journalists who thought they were getting the scoop of a lifetime when offered a chance to interview the abductors in the Sipidan Dive Resort KFR and ended up on the menu themselves..or...Andreas Lorenz of Germany's "Der Spiegel," who in 2000 begged to be kidnapped (literrally) only one month after being held with another group of foreign journalists for twelve hours, foreigners are even more likely to be victimized since their employers almost always carry seven figure KFR Insurance.
Which brings me, finally, to the case de jour, that of Jordanian citizen, Baker Abdullah Atyani. Atyani, Southeast Asia Bureau Chief for Dubai based Al Arabiya network is fairly well known to people such as myself. His claim to fame is one of those journalistic scoops that almost defy imagination. In June of 2001, while serving as Pakistan Bureau Chief, Atyani crossed the border into Afghanistan and travelled to the city of Khandahar. In Khandahar Mr.Atyani interviewed two men whose names were relatively unknown at the time, Osama bin Laden and Dr.Ayman al Zawahiri. Atyano claimed that during the unfilmed interview with the number one and number two (respectively)in al Qadah, both men dropped hints about 9/11.
Since that fateful interview, and the years of mileage Atyani generated out of it, the journalist has remolded himself into am authority on Islamic Terrorism. In fact, he has been to the Southern Philippines on a number of occasions and reportedly has extensive contacts within the ASG.
On June 11th, 2012, Baker Atyani and his local production crew arrived in Jolo City on a commercial flight. As is often the case, he was singled out by AFP Marines at the airport owing to his decidedly foreign appearance. Quickly brought to the Sulu Provincial Capital in the municipality of Patikul where he was subjected to the requisite arrival interview that all foreigners must endure in Sulu Province. As luck would have it, Governor Abdusakur "Sakur" Tan was in the building (basically, outside his armored vehicles it is the safest place for him to be) and so Atyani and his crew were quickly ushered into the Governor's inner sanctum and granted an interview.
Probably gritting his teeth as he wasted time discussing foreign aid and pork barrel nonsense (you know, I never thpught to ask whether politicians in Muslim Mindanao call pork barrel spending by some other moniker...maybe lamb?), Atyani lied when asked about his local itinerary, saying that he intended to cover the next day's Independence Day festivities in Jolo City. Instead, Atyani and his crew planned to interview local ASG members in an envisioned television documentary on Jihad in the Philippines. It is absolutely understandable then, that Atyani begged off when Govetnor Tan attempted to saddle with him with an AFP security detail.
Returning to Jolo City, Atyani and his two men crew checked into Jolo City's Sulu State College Hostel, on Martinez Street-co-incidentally, the very same hostel where Ces Drilon and her two man crew had checked into on their fated 2008 sojourn to Jolo. At 545AM the next day, June 12th, Atyani and his crew were seen entering a white multicab in front of the hostel. Aside from the driver, a woman was sitting in the passenger seat. Having told the desk clerk that they would be returning that same afternoon, Baker Abdullah Atyani, Ramelito Vela, and Rolando Letero drove off and disappeared.
Because of their mentioning a same day return the hostel staff naturally got nervous when, by the following day-June 13th, the three men failed to return OR contact the hostel. However, a peek into the two rooms the group had rented showed that they had neglected to take with them any of their personal belongings above and beyond their camera equipment, the staff decided to take a "wait and see" approach. By June 13th it became clear that something was wrong. Skittish hostel staff finally reported the failure of a foreign guest to return to their room for nearly two days. Elsewhere in the world perhaps, such things do not even deserve notice but in Jolo City, it almost certainly serves as a terrible omen.
The CPO, or City Police Office immediately notified PPO-Sulu, or the Police Provincial Office for Sulu Province and so the dominoes fell in short order, ending up with a messy pile in Manila. Interestingly, Government officials, usually very circumspect in KFRs, or Kidnap for Ransoms involving foreign nationals, went immediately for the jugular, accusing Atyani, in turns, of faking his own abduction-exactly the Government's tact in the Arlyn de la Cruz KFR...denied that Atyani had even been abducted at all since he got into the multicap outside his hostel by his own accord-a ploy the.Government used in the Ces Drilon KFR...threatened to have the BI, or Bureau of Immigration revoke Atyani's visa status and declare Atyani persona non grata-exactly what the Government did with Toshio Ito, alias Ameer Mamaito Katayama, whom the Government has also accused of having joined ASG simply because Ito is able.to move around ASG encampments unfettered at least part of the time*-another ploy used against Atyani.
When the Jordanian Government refused to stand for such nonsense all the Governmental shills who had been furiously pointing their fingers suddenly beckpedaled furiously.
Although I used the example of Ces Drillon, I could just as easily picked one of literally dozens of names. I could have picked self serving media hack Arlyn de la Cruz, abducted in 2002. When not writing about Abu Sayaff for the Manila based "Inquirer," de la Cruz was engaged in a sexual relationship with the ASG's Khadaffy Janjalani. Such "familiarity" should have immunized Ms. de la Cruz from most-if not all damages...right?
I could have chosen Val Cuenca and Maan Macapagal in July of 2000. Indeed, the two were colleagues of Ms. Drilon at ABS-CBN and yet neither Arlyn de la Cruz OR Cuenca and Macapagal's experiences did anything to make Ms.Drilon step back from the abyss. If Phiippine journalists act like imbeciles, how can anyone really disparage an empty headed foreigner for making that same mistake? Whether it is the ten European journalists who thought they were getting the scoop of a lifetime when offered a chance to interview the abductors in the Sipidan Dive Resort KFR and ended up on the menu themselves..or...Andreas Lorenz of Germany's "Der Spiegel," who in 2000 begged to be kidnapped (literrally) only one month after being held with another group of foreign journalists for twelve hours, foreigners are even more likely to be victimized since their employers almost always carry seven figure KFR Insurance.
Which brings me, finally, to the case de jour, that of Jordanian citizen, Baker Abdullah Atyani. Atyani, Southeast Asia Bureau Chief for Dubai based Al Arabiya network is fairly well known to people such as myself. His claim to fame is one of those journalistic scoops that almost defy imagination. In June of 2001, while serving as Pakistan Bureau Chief, Atyani crossed the border into Afghanistan and travelled to the city of Khandahar. In Khandahar Mr.Atyani interviewed two men whose names were relatively unknown at the time, Osama bin Laden and Dr.Ayman al Zawahiri. Atyano claimed that during the unfilmed interview with the number one and number two (respectively)in al Qadah, both men dropped hints about 9/11.
Since that fateful interview, and the years of mileage Atyani generated out of it, the journalist has remolded himself into am authority on Islamic Terrorism. In fact, he has been to the Southern Philippines on a number of occasions and reportedly has extensive contacts within the ASG.
On June 11th, 2012, Baker Atyani and his local production crew arrived in Jolo City on a commercial flight. As is often the case, he was singled out by AFP Marines at the airport owing to his decidedly foreign appearance. Quickly brought to the Sulu Provincial Capital in the municipality of Patikul where he was subjected to the requisite arrival interview that all foreigners must endure in Sulu Province. As luck would have it, Governor Abdusakur "Sakur" Tan was in the building (basically, outside his armored vehicles it is the safest place for him to be) and so Atyani and his crew were quickly ushered into the Governor's inner sanctum and granted an interview.
Probably gritting his teeth as he wasted time discussing foreign aid and pork barrel nonsense (you know, I never thpught to ask whether politicians in Muslim Mindanao call pork barrel spending by some other moniker...maybe lamb?), Atyani lied when asked about his local itinerary, saying that he intended to cover the next day's Independence Day festivities in Jolo City. Instead, Atyani and his crew planned to interview local ASG members in an envisioned television documentary on Jihad in the Philippines. It is absolutely understandable then, that Atyani begged off when Govetnor Tan attempted to saddle with him with an AFP security detail.
Returning to Jolo City, Atyani and his two men crew checked into Jolo City's Sulu State College Hostel, on Martinez Street-co-incidentally, the very same hostel where Ces Drilon and her two man crew had checked into on their fated 2008 sojourn to Jolo. At 545AM the next day, June 12th, Atyani and his crew were seen entering a white multicab in front of the hostel. Aside from the driver, a woman was sitting in the passenger seat. Having told the desk clerk that they would be returning that same afternoon, Baker Abdullah Atyani, Ramelito Vela, and Rolando Letero drove off and disappeared.
Because of their mentioning a same day return the hostel staff naturally got nervous when, by the following day-June 13th, the three men failed to return OR contact the hostel. However, a peek into the two rooms the group had rented showed that they had neglected to take with them any of their personal belongings above and beyond their camera equipment, the staff decided to take a "wait and see" approach. By June 13th it became clear that something was wrong. Skittish hostel staff finally reported the failure of a foreign guest to return to their room for nearly two days. Elsewhere in the world perhaps, such things do not even deserve notice but in Jolo City, it almost certainly serves as a terrible omen.
The CPO, or City Police Office immediately notified PPO-Sulu, or the Police Provincial Office for Sulu Province and so the dominoes fell in short order, ending up with a messy pile in Manila. Interestingly, Government officials, usually very circumspect in KFRs, or Kidnap for Ransoms involving foreign nationals, went immediately for the jugular, accusing Atyani, in turns, of faking his own abduction-exactly the Government's tact in the Arlyn de la Cruz KFR...denied that Atyani had even been abducted at all since he got into the multicap outside his hostel by his own accord-a ploy the.Government used in the Ces Drilon KFR...threatened to have the BI, or Bureau of Immigration revoke Atyani's visa status and declare Atyani persona non grata-exactly what the Government did with Toshio Ito, alias Ameer Mamaito Katayama, whom the Government has also accused of having joined ASG simply because Ito is able.to move around ASG encampments unfettered at least part of the time*-another ploy used against Atyani.
When the Jordanian Government refused to stand for such nonsense all the Governmental shills who had been furiously pointing their fingers suddenly beckpedaled furiously.
Monday, June 25, 2012
GPH-NDFP Peace Process for the Second Quarter of 2012, Part II: NDFP " Ten Point Proposal for a Concise Agreement for an Immediate and Just Peace"
The informal two day meeting between delegations from both the GPH, or Government of the Philippines, and the NDFP, or National Democratic Front of the Philippines on June 14th and 15th produced nothing but smoke and mirrors, but, at least the two sides are talking publicly again. As noted in "GPH-NDFP Peace Process for the Second Quarter of 2012, Part I," both sides exchanged wish lists. Topping the GPH list was a desire for a ceasefire, and the related "Landmine" issue (a totally bogus issue that serves as the cornerstone of the AFP, or Armed Forces of the Philippines PSYOPS, or Psychological Operations/Psychological Warfare program). The NDFP response was to steer the Government back to a classified document it transmitted to President Aquino in January of 2011. Given the sleep inducing title, "Ten Point Proposal for a Concise Agreement for an Immediate and Just Peace," it will be hereafter referred to simply as, "Ten Point Proposal." Why the Government classified it is beyond me since that very same documrnt was given to to Arroyo Administration publicly in August of 2005.
The document's classification was nullified once constituent organizations within the NDFP began discussing its contents in depth. Without further ado, I present a verbatim copy of that document:
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
1) Unite the Filipino people through a broad alliance of patriotic and progressive forces and a clean and honest coalition government for genuine national independence and democracy against any foreign domination or control and against subsevience.
2) Empower the toiling masses of workers and peasants by respecting their democratic rights and providing for their significant representation in organs of the coalition government and for assistance to the organizations, programs and projects of the toiling masses.
3) Uphold economic sovereignity, carry out Filipino-owned national industrialization and land reform and oppose imperalist plunder and bureaucratic and military corruption in order to develop the national economy.
4) Cancel the foreign debt and reduce the appropriations for the military and other armed organizations of the GPH in order to provide adequate resources and savings for economic development, improvement of the means of livlihood, the alleviation of poverty, the realization of gender equality, promotion of children's rights and welfare and healthy environment.
5) Promote and support a patriotic, scientific and pro-people culture through the educational system, mass media and mass organizations, cherish the cultural heritage of the Filipino nation and all the ethno-linguistic communities in the nation.
6) Recognize the right to self-determination and autonomy of national minorities, ensure proportionate representation in the organs of the coalition government and institutions and provide for affirmative action to countervail longrunning discrimination and wrongs.
7) Investigate and try government officials who are liable for treason, corruption, and human rights violations.
8) Carry out a truly independent foreign policy for world peace and economic development, oppose imperialist acts of plunder and foreign aggression and intervention, and prevent the basing and stationing of foreign troops and weapons of mass destruction in the country.
9) Maintain normal trade and diplomatic relations with all countries and maintain the closest relations with other ASEAN countries, China, South and North Korea, Japan and Russia, emphasizing equitable exchange of goods, acquiring goods for industrialization and guaranteeing energy supply.
10) Inagurate a truce between the warring forces of the of the GHP and NDFP for the purpose of alliance and other constructive purposes as stated above.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
The document's classification was nullified once constituent organizations within the NDFP began discussing its contents in depth. Without further ado, I present a verbatim copy of that document:
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
1) Unite the Filipino people through a broad alliance of patriotic and progressive forces and a clean and honest coalition government for genuine national independence and democracy against any foreign domination or control and against subsevience.
2) Empower the toiling masses of workers and peasants by respecting their democratic rights and providing for their significant representation in organs of the coalition government and for assistance to the organizations, programs and projects of the toiling masses.
3) Uphold economic sovereignity, carry out Filipino-owned national industrialization and land reform and oppose imperalist plunder and bureaucratic and military corruption in order to develop the national economy.
4) Cancel the foreign debt and reduce the appropriations for the military and other armed organizations of the GPH in order to provide adequate resources and savings for economic development, improvement of the means of livlihood, the alleviation of poverty, the realization of gender equality, promotion of children's rights and welfare and healthy environment.
5) Promote and support a patriotic, scientific and pro-people culture through the educational system, mass media and mass organizations, cherish the cultural heritage of the Filipino nation and all the ethno-linguistic communities in the nation.
6) Recognize the right to self-determination and autonomy of national minorities, ensure proportionate representation in the organs of the coalition government and institutions and provide for affirmative action to countervail longrunning discrimination and wrongs.
7) Investigate and try government officials who are liable for treason, corruption, and human rights violations.
8) Carry out a truly independent foreign policy for world peace and economic development, oppose imperialist acts of plunder and foreign aggression and intervention, and prevent the basing and stationing of foreign troops and weapons of mass destruction in the country.
9) Maintain normal trade and diplomatic relations with all countries and maintain the closest relations with other ASEAN countries, China, South and North Korea, Japan and Russia, emphasizing equitable exchange of goods, acquiring goods for industrialization and guaranteeing energy supply.
10) Inagurate a truce between the warring forces of the of the GHP and NDFP for the purpose of alliance and other constructive purposes as stated above.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Sunday, June 24, 2012
GPH-NDFP Peace Process for the Second Quarter of 2012, Part I: Informal Meeting in Oslo
With the Government of the Philippines (GPH) and the National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP) Peace Process hitting a wall over the continued detention of NDFP "consultants," it has been a year since anything substantiative has taken place between the two Peace Panels. Truth be told, the Aquino Administration's gameplan was primed for failure since day one. For starters, as I have noted in past entries, President Aquino has officially laid out his bets on the dual Peace Processe tracks, this and the GPH-MILF Peace Process. Internal documents, such as the "Philippine Development Plan 2010-2016" show that Aquino has no expectations of progress on the GPH-NDFP track. Instead he has placed all eggs in the GPH-MILF basket. With the NDFP, these same documents articulate a program of delaying the NDFP track to take advantage of any lulls gained, and to weaken the NDFP/CPP/NPA. Even if the documents had never been leaked, given the fact that Aquino has set a 36 month window for an FPA, or Final Peace Agreement, his endgame was clearly telegraphed, the so called "GPH-NDFP Peace Process" never had an inkling of a chance. Not wanting to be misconstrued as some sort of CPP/NPA/NDFP cheerleader, let me emphasize that the NDFP also re-entered the Peace Process in bad faith. Still, if we are measuring responsibility in degrees, the NDFP comes out of this imbroglio smelling like (red) roses.
The two Peace Panels last met, or rather the ONLY time they have met since the Process began again, was in February of 2011 (see "GPH-NDFP Peace Process for the First Quarter of 2011"). There were smiles, hand shakes and guffaws enough to go around, but nothing was really acccomplished. Of course, after a half decade of inactivity all that really mattered was that the two sides were in fact talking. Both sides agreed that the first item to be tackled would be CASER, or the Comprehensive Agreement on Socio-Economic Reforms. June of 2011 was set for the next Formal Round, at which point each side's RCW, or Reciprocal Working Committee (RCW-SER, or RCW on Socio-Economic Reform) would present their product, the Panels would then compare them, revise them, and send them back to the mill for a September of 2011 delivery date. At that point, CASER would be signed and the next CA, or Comprehensive Agreement would go to the mat.
Not long after the February Formal Round however, the NDFP threw a hissy fit over the continued incarceration, and GPH inactivity over, NDFP Peace Panel Consultants. JASIG, or the Joint Agreement on Safety and Immunuty Guarantees is a 1995 bilateral agreement that ostensibly protects declared NDFP Peace Panel Consultants. Per JASIG, (JASIG Supplemental signed on June 26th, 1996), Consultants are issued ID documents under pseudonyms in order to facilitate travel in relation to their duties vis a vis the Peace Process. The NDFP is obligated to furnish a list of pseudonyms and their ID numbers, while maintaining a masterlist upon which each pseudonym is linked to a Consultant's legal name. In addition, a photograph of each Consultant was to be included. The identifying documents and photos were stored in a bank safety deposit box in Utrecht, the Dutch city that serves as the CPP/NPA/NDFP capital in exile.
After that Formal Round in February of 2011, the JASIG issue came to a head as the Government called the NDFP's bluff, asking it to prove its claims about listed incarcerated personalities being JASIG protected. On a cold winter's day, representatives from both sides met at the bank in question, in the presence of a representative from the Norwegian Government, the Facilitating entity in the Peace Process, as well as the Archbishop of Utrecht. When the envelope was opened not only were there no photos, but the masterlist was contained on floppy discs, having been compiled in 1996.
When the group attempted to verify the contents of the discs they found nothing but undecipherable gibberish. The NDFP muttered something about corrupted files while the Government clicked its heels and did a jig.
Naturally the Government was elated and rubbed the NDFP's face in it. Whereas the Government might have taken the high road and offered a conciliatory gesture, say, releasing five of the then eighteen "Consultants," and labeled it a Good Will Gesture, it simply belittled the NDFP for trying to hoodwink the "Philippine people," as if any Government has ever represented anyone but the rich antd powerful. The NDFP then had no choice but to throw up its blood soaked hands and cry foul.
The next Formal Round, as noted, had been scheduled for June of 2011 but ended up scrapped over the JASIG brouhaha. On September 6th, 2011, as the window for the signing of CASER closed, the Norwegian Ambassador to the Philippines, Knut Solem, brought each Peace Panel's Chairperson-Alexander "Alex" Padilla for the GPH and Luis Jalandoni for the NDFP-together at his Residence in Makati for an informal tet a tet in an attempt to break the then 7 month impasse. While the day went smoothly, it failed to do much of anything. Indeed, the Peace Process was once again dead in the water until NDFP Consultant Jaime Soledad was re-arrested, an incident that counter-intuitively broke the stalemate.
