Zamboanga stand-off: Opting for the "shortcut syndrome" because it's the easier solution

Everyone must understand that the 96 Peace deal was offered by FVR to both MNLF & MILF (the latter, you all know, broke from the MNLF because they refused the Tripoli Agreement and preferred to continue the fight for secession). In essence, the MNLF dropped the secession doctrine after the 96 peace deal was forged, thanks to FVR; the MILF shunned the deal and continued with its secession war, funded by Malaysia. 

Today, the MILF, under the influence of Malaysia has managed to secure its own "peace deal" with Govt which would pave the way for sharing of sovereignty with the Republic. And why do you think Malaysia was chosen to engineer this peace deal with the MILF? Did Malaysia influence events and engineered the deal out of altruism?

You may kill Nur Misuari today but the problem with his supporters and the Southern Mindanao will remain. If you don't want the MNLF problem anymore, then the Armed Forces of the Philippines (which will be undoubtedly cheered by many Filipinos) need to annihilate the whole MNLF, their men, their women, their children, their unborn babies and every single living being remotely associated to the MNLF but even then you will have NO GUARANTEE that in the future you won't have a problem -- but the next time it will be with the MILF!!!

And the problem with the MILF will be of far bigger consequence, far more lethal because you will have to face Malaysia alongside them! (Oh, yes, we know, when that happens, Pinoys will shrug their shoulders and say, "Eh, wala naman tayong magagawa" the constant refrain from many commenters when the Sultanate forces of Sabah staked their claim in Tanduo and PH did NOT LIFT A FINGER IN THEIR DEFENCE while they were being murdered! But when it comes to Filipinos killing their own, they cheer on.)

Why are Filipinos allowing themselves to be manipulated into killing their own? Is it because it is easier to fight among themselves? Is it because it is the shortcut route - a shortcut remedy, something that Pinoys have a penchant for, preferring the "kill the MNLF" solution because it is easier, quicker perhaps than to have to face a more complex problem, i.e., MALAYSIA-MILF?

Tell Government to face the problem not with the barrel of the gun against its own but to re-examine with the MNLF what is wrong... Review the 96 Peace deal. Start from there. Govt has not been exactly above board in meeting its obligations in relation to the 96 Peace Deal.

Our advice to Prof Nur Misuari: Sit down with Govt and talk; send emissary to tell Govt that you will lay down your arms and that you want to talk. Request an OIC member to parlay for you if necessary. There are members of Govt, we are confident, who are not completely devoid of brains. Ask FVR to be your envoy...

A recap: 'Warring' with your own is not a solution in Mindanao.

It took Europeans tens of millions of dead, maimed, lives and places destroyed for more than 1,000 years to realise this and so, created Europe (EU). There is no need to wait a thousand years for Filipinos to see that warring with their own is not a solution. Reserve your strength to fight your foreign enemies before they dismember the Republic

Those who fan the flames of war against their own people need to understand that they are leading this country to disaster when they lose the ultimate war with its foreign enemies who are lurking at the gates, ready to pounce on the weakened and divided Philippines ...

Again, sit down with the "insurgents" and review the 1996 Peace Deal. Admittedly, it's a more difficult solution than just to "Kill! Kill!" This penchant for opting for the easy solution to avoid facing the tougher options must stop. Less shortcuts please!

~~~~ O ~~~~

Armed conflicts in Mindanao: events triggered by unresolved Sabah issue and influenced by Malaysia

All the events involving armed conflicts in Southern Mindanao from 1968, 1969 and specifically in the early 70s until today were triggered by the one standing unresolved issue between the Republic of the Philippines and Peninsular Malaysia: Sovereignty rights over Sabah or the Manila Accord. These 'events' have been "influenced" by Malaysia. 

- Malaysia commenced "influencing events" in Southern Mindanao immediately after the discovery of a plan by the Republic to take control of Sabah in 1968

- Malaysia's Tunku Abdul Razak (father of current Malaysia Prime Minister Najib) was the first PM to pour money into Muslim secessionist rebels who at the time were led by Nur Misuari (first chair of MNLF) and seconded by Hashim Salamat (founder of MILF)

- Malaysia's PM Mahathir as soon as he took over continued the exercise and improved Tunku Abdul Razak's modus operandi by modernising the Malaysian armed forces. He then poured resources after resources into and "enlarged" Muslim secessionist training camps in Sabah. Mahathir devoted a great deal of effort in the Islamisation of Sabah by allowing the influx of Muslims from all over the region and granting them Malaysia citizenship in exchange for their votes so that Barisan Nasional (his party) would remain in power. He was responsible for the nationalisation of the oil resources of Sabah and created PETRONAS that would control the industry.

- When FVR's Govt, finally concluded a peace deal with the MNLF in 1996 with the backing of the OIC, Malaysia realised that their attempts to sow trouble in Southern Mindanao through the MNLF of which they were patrons might be endangered. The MILF shunned the 1996 Peace Agreement. Mahathir trained his efforts on the break-away faction headed by Hashim Salamat aka MILF and funded and supported the rebel group.

- In 1998, President Estrada who had just been elected to the presidency, and who was despised by Mahathir, decided to launch an offensive against the MILF after intel revealed that the MILF, fully armed with weapons from Malaysia (including missile systems that Mahathir had ordered earlier on) was gearing up for a full scale offensive against government military bases in the South. The AFP won.

- In 1999, the Sipadan hostage crisis took place. Sipadan is a Malaysian resort island. The hostage crisis began the long descent to hell of Estrada.

- In 2004, Gloria Macapagal accepted MILF's demand that Malaysia be the head of the monitoring team to supervise a Framework Agreement. Malaysian troops began to arrive in Southern Mindanao.

- Shortly thereafter, Senator Nene Pimentel questioned the wisdom of calling on Malaysia to oversee the proposed "peace talks" with the MILF invoking the fact that PH has a standing unresolved issue over Sabah

- In 2012, President Aquino handed over to Najib the signed "Talking points" for the envisioned shared sovereignty over a new political entity between GPH and MILF

- In 2013, Sultanate of Sulu launched siege in Tanduo, Sabah in a bid to re-take Sabah; many Tausugs died; in September, MNLF decided to rally against the planned signing of the Malaysia-inspired wealth sharing agreement between GPH and MILF which is scheduled on 16 September, on the 50th anniversary of the illegal annexation of Sabah to the created Malaysia Federation.

The bottom line is that Malaysia has always put one over GPH in their bid to ensure that PH will never be able to turn around to re-claim Sabah.

SEPT 16: BEGINNING OF THE DISMANTLING OF THE PHILIPPINE REPUBLIC?

THE BEGINNING OF THE DISMANTLING OF THE REPUBLIC?

SEPT 16, 2013: Date of  the schedule of the signing of the Malaysia-engineered GPH-MILF 'wealth sharing' agreement to be witnessed by officials from Kuala Lumpur and a general from the Malaysia armed forces.

SEPT 16, 1963: Date of the illegal transfer of Sabah to then Malaya Federation, also the date of the establishment of the Malaysia Federation formally incorporating Sabah which took place a few weeks after the signing of the Manila Accord, a treaty between the to-be-created-Malaysia Federation and the Philippines that guaranteed the recognition of the Republic's claim to Sabah which is recorded in the United Nations.

The signing of the 75-25% wealth sharing agreement engineered by Malaysia between GPH (25%) and rebel group MILF (75%) -- to the exclusion of the MNLF, the BIFF, the Tausugs, the Sultanate of Sulu, and all other groups in Southern Mindanao, is scheduled on September 16, 2013.

Choosing the September 16, 2013 date to formally surrender a great portion of the wealth of -- and the Republic's effective sovereignty over Southern Mindanao to Malaysia-controlled MILF, a splinter rebel group in Mindanao whose long-running ambition has been to federate with Kuala Lumpur, is totally indecent to say the least.

We suspect that the date was selected at the behest of the Malaysian friends of President Aquino, to whom his family owes a debt of gratitude, in order to drive the final nail in the coffin of the Republic's claim. We all know, Malaysia is the country that funded, supplied arms, and positioned rebel groups in Mindanao to sow mayhem in the country's southern region.  In fact, Malaysian troops are stationed in Mindanao as we speak.

We are in no doubt that the September 16, 2013 signing of this Malaysia-engineered deal is one of the reasons that spurred the MNLF into a revolt resulting in the current stand off in Zamboanga City. President Aquino ordered the chiefs of DND and DILG to check into the stand off.  The date will formally put to everlasting rest the 1996 Treaty that the Government of the Philippines signed with the MNLF, a comprehensive peace treaty which, if you remember, was shunned by the Malaysia-controlled MILF at the time, and whose treaty terms have been waylaid by succeeding PH administrations in favour of the pro-Malaysia deal with the MILF.