Originally, Soledad had been arrested in March of 2008 after a cousin of his wife Clarita Luego Soledad lured the couple to Cavite on Luzon. At the time Soledad was the NPA's Secretary (top commander) of the Southern Leyte Front, a provincial wide unit, and held a seat on the EXCOM, or Executive Committee for Eastern Visayas. Nabbed on murder charges relating to a mass grave in his town of residence, Inopacan, in Leyte. The grave, one of many, was from the orgiastic purges instituted the late 1980s by the NPA after an uber-rapid expansion in both the NPA, and its political wing, the Communist Party of the Philippines, or CPP. This expansion led to paranoia about so called DPAs, or Deep Penetration Agents. The warrant, under a case eventually docketed as CC#262163 (Regional Trial Court Branch #32 in Manila) was based solely upon a single affadavit from an alleged survivor of the particular purge which led to the Inopacan Killing Field. According to the witness, Soledad figured prominently in what the CPP/NPA tend to call a "People's Court."
As a concession on the JASIG stalemate, the GPH Peace Panel, via former Panelist, attorney Pablo Sanidad, effected Soledad's release in July of 2011. The joy Soledad must have experienced was no doubt diminished greatly when, on May 2nd, 2012, he was re-arrested on murder charges. Needless to say, this did nothing to help break the impasse.
Then, a month before, on April 3rd, 2012, an NDFP Consultant named Renante Gamara was nabbed by the PNP, or Philippine National Police CIDG-NCR (Criminal Investigation and Detection Group from PRO, or Police Regional Office National Capital Region). He and a friend, Santiago Balleta, were talking outside a mall parking garage when eight plain clothes opetatives quickly bundled the pair into an SUV and sped away. A co-founder of the labor movement Kilusang Mayo Uno (May 1st Movement), he was involved in above board labor activism. Yet, he was atrrested by virtue of a May of 2007 warrant taken out in the municipality of Mauban, in Quezon Province. That warrant for murder, was sworn out against a John Doe with thirty nine aliases. Only on March 23rd, 2012 was the warrant ammended to included Gamara's name.
Clearly, the GPH-NDFP Peace Process was tottering on the edge of the abyss. Norway, the Facilitating entity, once again held out its hands to pull both Peace Panels back from danger. Inviting both Chairpersons, Alex Padilla for the GPH, and Luis Jalandoni for the NDFP. Each Chairperson brought two Panelists:
GPH
1) Efren Moncupa
2) Jurgette Honculada
NDFP
1) Fidel Agcaoili
2) Julieta de Lima
In addition, each Panel brought two Consultants:
GPH
1) Paulyn "Meiling" Paredes Sicam, journalist and peace activist who in 1987 helped found the "Coalition for Peace" after the GPH-NDFP Peace Process hit its initial impasse under President Aquino's mother Corazon. Then, in the early 90s Ms.Sicam became the Commisioner on Human Rights, filling in when the previous Commissioner became Ombudsman. In February of 2005 then President Arroyo plucked her from relative obscurity and gave her aseat on the Peace Panel in the GPH (at that time it was "GRP," for "Government of the Republicof the Philippines)-NDFP Peace Process. When that track stalled out just a couple of months later, Ms.Sicam sank back into obscurity. Still, when the GPH Peace Panel was re-constituted, she was offered a consultancy and as we see, accepted it.
n2) Maria Carla Villarta, Director of the GPH Peace Panel Secetariat.
NDFP
1) Jose Maria "Joma" Sison, Political Consultant. Joma of course is the founder of the CPP, NPA, and NDFP and remains the movement's chief ideologue
2) Rachel F.Pastores, Legal Consultant, Director of the Public Interest Law Center and highly visible on the above board left in Metro Manila.
In addition, former Senator Wigberto "Bobby" Ebarle Tanada Sr. was there by invitation of the GPH Peace Panel. Tanada, usually referred to as "Ka Bobby" (Comrade Bobby), at least by his admiring colleagues on the Philippine Left. Tanada's father, Lorenzo "Tanny" Martinez Tanada, the Philippines' longest serving senator, is an iconic figure for both the above board Left, or in Philippine speak, "Legal Left, as well as the Nationalist Right. In 1978 Lorenzo became the General Campaign Manager for LABAN (the acronym means "Fight" but stands for "Lakas ng Bayan," or "Strength of the People").
That year was a pivotal year for the opposition to then dictator Ferdinand Marcos. In April the Congressional Election was beset by loud accusations of ballot rigging. Lorenzo was at the forefront of nearly 500 demonstrators who mobbed the Batasang Pambansa, as the Congressional Building in Metro Manila's Quezon City is known. That role earned Lorenzo an arrest by the AFP, or Armed Forces of the Philippines. 1978 was the beginning of the end for Marcos and his henchmen. In 1985 Lorenzo went on to co-found Bagong Alyansa Makabayan (The New Patriotic Alliance).
Wigberto did not fall very far from the tree. Serving first as a Senator, and then as a Congressman representing the Fourth District of Quezon Province. In 2001 Wigberto attempted to regain his Senatorial seat but lost and thereafter has devoted his time to his lawfirm and to his executive leadership position in a concrete manufacturing concern. In 2004, his son Lorenzo "Erin" Reyes Tanada III assume that same Congressional seat in 2004. In the Philippines, even the Left is dominated by wealthy political dynasties.
Wigiberto Tanada recommended to both Peace Panels that one way in which to possibly build momentum might be to finally implenent a bilateral document entitled "Joint Agreement in Support of Socio-Economic Projects of Private Development Organizations," though both sides would essentially be starting from scratch since any NGOs willing to participate in this scheme when it was signed would have probably jumped ship during the fourteen year interim. Moreover, although both sides did sign it, neither one ever ratified it. Ergo, seeing as how CASER has become bogged down in perphreal issues-like JASIG-why would anyone imagine that the two Peace Panels now attempt to wade into yet ANOTHER Joint Agreement? Tanada should stick to concrete and leave absolutely crucial political dynamics alone.
With the conclusion of the two day meeting came more vague pronouncements about the need to meet again. With JASIG going nowhere, that is not likely to happen.
The two Peace Panels last met, or rather the ONLY time they have met since the Process began again, was in February of 2011 (see "GPH-NDFP Peace Process for the First Quarter of 2011"). There were smiles, hand shakes and guffaws enough to go around, but nothing was really acccomplished. Of course, after a half decade of inactivity all that really mattered was that the two sides were in fact talking. Both sides agreed that the first item to be tackled would be CASER, or the Comprehensive Agreement on Socio-Economic Reforms. June of 2011 was set for the next Formal Round, at which point each side's RCW, or Reciprocal Working Committee (RCW-SER, or RCW on Socio-Economic Reform) would present their product, the Panels would then compare them, revise them, and send them back to the mill for a September of 2011 delivery date. At that point, CASER would be signed and the next CA, or Comprehensive Agreement would go to the mat.
Not long after the February Formal Round however, the NDFP threw a hissy fit over the continued incarceration, and GPH inactivity over, NDFP Peace Panel Consultants. JASIG, or the Joint Agreement on Safety and Immunuty Guarantees is a 1995 bilateral agreement that ostensibly protects declared NDFP Peace Panel Consultants. Per JASIG, (JASIG Supplemental signed on June 26th, 1996), Consultants are issued ID documents under pseudonyms in order to facilitate travel in relation to their duties vis a vis the Peace Process. The NDFP is obligated to furnish a list of pseudonyms and their ID numbers, while maintaining a masterlist upon which each pseudonym is linked to a Consultant's legal name. In addition, a photograph of each Consultant was to be included. The identifying documents and photos were stored in a bank safety deposit box in Utrecht, the Dutch city that serves as the CPP/NPA/NDFP capital in exile.
After that Formal Round in February of 2011, the JASIG issue came to a head as the Government called the NDFP's bluff, asking it to prove its claims about listed incarcerated personalities being JASIG protected. On a cold winter's day, representatives from both sides met at the bank in question, in the presence of a representative from the Norwegian Government, the Facilitating entity in the Peace Process, as well as the Archbishop of Utrecht. When the envelope was opened not only were there no photos, but the masterlist was contained on floppy discs, having been compiled in 1996.
When the group attempted to verify the contents of the discs they found nothing but undecipherable gibberish. The NDFP muttered something about corrupted files while the Government clicked its heels and did a jig.
Naturally the Government was elated and rubbed the NDFP's face in it. Whereas the Government might have taken the high road and offered a conciliatory gesture, say, releasing five of the then eighteen "Consultants," and labeled it a Good Will Gesture, it simply belittled the NDFP for trying to hoodwink the "Philippine people," as if any Government has ever represented anyone but the rich antd powerful. The NDFP then had no choice but to throw up its blood soaked hands and cry foul.
The next Formal Round, as noted, had been scheduled for June of 2011 but ended up scrapped over the JASIG brouhaha. On September 6th, 2011, as the window for the signing of CASER closed, the Norwegian Ambassador to the Philippines, Knut Solem, brought each Peace Panel's Chairperson-Alexander "Alex" Padilla for the GPH and Luis Jalandoni for the NDFP-together at his Residence in Makati for an informal tet a tet in an attempt to break the then 7 month impasse. While the day went smoothly, it failed to do much of anything. Indeed, the Peace Process was once again dead in the water until NDFP Consultant Jaime Soledad was re-arrested, an incident that counter-intuitively broke the stalemate.
Originally, Soledad had been arrested in March of 2008 after a cousin of his wife Clarita Luego Soledad lured the couple to Cavite on Luzon. At the time Soledad was the NPA's Secretary (top commander) of the Southern Leyte Front, a provincial wide unit, and held a seat on the EXCOM, or Executive Committee for Eastern Visayas. Nabbed on murder charges relating to a mass grave in his town of residence, Inopacan, in Leyte. The grave, one of many, was from the orgiastic purges instituted the late 1980s by the NPA after an uber-rapid expansion in both the NPA, and its political wing, the Communist Party of the Philippines, or CPP. This expansion led to paranoia about so called DPAs, or Deep Penetration Agents. The warrant, under a case eventually docketed as CC#262163 (Regional Trial Court Branch #32 in Manila) was based solely upon a single affadavit from an alleged survivor of the particular purge which led to the Inopacan Killing Field. According to the witness, Soledad figured prominently in what the CPP/NPA tend to call a "People's Court."
As a concession on the JASIG stalemate, the GPH Peace Panel, via former Panelist, attorney Pablo Sanidad, effected Soledad's release in July of 2011. The joy Soledad must have experienced was no doubt diminished greatly when, on May 2nd, 2012, he was re-arrested on murder charges. Needless to say, this did nothing to help break the impasse.
Then, a month before, on April 3rd, 2012, an NDFP Consultant named Renante Gamara was nabbed by the PNP, or Philippine National Police CIDG-NCR (Criminal Investigation and Detection Group from PRO, or Police Regional Office National Capital Region). He and a friend, Santiago Balleta, were talking outside a mall parking garage when eight plain clothes opetatives quickly bundled the pair into an SUV and sped away. A co-founder of the labor movement Kilusang Mayo Uno (May 1st Movement), he was involved in above board labor activism. Yet, he was atrrested by virtue of a May of 2007 warrant taken out in the municipality of Mauban, in Quezon Province. That warrant for murder, was sworn out against a John Doe with thirty nine aliases. Only on March 23rd, 2012 was the warrant ammended to included Gamara's name.
Clearly, the GPH-NDFP Peace Process was tottering on the edge of the abyss. Norway, the Facilitating entity, once again held out its hands to pull both Peace Panels back from danger. Inviting both Chairpersons, Alex Padilla for the GPH, and Luis Jalandoni for the NDFP. Each Chairperson brought two Panelists:
GPH
1) Efren Moncupa
2) Jurgette Honculada
NDFP
1) Fidel Agcaoili
2) Julieta de Lima
In addition, each Panel brought two Consultants:
GPH
1) Paulyn "Meiling" Paredes Sicam, journalist and peace activist who in 1987 helped found the "Coalition for Peace" after the GPH-NDFP Peace Process hit its initial impasse under President Aquino's mother Corazon. Then, in the early 90s Ms.Sicam became the Commisioner on Human Rights, filling in when the previous Commissioner became Ombudsman. In February of 2005 then President Arroyo plucked her from relative obscurity and gave her aseat on the Peace Panel in the GPH (at that time it was "GRP," for "Government of the Republicof the Philippines)-NDFP Peace Process. When that track stalled out just a couple of months later, Ms.Sicam sank back into obscurity. Still, when the GPH Peace Panel was re-constituted, she was offered a consultancy and as we see, accepted it.
n2) Maria Carla Villarta, Director of the GPH Peace Panel Secetariat.
NDFP
1) Jose Maria "Joma" Sison, Political Consultant. Joma of course is the founder of the CPP, NPA, and NDFP and remains the movement's chief ideologue
2) Rachel F.Pastores, Legal Consultant, Director of the Public Interest Law Center and highly visible on the above board left in Metro Manila.
In addition, former Senator Wigberto "Bobby" Ebarle Tanada Sr. was there by invitation of the GPH Peace Panel. Tanada, usually referred to as "Ka Bobby" (Comrade Bobby), at least by his admiring colleagues on the Philippine Left. Tanada's father, Lorenzo "Tanny" Martinez Tanada, the Philippines' longest serving senator, is an iconic figure for both the above board Left, or in Philippine speak, "Legal Left, as well as the Nationalist Right. In 1978 Lorenzo became the General Campaign Manager for LABAN (the acronym means "Fight" but stands for "Lakas ng Bayan," or "Strength of the People").
That year was a pivotal year for the opposition to then dictator Ferdinand Marcos. In April the Congressional Election was beset by loud accusations of ballot rigging. Lorenzo was at the forefront of nearly 500 demonstrators who mobbed the Batasang Pambansa, as the Congressional Building in Metro Manila's Quezon City is known. That role earned Lorenzo an arrest by the AFP, or Armed Forces of the Philippines. 1978 was the beginning of the end for Marcos and his henchmen. In 1985 Lorenzo went on to co-found Bagong Alyansa Makabayan (The New Patriotic Alliance).
Wigberto did not fall very far from the tree. Serving first as a Senator, and then as a Congressman representing the Fourth District of Quezon Province. In 2001 Wigberto attempted to regain his Senatorial seat but lost and thereafter has devoted his time to his lawfirm and to his executive leadership position in a concrete manufacturing concern. In 2004, his son Lorenzo "Erin" Reyes Tanada III assume that same Congressional seat in 2004. In the Philippines, even the Left is dominated by wealthy political dynasties.
Wigiberto Tanada recommended to both Peace Panels that one way in which to possibly build momentum might be to finally implenent a bilateral document entitled "Joint Agreement in Support of Socio-Economic Projects of Private Development Organizations," though both sides would essentially be starting from scratch since any NGOs willing to participate in this scheme when it was signed would have probably jumped ship during the fourteen year interim. Moreover, although both sides did sign it, neither one ever ratified it. Ergo, seeing as how CASER has become bogged down in perphreal issues-like JASIG-why would anyone imagine that the two Peace Panels now attempt to wade into yet ANOTHER Joint Agreement? Tanada should stick to concrete and leave absolutely crucial political dynamics alone.
With the conclusion of the two day meeting came more vague pronouncements about the need to meet again. With JASIG going nowhere, that is not likely to happen.
Friday, June 22, 2012
Kidnap for Ransom for the Second Quarter of 2012, Part VI: Mayor Jeffrey Tan Lim of Salug
The Lim Clan on the Zamboanga Peninsula are one of Mindanao's most storied political dynasties. Migrating like so many Tsinoy, or Filipinos of Chinese descent, from China's Fujian Province, by way of Pagasinan on Luzon, the clan patriarch settled in Zamboanga City. It was his grandson, Luis G. Lim who became the peninsula's first civilian governor in 1914. His nephew, Roseller T. Lim, the man responsible for dividing the peninsula into two provinces, Zamboanga del Norte, and Zamboanga del Sur, is perhaps the peninsula's best know historical figure. The Lim Clan's presence on the Zamboangan political stage continues into the present.
The municipality of Salug, in Zamboanga del Norte Province, began life as an isolated sitio in what was then the municipality of Sindanngan's Barangay Liloy. Liloy became a full fledged town itself in 1951, within which Sitio Salug now became a barrio (the antecedent of today's "barangay"). Finally, Salug was itself emancipated as a full fledged municipality in 1979. The Lim Clan has played a significant role in the town since its creation. Current Mayor, Jeffrey Tan Lim, won election in 2010, suceeding his father, Jesus Nantes Lim. At age 36, Jeffrey Tan Lim was eager to make his own mark and come out from under his father's shadow.
The construction of a new municipal bus terminal in Barangay Poblacion was one accomplishment the new mayor was particularly fond of. In fact, most evenings found the Mayor and his immediate family enjoying their supper in one of the terminal's small eateries. After all, the terminal sits a mere 200 meters from his office in the municipal hall. On April 2nd, 2012, Mayor Lim had just enjoyed an afternoon tennis match with some longtime friends of his and was returning to the municipal hall to shower and change before once again joining his wife and children for a late evening supper in the bus terminal.
At just past 7PM a yellow minivan came to a stop in front of Mayor Lim. A man wearing camoflauge pants and a blue tshirt bearing the word "Pulis" (police) dismounted from the truck and quickly approached the Mayor. Carrying a manila folder the man then tersely informed him that he was serving an arrest warrant on him and warned Mayor Lim not to resist. Shocked, but in full possesion of his faculties, Mayor Lim asked to examine the warrant, saying he was going to confer with his own MPO, or Municipal Police Office. The "police officer" serving the warrant then gave a hand signal, at which point the four men in identical attire dismounted from the van and quickly moved in, grabbing Lim who was only then subdued after a fierce, albeit short struggle.
Naturally, word immediately reached the municipal hall, after all, three townspeople had been walking past Lim when it happened. A flurry of calls were made trying to ascertain the nature of the supposed arrest warrant. By the time Lim's colleagues realised that there was no warrant, the multicab had made its way into the town's Barangay Mucas where it quickly discharged Lim and his captors before it sped off into Barangay Caracol where it was burned as a diversion.
Dragged aboard one of two idling white pumpboats, Lim and his captors skirted the coast past the adjacent municipality of Labson, before veering off coast towards Sacol Island, an offshore territory belonging to Zamboanga City. Although Mayor Lim was undoubtedly clueless, he had become the latest KFR, or Kidnap for Ransom victim of the BIAF 113 Base Command. The BIAF, or Bangsamoro Islamic Armed Forces, are the armed wing of the MILF. Because the MILF provides precious little material support to the military wing, the nineteen Base Commands, analogous to a "brigade" in a conventional armed force, have had to become creative with regard to fund raising. The 113 Base Command, with operational control over the entire Zamboanga Peninsula, except for Zamboanga City, has become the leading Base Command in the KFR Industry. Ironically, the 113's overall commander, Alroy Alsree, was close to Lim when the Mayor was growing up. As luck would have it, Alsree died a week later of natural causes and Lim's existence became that much more precarious.
Mayor Lim had been kidnapped by a subordinate of Alsree's, sub-Kumander Latip "Rajamuda" Jamat, and Jamat's second in command, Latip Tatutan. Taken to Sacol Island Lim was then sold to the BIAF 114 Base Command which in turn transported Mayor Lim to Basilan Province. Once on Basilan, an island 17 kilometers off of Zamboanga City, Lim was transported to Barangay Baiwas in the municipality of Sumisip. There he was sold to the ASG, or Abu Sayyaf Group, and its leading faction on Basilan, that of Kumander Puruji Indama.
After being purchased by ASG Lim was seen in tandem with Australian KFR victim, Warren Rodwell, though the two were soon seperated to prevent the loss of both captives in the face of AFP, or Armed Forces of the Philippines "rescue operations."
The municipality of Salug, in Zamboanga del Norte Province, began life as an isolated sitio in what was then the municipality of Sindanngan's Barangay Liloy. Liloy became a full fledged town itself in 1951, within which Sitio Salug now became a barrio (the antecedent of today's "barangay"). Finally, Salug was itself emancipated as a full fledged municipality in 1979. The Lim Clan has played a significant role in the town since its creation. Current Mayor, Jeffrey Tan Lim, won election in 2010, suceeding his father, Jesus Nantes Lim. At age 36, Jeffrey Tan Lim was eager to make his own mark and come out from under his father's shadow.
The construction of a new municipal bus terminal in Barangay Poblacion was one accomplishment the new mayor was particularly fond of. In fact, most evenings found the Mayor and his immediate family enjoying their supper in one of the terminal's small eateries. After all, the terminal sits a mere 200 meters from his office in the municipal hall. On April 2nd, 2012, Mayor Lim had just enjoyed an afternoon tennis match with some longtime friends of his and was returning to the municipal hall to shower and change before once again joining his wife and children for a late evening supper in the bus terminal.
At just past 7PM a yellow minivan came to a stop in front of Mayor Lim. A man wearing camoflauge pants and a blue tshirt bearing the word "Pulis" (police) dismounted from the truck and quickly approached the Mayor. Carrying a manila folder the man then tersely informed him that he was serving an arrest warrant on him and warned Mayor Lim not to resist. Shocked, but in full possesion of his faculties, Mayor Lim asked to examine the warrant, saying he was going to confer with his own MPO, or Municipal Police Office. The "police officer" serving the warrant then gave a hand signal, at which point the four men in identical attire dismounted from the van and quickly moved in, grabbing Lim who was only then subdued after a fierce, albeit short struggle.
Naturally, word immediately reached the municipal hall, after all, three townspeople had been walking past Lim when it happened. A flurry of calls were made trying to ascertain the nature of the supposed arrest warrant. By the time Lim's colleagues realised that there was no warrant, the multicab had made its way into the town's Barangay Mucas where it quickly discharged Lim and his captors before it sped off into Barangay Caracol where it was burned as a diversion.
Dragged aboard one of two idling white pumpboats, Lim and his captors skirted the coast past the adjacent municipality of Labson, before veering off coast towards Sacol Island, an offshore territory belonging to Zamboanga City. Although Mayor Lim was undoubtedly clueless, he had become the latest KFR, or Kidnap for Ransom victim of the BIAF 113 Base Command. The BIAF, or Bangsamoro Islamic Armed Forces, are the armed wing of the MILF. Because the MILF provides precious little material support to the military wing, the nineteen Base Commands, analogous to a "brigade" in a conventional armed force, have had to become creative with regard to fund raising. The 113 Base Command, with operational control over the entire Zamboanga Peninsula, except for Zamboanga City, has become the leading Base Command in the KFR Industry. Ironically, the 113's overall commander, Alroy Alsree, was close to Lim when the Mayor was growing up. As luck would have it, Alsree died a week later of natural causes and Lim's existence became that much more precarious.
Mayor Lim had been kidnapped by a subordinate of Alsree's, sub-Kumander Latip "Rajamuda" Jamat, and Jamat's second in command, Latip Tatutan. Taken to Sacol Island Lim was then sold to the BIAF 114 Base Command which in turn transported Mayor Lim to Basilan Province. Once on Basilan, an island 17 kilometers off of Zamboanga City, Lim was transported to Barangay Baiwas in the municipality of Sumisip. There he was sold to the ASG, or Abu Sayyaf Group, and its leading faction on Basilan, that of Kumander Puruji Indama.
After being purchased by ASG Lim was seen in tandem with Australian KFR victim, Warren Rodwell, though the two were soon seperated to prevent the loss of both captives in the face of AFP, or Armed Forces of the Philippines "rescue operations."
Kidnap for Ransom for the Second Quarter of 2012, Part III: Jordanian Journalist Baker Abdullah Atyani, Part 2
The choice to use Mayor Alvarez Isnaji of Indanan as negotiator had not been made by sub-Kumander Sulayman "Abu Haris" Patta. Although Professor Octavio Dinampo, Philippine newsanchor Ces Orena Drilon and her two man crew were held in Abu Haris's camp, Haris himself served under Gafur Jumdail (his name is often mangled by the shoddy Philippine media hacks as "Gapur Jundain"), who had laid claim to the jungle covered badlands lying between the iconic Bud Daho and Matanding Hill, two extinct volcanos. This forbidding expanse, known to the AFP, or Armed Forces of the Philippines as the Karawan Complex, a sector in which five of the island's municipalities converge. Jumdail, in turn, served as the right hand man to his brother, Kumander Gumbahali "Dr. Abu Pula" Umbra Jumdail, the leader of a strong faction within the ASG, or Abu Sayyaf Group. It was Gumbahali Jumdail, a veteran of the MNLF, who opted to use his well respected superior in the MNLF, Alvarez Isnaji.
Mayor Isnaji's son, Haider "Jun" Isnaji was quite close to several members of ASG serving under Abu Haris, the ASG minion charged with actually capturing and holding Ces Drilon and her three companions. In fact three of his cousins were among the kidnappers. Initially Drilon saw Isnaji as an ally, even a savior when-from Drilon's perspective-Isnaji intervened to save Drilon's cameraman Angelo Valderrama from what she believed to be certain decapitation. Although Drilon has presented herself as having been incredibly stoic and firmly resolute during her ordeal, the truth of the matter is, she remained on the verge of hysteria throught most of her captivity. When, on June 11th, her captor's opening ransom demand quickly devolved into Abu Haris reeling in a murderous rage, it was Isnaji whom Drilon begged to intervene.
Drilon had been speaking with her family's chosen negotiator, the Vice Governor of Sulu Province, Lady Anne Sahidula, and per ASG insistence, had had the call on the phone's loudspeaker. Responding to ASG's opening gambit of P20Million ($400,000), Vice Governor Sahidula explained that Drilon's family could only afford P2 Million ($40,000). Abu Haris had been listening intently, struggling to follow the conversation in Tagalog, a language rarely spoken fluently south of Luzon. Upon hearing that Drilon, the captive he had hoped would provide the lionsshare of the colkective ransom, could only generate a paltry P2 Million, he ordered his men to drag Drilon's two man crew-Angelo Valderrama and Jimmy Encarnacion-through the mud before having them kneel back to back. While screaming that he was going to have all four captives killed, he had the two men tied to one another, by their wrists. Now much calmer, but much more menacingly, Abu Haris told Drilon quite matter of factly, that if the entire ransom of P20 Million ($40,000) was not received by 2PM the following day, June 12th, Angelo Valderrama would be decapitated. As Ces Drilon once again slipped into hysteria one of the guerillas standing next to crew member Jimmy Encarnacion looked leeringly at Drilon and advised her to do her makeup so that she would look her best when her loved ones opened up the box containing her severed head.
After several minutes the fourth captive, Professor Octavio Dinampo, himself a Tausug like their captors, warned Drilon that if they did not do something quickly, Angelo Valderrama would certainly die. He quickly explained that in Tausug culture consensus ranks all important so that, having made a definitive threat, Abu Haris could not renege even if he wanted to. Because a consensus had been reached on that issue, it was now entirely out of his hands. Dinampo recommended that they make an acceptable counter-offer along the lines of something much more attractive than the aforementioned P2 Million serving as an advance payment on the P20 Million total. Dinampo recommended offering P10 Million in exchange for the release of one of the captives, and barring the delivery of that amount, accepting P5 Million to extend the deadline. This would allow Abu Haris to save face if he called off the 2PM deadline.
Drilon quickly nodded in agreement and Dinampo approached Abu Haris. Returning to Drilon's side he informed her that Abu Haris had agreed to discuss the counter-offer with his men and if the managed to reach another consensus on the issue, he would let Dinampo know.
As the sun sank below the horizon both Jimmy Encarnacion and Angelo Valderrama were led to seperate hammocks with one arm tied to one of the supporting trees. Dinampo and Drilon could do nothing more, so both watched and waited. Just after 9PM Abu Haris approached the plastic tarp where Dinampo and Drilon were laying restlessly. Grinning from ear to ear, Abu Haris informed the two that a consensus had been reached. A minimum downpayment of P5 Million ($100,000) would forstall Valderrama's impending decapitation. Drilon was handed a cellphone and instructed to make the ransom arrangements. Afraid that Vice Govenor Sahidullah's involvement might cause Abu Haris to once again become enraged, Drilon adressed the Vice Governor as "sister" and stated in no uncetrtain terms that P5 Million needed to be delivered to Mayor Isnaji Alvarez by 2PM the following afternoon.
That evening, Drilon's brother Frank left Manila aboard a private jet carrying a duffel bag with P5 Million ($100,000). Landing in Jolo City at just after 2AM he was met by Vice Governor Sahidullah and Senior Superintendent (SSupt) Winnie Quidato, who presented himself as pointman for the DILG, or Department of the Interior and Local Government. Frank got a quick update and handed off the money before climbing back aboard the jet for his flight home to Manila. Vice Governor Sahidullah and SSupt.Quidato then made their way to the municipality of Indanan where the money was given to Mayor Isnaji. It took Isnaji several hours to communicate receipt of the money but when he did, he explained that of the P5 Million earmarked for ASG, P2 Million would be needed to pay off a host of important personalities, including Vice Governor Sahidullah. An additional P1 Million was being taken by Isnaji himself, as his "commission." After all, he had just begun a costly run for the Governorship of the ARMM, or Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao. Factional leader Gumbahali Jumdail was in no position to argue, he had just received an effortless P1 Million for himself, and another to be divvied up by his brother Gafur and Abu Haris.
The next day, at 140PM, Abu Haris informed Drilon and Dinampo that Valderrama would not be dying. An hour later, barely able to contain himself, Haris again approached Dilon and informed her that the ransom was already with Mayor Isnaji and that he had been instructed to release Angelo Valderrama as a "present." That evening, as the guerillas celebrated their good fortune, Valderrama said his emotional goodbyes to his colleagues and Professor Dinampo. At just past midnite, June 13th, when Abu Haris and twelve of his men began escorting Valderrama out of the jungle. At 830PM that night, Valderrama was handed off to Mayor Isnaji's son Haider in the municipality of Talipao's Barangay Sinumaan. Taken to Isnaji's compound in Indanan, he was fed a good meal and then passed to the PPO-Sulu, or Police Provincial Office for Sulu Province for the requisite medical exam and debriefing.
Back in the Karawan Complex, the three remaining captives sat uneasily, the joy of Valderrama's release had quickly evaporated, if it had ever touched them at all. Still, with only ten guerrilas in the camp, and their leader gone, there was a more relaxing atmosphere, though "relaxing" is about as misplaced adjective as one could imagine. Whatever good cheer might have been had was hopelessly out of reach when, on the next day, June 14th, Abu Haris led his column of guerilas back into camp. When the group returned they joyfully passed out what amounted to six months wages there abouts, but even the guerillas' good cheer was fleeting as Abu Haris immediately gave the order to break camp.
As the guerillas began packing Abu Haris approached the three captives, now being kept together, and informed them that if at least half of the remaining P15 Million ($300,000) in outstanding ransom money was not delivered by June 16th, one of the three captives would be beheaded. Once again Ces Drilon segued from highly emotional into outright hysteria, causing a dismayed Abu Haris to add that Mayor Isnaji had requested, as a concession, that the deadline be extended until June 17th, and so it had been arranged.
As it turned out, the new encampment has a mere 30 minutes downhill, on the western slope of Matanding Hill, and after quickly settling in, Abu Harris rounded up the ten guerillas who had left behind when Angelo Valderrama had been released. They were now being given the same opportunity to quickly visit their home and distribute their share of the ransom to their loved ones.
The new camp consisted of "nipas," bamboo framed huts with palmleaf thatched walls. However, they lacked roofs and so once again, plastic tarps were spread over head to protect the captives from the elements. As if waiting for the new deadline of June 16th to pass was not difficult enough, on June 14th, the three captives had awoken to a lengthly mortar barrage as the AFP's 81MM mortar shells rained down upon an MNLF-EC15 (Executive Council of 15) came in the municipality of Indanan's Barangay Siyunugan. Of 25 rounds that dropped that morning in Sitio Timaho, four made direct hits on residential homes, wounding five civilians in addition to an undetermined number of MNLF guerillas:
1) Sitti Bia Bahara
2) Merna Abon
3) Wawan Ibni
4) Apa Atan
5) Ismael Idja
In addition, all of the nearly 200 families living in the sitio were made into "Bakwits," Philippine speak for "IDPs," or Internally Displaced Persons...refugees. MNLF-EC15 Kumander Sumimpal Khanain correctly noted that ASG stayed wel clear of his camp, and indeed, was rarely seen on that side of Bud Kapok, the dormant volcano upon which the camp sits. The AFP engaged in alot of double talk, claiming intermittingly that it was merely a drill...a long planned push for the year old OPlan Ultimatim...a surgical strike aiming to neutralize Jemayah Islamiyyah, or JI bombmaker Umar Patek...anything, as long as it wasnt the truth. In fact, it was a punative response aimed at Mayor Alvarez Isnaji, the highest ranking MNLF-EC15 figure in Sulu Province. The pointman for the DILG? SSupt.Winnie Quidato? He was actually a PNP, or Philippine National Police intelligence operative. During the delivery of the initial P5 Million,
Quidato had amassed enough circumstantial evidence to convince his superiors that Isnaji was neck deep in the Drilon KFR. The mortar volley on Bud Kapok was Isnaji's wakeup cal
As if a mortar attack isnt a miserable enough way to be woken up, after finally getting some much needed sleep later in the day, Drilon and her two companions were angrily woken up by screaming guerillas who accused them of mounting an escape attempt. Conditions worsened considerably when Drilon and her remaining crew member, Jimmy Encarnacion, each had their wrists tied together, with Encarnacion's wrists tied behind his back.
On June 16th the day began with the guerillas threatening to decapitate Jimmy Encarnacion and giving Drilon the phone, instructing her to contact her family for the next installment of the ransom. Instead Drilon called Senator Loren Legarda. The Senator, an opportunist if ever one existed, had obtained Drilon's cellphone number from Senator Franklin Drilon, related to Ces by her husband. Gaining the number, Legarda began texting Ces and so, just as she had with Mayor Alvarez Isnaji, Drilon began her over-reliance on yet another self-serving politician.
At just before noon Jimmy Encarnacion was prepared for beheading while Ces Drilon was once again instructed to pgone her family for an update on the ransom installment. Again Drilon sureptitiously phoned Senator Legarda and earned a hard slap in the face for her troubles. Drilon hit the floor hard, crying and moaning, she witnessed Jimmy being beaten with the stock of an M16. As Jimmy cried, begging for his life, the cellphone Drilon had just used began ringing. The guerilla that answered the call listened carefully, ended the call and began lauging joyously as he informed the shocked captives they were being released.
Unbeknownst to Ces Drilon and her fellow captives, while she had made her first phone call to Senator Legarda that motning, two duffel bags, each containing P7.5 Million ($175,000) had been leaving Manila aboard private jet. In Zamboanga City the bags were transferred to a chartered Southeast Asian Airlines (Seair) flight to Jolo City, in order to circumvent the extra-heavy media attention that could easily derail the ransom payoff. More to the point, Drilon's very high public profile had the Government extremely nervous over its "No Ransom Policy." Officialy, it is illegal to pay a ransom. Unofficialy, noone really cares EXCEPT when the media gets yet another golden opportunity to showcase Government hypocrisy. When the chartered plane landed in Jolo City the PNP Aviation Services Group was highly suscpicious seeing as how a charteted airline devoid of passengers had just landed and refiled a Flight Plan with almost no turn around time.
The PNP searched the plane and of course quickly discovered the two unaccompanied duffelbags full of cash. As the police prepared to steal...I mean "seize" the money, local attorney Nasser Inawat stepped forward inside the airport terminal with a written order from Vice Governor Sahidullah and was handed both bags. Inawat, a fomer member of the ARMM CLA (Consultative Regional Assembly) then delivered the money to Mayor Isnaji. Though he surely would have wished to do otherwise, Isnaji was now compelled by the ASG to turn over all the cash, his commision having been covered already.
Ces Drilon, Jimmy Encarnacion, and Professor Octavio Dinampo ended their nine day sojourn with a five hour walk into the municipality of Talipao's Barangay Kagay. There, Vice Governor Sahidullah accompanied disheveled but ecstatic Drilon and her companions to the Isnaji compound in Indanan. Fed, bathed and given a bed to sleep in, the three along with their hosts, Alvarez Isnaji and his son Haider, were driven into Jolo City very early the next morning and from there took an AFP Huey (UH-1H helicopter) to Zamboanga City. Professor Dinampo left them there and Drilon and Encarnacion boarded a private jet bound for Manila with the Isnajis
The Isnajis were arrested after two days of interrogation at PNP Headquarters, Camp Crame. By October everyone of the eight young men who initially took custody of Ces Drilon and her companions had been arrested but so what? aged.14 through 21, the most educated among them had a fifth grade education. less than P1,000 ($20) each, their lives were ruined by those tasked with leading them...people like Mayor Alvarez Isnaji. Isnaji and his son just had their cases re-filed on Money Laundering charges, after escaping the more serious Kidnapping charges but alas, I will have to get to that sordid tale in a "Political Developments" entry.
The operative lesson here is that a journalist, Ces Drilon, thought herself entirely above the fray. Even after being warned not to do so by her superior Ms.Drilon still saw fit to endanger her crew in hopes of sticking another feather into her cap. Her employer, the Manila-based network, ABS-CBN, merely gave her a 90 day suspension...while milking her faux paux for all it was worth in the ratings. The scary thing? Ces Drilon was the THIRD case of an interview with the ASG turned into a big money KFR. Just this month, June of 2012, four years almost to the day, yet another journalist thought themselves above the fray. In "Part 3" I will discuss that ongoing abduction.
Mayor Isnaji's son, Haider "Jun" Isnaji was quite close to several members of ASG serving under Abu Haris, the ASG minion charged with actually capturing and holding Ces Drilon and her three companions. In fact three of his cousins were among the kidnappers. Initially Drilon saw Isnaji as an ally, even a savior when-from Drilon's perspective-Isnaji intervened to save Drilon's cameraman Angelo Valderrama from what she believed to be certain decapitation. Although Drilon has presented herself as having been incredibly stoic and firmly resolute during her ordeal, the truth of the matter is, she remained on the verge of hysteria throught most of her captivity. When, on June 11th, her captor's opening ransom demand quickly devolved into Abu Haris reeling in a murderous rage, it was Isnaji whom Drilon begged to intervene.
Drilon had been speaking with her family's chosen negotiator, the Vice Governor of Sulu Province, Lady Anne Sahidula, and per ASG insistence, had had the call on the phone's loudspeaker. Responding to ASG's opening gambit of P20Million ($400,000), Vice Governor Sahidula explained that Drilon's family could only afford P2 Million ($40,000). Abu Haris had been listening intently, struggling to follow the conversation in Tagalog, a language rarely spoken fluently south of Luzon. Upon hearing that Drilon, the captive he had hoped would provide the lionsshare of the colkective ransom, could only generate a paltry P2 Million, he ordered his men to drag Drilon's two man crew-Angelo Valderrama and Jimmy Encarnacion-through the mud before having them kneel back to back. While screaming that he was going to have all four captives killed, he had the two men tied to one another, by their wrists. Now much calmer, but much more menacingly, Abu Haris told Drilon quite matter of factly, that if the entire ransom of P20 Million ($40,000) was not received by 2PM the following day, June 12th, Angelo Valderrama would be decapitated. As Ces Drilon once again slipped into hysteria one of the guerillas standing next to crew member Jimmy Encarnacion looked leeringly at Drilon and advised her to do her makeup so that she would look her best when her loved ones opened up the box containing her severed head.