Meanwhile, as the stand-off progresses and MNLF's Nur Misuari (who wants the 1996 peace treaty terms with GPH to be reviewed) is villified in the press and by those who have not clearly understood the dynamics at play, the President is busy entertaining in Malacanang (in picture above), along with his cousin and supporter Tony Boy Cojuangco, none other than Air Asia Chief Executive Officer, Tony Fernandez, a Malaysian. Air Asia is a Malaysia low-cost airline headquartered in Kuala Lumpur. For your information, Mr Fernandez of Air Asia is the staunchest supporter in the Malaysia corporate world of Kuala Lumpur troop movements against Tausug settlers in Lahad Datu in Sabah during the first quarter of this year. But what exactly is going on?

We are tempted to believe that the Government of Noynoy Aquino has all the reasons to put one up over Misuari and the MNLF because for as long as Misuari is alive, he will spell trouble to Malaysia's envisioned control of the rich Southern Mindanao region through its proxy, the MILF, and Nur Misuari will always be a destabilising force in Kuala Lumpur's illegal hold on Sabah.

The September 16, 2013 signing of the Malaysia-engineered 'peace deal' sounds not only like an omen: it is also a hard-hitting back-to-back slap to the Tausugs, to the Sultanate of Sulu, the MNLF along with the various factions that had been sidelined by GPH and Malaysia in the so-called MILF Bangsamoro peace deal. It is effectively the officious burial date of the UN Treaty 8029 otherwise known as the Manila Accord.

But what is worse, it is the supreme insult to and the final stab at the scores of people who were murdered by Malaysian troops in Lahad Datu while defending their right to Sabah.

Is it possible that on September 16 in the not too distant future, we will also be witnessing the signing of the formal transfer of the MILF's Bangsamoro as inspired by Kuala Lumpur to the Malaysia Federation?

BUT WHAT ARE PRESIDENT AQUINO's GOVERNMENT THINKING?

~By Administrators
Philippine Sabah Claim Forum
Defenders of the Philippine Sabah & Spratly Claims
Sabah Claim Society
10 September 2013

*Picture of a dead Tausug warrior killed by Kuala Lumpur troops in Sabah from Malaysia Today

Rafael Alunan III, former DILG chief: "We will remember come 2016 who neglected and harmed Inang Bayan again and again"

"I/we repeat: the breadth and depth of corruption in government - across the board and down the line - has diverted precious resources to dirty hands and pockets at the expense of modernizing the AFP, PNP, Coast Guard and the criminal justice system. That has, in turn, cost the country billions in lost revenues from fishing and, later, the potential loss of gas and oil revenues."

By Rafael Alunan III 

Facebook friends, as you are well aware I/we have been consumed by China's threat to our EEZ and territorial integrity, taking advantage of our evident weaknesses politically, economically, technologically and militarily.

Today, they have a military fortification on Mischief Reef which belongs to us; and they have cordoned off Scarborough which also belongs to us and have begun pre-construction activities. They are also applying pressure on our contingent at Ayungin Shoal on board a grounded rusty old vessel serving as their floating barracks.

I/we have also expressed our impatience and bewilderment as to what's taking the government so long to:

• a. determine and acquire with deliberate speed the total needs of our armed forces to ably protect and defend our country and its EEZ;
• b. organize a brain trust to find the funds needed for national security;
• c. rally the government and the people to address the clear and present danger posed by China, as one united nation, and;
• d. act decisively on China's annexation of Panatag which is clearly an act of undeclared war.

And it has brought us to realize that perhaps we do not have the right people in place to competently exercise their constitutional duty of protecting our EEZ, defending the country and upholding national honor and dignity.

That is truly an unforgivable cause for national insecurity on top of the corruption that has severely impacted national, human and ecological security through the years.

2016 is 3 years away and it seems this is the only thing consuming the government. If it manages to somehow curb corruption during this time and bring the plunderous saboteurs to justice, well and good. But that will be negated by the loss of maritime territory and the resources therein because of their negligence and incompetence.

If and when we reach the next presidential elections, I will surely campaign against all those who harmed the republic, be it through corruption or through criminal negligence.

I/we repeat: the breadth and depth of corruption in government - across the board and down the line - has diverted precious resources to dirty hands and pockets at the expense of modernizing the AFP, PNP, Coast Guard and the criminal justice system. That has, in turn, cost the country billions in lost revenues from fishing and, later, the potential loss of gas and oil revenues.

It caused poverty and hunger levels, unreachable health costs, poor quality of education; and the under- and unemployment rates to remain more or less unchanged. It caused the deaths and injuries to citizens, soldiers and policemen in insurgency and disaster prone areas that could have been avoided or reduced had the monies from collected taxes for mitigation and adaptation been spent entirely for their intended purposes.

We will remember come 2016 who neglected and harmed Inang Bayan again and again.

If you agree please LIKE and SHARE. Many thanks for your solidarity.

~~ o ~~

*Former Secretary Alunan, Convenor of West Philippine Sea Coalition, served under two presidents of the Philippines. This post was published on his Facebook wall