After several minutes the fourth captive, Professor Octavio Dinampo, himself a Tausug like their captors, warned Drilon that if they did not do something quickly, Angelo Valderrama would certainly die. He quickly explained that in Tausug culture consensus ranks all important so that, having made a definitive threat, Abu Haris could not renege even if he wanted to. Because a consensus had been reached on that issue, it was now entirely out of his hands. Dinampo recommended that they make an acceptable counter-offer along the lines of something much more attractive than the aforementioned P2 Million serving as an advance payment on the P20 Million total. Dinampo recommended offering P10 Million in exchange for the release of one of the captives, and barring the delivery of that amount, accepting P5 Million to extend the deadline. This would allow Abu Haris to save face if he called off the 2PM deadline.
Drilon quickly nodded in agreement and Dinampo approached Abu Haris. Returning to Drilon's side he informed her that Abu Haris had agreed to discuss the counter-offer with his men and if the managed to reach another consensus on the issue, he would let Dinampo know.
As the sun sank below the horizon both Jimmy Encarnacion and Angelo Valderrama were led to seperate hammocks with one arm tied to one of the supporting trees. Dinampo and Drilon could do nothing more, so both watched and waited. Just after 9PM Abu Haris approached the plastic tarp where Dinampo and Drilon were laying restlessly. Grinning from ear to ear, Abu Haris informed the two that a consensus had been reached. A minimum downpayment of P5 Million ($100,000) would forstall Valderrama's impending decapitation. Drilon was handed a cellphone and instructed to make the ransom arrangements. Afraid that Vice Govenor Sahidullah's involvement might cause Abu Haris to once again become enraged, Drilon adressed the Vice Governor as "sister" and stated in no uncetrtain terms that P5 Million needed to be delivered to Mayor Isnaji Alvarez by 2PM the following afternoon.
That evening, Drilon's brother Frank left Manila aboard a private jet carrying a duffel bag with P5 Million ($100,000). Landing in Jolo City at just after 2AM he was met by Vice Governor Sahidullah and Senior Superintendent (SSupt) Winnie Quidato, who presented himself as pointman for the DILG, or Department of the Interior and Local Government. Frank got a quick update and handed off the money before climbing back aboard the jet for his flight home to Manila. Vice Governor Sahidullah and SSupt.Quidato then made their way to the municipality of Indanan where the money was given to Mayor Isnaji. It took Isnaji several hours to communicate receipt of the money but when he did, he explained that of the P5 Million earmarked for ASG, P2 Million would be needed to pay off a host of important personalities, including Vice Governor Sahidullah. An additional P1 Million was being taken by Isnaji himself, as his "commission." After all, he had just begun a costly run for the Governorship of the ARMM, or Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao. Factional leader Gumbahali Jumdail was in no position to argue, he had just received an effortless P1 Million for himself, and another to be divvied up by his brother Gafur and Abu Haris.
The next day, at 140PM, Abu Haris informed Drilon and Dinampo that Valderrama would not be dying. An hour later, barely able to contain himself, Haris again approached Dilon and informed her that the ransom was already with Mayor Isnaji and that he had been instructed to release Angelo Valderrama as a "present." That evening, as the guerillas celebrated their good fortune, Valderrama said his emotional goodbyes to his colleagues and Professor Dinampo. At just past midnite, June 13th, when Abu Haris and twelve of his men began escorting Valderrama out of the jungle. At 830PM that night, Valderrama was handed off to Mayor Isnaji's son Haider in the municipality of Talipao's Barangay Sinumaan. Taken to Isnaji's compound in Indanan, he was fed a good meal and then passed to the PPO-Sulu, or Police Provincial Office for Sulu Province for the requisite medical exam and debriefing.
Back in the Karawan Complex, the three remaining captives sat uneasily, the joy of Valderrama's release had quickly evaporated, if it had ever touched them at all. Still, with only ten guerrilas in the camp, and their leader gone, there was a more relaxing atmosphere, though "relaxing" is about as misplaced adjective as one could imagine. Whatever good cheer might have been had was hopelessly out of reach when, on the next day, June 14th, Abu Haris led his column of guerilas back into camp. When the group returned they joyfully passed out what amounted to six months wages there abouts, but even the guerillas' good cheer was fleeting as Abu Haris immediately gave the order to break camp.
As the guerillas began packing Abu Haris approached the three captives, now being kept together, and informed them that if at least half of the remaining P15 Million ($300,000) in outstanding ransom money was not delivered by June 16th, one of the three captives would be beheaded. Once again Ces Drilon segued from highly emotional into outright hysteria, causing a dismayed Abu Haris to add that Mayor Isnaji had requested, as a concession, that the deadline be extended until June 17th, and so it had been arranged.
As it turned out, the new encampment has a mere 30 minutes downhill, on the western slope of Matanding Hill, and after quickly settling in, Abu Harris rounded up the ten guerillas who had left behind when Angelo Valderrama had been released. They were now being given the same opportunity to quickly visit their home and distribute their share of the ransom to their loved ones.
The new camp consisted of "nipas," bamboo framed huts with palmleaf thatched walls. However, they lacked roofs and so once again, plastic tarps were spread over head to protect the captives from the elements. As if waiting for the new deadline of June 16th to pass was not difficult enough, on June 14th, the three captives had awoken to a lengthly mortar barrage as the AFP's 81MM mortar shells rained down upon an MNLF-EC15 (Executive Council of 15) came in the municipality of Indanan's Barangay Siyunugan. Of 25 rounds that dropped that morning in Sitio Timaho, four made direct hits on residential homes, wounding five civilians in addition to an undetermined number of MNLF guerillas:
1) Sitti Bia Bahara
2) Merna Abon
3) Wawan Ibni
4) Apa Atan
5) Ismael Idja
In addition, all of the nearly 200 families living in the sitio were made into "Bakwits," Philippine speak for "IDPs," or Internally Displaced Persons...refugees. MNLF-EC15 Kumander Sumimpal Khanain correctly noted that ASG stayed wel clear of his camp, and indeed, was rarely seen on that side of Bud Kapok, the dormant volcano upon which the camp sits. The AFP engaged in alot of double talk, claiming intermittingly that it was merely a drill...a long planned push for the year old OPlan Ultimatim...a surgical strike aiming to neutralize Jemayah Islamiyyah, or JI bombmaker Umar Patek...anything, as long as it wasnt the truth. In fact, it was a punative response aimed at Mayor Alvarez Isnaji, the highest ranking MNLF-EC15 figure in Sulu Province. The pointman for the DILG? SSupt.Winnie Quidato? He was actually a PNP, or Philippine National Police intelligence operative. During the delivery of the initial P5 Million,
Quidato had amassed enough circumstantial evidence to convince his superiors that Isnaji was neck deep in the Drilon KFR. The mortar volley on Bud Kapok was Isnaji's wakeup cal
As if a mortar attack isnt a miserable enough way to be woken up, after finally getting some much needed sleep later in the day, Drilon and her two companions were angrily woken up by screaming guerillas who accused them of mounting an escape attempt. Conditions worsened considerably when Drilon and her remaining crew member, Jimmy Encarnacion, each had their wrists tied together, with Encarnacion's wrists tied behind his back.
On June 16th the day began with the guerillas threatening to decapitate Jimmy Encarnacion and giving Drilon the phone, instructing her to contact her family for the next installment of the ransom. Instead Drilon called Senator Loren Legarda. The Senator, an opportunist if ever one existed, had obtained Drilon's cellphone number from Senator Franklin Drilon, related to Ces by her husband. Gaining the number, Legarda began texting Ces and so, just as she had with Mayor Alvarez Isnaji, Drilon began her over-reliance on yet another self-serving politician.
At just before noon Jimmy Encarnacion was prepared for beheading while Ces Drilon was once again instructed to pgone her family for an update on the ransom installment. Again Drilon sureptitiously phoned Senator Legarda and earned a hard slap in the face for her troubles. Drilon hit the floor hard, crying and moaning, she witnessed Jimmy being beaten with the stock of an M16. As Jimmy cried, begging for his life, the cellphone Drilon had just used began ringing. The guerilla that answered the call listened carefully, ended the call and began lauging joyously as he informed the shocked captives they were being released.
Unbeknownst to Ces Drilon and her fellow captives, while she had made her first phone call to Senator Legarda that motning, two duffel bags, each containing P7.5 Million ($175,000) had been leaving Manila aboard private jet. In Zamboanga City the bags were transferred to a chartered Southeast Asian Airlines (Seair) flight to Jolo City, in order to circumvent the extra-heavy media attention that could easily derail the ransom payoff. More to the point, Drilon's very high public profile had the Government extremely nervous over its "No Ransom Policy." Officialy, it is illegal to pay a ransom. Unofficialy, noone really cares EXCEPT when the media gets yet another golden opportunity to showcase Government hypocrisy. When the chartered plane landed in Jolo City the PNP Aviation Services Group was highly suscpicious seeing as how a charteted airline devoid of passengers had just landed and refiled a Flight Plan with almost no turn around time.
The PNP searched the plane and of course quickly discovered the two unaccompanied duffelbags full of cash. As the police prepared to steal...I mean "seize" the money, local attorney Nasser Inawat stepped forward inside the airport terminal with a written order from Vice Governor Sahidullah and was handed both bags. Inawat, a fomer member of the ARMM CLA (Consultative Regional Assembly) then delivered the money to Mayor Isnaji. Though he surely would have wished to do otherwise, Isnaji was now compelled by the ASG to turn over all the cash, his commision having been covered already.
Ces Drilon, Jimmy Encarnacion, and Professor Octavio Dinampo ended their nine day sojourn with a five hour walk into the municipality of Talipao's Barangay Kagay. There, Vice Governor Sahidullah accompanied disheveled but ecstatic Drilon and her companions to the Isnaji compound in Indanan. Fed, bathed and given a bed to sleep in, the three along with their hosts, Alvarez Isnaji and his son Haider, were driven into Jolo City very early the next morning and from there took an AFP Huey (UH-1H helicopter) to Zamboanga City. Professor Dinampo left them there and Drilon and Encarnacion boarded a private jet bound for Manila with the Isnajis
The Isnajis were arrested after two days of interrogation at PNP Headquarters, Camp Crame. By October everyone of the eight young men who initially took custody of Ces Drilon and her companions had been arrested but so what? aged.14 through 21, the most educated among them had a fifth grade education. less than P1,000 ($20) each, their lives were ruined by those tasked with leading them...people like Mayor Alvarez Isnaji. Isnaji and his son just had their cases re-filed on Money Laundering charges, after escaping the more serious Kidnapping charges but alas, I will have to get to that sordid tale in a "Political Developments" entry.
The operative lesson here is that a journalist, Ces Drilon, thought herself entirely above the fray. Even after being warned not to do so by her superior Ms.Drilon still saw fit to endanger her crew in hopes of sticking another feather into her cap. Her employer, the Manila-based network, ABS-CBN, merely gave her a 90 day suspension...while milking her faux paux for all it was worth in the ratings. The scary thing? Ces Drilon was the THIRD case of an interview with the ASG turned into a big money KFR. Just this month, June of 2012, four years almost to the day, yet another journalist thought themselves above the fray. In "Part 3" I will discuss that ongoing abduction.
Thursday, June 21, 2012
Kidnap for Ransom for the Second Quarter of 2012, Part II: Justina Parian and Rona Parian
As far as dangerous occupations go, working as a money lender in the ARMM, or Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao, has got to be one of the jobs topping the list. Usury, an antiquated term meaning "lending money and profitting off of the interest," is about as despised by Muslims as selling lottery tickets is. However, despite many Filipino Muslims fantasizing about it, the ARMM is NOT entirely Muslim. The region's Christian and Animist residents do utilize the services of people like Ms.Parian.
Owing to the safety profile of her job, Justina was provided with an armed bodyguard while making collections, courtesy of the AFP (Armed Forces of the Philippines). Private First Class (Pfc) Regime "Rey" Jim Emerio, of the 6IB (Infantry Battalion) had no specialized training-just like all AFP security detail personnel-and was simply ordered to ride shotgun, in uniform, and carrying his 45 caliber service pistol. AFP security details are, like the rifle toting security guards outside all Philippine malls, a "feel good" measure designed to placate, not actually combat the very real dangers that are so overly abundant here on Mindanao.
On Friday, June 15th, 2012, Justina Parian asked her 22 year old daughter Rona to tag along to keep her company while she spent a long day in her Toyota Vios, driving along the entire length of the Lebak Cotabato City National Hiway. Bringing her infant daughter along, Rona joined her mother and Pfc.Emerio. After a long and uneventful day mother and daughter were returning to their home in the municipality of North Upi, in Maguindanao Province. As the group entered Barangay Kibucay in the adjacent town of Upi, Pfc.Emerio remarked that something just did not feel right. Reaching Kilometer #26 in Sitio Kibuncog, all hell broke loose as their vehicle was ambushed.
Twenty guerillas from the BIAF, or Bangsamoro Islamic Armed Forces, 105 Base Command pounded the vehicle with M16s and M14s but to their suprise Pfc.Emerio refused to fold, returning fire with his 45 caliber pistol. With Justina Parian cowering in the driver's seat, and Rona wailing in terror as she lay across her baby, Pfc.Emerio held on as long as he could until, finally, he ran out of ammunution.
Rushing the now defenseless vehicle one of the attackers used the butt of his rifle to smash open the front paasenger door, pointed the barrel of his M14 in Pfc.Emerio's face and squeezed off a three round burst, blowing most of Emerio's head off. On the opposite side another BIAF guerilla used his rifle to smash the Toyota's driver side window. Opening the door, he dragged Justina out of the vehicle. During the firefight Justina had taken a round directly in her foot and aside from her precarious emotional state, Justina's foot severely limited her mobility.
Leaving the hiway the guerillas moved one kilometer on an easterly vector, moving back towards the municipality of Guindulungan when a firefight with the 40IB (Infantry Battalion) killed one guerilla, Impaw Musa Datuayon, of Barangay Muti in Guindulungan. A second column from that same battalion entered the sector and after receiving word about it, the guerillas quickly abandoned Justina, and then withdrew after seperating into smal groups.
Justina, and Rona who was herself wounded in the head and foot, were both transported to a nearby hospital before being debriefed. Luckily, Rona's infant daughter emerged from the ordeal none the worse.
Owing to the safety profile of her job, Justina was provided with an armed bodyguard while making collections, courtesy of the AFP (Armed Forces of the Philippines). Private First Class (Pfc) Regime "Rey" Jim Emerio, of the 6IB (Infantry Battalion) had no specialized training-just like all AFP security detail personnel-and was simply ordered to ride shotgun, in uniform, and carrying his 45 caliber service pistol. AFP security details are, like the rifle toting security guards outside all Philippine malls, a "feel good" measure designed to placate, not actually combat the very real dangers that are so overly abundant here on Mindanao.
On Friday, June 15th, 2012, Justina Parian asked her 22 year old daughter Rona to tag along to keep her company while she spent a long day in her Toyota Vios, driving along the entire length of the Lebak Cotabato City National Hiway. Bringing her infant daughter along, Rona joined her mother and Pfc.Emerio. After a long and uneventful day mother and daughter were returning to their home in the municipality of North Upi, in Maguindanao Province. As the group entered Barangay Kibucay in the adjacent town of Upi, Pfc.Emerio remarked that something just did not feel right. Reaching Kilometer #26 in Sitio Kibuncog, all hell broke loose as their vehicle was ambushed.
Twenty guerillas from the BIAF, or Bangsamoro Islamic Armed Forces, 105 Base Command pounded the vehicle with M16s and M14s but to their suprise Pfc.Emerio refused to fold, returning fire with his 45 caliber pistol. With Justina Parian cowering in the driver's seat, and Rona wailing in terror as she lay across her baby, Pfc.Emerio held on as long as he could until, finally, he ran out of ammunution.
Rushing the now defenseless vehicle one of the attackers used the butt of his rifle to smash open the front paasenger door, pointed the barrel of his M14 in Pfc.Emerio's face and squeezed off a three round burst, blowing most of Emerio's head off. On the opposite side another BIAF guerilla used his rifle to smash the Toyota's driver side window. Opening the door, he dragged Justina out of the vehicle. During the firefight Justina had taken a round directly in her foot and aside from her precarious emotional state, Justina's foot severely limited her mobility.
Leaving the hiway the guerillas moved one kilometer on an easterly vector, moving back towards the municipality of Guindulungan when a firefight with the 40IB (Infantry Battalion) killed one guerilla, Impaw Musa Datuayon, of Barangay Muti in Guindulungan. A second column from that same battalion entered the sector and after receiving word about it, the guerillas quickly abandoned Justina, and then withdrew after seperating into smal groups.
Justina, and Rona who was herself wounded in the head and foot, were both transported to a nearby hospital before being debriefed. Luckily, Rona's infant daughter emerged from the ordeal none the worse.
Tuesday, June 19, 2012
Kidnap for Ransom for the Second Quarter of 2012, Part I: Ex-Mayor of Placer, Charry T.Mangacop
Kinapping for Ransom, or KFR, has been largely relegated to four portions of Mindanao:
1) Cotabato City and Liguasan Marsh, covering all of Central Mindanao and points south down to GenSan, as General Santos City is known.
2) Zamboanga Peninsula, including the offshore province of Basilan,
3) Jolo Island and Tawi Tawi Province to the south of it,
4) Marawi City and both Lanao Provinces.
KFR does occur elsewhere but most cases outside of those four nexuses are opportunistic crimes unrelated to the highly organized criminal enterprises being used to fund political objectives. Of all Mindanowan Regions, Region 13, usually referred to as Caraga, has long been immune to the cancer of KFR. Those politically-related kidnappings that have occurred are almost always undertaken by the NPA. During Election Seasons the NPA taps each candidate down to the barangay level with an appeal for "Revolutionary Taxes," in what the AFP (Armed Forces of the Philippines) cheekily calls, "Permit to Campaign" (PTC), or in the 2010 Election, "Permit to Win" (PTW).
While the recent KFR of Victor Lim Tan, the former Mayor of Carrascal, in Surigao del Sur on May 21st, 2012, was reason enough to pay close attention, another incident taking place just nine days later showed that a worrisome dynamic just may be shaping up.
Indeed, the second incident ALSO targetted a former mayor from the same region. On May 30th, 2012, the former Mayor of Placer, Charry T.Mangacop was also abducted. Mangacop had just stepped out of his Barangay Bonifacio home and was securing himself into his Mitsubishi Montero when one of two men hiding in its rear seat quickly placed a leather noose around Mangacop's neck. As Charry Mangacop began to lose consciousness the two men dragged him into the rear seat and hogtied him while pummeling him about the chest and abdomen. Once tied, Mangacop had packaging tape wrapped around his head, over his mouth, before a "bonnet"- Philippine speak for a "ski-hat"- was placed on his head and pulled down hard, over his eyes.
With Mangacop incapacitated in the rear seat, one gunman moved into the driver's seat and pulled out of Mangacop's compound at Sitio Kilometer #28, and onto National Hiway. Upon clearing the sitio.the SUV pulled over onto the shoulder of the hiway, allowing two other men, both presumably armed, to get into idling vehicle.
After a seven hour drive along Mindanao's Northern Coast, Mangacop was able to recognize Cagayan del Oro City but still the Montero continued on. Skirting Iligan City the SUV made its way into Lanao del Norte Province, and there, in an isolated jungle clearing the Montero came to a stop. Untying Mangacop's ankles, his captors ordered him to dismount from the SUV, warning him that should he attempt to escape he would be shot in the back and left to rot where he lay. Acknowledging the warning Mangacop fell in behind the two captors leading the motley crew and saw one of the four gunmen climb back into the Montero before driving away with it. Thus the group began an uphill trek in the afternoon heat.
A mid afternoon siesta in an upland clearing was interrupted by the arrival of a dozen BIAF guerillas from the 116 Base Command. Greeting Mangacop's three captors warmly, the leader of the guerilla band rudely forced Mangacop to his feet and began leading him over winding foot paths that traversed the isolated foothills that run along the Lanao del Norte and Lanao del Sur Provincial border. As the day turned into evening Mangacop calculated they had walked at least 10 kilometers. As stars appeared overhead the group suddenly entered a jungle clearing filled with dozens of BIAF guerillas. The BIAF, or Bangsamoro Islamic Armed Forces-as the armed wing of the MILF is known- receives practically no financial support from its parent organization (the MILF). Each Base Command, synonymous with a "Brigade" in a conventional military organization, is left to fend for itself. A few of the 19 Base Commands have turned to KFR to augment whatever else they manage to shake out of a terrified publics' pockets.
"Zakat," or "Charity," is one of the "Five Pillars of Islam," actions and/or attributes incumbent upon all adult Muslims. Charity in this case is conveyed as support of Islam and/or Muslims. What better way to support both Islam AND Muslims, then to support the MILF/BIAF? After all, the BIAF is fighting in defense of both, or so says the MILF/BIAF narrarative. Ergo, even the poorest of Filipino Muslims is turning their pockets inside and out, in hopes if handing over as many centavos as possible. In addition, non-Muslims are "compelled" to contribute via the BIAF's version of "Revolutionary Taxation." After all the MILF tells us, wont non-Muslims benefit just as much from MILF governance?
For some BIAF Base Commands, Zakat and Revolutionary Taxation do not come close to cutting it. Some, like the 113 (covering the Zamboanga Peninsula, some of its offshore islands and a sliver of Region 10), the population is overwhelmingly non-Muslim. Others, like the aforementioned 116, control a very small territory and are constantly under pressure from much larger and more powerful Base Commands, in this case, the 101 and 102. Forced to look elsewhere, they turn to KFR. Kidnapping for Ransom of non-Muslims is conveniently supported by "Shari'a," or Islamic Jurisprudence. In addition, kidnapping is a traditional pursuit for most of Mindanao's Islamicised Tribes.
It was after midnite, on May 31st, when Mangacop, was led to a small group of horses. Helped atop one, his horse was tethered to another, and his wrists were still tightly bound, to prevent escape. The small group then made its way onto a meandering foot path and soon left the larger group of BIAF guerillas behind. Making its way up steep hills it was soon apparent to Mangacop that they had left the foothills of the provincial border and entered the mountains...therefore it was quite clear that they had crossed the border into Lanao del Sur Province.
Just before dawn the party entered a clearing near the top of a particular mountain and came to a ramshackle nipa, as the bamboo framed and palmleaf thatched huts are known. Perched atop stilts, and offering a panoramic view of the countryside around them- it had as perfect an early warning system as one could possibly hope for should anyone think to search that forlorn corner of the island.
When Mangacop failed to return to his home that evening, his wife Luzviminda Sala Mangacop, began worrying. Although her husband had failed in his bid to gain re-election in 2010, he had plenty of pressing responsibilities. Like any politician on Mindanao, Mangacop had used his term in office to enrich himself. Among his profitmaking enterprises is a long term heavy equipment contract with Tag-anito Mining Corporation. If that name sounds at all familiar to readers it is because Tag-anito was one of the mining companies targeted in the astronomical NPA assault on Red Mountain in the municipality of Placer-yes, the very same town where Mangacop sat as Mayor-in October of 2011 (see my NPA Armed Contacts for the Fourth Quarter of 2011 entries on what was Mindanao's most economically damaging attack by the NPA yet). Six months earlier, on May 25th, 2011, the NPA's Front 16, of the Northeast Mindanao Regional Committee, or NEMRC, attacked Mangacop's compound.
On the day in question, Mangacop, his wife Luzviminda, and their driver, Jaculba Madera, were all sitting down to supper when six well armed guerillas ran into the house through its rear door. Taking all three by gunpoint, first to a neighbours home, then out to National Hiway, the other twenty-four guerillas set about divesting Mangacop of two liscenced M653s ("Baby M16s") and a 45 caliber pistol, along with an unliscenced
shotgun and second 45 caliber pistol. The NPA then burned an Isuzu dual axle dump truck worth P1.6 Million ($30,000), one Fuzo Canter mini-dump truck worth P400,000 ($9,500), one Fuzo Canter with a van body, worth P700,000 ($11,000), one Hitachi excavator, worth P1.5 Million ($30,000), and one Komatsu bulldozer, worth P1 Million ($20,000). It has been a hellish twelve months for Charry T.Magnacop.
On June 4th the KFR organization's negotiator contacted Luzviminda with the initial ransom demand. As is always the case the negotiator's opening gambit consisted of a terse demand for an astronomical sum, P300 Million ($6 Million). Long before a victim is abducted the people planning his or her kidnapping have fully investigated the intended victim's financial situation. The astronomical demand is meant to put a victim's loved ones on the defensive, to increase their feeling of vulnerability and hopelessness. Warning Luzviminda not to report the kidnapping to the authorities, the negotiator promised to call again.
To her credit, Luzviminda handled the negotiations herself and on June 13th she finally settled on P5 Million ($100,000). After using up their entire cash reserve and borrowing from family members, Luzviminda was still far short of the agreed upon sum. Finally able to secure an emergency cash loan from their primary bank, Luzviminda informed the negotiator that she was ready to pay the agreed upon sum when he next contacted her, on June 15th.
The next morning, June 16th, Luzviminda was picked up by her brother in law, Digs Mangacorp, and the two drove the same hiway that Mangacorp's captors did on May 30th when they dragged him into oblivion. Shortly after arriving in Iligan City Luzviminda received a phone call from the negotiator, instructing her to proceed to a Jollibee fastfood resturant and await further instructions. Finally, just before 2PM, a handsome, soft spoken gentleman approached them and after exchanging coded messages, he graciously accepted the bag containing the ransom, exited the store, and promptly disappeared into the afternoon crowd.
Twenty minutes later Luzviminda received yet another call from the negotiator and was informed that her husband was being released and to await his arrival, early that evening, at that very same resturant. Waiting there all day, it was just past 10PM when Luzviminda was startled by her brother in law's screaming. Looking around frantically she saw her husband outside as he exited a taxi. Much thinner and alot dirtier than she had ever seen him, Charry T.Mangacop walked slowly into.the resturant and returned to the loving embrace of his wife.
1) Cotabato City and Liguasan Marsh, covering all of Central Mindanao and points south down to GenSan, as General Santos City is known.
2) Zamboanga Peninsula, including the offshore province of Basilan,
3) Jolo Island and Tawi Tawi Province to the south of it,
4) Marawi City and both Lanao Provinces.
KFR does occur elsewhere but most cases outside of those four nexuses are opportunistic crimes unrelated to the highly organized criminal enterprises being used to fund political objectives. Of all Mindanowan Regions, Region 13, usually referred to as Caraga, has long been immune to the cancer of KFR. Those politically-related kidnappings that have occurred are almost always undertaken by the NPA. During Election Seasons the NPA taps each candidate down to the barangay level with an appeal for "Revolutionary Taxes," in what the AFP (Armed Forces of the Philippines) cheekily calls, "Permit to Campaign" (PTC), or in the 2010 Election, "Permit to Win" (PTW).
While the recent KFR of Victor Lim Tan, the former Mayor of Carrascal, in Surigao del Sur on May 21st, 2012, was reason enough to pay close attention, another incident taking place just nine days later showed that a worrisome dynamic just may be shaping up.
Indeed, the second incident ALSO targetted a former mayor from the same region. On May 30th, 2012, the former Mayor of Placer, Charry T.Mangacop was also abducted. Mangacop had just stepped out of his Barangay Bonifacio home and was securing himself into his Mitsubishi Montero when one of two men hiding in its rear seat quickly placed a leather noose around Mangacop's neck. As Charry Mangacop began to lose consciousness the two men dragged him into the rear seat and hogtied him while pummeling him about the chest and abdomen. Once tied, Mangacop had packaging tape wrapped around his head, over his mouth, before a "bonnet"- Philippine speak for a "ski-hat"- was placed on his head and pulled down hard, over his eyes.
With Mangacop incapacitated in the rear seat, one gunman moved into the driver's seat and pulled out of Mangacop's compound at Sitio Kilometer #28, and onto National Hiway. Upon clearing the sitio.the SUV pulled over onto the shoulder of the hiway, allowing two other men, both presumably armed, to get into idling vehicle.
After a seven hour drive along Mindanao's Northern Coast, Mangacop was able to recognize Cagayan del Oro City but still the Montero continued on. Skirting Iligan City the SUV made its way into Lanao del Norte Province, and there, in an isolated jungle clearing the Montero came to a stop. Untying Mangacop's ankles, his captors ordered him to dismount from the SUV, warning him that should he attempt to escape he would be shot in the back and left to rot where he lay. Acknowledging the warning Mangacop fell in behind the two captors leading the motley crew and saw one of the four gunmen climb back into the Montero before driving away with it. Thus the group began an uphill trek in the afternoon heat.
A mid afternoon siesta in an upland clearing was interrupted by the arrival of a dozen BIAF guerillas from the 116 Base Command. Greeting Mangacop's three captors warmly, the leader of the guerilla band rudely forced Mangacop to his feet and began leading him over winding foot paths that traversed the isolated foothills that run along the Lanao del Norte and Lanao del Sur Provincial border. As the day turned into evening Mangacop calculated they had walked at least 10 kilometers. As stars appeared overhead the group suddenly entered a jungle clearing filled with dozens of BIAF guerillas. The BIAF, or Bangsamoro Islamic Armed Forces-as the armed wing of the MILF is known- receives practically no financial support from its parent organization (the MILF). Each Base Command, synonymous with a "Brigade" in a conventional military organization, is left to fend for itself. A few of the 19 Base Commands have turned to KFR to augment whatever else they manage to shake out of a terrified publics' pockets.
"Zakat," or "Charity," is one of the "Five Pillars of Islam," actions and/or attributes incumbent upon all adult Muslims. Charity in this case is conveyed as support of Islam and/or Muslims. What better way to support both Islam AND Muslims, then to support the MILF/BIAF? After all, the BIAF is fighting in defense of both, or so says the MILF/BIAF narrarative. Ergo, even the poorest of Filipino Muslims is turning their pockets inside and out, in hopes if handing over as many centavos as possible. In addition, non-Muslims are "compelled" to contribute via the BIAF's version of "Revolutionary Taxation." After all the MILF tells us, wont non-Muslims benefit just as much from MILF governance?
For some BIAF Base Commands, Zakat and Revolutionary Taxation do not come close to cutting it. Some, like the 113 (covering the Zamboanga Peninsula, some of its offshore islands and a sliver of Region 10), the population is overwhelmingly non-Muslim. Others, like the aforementioned 116, control a very small territory and are constantly under pressure from much larger and more powerful Base Commands, in this case, the 101 and 102. Forced to look elsewhere, they turn to KFR. Kidnapping for Ransom of non-Muslims is conveniently supported by "Shari'a," or Islamic Jurisprudence. In addition, kidnapping is a traditional pursuit for most of Mindanao's Islamicised Tribes.
It was after midnite, on May 31st, when Mangacop, was led to a small group of horses. Helped atop one, his horse was tethered to another, and his wrists were still tightly bound, to prevent escape. The small group then made its way onto a meandering foot path and soon left the larger group of BIAF guerillas behind. Making its way up steep hills it was soon apparent to Mangacop that they had left the foothills of the provincial border and entered the mountains...therefore it was quite clear that they had crossed the border into Lanao del Sur Province.
Just before dawn the party entered a clearing near the top of a particular mountain and came to a ramshackle nipa, as the bamboo framed and palmleaf thatched huts are known. Perched atop stilts, and offering a panoramic view of the countryside around them- it had as perfect an early warning system as one could possibly hope for should anyone think to search that forlorn corner of the island.
When Mangacop failed to return to his home that evening, his wife Luzviminda Sala Mangacop, began worrying. Although her husband had failed in his bid to gain re-election in 2010, he had plenty of pressing responsibilities. Like any politician on Mindanao, Mangacop had used his term in office to enrich himself. Among his profitmaking enterprises is a long term heavy equipment contract with Tag-anito Mining Corporation. If that name sounds at all familiar to readers it is because Tag-anito was one of the mining companies targeted in the astronomical NPA assault on Red Mountain in the municipality of Placer-yes, the very same town where Mangacop sat as Mayor-in October of 2011 (see my NPA Armed Contacts for the Fourth Quarter of 2011 entries on what was Mindanao's most economically damaging attack by the NPA yet). Six months earlier, on May 25th, 2011, the NPA's Front 16, of the Northeast Mindanao Regional Committee, or NEMRC, attacked Mangacop's compound.
On the day in question, Mangacop, his wife Luzviminda, and their driver, Jaculba Madera, were all sitting down to supper when six well armed guerillas ran into the house through its rear door. Taking all three by gunpoint, first to a neighbours home, then out to National Hiway, the other twenty-four guerillas set about divesting Mangacop of two liscenced M653s ("Baby M16s") and a 45 caliber pistol, along with an unliscenced
shotgun and second 45 caliber pistol. The NPA then burned an Isuzu dual axle dump truck worth P1.6 Million ($30,000), one Fuzo Canter mini-dump truck worth P400,000 ($9,500), one Fuzo Canter with a van body, worth P700,000 ($11,000), one Hitachi excavator, worth P1.5 Million ($30,000), and one Komatsu bulldozer, worth P1 Million ($20,000). It has been a hellish twelve months for Charry T.Magnacop.
On June 4th the KFR organization's negotiator contacted Luzviminda with the initial ransom demand. As is always the case the negotiator's opening gambit consisted of a terse demand for an astronomical sum, P300 Million ($6 Million). Long before a victim is abducted the people planning his or her kidnapping have fully investigated the intended victim's financial situation. The astronomical demand is meant to put a victim's loved ones on the defensive, to increase their feeling of vulnerability and hopelessness. Warning Luzviminda not to report the kidnapping to the authorities, the negotiator promised to call again.
To her credit, Luzviminda handled the negotiations herself and on June 13th she finally settled on P5 Million ($100,000). After using up their entire cash reserve and borrowing from family members, Luzviminda was still far short of the agreed upon sum. Finally able to secure an emergency cash loan from their primary bank, Luzviminda informed the negotiator that she was ready to pay the agreed upon sum when he next contacted her, on June 15th.
The next morning, June 16th, Luzviminda was picked up by her brother in law, Digs Mangacorp, and the two drove the same hiway that Mangacorp's captors did on May 30th when they dragged him into oblivion. Shortly after arriving in Iligan City Luzviminda received a phone call from the negotiator, instructing her to proceed to a Jollibee fastfood resturant and await further instructions. Finally, just before 2PM, a handsome, soft spoken gentleman approached them and after exchanging coded messages, he graciously accepted the bag containing the ransom, exited the store, and promptly disappeared into the afternoon crowd.
Twenty minutes later Luzviminda received yet another call from the negotiator and was informed that her husband was being released and to await his arrival, early that evening, at that very same resturant. Waiting there all day, it was just past 10PM when Luzviminda was startled by her brother in law's screaming. Looking around frantically she saw her husband outside as he exited a taxi. Much thinner and alot dirtier than she had ever seen him, Charry T.Mangacop walked slowly into.the resturant and returned to the loving embrace of his wife.
Monday, June 18, 2012
Kidnap for Ransom for the Second Quarter of 2012, Part III: Jordanian Journalist Baker Abdullah Atyani, Part 1
Journalists who choose to cover shadowy insurgent and/or terrorists assume an incredible amount of risk. Here in Mindanao there are plenty of these groups to choose from. However, only one such group has had the gall to victimize journalists, ASG, the Abu Sayyaf Group.
The case that is most discussed, when talking about ASG and its lack of compunction with journalistts is the case of Ces
Orena Drilon. Ces Drilon, as she is known professionaly, had been warned by her superiors at ABS-CBN not to personally interview ASG factional leader Kumander Radullan "Abu Putol" Sahiron, his nom de guerre a reference to the loss of his right arm in battle during his,years as an officer with the MNLF-Misuari. Elderly even then the factional leader was widely as the most approachable of the ASG factional leaders.
Relying on Professor Octavio Dinampo, of Mindanao State University at Marawi as her contact, Drilon, an assistant cameraman, Angelo Valderrama, and a cameraman, Jimmy Encarnacion left Manila and met Professor Dinampo in Zamboanga City. Dinampo, active in the NGao "Bantay Ceasefire" (Guarding the Ceasefire), is was a mid-level officer in the MNLF-Misuari, and a native of Jolo Island-in short, he was a perfect guide.
On June 7th, 2008, all four flew to Jolo together. Checking into the Sulu State College Hostel, Dinampo quickly left them as he went to meet ASG contacts to finalize plans for the envisioned interview with Abu Putol, to take place the following day, Monday, June 9th.
Per the instructions of ABS-CBN's Director of News Gathering, Chari Villa, Drilon was to prepare her questions for Putol in written form. Then, Professor Dinampo alone would travel alone to Putol's stronghold in the foothills outside the municipality of Patikul...verifying that he had indeed met with the ASG factional leader by taking some photos with a small camera Drilon would pass to him. However, when, on Monday morning, Dimampo stopped by her room to tell her his ride was waiting downstairs, Drilon quickly summoned her cameraman and soundman and joined Dinampo on the ride to Indanan, where they would meet ASG members who would escort them to Patikul. Drilon later claimed that her decision had been an impulsive one, and that she had been entirely sincere when she had aceded to Chari Villa's directive forbidding her and her crew from actually travelling to the ASG stronghold.
Climbing into a battered white multicab, Drilon, her crew, and Professor Dinampo began the slow drive to Patikul. Transferring to a Toyota Tamaraw outside of Jolo City, the group continued on, driving along the coast. Along with its driver, Maramo Hashim, was "Guide" Juamil "Maming" Biyaw, who was to lead the group to the ASG camp where Abu Putol would receive them. Arriving in the municipality of Maimbung, the Toyota turned onto a dirt road in Barangay Labbah and soon stopped on the side of the road, at the foot of a steep mountain, next to the Ajid River.
From Barangay Labbah the plan was to hike to Mount Mabusing, and then onward through the adjacent barangays of Datu Ugis and Kapuk Punggul before finally emerging in Barangay Kulasi where they would ascend to the ASG encampment. About a kilometer into the jungle the group came to a small clearing where eight ASG guerillas from another faction, led by Kumander Gafur Jumdail (younger brother of another faction leader Gumbahali "Dr.Abu"Umbra Jumdail) were resting. Biyaw quickly explained to Professor Dinampo thay the men were also members of ASG and would be going with them to Abu Putol's camp.
After an hour of walking a torrential downpour began. Soon coming to an abandoned "nipa," a bamboo framed and palmleaf thatched hut, in which they took shelter. As three of the guerillas stood sullenly between Drilon's group and the door, a heated conversation between Biyaw and the other five guerillas suddenly ended with Biyaw motioning to Professor Dinampo to get the group ready, they would continue on with the eight guerillas but now Biyaw would be going on ahead alone because Abu Putol had requested it.
Biyaw did not travel on to the ASG camp. Instead, he circled around Drilon's group, returning to the vehicle to join their driver, Maramo Hashim, and there he would wait for the group to return. Later he would say he sat with Hashim for four hours before both drove off, suspecting that Drilon and her group had ran into unforseen difficulties. Hashim begged to differ, saying that Biyaw emerged from the jungle and sternly ordered him to leave, which he promptly did.
Meanwhile, after leaving the nipa, Ces Drilon, her two man crew and Professor Octavio Dinampo followed the eight guerilas several more kilometers until they suddenly entered a small encampment under the command of sub-Kumaner Sulayman "Abu Haris" Patta, who occasionaly used the nom de guerre "Kumander Tek." Like Abu Putol, Abu Haris had lost an arm in an encounter with the AFP. Unlike Abu Putol however, Haris had had his "encounter" when he was just five years old. In an AFP ambush the vehicle he was riding in had been peppered with small arms fire. Alive but critically wounded, Haris had had his arm amputated.
If they had had no inkling during their long trek, upon emerging into the ASG encampment on the slopes of Bud Daho there could be mistaking that instead of arriving as honored guests of the Abu Sayyaf, they were being held hostage. Luckily, cameraman Angelo Valderrama had been surreptitiously videotaping the long trek, footage that would be a godsend in the subsequent investigation. Using Drilon's cell phone, Abu Sayyaf contacted her family, opening negotiations with a ransom demand of P20 Million. Shoring up their options the captors then contacted Drilon's employer, the ABS-CBN network. When, on day three, Drilon's cell phone died, Abu Haris had Drilon's SIM card switched to an ASG phone.
Haris warned Drilon that since she was a northener, and time was of the essence, she should advise her family to find a local intemediary to act as their negotiator in the ransom discussions though, he also warned, the figure of P20 Million was non-negotiable. With the figure given, all that remained was the negotiation of the payoff. One of the local politicians who had stayed in close contact with the Drilon Family was Lady Anne Sahidula, the Vice Govto pernor of Sulu Province. When Ces drummed home the importance of a local representative, the family quickly decided to place all its trust in the Vice Governor. This choice seemed to anger Abu Haris, who had also warned Drilon not to rely on any politicians, since all were corrupt thieves. Not one to follow his own counsel, Haris was relying on another local politician to negotiate on his behalf, Mayor Alvarez Isnaji.
To be continued in in Part 2
The case that is most discussed, when talking about ASG and its lack of compunction with journalistts is the case of Ces
Orena Drilon. Ces Drilon, as she is known professionaly, had been warned by her superiors at ABS-CBN not to personally interview ASG factional leader Kumander Radullan "Abu Putol" Sahiron, his nom de guerre a reference to the loss of his right arm in battle during his,years as an officer with the MNLF-Misuari. Elderly even then the factional leader was widely as the most approachable of the ASG factional leaders.
Relying on Professor Octavio Dinampo, of Mindanao State University at Marawi as her contact, Drilon, an assistant cameraman, Angelo Valderrama, and a cameraman, Jimmy Encarnacion left Manila and met Professor Dinampo in Zamboanga City. Dinampo, active in the NGao "Bantay Ceasefire" (Guarding the Ceasefire), is was a mid-level officer in the MNLF-Misuari, and a native of Jolo Island-in short, he was a perfect guide.
On June 7th, 2008, all four flew to Jolo together. Checking into the Sulu State College Hostel, Dinampo quickly left them as he went to meet ASG contacts to finalize plans for the envisioned interview with Abu Putol, to take place the following day, Monday, June 9th.
Per the instructions of ABS-CBN's Director of News Gathering, Chari Villa, Drilon was to prepare her questions for Putol in written form. Then, Professor Dinampo alone would travel alone to Putol's stronghold in the foothills outside the municipality of Patikul...verifying that he had indeed met with the ASG factional leader by taking some photos with a small camera Drilon would pass to him. However, when, on Monday morning, Dimampo stopped by her room to tell her his ride was waiting downstairs, Drilon quickly summoned her cameraman and soundman and joined Dinampo on the ride to Indanan, where they would meet ASG members who would escort them to Patikul. Drilon later claimed that her decision had been an impulsive one, and that she had been entirely sincere when she had aceded to Chari Villa's directive forbidding her and her crew from actually travelling to the ASG stronghold.
Climbing into a battered white multicab, Drilon, her crew, and Professor Dinampo began the slow drive to Patikul. Transferring to a Toyota Tamaraw outside of Jolo City, the group continued on, driving along the coast. Along with its driver, Maramo Hashim, was "Guide" Juamil "Maming" Biyaw, who was to lead the group to the ASG camp where Abu Putol would receive them. Arriving in the municipality of Maimbung, the Toyota turned onto a dirt road in Barangay Labbah and soon stopped on the side of the road, at the foot of a steep mountain, next to the Ajid River.
From Barangay Labbah the plan was to hike to Mount Mabusing, and then onward through the adjacent barangays of Datu Ugis and Kapuk Punggul before finally emerging in Barangay Kulasi where they would ascend to the ASG encampment. About a kilometer into the jungle the group came to a small clearing where eight ASG guerillas from another faction, led by Kumander Gafur Jumdail (younger brother of another faction leader Gumbahali "Dr.Abu"Umbra Jumdail) were resting. Biyaw quickly explained to Professor Dinampo thay the men were also members of ASG and would be going with them to Abu Putol's camp.
After an hour of walking a torrential downpour began. Soon coming to an abandoned "nipa," a bamboo framed and palmleaf thatched hut, in which they took shelter. As three of the guerillas stood sullenly between Drilon's group and the door, a heated conversation between Biyaw and the other five guerillas suddenly ended with Biyaw motioning to Professor Dinampo to get the group ready, they would continue on with the eight guerillas but now Biyaw would be going on ahead alone because Abu Putol had requested it.
Biyaw did not travel on to the ASG camp. Instead, he circled around Drilon's group, returning to the vehicle to join their driver, Maramo Hashim, and there he would wait for the group to return. Later he would say he sat with Hashim for four hours before both drove off, suspecting that Drilon and her group had ran into unforseen difficulties. Hashim begged to differ, saying that Biyaw emerged from the jungle and sternly ordered him to leave, which he promptly did.
Meanwhile, after leaving the nipa, Ces Drilon, her two man crew and Professor Octavio Dinampo followed the eight guerilas several more kilometers until they suddenly entered a small encampment under the command of sub-Kumaner Sulayman "Abu Haris" Patta, who occasionaly used the nom de guerre "Kumander Tek." Like Abu Putol, Abu Haris had lost an arm in an encounter with the AFP. Unlike Abu Putol however, Haris had had his "encounter" when he was just five years old. In an AFP ambush the vehicle he was riding in had been peppered with small arms fire. Alive but critically wounded, Haris had had his arm amputated.
If they had had no inkling during their long trek, upon emerging into the ASG encampment on the slopes of Bud Daho there could be mistaking that instead of arriving as honored guests of the Abu Sayyaf, they were being held hostage. Luckily, cameraman Angelo Valderrama had been surreptitiously videotaping the long trek, footage that would be a godsend in the subsequent investigation. Using Drilon's cell phone, Abu Sayyaf contacted her family, opening negotiations with a ransom demand of P20 Million. Shoring up their options the captors then contacted Drilon's employer, the ABS-CBN network. When, on day three, Drilon's cell phone died, Abu Haris had Drilon's SIM card switched to an ASG phone.
Haris warned Drilon that since she was a northener, and time was of the essence, she should advise her family to find a local intemediary to act as their negotiator in the ransom discussions though, he also warned, the figure of P20 Million was non-negotiable. With the figure given, all that remained was the negotiation of the payoff. One of the local politicians who had stayed in close contact with the Drilon Family was Lady Anne Sahidula, the Vice Govto pernor of Sulu Province. When Ces drummed home the importance of a local representative, the family quickly decided to place all its trust in the Vice Governor. This choice seemed to anger Abu Haris, who had also warned Drilon not to rely on any politicians, since all were corrupt thieves. Not one to follow his own counsel, Haris was relying on another local politician to negotiate on his behalf, Mayor Alvarez Isnaji.
To be continued in in Part 2
Sunday, June 17, 2012
NPA Armed Contacts for the Second Quarter, Part II: Ambush in New Bataan Kills a Scout Ranger
So far June of 2012 had been a very good month for the AFP, or Armed Forces of the Philippines, 66IB (Infantry Battalion). As I discussed in another Second Quarter entry, the 66IB repulsed a well planned NPA assault on the Sumifru Banana Plantation in the municipality of Mawab, in Compostela Valley Province, or, as its usually referred to, "ComVal."
On Friday, June 15th, 2012, an AFP convoy of 3 KM450 troop carriers was transiting the municipality of New Bataan's Barangay Bantacan. Aboard the three trucks were men from the 66IB and the 4th Scout Ranger Company, en route to 66IB Headquarters in that same municipality.
As the three trucks negotiated an "s" turn on National Hiway the NPA's Front 27, the Rhyme Petalcorin Command of the Southern Mindanao Regional Committee, or SMRC, detonated an IED striking the last of the three trucks. Immediately wounded were two men from the 66IB:
1) Staff Sergeant Arnold Pacino
2) Corporal Jaime Clara
and two men from the Scout Rangers 4th Company:
1) First Lieutenant Rodel Daguio
2) Private First Class Richie Ursal
As small arms fire began peppering the trucks the soldiers piled out and began returning fire. As the last of the AFP soldiers took their positions the NPA guerillas broke contact and began withdrawing in different directions. The AFP began assesing the casualties and after performing triage on the four wounded men, bundled them all into the rear of one of the KM450s and drove the truck to Montevista District Hospital. Unfortunately, First Lieutenant Daguio succumbed to his injuries and died on the operating table early the next day. Instead of celebrating Fathers Day with his wife and young daughter, his loved ones were retrieving his body from a Panabo City funeral home. Fathers Day festivities will be in the form of a wake in the Daguio Family's Calinan District home in Davao City.
The 66IB's three maneuver companies were immediately deployed to implement checkpoint operations in the immediare area as the 71IB, 72IB, and the latter's CAFGU, or Civilian Auxiliary Force Geographical Unit*, deployed company sized elements in what the AFP tends to call "Hot Pursuit" operations, AFP speak for"lets stand around playing pocket pool as we torture uneducated Hilltribesmen" (*CAFGU is the lynchpin in the AFP's CAA, or Civilian Active Auxiliary program. CAA, sublimated to J5, the AFP Deputy Chief of Staff in charge of Operations, is the progeny of the Marcos Era ICHDF, or Integrated Civilain Home Defense Force. Like the IHCDF, CAFGU is considered central to the AFP's COIN, or Counterinsurgency program vis a vis the NPA. Manned by residents of a specific barangay or more rarely, a specific municipality, CAFGU posts may not operate outside the boundries of their specific batangay or municipality. In each infantry brigade there is one infantry battalion tasked with serving as that brigade's CB, or Cadre Battalion,vwhose job it is to supervise all CAFGU posts within its brigade's territory. One NCO (Non Commisioned Officer), almost always a corporal, is deployed as a Cadre Officer, commanding a CAFGU post).
At 8AM, June 16th, one of the 66IB's hastily implemented checkpoints, in New Bataan's Barangay Andap, stopped two motorcycles operating without liscence plates, the bikes having been spotted as soon as they entered Purok #1, where the checkpoint was deployed. After making all six men (three per motorcycle) dismount, soldiers quickly discovered IED components:
1) 2kg. Ammonium Phosphate
2) Twelve improvised blasting caps
3) 28 meters of red tie fuse detonating cord
All six men:
1) Gerald Baugto
2) Darwin Montella
3) Junvin Fernandez
4) Modi Linda-an
5) Danilo Maunda
6) Ernesto Bagbag
were promptly arrested and transferred to the custody of the New Bataan MPO, or Municipal Police Office. While very proud of themselves, the AFP evidently continues to care more about appearances than they do about facts, and moreover, about combatting the very real danger posed by the NPA's IEDs. The NPA's devices are indeed Command adetonated, employing detonation cord. However, while it is true the NPA has switched from Compound B to Ammonium Nitrate, gold miners AND fishermen ALSO use the substance. Gold miners also use detonation cord. New Bataan, as noted in my aforementioned (other) NPA Second Quarter of 2012 entry, is a mining community. Without even investigating the AFP has incarcerated six men not listed on any AFP Order of Battle (a list of military objectives, people, places, and things).
On Friday, June 15th, 2012, an AFP convoy of 3 KM450 troop carriers was transiting the municipality of New Bataan's Barangay Bantacan. Aboard the three trucks were men from the 66IB and the 4th Scout Ranger Company, en route to 66IB Headquarters in that same municipality.
As the three trucks negotiated an "s" turn on National Hiway the NPA's Front 27, the Rhyme Petalcorin Command of the Southern Mindanao Regional Committee, or SMRC, detonated an IED striking the last of the three trucks. Immediately wounded were two men from the 66IB:
1) Staff Sergeant Arnold Pacino
2) Corporal Jaime Clara
and two men from the Scout Rangers 4th Company:
1) First Lieutenant Rodel Daguio
2) Private First Class Richie Ursal
As small arms fire began peppering the trucks the soldiers piled out and began returning fire. As the last of the AFP soldiers took their positions the NPA guerillas broke contact and began withdrawing in different directions. The AFP began assesing the casualties and after performing triage on the four wounded men, bundled them all into the rear of one of the KM450s and drove the truck to Montevista District Hospital. Unfortunately, First Lieutenant Daguio succumbed to his injuries and died on the operating table early the next day. Instead of celebrating Fathers Day with his wife and young daughter, his loved ones were retrieving his body from a Panabo City funeral home. Fathers Day festivities will be in the form of a wake in the Daguio Family's Calinan District home in Davao City.
The 66IB's three maneuver companies were immediately deployed to implement checkpoint operations in the immediare area as the 71IB, 72IB, and the latter's CAFGU, or Civilian Auxiliary Force Geographical Unit*, deployed company sized elements in what the AFP tends to call "Hot Pursuit" operations, AFP speak for"lets stand around playing pocket pool as we torture uneducated Hilltribesmen" (*CAFGU is the lynchpin in the AFP's CAA, or Civilian Active Auxiliary program. CAA, sublimated to J5, the AFP Deputy Chief of Staff in charge of Operations, is the progeny of the Marcos Era ICHDF, or Integrated Civilain Home Defense Force. Like the IHCDF, CAFGU is considered central to the AFP's COIN, or Counterinsurgency program vis a vis the NPA. Manned by residents of a specific barangay or more rarely, a specific municipality, CAFGU posts may not operate outside the boundries of their specific batangay or municipality. In each infantry brigade there is one infantry battalion tasked with serving as that brigade's CB, or Cadre Battalion,vwhose job it is to supervise all CAFGU posts within its brigade's territory. One NCO (Non Commisioned Officer), almost always a corporal, is deployed as a Cadre Officer, commanding a CAFGU post).
At 8AM, June 16th, one of the 66IB's hastily implemented checkpoints, in New Bataan's Barangay Andap, stopped two motorcycles operating without liscence plates, the bikes having been spotted as soon as they entered Purok #1, where the checkpoint was deployed. After making all six men (three per motorcycle) dismount, soldiers quickly discovered IED components:
1) 2kg. Ammonium Phosphate
2) Twelve improvised blasting caps
3) 28 meters of red tie fuse detonating cord
All six men:
1) Gerald Baugto
2) Darwin Montella
3) Junvin Fernandez
4) Modi Linda-an
5) Danilo Maunda
6) Ernesto Bagbag
were promptly arrested and transferred to the custody of the New Bataan MPO, or Municipal Police Office. While very proud of themselves, the AFP evidently continues to care more about appearances than they do about facts, and moreover, about combatting the very real danger posed by the NPA's IEDs. The NPA's devices are indeed Command adetonated, employing detonation cord. However, while it is true the NPA has switched from Compound B to Ammonium Nitrate, gold miners AND fishermen ALSO use the substance. Gold miners also use detonation cord. New Bataan, as noted in my aforementioned (other) NPA Second Quarter of 2012 entry, is a mining community. Without even investigating the AFP has incarcerated six men not listed on any AFP Order of Battle (a list of military objectives, people, places, and things).
Kidnap for Ransom for the First Quarter of 2012, Part III:.The Strange Fate of Japanese Victim Toshio Ito
In a Third Quarter of 2010 entry I discussed the KFR, or Kidnap for Ransom, of Japanese expatriate Toshio Ito. Ito arrived in the Philippines in 2000. The 54 year old man from Hiroshima brought his life savings with him and sought to re-invent himself as so many expatriates in the Philippines seem to do.
Travelling south Ito established himself in Dumaguete, on Negros Island. Via an internet dating site Ito met a nubile teenaged Filipina from Misamis Occidental Province on Mindanao. Travelling to our fair isle in 2002 Mr.Ito made his way to his paramour's hometown, Plaridel. It was in Plaridel that Toshio Ito began calling himself Katayama Mamaito. Believing he had found the love of his life, Mr.Ito invested all his life savings in a home for the young lady and her family, and in a sand and gravel business to keep them all afloat.
By 2004 both his love life and his business had gone belly up. His young Filipina not only left him, she kept the house Ito had bought- since it is illegal for foreigners to buy land (though they CAN inherit it from a deceased spouse-in the young lady's name. Adding the proverbial insult to injury, Ito's ex-girlfriend then began a relationship with a Westerner who then promptly moved into Ito's home, ex-home, you get the picture...
As many might, Toshio Ito took a dive off the deep end. One day, soused on "tuba," the local rotgut, Ito broke into the house. Though only Ito knows what he had in mind, the young lady's maid-paid for out of money stolen from Ito's failed sand and gravel business- spotted the drunk man and alerted a next door neighbour. This being Mindanao after all, the neighbour grabbed his trusted M14 and quickly confronted Ito who collapsed im gut wrenching sobs.
Incarcerated in the Plaridel City Jail, Toshio Ito cum Katayama Mamaito, spent the next seven days lying in what to most readers would be unimaginable filth. Finally, his few local friends pooled their money to bail their poor friend out of jail. Toshio Ito promptly repaid the kindness of his friends by absconding and forfeiting their bail...that is...after he borrowed still more money.
Making his way to a low rent hostel in Zamboanga City, Ito then did what Toshio Ito apparently does best, he wallowed in self pity, told his "woe unto me" sob stories to anybody who even glanced at him, and attempted to once again live off of the misplaced kindness of strangers. Ito didnt have much luck in that last endeavour, at least until he ran across a middle aged Sama woman from Pangaturan Island. In town for a medical exam, the woman was about to sit down to lunch when she made the terrible mistake of listening to Toshio Ito's sad lament. Inviting the pitiful man to join her, her treat of course, the two had a long and meandering conversation. Hearing why the woman was in Zamboanga City, Ito, like any adept conman, introduced himself as Dr.Katayama Mamaito, of Hiroshima, though since his wife had died in a terrible train wreck, he had lost everything as he spiraled into the abyss of depression. By the end of the meal the two were getting on like long lost friends.
At the woman's insistence, Ito spoke with her husband by phone. A retired village politician, the man insisted Ito join his wife for the trip south to Pangaturan, and to honor them by becoming their treasured house guest. Ito didnt have many options at this point, in fact, with just two days left at the hostel, he had no options whatsoever. So it was that Toshio Ito, a penniless Japanese man, ended up living in a remote corner of Sulu Province.
On Pangaturan it didnt take Ito long to figure out the surest way to ingratiate himself with his new host, a mid-ranking officer in the MNLF-Misuari. Studying Islam, Ito announced that he had seen the light and was now ready to accept the true faith, Islam. Converting in front of the entire population of Pangaturan's Barangay Bangkilay, he took the name Ameer (Prince, usually spelled "Emir"), a common name for male converts. Dr.Ameer Katayama Mamaito next gained entry into the MNLF-Misuari and was assigned as a medic. Pleased beyond measure, Ito's new hosts readily agreed when their houseguest hit them up for seed money to open a small pharmacy in that barangay's Sitio Bas.
From 2004 until 2010, Ito led a quiet and unassuming life. Perhaps the forlorn man had finally found what all of us seek, a loving home. He was respected in his community, so much so that his friends in the MNLF, learning that Ito had run afoul of Philippine Visa Regulations, obtained a black market birth certificate from crooked officials in Marawi City on Mainland Mindanao. However, not everybody was so taken with Toshio Ito. Younger men had begun circulating rumors that Ito was a Deep Penetration Agent out to spy on the MNLF. Despite his many defenders in the community, the aituation continued to worsen and on the evening of July 16th, 2010, it came to a head.
Ito was dragged out of his bed at just past 10PM that evening by ten young men carrying assault rifles. Frog marching Ito to a mangrove Ito must have been sure that his luck had finally run out. Instead of executing the frightened Japanese man however, the young men forced Ito into an idling pumoboat which then castoff and sailed for Jolo Island.
For a year and a half little was known about Toshio Ito's fate, other then he had been handed off to subordinates of MNLF-Misuari commander, Kumander Ustadz Habir Malik upon making landfall on Jolo. It was also known that the MNLF had turned a fast profit by selling Ito to the ASG, or the Abu Sayyaf Group. Held by the faction led by Kumander Ninok Sappari, who when not keeping Ito's hands tightly bound with rope, compels the emaciated captive to cook whatever livestock they have stolen.
Because Ito cooks, Police Provincial Office for Sulu Province (PPO-Sulu), via its Director, Senior Superintendent Antonio Freyra, has gone on the record as saying that Toshio Ito is now a full fledged member of ASG. Given Ito's nefarious past it is not difficult at all to understand just why PPO-Sulu has sought the easy way out of meeting its responsibilities in this case. Not suprisingly, the Japanese Embassy has likewise abdicated its responsibilities. On March 14th, 2012, the PNP, or Philippine National Police, officially removed Toshio Ito from its roster of KFR victims and re-classified him as a member of ASG. Talk about "Stockholm Syndrome" gone bad. In fact, he exists in a grey netherworld where his captors, having shelled out cash to buy him from the MNLF, are reluctant to release him without even a minimal net profit. On the other hand, executing Ito, the normal course of events in such cases, is not a realistic option given Ito's conversion to Islam. So, for the forseeable future, Toshio Ito's life will remain a living hell.
Travelling south Ito established himself in Dumaguete, on Negros Island. Via an internet dating site Ito met a nubile teenaged Filipina from Misamis Occidental Province on Mindanao. Travelling to our fair isle in 2002 Mr.Ito made his way to his paramour's hometown, Plaridel. It was in Plaridel that Toshio Ito began calling himself Katayama Mamaito. Believing he had found the love of his life, Mr.Ito invested all his life savings in a home for the young lady and her family, and in a sand and gravel business to keep them all afloat.
By 2004 both his love life and his business had gone belly up. His young Filipina not only left him, she kept the house Ito had bought- since it is illegal for foreigners to buy land (though they CAN inherit it from a deceased spouse-in the young lady's name. Adding the proverbial insult to injury, Ito's ex-girlfriend then began a relationship with a Westerner who then promptly moved into Ito's home, ex-home, you get the picture...
As many might, Toshio Ito took a dive off the deep end. One day, soused on "tuba," the local rotgut, Ito broke into the house. Though only Ito knows what he had in mind, the young lady's maid-paid for out of money stolen from Ito's failed sand and gravel business- spotted the drunk man and alerted a next door neighbour. This being Mindanao after all, the neighbour grabbed his trusted M14 and quickly confronted Ito who collapsed im gut wrenching sobs.
Incarcerated in the Plaridel City Jail, Toshio Ito cum Katayama Mamaito, spent the next seven days lying in what to most readers would be unimaginable filth. Finally, his few local friends pooled their money to bail their poor friend out of jail. Toshio Ito promptly repaid the kindness of his friends by absconding and forfeiting their bail...that is...after he borrowed still more money.
Making his way to a low rent hostel in Zamboanga City, Ito then did what Toshio Ito apparently does best, he wallowed in self pity, told his "woe unto me" sob stories to anybody who even glanced at him, and attempted to once again live off of the misplaced kindness of strangers. Ito didnt have much luck in that last endeavour, at least until he ran across a middle aged Sama woman from Pangaturan Island. In town for a medical exam, the woman was about to sit down to lunch when she made the terrible mistake of listening to Toshio Ito's sad lament. Inviting the pitiful man to join her, her treat of course, the two had a long and meandering conversation. Hearing why the woman was in Zamboanga City, Ito, like any adept conman, introduced himself as Dr.Katayama Mamaito, of Hiroshima, though since his wife had died in a terrible train wreck, he had lost everything as he spiraled into the abyss of depression. By the end of the meal the two were getting on like long lost friends.
At the woman's insistence, Ito spoke with her husband by phone. A retired village politician, the man insisted Ito join his wife for the trip south to Pangaturan, and to honor them by becoming their treasured house guest. Ito didnt have many options at this point, in fact, with just two days left at the hostel, he had no options whatsoever. So it was that Toshio Ito, a penniless Japanese man, ended up living in a remote corner of Sulu Province.
On Pangaturan it didnt take Ito long to figure out the surest way to ingratiate himself with his new host, a mid-ranking officer in the MNLF-Misuari. Studying Islam, Ito announced that he had seen the light and was now ready to accept the true faith, Islam. Converting in front of the entire population of Pangaturan's Barangay Bangkilay, he took the name Ameer (Prince, usually spelled "Emir"), a common name for male converts. Dr.Ameer Katayama Mamaito next gained entry into the MNLF-Misuari and was assigned as a medic. Pleased beyond measure, Ito's new hosts readily agreed when their houseguest hit them up for seed money to open a small pharmacy in that barangay's Sitio Bas.
From 2004 until 2010, Ito led a quiet and unassuming life. Perhaps the forlorn man had finally found what all of us seek, a loving home. He was respected in his community, so much so that his friends in the MNLF, learning that Ito had run afoul of Philippine Visa Regulations, obtained a black market birth certificate from crooked officials in Marawi City on Mainland Mindanao. However, not everybody was so taken with Toshio Ito. Younger men had begun circulating rumors that Ito was a Deep Penetration Agent out to spy on the MNLF. Despite his many defenders in the community, the aituation continued to worsen and on the evening of July 16th, 2010, it came to a head.
Ito was dragged out of his bed at just past 10PM that evening by ten young men carrying assault rifles. Frog marching Ito to a mangrove Ito must have been sure that his luck had finally run out. Instead of executing the frightened Japanese man however, the young men forced Ito into an idling pumoboat which then castoff and sailed for Jolo Island.
For a year and a half little was known about Toshio Ito's fate, other then he had been handed off to subordinates of MNLF-Misuari commander, Kumander Ustadz Habir Malik upon making landfall on Jolo. It was also known that the MNLF had turned a fast profit by selling Ito to the ASG, or the Abu Sayyaf Group. Held by the faction led by Kumander Ninok Sappari, who when not keeping Ito's hands tightly bound with rope, compels the emaciated captive to cook whatever livestock they have stolen.
Because Ito cooks, Police Provincial Office for Sulu Province (PPO-Sulu), via its Director, Senior Superintendent Antonio Freyra, has gone on the record as saying that Toshio Ito is now a full fledged member of ASG. Given Ito's nefarious past it is not difficult at all to understand just why PPO-Sulu has sought the easy way out of meeting its responsibilities in this case. Not suprisingly, the Japanese Embassy has likewise abdicated its responsibilities. On March 14th, 2012, the PNP, or Philippine National Police, officially removed Toshio Ito from its roster of KFR victims and re-classified him as a member of ASG. Talk about "Stockholm Syndrome" gone bad. In fact, he exists in a grey netherworld where his captors, having shelled out cash to buy him from the MNLF, are reluctant to release him without even a minimal net profit. On the other hand, executing Ito, the normal course of events in such cases, is not a realistic option given Ito's conversion to Islam. So, for the forseeable future, Toshio Ito's life will remain a living hell.
Kidnap for Ransom for the First Quarter of 2012, Part II: The Release of Frank Oliver Tam Lim
Readers may recall that a "Fourth Quarter of 2011" entry outlined the BIAF 113 Base Command's KFR, or Kidnap for Ransom, of 32 year old Frank Oliver Tam Lim. The BIAF, or Bangsamoro Islamic Armed Forces, the armed wing of the MILF, sometimes funds its armed insurgency via KFR. Indeed, the 113 Base Commamd is first and foremost amongst all BIAF Base Commands in this endeavour.
Lim, a Tsinoy, or Filipino of Chinese descent, is the son and namesake of a multi-millionaire who, among other things, owns a Jollibee fastfood franchise in Pagadian City. Lim himself owns Fresh Harvest Farms, a poultry operation in Dipolog City's Barangay Gulayon. On October 27th, 2011, Lim and his brother John Patrick Tam Lim, had just left National Hiway and had turned onto the farm's dirt access road when a van full of BIAF guerillas pulled in behind them. When the Lims were forced to stop to negotiate the farm's locked gate, the guerillas dismounted and rushed the Lims. John Patrick managed to escape, running through a rice paddy, as Frank was snatched out of his front seat and dragged into oblivion.
On February 21st, 2012, Lim Clansman and the family's chosen negotiator, Wendell Lim, handed over a ransom of P600,000 ($12,000) to his BIAF counterpart and was told to wait for a phone call later that evening. Finally, at just after midnite, February 22nd, Wendell Lim was instructed to proceed to the municipality of Molave, in Zamboanga del Sur Province where he was told to sit tight and await further instructions. Arriving in Molave just before 1AM, Wendell was told to drive to the Zamboanga del Sur Electric Co-operative, known to most as ZAMSURECO. It was there, in front of the co-operative at 120AM that Frank Oliver Lim was released to his kin.
Lim, a Tsinoy, or Filipino of Chinese descent, is the son and namesake of a multi-millionaire who, among other things, owns a Jollibee fastfood franchise in Pagadian City. Lim himself owns Fresh Harvest Farms, a poultry operation in Dipolog City's Barangay Gulayon. On October 27th, 2011, Lim and his brother John Patrick Tam Lim, had just left National Hiway and had turned onto the farm's dirt access road when a van full of BIAF guerillas pulled in behind them. When the Lims were forced to stop to negotiate the farm's locked gate, the guerillas dismounted and rushed the Lims. John Patrick managed to escape, running through a rice paddy, as Frank was snatched out of his front seat and dragged into oblivion.
On February 21st, 2012, Lim Clansman and the family's chosen negotiator, Wendell Lim, handed over a ransom of P600,000 ($12,000) to his BIAF counterpart and was told to wait for a phone call later that evening. Finally, at just after midnite, February 22nd, Wendell Lim was instructed to proceed to the municipality of Molave, in Zamboanga del Sur Province where he was told to sit tight and await further instructions. Arriving in Molave just before 1AM, Wendell was told to drive to the Zamboanga del Sur Electric Co-operative, known to most as ZAMSURECO. It was there, in front of the co-operative at 120AM that Frank Oliver Lim was released to his kin.
Thursday, June 14, 2012
Kidnap for Ransom for the First Quarter of 2012, Part I: The Abduction of Two European Naturalists in Tawi Tawi Province
The Tawi Tawi island group, an offshore province of Mindanao, forms the southernmost province in the Philippines. Originally part of Sulu Province, gaining its independent provincial status in 1973, Tawi Tawi has developed a character all its own. The dominant ethnicity, the Sama, with all its disparate offshoots- from the Jama Mapun to the Sama Ubia- offer Tawi Tawi a distinctive character far different from Jolo, the central island in the adjacent province of Sulu. Jolo, and Sulu as a whole, is dominated by the Tausugs, a group that migrated from Butuan, by way of Basilan, six to seven centuries ago.
Tausug culture revolves around an honor code that governs mosy every aspect of male life. Known as "Adat" (akin to the "Kanun" of the Albanians or "Pashtunwali" of the Pashtun of Pakistan and Afghanistan), the code requires violent remedies for any afront to personal dignity or family honor. The result is a warrior culture, that has come to dominate not only the Tausug's adopted home of Jolo, but the offshore province of Basilan as well. The Sama, most offshoots anyway, are peaceful and seek co-existence with the Tausug at almost any cost. Tawi Tawi then has largely avoided the violence-including the Islamic Insurgencies- that have plagued both Jolo and Basilan for decades (actually centuries if one looks at the larger picture).
Piracy and KFR, or Kidnap for Ransom, have deep roots in the Tausug culture. This has been re-inforced by the introduction of Islam to the region just prior to the Tausu migration. Ransoming captives, non-Muslims anyway- is legal within Shari'a (Islamic Jurisprudence). Granted, most members of ASG (Abu Sayyaf Group) can barely read and write in their native languages, let alone Arabic, but there ARE a few who are highly educated, usually via scholarships offered by Middle Eastern nations. Therefore, fluent in Arabic and well versed in Shari'a, they offer up a precious Islamic rationalization that segues perfectly with ingrained cultural practices. Within Islam, the operative issue is the faith of a potential captive (must be a non-Muslim), and the existence of a state of war. I think anyone would be hardpressed to deny that Mindanao has been in just such a state, albeit ebbing and flowing, since pre-history. Indeed, it was a war in Butuan that drove the Tausug out of Mainland Mindanao and into Basilan (and shortly thereafter, Jolo).
The Sama though, have a very different culture. Aside from the Sama Ubian, who are actually Dayaks from Borneo who adapated to Sama influences, the culture is one of appeasement, and in the case of Jolo, subservience (so much for the ridiculous myth of Bangsamoro peoplehood..). One exception to this "culture of appeasement" are the Balangingi, a Sama group from the island of Balangingi who managed to dominate piracy in the Sulu and Celebes Seas until a genocidal attack by the Spanish Military in 1848 virtually destroyed the group.
Although the Tausug did not settle in Tawi Tawi in any great numbers, they continued their political, economic and cultural domination of Tawi Tawi. The subsequent "culture of appeasement" that developed amongst the Sama has for the most part, rendered Tawi Tawi far more sedate, and offers visitors a much greater sense of security. So much so in fact, that intrepid travellers, including Westerners, continue to visit the small island group without bothering to arrange any special security detail, as would be par for the course in Sulu (Jolo included), Basilan, and even in many parts of Mainland Mindanao.
Such was the case of two European taxidermists who share a deep interest in Birding, a pasttime that most refer to as "Birdwatching." 52 year old Ewold Horn left his home in Den Andel, in Groningen, Holland and met his friend and professional colleague Lorenzo Vinciguerra for a long awaited trip to the Southern Philippines. Vinciguerra, aged 47, owns a profitable taxidermy business in the town of Grub, in Switzerland, and like Horn he enjoys Birding more than he did his chosen trade, stuffing dead animals into likelike poses.
They planned on spotting, and hopefully photographing, several rare Philippine birds in what was to be a 14 day vacation. The highlight of this dream get away was a little known bitd endemic to just two of the 307 islands in the Tawi Tawi island group (and Jolo, now only existing on Mainland Tawi Tawi in a tiny area), the Sulu Hornbill (Anthracoceros Montani). The bird is considered to be on the verge of extinction with an estimated population of 27 adults. Such rarity renders the bird a hot item in the world of Birding. Indeed, the two men had travelled to Tawi Tawi in 1996 in hopes of catching a glimpse only to have their hopes dashed due to the sector being made off limits to foreigners while the AFP, or Armed Forces of the Philippines, undertook a security operation against the ASG.
Arriving in Zamboanga City on Saturday, January 28th, 2012, the two men rendevouzed with a Filipino Birding enthusiast, 32 year old Ivan Sardenas. Sardenas, a residentof Davao City had recently spent considerable time in Tawi Tawi as he sought to establish himself as a guide for nature enthusiasts. It was Sardenas who had put in the legwork in locating the latest sightings of the highly endangered bird and who then pre-arranged security for their expedition. Early Sunday morning, January 29th, the three men boarded a plane in Zamboanga City fora 45 minute flight to Bongao, the capital of Tawi Tawi.
At their hotel Ivan Sadenas called ahead to the municipality of Panglima Sugala, where four of the birds had been sighted in recent months. The Mayor's righthand man recommended that Sardenas employ Municipal Councilor Nestor
Camilo Cabarrubias Sr. as a local guide, and that the Councilor himself would then arrange the expedition's security using police officers from the MPO, or Municipal Police Office. Sardenas didnt have much choice in the matter but dis make the man aware that the expedition wasnt well funded and that the Security Detail would have to take this into account.
Leaving Bongao's Chinese Pier by motorbanca, Philippine speak for "motorized skiff," the group slowly skirted the coast of Mainland Tawi Tawi until reaching Panglima Sugala in the middle of the elongated island's coast. As the men disembarked and began wading through the surf the boat opetator repeated that he would be returning to that same spot to pick them up for their return trip on Wednesday, February 1st, three days hence. Casting off while wishing them luck, the party began carrying their gear through Barangay Bato Bato, the town center, or "Poblacion." As the group atrived at Municipal Hall they were greeted warmly by Councilor Cabarrubias and a lone UNARMED police officer who would be serving as the expedition's paltry "Security Detail."
After a very short meet and greet with town dignitaries the expedition piled into an SUV belonging to the Municipal Government, the expedition made its way to Tubig Malum, or as the Philippine Governmen refers to it, the Rio Hondo River. Parking the vehicle, to be retrieved later by other police officers, the group forded the river and began their tedious hike upcountry to Mount Balik Sampan where the expedition would sped the next three days encamped as the two Europeans and Ivan Sadenas would do their best to photograph their quarry, the Sulu Hornbill.
Wednesday, February 1st arrived and the expedition, having failed to even sight the elusive bird, re-packed their gear and began hiking back down to Tubig Malum where they were to part ways with their "Security Detail." Once at the river , Horn, Vinciguerra, and Sadenas began following it into Barangay Parangan. In that barangay's Sitio Luuk Luuk the three men were suprised, but elated to find the skiff was moored waiting for them, moored just off shore. It didnt take long at all to load the gear aboard and at just after 120PM the boat started its engine and turned back towards Bongao, where the three men hoped to spend a quiet evening back at the hotel, resting in comfort before the next day's flight back to Zamboanga City.
As the boat made its way offshore to skirt all the outriggers of fishermen and seaweed farmers, a pumpboat turned into the lane behind them. Within minutes everybody onboard the skiff was on edge, how much more so when the pumpboat pulled closer and Sadenas noticed the dual barrels of an M16 rifle fitted out with an M203 grenade launcher er. Before long the men in the pumpboat began screaming at the skiff and vigirously motioning with their arms, waving their assault rifles in a menacing fashion. However, it wasnt until a few rounds were fired over their heads that the skiff's operator began dejectedly easing off its throttle.
The pumpboat quickly pulled parallel before two men aboard it hooked the crafts together. Four gunmen quickly came aboard the skiff and pointed their barrels at all four men, motioning for Horn, Vinciguerra, and Sadenas to transfer themselves and their gear to the pumpboat. Forcing the fourth man, the boat opetator, to turn off his idling engine, they then snatched his keys, stole two of his batteries and forced him over the side at gunpoint.
Back aboard the pumpboat, the three captives were forced under a blue plastic tarp covering the foresection almost to.the bow. Quickly throttling up the pumpboat turned around as if to travel back towards Panglima Sugala. Before reaching that town's municipal boundry however, it veered into a "bakawan," or mangrove, where it rendevouzed with a second pumpboat with a markedly different appearance. Once again secured under a blue plastic tarp, the small craft turned out to sea and gunned its engines.
As the second pumpboat entered the waters off of the municipality of Languyan, an offshore islet came into view, pylling parallel to it the boat slowed considerably and finally began idling. Within ten minutes a third, larger pumpboat came at a high rate of speed from the fishing grounds just off of the town. Pulling abreast, the five gunmen aboatd received the three captives and their gear and as was the case twice before, Horn, Vinciguerra, and Sadenas wete forced out of sight under a blue plastic tarp. As this third pumpboat nosed itself out to sea the three captives took stock of their situation; with them under the tarp were three liter containers of fresh water and 55 gallon drums of fuel. With the boat heading out to the sealanes, and seeing a large cachet of fresh water and fuel, it was clear that they erre heading into a Sulu Province, and the ASG (Abu Sayyaf Group) base of operations, Jolo Island.
Ivan Sadenas knew well that it was the Europeans that their captors valued. Coming from a poor family and being a Christian Filipino, his life was worth practically nothing once the five gunmen handed them off to their cohorts on Jolo. Thinking fast, Sadenas told his two companions that he was thinking about making.a run for it by throwing himdelf ovrtboard. Promising the Horn and Vinciguerra that he would alert the authorities, he quietly lifted the edge of the tarp and saw that the five gunmen were busy amongst themselves. Making his way to the opposite side of the tarp he once again quietly lifted an edge and discovered that they were only 1,000 meters off of Mainland Tawi Tawi, smack dab in the middle of fishing grounds as the pumpboat sought cover as it made its way to a busier shipping lane.
Quickly realizing that the fishing grounds represented a great opportunity since witnesses would inhibit a violent reaction from his captors...at least he prayed it would...Sadenas lifted the tarp enough to climb up over the side of tge boat and quickly dove into the azure sea. Diving down as far as he could Ivan Sadenas furiously swam as far as he could until he felt his lungs would burst. Surfacing, desperate for air, he was shocked (and relieved) to find that the boat hadnt even slowed down. He was free, if he could make his way to shore anyway.
Waving his arms as he bobbed in the water, Sadenas quickly caught the attention of an outrigger crewed by three fishermen. Dragging the elated man aboard, the fishermen were able to piece together Sadena's story through gestures and.a few mutually intelligible words. The outrigger made its way to Panglima Sugala where Ivan Sadenas quickly summoned the police. Taking his report the MPO quickly notified the Police Provincial Office, or PPO. Per protocols, PPO-Tawi Tawi immediately notified the AFP's Naval Task Force 62 (TF-62) which handles all seaborne incidents in Tawi Tawi and the waters seperating that province from Borneo.
TF-62 consists of a tender and four patrol boats, along with personnel from MBLT-5 (Marine Battalion Landing Team #5). Despite this capable force, and.cordon it implenented around Mainland Tawi Tawi's eastern and northern coasts, the third pumpboat and the two Europeans, Ewold Horn and Lorenzo Vinciguerra, remained undiscovered. Within two days Governor Sadikul Sahali deployed a 2,000 man search party to comb Mainland Tawi Tawi's 275 square kilometers of jungle, within which Panglima Sugala sits. PPO-Tawi Tawi Director, Superintendent Rodelio Jocson, Chairperson of the Governor's Crisis Management Committee, the requisite entity empaneled to co-ordinate all Governmental responses to the kidnapping, wasted no time in going to the media and accusing Councilman Nestor Camilo Cabarrubias Sr. and his handpicked municipal police officer were pulling the strings on an "inside job."
Superintendent Jocson was naturally asked to elaborate. His bombshell? With a snide conspiratorial grimace, Jocson observed that when the expedition's motorbanca was overtaken by the first pumpboat, neither Councilor Cabarrubias nor the police officer were present, having left the expedition at the river. Of course that is absolutely ridiculous given the fact that the abduction occurred as the men were returning to Bongao. Why would Cabarrubias and the officer be aboard when their "services" had only been secured for Panglima Sugala?
The actual culprit was MNLF-Misuari officer, Kumander Sahi Tali, via his footsoldiers in and around Panglima Sugala. There arent many employment opportunnities in the province and the tourists coming to Panglima Sugala have helped to spawn a healthy cottage industry amongst young men from the immediate area. amany such youth are members of the MNLF-Misuari, a group ostensibly at peace with Manila although it is tenuous, if not an outright fantasy. One of tgese young men, Mustapha Muallam, bent at losing his P250 ($5.50) fee, contacted his immediate superior within the MNLF, who in turn got the go ahead from an underling of Kumander Tali. Tali's own superior, Kumander Habir Malik on Jolo, wanted to turn an easy profit.
The official narrative has the third pumpboat having turned back to Mainland Tawi Tawi after rough seas and a shortage of fuel convince the MNLF guerillas to try again another day. In reality there was no shortage of fuel as the vessel carried several spare drums. Moreover, people on Jolo saw the pumpboat land off of the municipality of Patikul on Jolo. Once on Jolo, Kumander Tali quickly sold both Europeans to Kumamder Yasset Igasan, leader of an ASG faction operating in the hills around Patikul.
Having only found the burned remnants of that first pumpboat in the mamgrove where it had transferred the captives, Governor Sahali finally conceeded that even the Dutch and Swiss Embassies no longer believed that thetwo men remained on Tawi Tawi. Sheepishly demobilizing the Crisis Management.Committee, the Governor them tossed the ball to his counterpart in Sulu, Governor Abdursakur Tan. PPO-Sulu however refused to even consider the possibility.
Tausug culture revolves around an honor code that governs mosy every aspect of male life. Known as "Adat" (akin to the "Kanun" of the Albanians or "Pashtunwali" of the Pashtun of Pakistan and Afghanistan), the code requires violent remedies for any afront to personal dignity or family honor. The result is a warrior culture, that has come to dominate not only the Tausug's adopted home of Jolo, but the offshore province of Basilan as well. The Sama, most offshoots anyway, are peaceful and seek co-existence with the Tausug at almost any cost. Tawi Tawi then has largely avoided the violence-including the Islamic Insurgencies- that have plagued both Jolo and Basilan for decades (actually centuries if one looks at the larger picture).
Piracy and KFR, or Kidnap for Ransom, have deep roots in the Tausug culture. This has been re-inforced by the introduction of Islam to the region just prior to the Tausu migration. Ransoming captives, non-Muslims anyway- is legal within Shari'a (Islamic Jurisprudence). Granted, most members of ASG (Abu Sayyaf Group) can barely read and write in their native languages, let alone Arabic, but there ARE a few who are highly educated, usually via scholarships offered by Middle Eastern nations. Therefore, fluent in Arabic and well versed in Shari'a, they offer up a precious Islamic rationalization that segues perfectly with ingrained cultural practices. Within Islam, the operative issue is the faith of a potential captive (must be a non-Muslim), and the existence of a state of war. I think anyone would be hardpressed to deny that Mindanao has been in just such a state, albeit ebbing and flowing, since pre-history. Indeed, it was a war in Butuan that drove the Tausug out of Mainland Mindanao and into Basilan (and shortly thereafter, Jolo).
The Sama though, have a very different culture. Aside from the Sama Ubian, who are actually Dayaks from Borneo who adapated to Sama influences, the culture is one of appeasement, and in the case of Jolo, subservience (so much for the ridiculous myth of Bangsamoro peoplehood..). One exception to this "culture of appeasement" are the Balangingi, a Sama group from the island of Balangingi who managed to dominate piracy in the Sulu and Celebes Seas until a genocidal attack by the Spanish Military in 1848 virtually destroyed the group.
Although the Tausug did not settle in Tawi Tawi in any great numbers, they continued their political, economic and cultural domination of Tawi Tawi. The subsequent "culture of appeasement" that developed amongst the Sama has for the most part, rendered Tawi Tawi far more sedate, and offers visitors a much greater sense of security. So much so in fact, that intrepid travellers, including Westerners, continue to visit the small island group without bothering to arrange any special security detail, as would be par for the course in Sulu (Jolo included), Basilan, and even in many parts of Mainland Mindanao.
Such was the case of two European taxidermists who share a deep interest in Birding, a pasttime that most refer to as "Birdwatching." 52 year old Ewold Horn left his home in Den Andel, in Groningen, Holland and met his friend and professional colleague Lorenzo Vinciguerra for a long awaited trip to the Southern Philippines. Vinciguerra, aged 47, owns a profitable taxidermy business in the town of Grub, in Switzerland, and like Horn he enjoys Birding more than he did his chosen trade, stuffing dead animals into likelike poses.
They planned on spotting, and hopefully photographing, several rare Philippine birds in what was to be a 14 day vacation. The highlight of this dream get away was a little known bitd endemic to just two of the 307 islands in the Tawi Tawi island group (and Jolo, now only existing on Mainland Tawi Tawi in a tiny area), the Sulu Hornbill (Anthracoceros Montani). The bird is considered to be on the verge of extinction with an estimated population of 27 adults. Such rarity renders the bird a hot item in the world of Birding. Indeed, the two men had travelled to Tawi Tawi in 1996 in hopes of catching a glimpse only to have their hopes dashed due to the sector being made off limits to foreigners while the AFP, or Armed Forces of the Philippines, undertook a security operation against the ASG.
Arriving in Zamboanga City on Saturday, January 28th, 2012, the two men rendevouzed with a Filipino Birding enthusiast, 32 year old Ivan Sardenas. Sardenas, a residentof Davao City had recently spent considerable time in Tawi Tawi as he sought to establish himself as a guide for nature enthusiasts. It was Sardenas who had put in the legwork in locating the latest sightings of the highly endangered bird and who then pre-arranged security for their expedition. Early Sunday morning, January 29th, the three men boarded a plane in Zamboanga City fora 45 minute flight to Bongao, the capital of Tawi Tawi.
At their hotel Ivan Sadenas called ahead to the municipality of Panglima Sugala, where four of the birds had been sighted in recent months. The Mayor's righthand man recommended that Sardenas employ Municipal Councilor Nestor
Camilo Cabarrubias Sr. as a local guide, and that the Councilor himself would then arrange the expedition's security using police officers from the MPO, or Municipal Police Office. Sardenas didnt have much choice in the matter but dis make the man aware that the expedition wasnt well funded and that the Security Detail would have to take this into account.
Leaving Bongao's Chinese Pier by motorbanca, Philippine speak for "motorized skiff," the group slowly skirted the coast of Mainland Tawi Tawi until reaching Panglima Sugala in the middle of the elongated island's coast. As the men disembarked and began wading through the surf the boat opetator repeated that he would be returning to that same spot to pick them up for their return trip on Wednesday, February 1st, three days hence. Casting off while wishing them luck, the party began carrying their gear through Barangay Bato Bato, the town center, or "Poblacion." As the group atrived at Municipal Hall they were greeted warmly by Councilor Cabarrubias and a lone UNARMED police officer who would be serving as the expedition's paltry "Security Detail."
After a very short meet and greet with town dignitaries the expedition piled into an SUV belonging to the Municipal Government, the expedition made its way to Tubig Malum, or as the Philippine Governmen refers to it, the Rio Hondo River. Parking the vehicle, to be retrieved later by other police officers, the group forded the river and began their tedious hike upcountry to Mount Balik Sampan where the expedition would sped the next three days encamped as the two Europeans and Ivan Sadenas would do their best to photograph their quarry, the Sulu Hornbill.
Wednesday, February 1st arrived and the expedition, having failed to even sight the elusive bird, re-packed their gear and began hiking back down to Tubig Malum where they were to part ways with their "Security Detail." Once at the river , Horn, Vinciguerra, and Sadenas began following it into Barangay Parangan. In that barangay's Sitio Luuk Luuk the three men were suprised, but elated to find the skiff was moored waiting for them, moored just off shore. It didnt take long at all to load the gear aboard and at just after 120PM the boat started its engine and turned back towards Bongao, where the three men hoped to spend a quiet evening back at the hotel, resting in comfort before the next day's flight back to Zamboanga City.
As the boat made its way offshore to skirt all the outriggers of fishermen and seaweed farmers, a pumpboat turned into the lane behind them. Within minutes everybody onboard the skiff was on edge, how much more so when the pumpboat pulled closer and Sadenas noticed the dual barrels of an M16 rifle fitted out with an M203 grenade launcher er. Before long the men in the pumpboat began screaming at the skiff and vigirously motioning with their arms, waving their assault rifles in a menacing fashion. However, it wasnt until a few rounds were fired over their heads that the skiff's operator began dejectedly easing off its throttle.
The pumpboat quickly pulled parallel before two men aboard it hooked the crafts together. Four gunmen quickly came aboard the skiff and pointed their barrels at all four men, motioning for Horn, Vinciguerra, and Sadenas to transfer themselves and their gear to the pumpboat. Forcing the fourth man, the boat opetator, to turn off his idling engine, they then snatched his keys, stole two of his batteries and forced him over the side at gunpoint.
Back aboard the pumpboat, the three captives were forced under a blue plastic tarp covering the foresection almost to.the bow. Quickly throttling up the pumpboat turned around as if to travel back towards Panglima Sugala. Before reaching that town's municipal boundry however, it veered into a "bakawan," or mangrove, where it rendevouzed with a second pumpboat with a markedly different appearance. Once again secured under a blue plastic tarp, the small craft turned out to sea and gunned its engines.
As the second pumpboat entered the waters off of the municipality of Languyan, an offshore islet came into view, pylling parallel to it the boat slowed considerably and finally began idling. Within ten minutes a third, larger pumpboat came at a high rate of speed from the fishing grounds just off of the town. Pulling abreast, the five gunmen aboatd received the three captives and their gear and as was the case twice before, Horn, Vinciguerra, and Sadenas wete forced out of sight under a blue plastic tarp. As this third pumpboat nosed itself out to sea the three captives took stock of their situation; with them under the tarp were three liter containers of fresh water and 55 gallon drums of fuel. With the boat heading out to the sealanes, and seeing a large cachet of fresh water and fuel, it was clear that they erre heading into a Sulu Province, and the ASG (Abu Sayyaf Group) base of operations, Jolo Island.
Ivan Sadenas knew well that it was the Europeans that their captors valued. Coming from a poor family and being a Christian Filipino, his life was worth practically nothing once the five gunmen handed them off to their cohorts on Jolo. Thinking fast, Sadenas told his two companions that he was thinking about making.a run for it by throwing himdelf ovrtboard. Promising the Horn and Vinciguerra that he would alert the authorities, he quietly lifted the edge of the tarp and saw that the five gunmen were busy amongst themselves. Making his way to the opposite side of the tarp he once again quietly lifted an edge and discovered that they were only 1,000 meters off of Mainland Tawi Tawi, smack dab in the middle of fishing grounds as the pumpboat sought cover as it made its way to a busier shipping lane.
Quickly realizing that the fishing grounds represented a great opportunity since witnesses would inhibit a violent reaction from his captors...at least he prayed it would...Sadenas lifted the tarp enough to climb up over the side of tge boat and quickly dove into the azure sea. Diving down as far as he could Ivan Sadenas furiously swam as far as he could until he felt his lungs would burst. Surfacing, desperate for air, he was shocked (and relieved) to find that the boat hadnt even slowed down. He was free, if he could make his way to shore anyway.
Waving his arms as he bobbed in the water, Sadenas quickly caught the attention of an outrigger crewed by three fishermen. Dragging the elated man aboard, the fishermen were able to piece together Sadena's story through gestures and.a few mutually intelligible words. The outrigger made its way to Panglima Sugala where Ivan Sadenas quickly summoned the police. Taking his report the MPO quickly notified the Police Provincial Office, or PPO. Per protocols, PPO-Tawi Tawi immediately notified the AFP's Naval Task Force 62 (TF-62) which handles all seaborne incidents in Tawi Tawi and the waters seperating that province from Borneo.
TF-62 consists of a tender and four patrol boats, along with personnel from MBLT-5 (Marine Battalion Landing Team #5). Despite this capable force, and.cordon it implenented around Mainland Tawi Tawi's eastern and northern coasts, the third pumpboat and the two Europeans, Ewold Horn and Lorenzo Vinciguerra, remained undiscovered. Within two days Governor Sadikul Sahali deployed a 2,000 man search party to comb Mainland Tawi Tawi's 275 square kilometers of jungle, within which Panglima Sugala sits. PPO-Tawi Tawi Director, Superintendent Rodelio Jocson, Chairperson of the Governor's Crisis Management Committee, the requisite entity empaneled to co-ordinate all Governmental responses to the kidnapping, wasted no time in going to the media and accusing Councilman Nestor Camilo Cabarrubias Sr. and his handpicked municipal police officer were pulling the strings on an "inside job."
Superintendent Jocson was naturally asked to elaborate. His bombshell? With a snide conspiratorial grimace, Jocson observed that when the expedition's motorbanca was overtaken by the first pumpboat, neither Councilor Cabarrubias nor the police officer were present, having left the expedition at the river. Of course that is absolutely ridiculous given the fact that the abduction occurred as the men were returning to Bongao. Why would Cabarrubias and the officer be aboard when their "services" had only been secured for Panglima Sugala?
The actual culprit was MNLF-Misuari officer, Kumander Sahi Tali, via his footsoldiers in and around Panglima Sugala. There arent many employment opportunnities in the province and the tourists coming to Panglima Sugala have helped to spawn a healthy cottage industry amongst young men from the immediate area. amany such youth are members of the MNLF-Misuari, a group ostensibly at peace with Manila although it is tenuous, if not an outright fantasy. One of tgese young men, Mustapha Muallam, bent at losing his P250 ($5.50) fee, contacted his immediate superior within the MNLF, who in turn got the go ahead from an underling of Kumander Tali. Tali's own superior, Kumander Habir Malik on Jolo, wanted to turn an easy profit.
The official narrative has the third pumpboat having turned back to Mainland Tawi Tawi after rough seas and a shortage of fuel convince the MNLF guerillas to try again another day. In reality there was no shortage of fuel as the vessel carried several spare drums. Moreover, people on Jolo saw the pumpboat land off of the municipality of Patikul on Jolo. Once on Jolo, Kumander Tali quickly sold both Europeans to Kumamder Yasset Igasan, leader of an ASG faction operating in the hills around Patikul.
Having only found the burned remnants of that first pumpboat in the mamgrove where it had transferred the captives, Governor Sahali finally conceeded that even the Dutch and Swiss Embassies no longer believed that thetwo men remained on Tawi Tawi. Sheepishly demobilizing the Crisis Management.Committee, the Governor them tossed the ball to his counterpart in Sulu, Governor Abdursakur Tan. PPO-Sulu however refused to even consider the possibility.
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