MOA-AD sparks fresh assaults

Here's a piece of history from my journal...

August 19, 2008

My morning trip to Kapatagan was unusual. The Aurora-Cagayan national highway which was normally  busy with transportation and other human activities became desolate. Heavily armed soldiers manned the checkpoints, most of which were newly installed. Only a handful of motorcabs plied their usual routes. Public buses, vans and trucks are not on their usual trips.  Only very few schoolchildren were hiking on the roadsides to their respective schools.

            Early morning yesterday, alleged fighters of the separatist Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) attacked the municipalities of Kolambogan and Linamon in Lanao del Norte and Maasin in Saranggani Province. A day before, two bombs exploded in Iligan City hurting about 6 people and was blamed on the MILF.

In Kolambogan, the rebels bombed the  seaport, ransacked the rural bank and other commercial establishments and set afire a PNP patrol car there. They also shot at civilians along the way and fired at a Rural Transit bus plying towards Iligan.

            Thousands of panic-stricken coastal residents in said towns scampered for safety in the neighboring province Misamis Occidental, particularly in Ozamis City aboard pump boats.

            Among the 26 reported casualties were one Lt. Col. Angel Benitez with his three military aides, the rest were civilian motorists and by-standers, radio reports said.

            One resident who became and unwilling host of some rebels who requested to be let in to her house in Kolambogan amidst the chaos, narrated later of her encounter with the rebels. She said those she saw were in their early twenties and “they looked like university students.”

            One of the high-powered wielding young boys allegedly told her in Tagalog “we are not bad, we only want the implementation of the MOA.”

            Her encounter with whom she called “courteous” rebels was short-lived.

The rebels retreated shortly upon the arrival of government troops at noon time that day. They brought with them more than 50 civilians from the area as their shield against the pursuing  troops, radio reports said.

            Last night, Kapatagan residents missed their night sleep on reports that at 3:00 dawn today, MILF forces would attack the town and other neighboring municipalities.

            So were the residents in Pagadian City and those in other coastal towns of Zamboanga del Sur and Sibugay provinces.

            Annie Jean called me from Margos Regional Hospital informing that a bomb threat has been reported twice in the hospital. Kumalarang town was allegedly taken over by the MILF. She said rebel movements were allegedly  spotted in the Moro-populated towns Dinas, Dimataling, Pitogo and others. 

            Few hours after the attack yesterday, Pres. Gloria Arroyo condemned the MILF attack as “treacherous.” She ordered that government troops to protect “every inch of Philippine territory.”  

            Later, Philippine Armed Forces Chief Gen. Alexander Yano ordered an “all out war” against the MILF.

            Ustadz Eid Kabalu, spokesperson of the MILF told reporters that the attacks were not sanctioned by the MILF Central Committee and that their ground troops acted on their own. MILF leadership could not control the ground forces, Kabalu’s statement implied.

            It can be recalled that barely two weeks ago, few villages in North Cotabato were also attacked by the MILF. Thousands of civilians fled  their homes and farms.   

            These series of fresh hostilities happened in the face of the controversial Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) singed in August 5 in Malaysia between the government and MILF negotiators. The MOA is now at the Supreme Court for decision.

Two Sides

            There are two major sides on the MOA. Those who favor for its enforcement argue that the MOA is harmless in that  this is only a document setting the talking points of the ancestral domain issue on which both sides got stuck in their past talks.

The MOA identifies 721 barangays to cover the Bangsa Moro Juridical Entity, an increase if more than a hundred barangays originally demanded by the MILF which was 600. Those who are opposed to its implementation said that it  is an outright partition of large Mindanao areas in favor of the MILF. Those who are for the MOA said there is nothing to worry about it because a plebiscite has yet to be conducted to determine whether or not residents in the covered areas are amenable to the proposed area of the Bangsa Moro Juridical Entity.

            Amidst this clash of perspectives, the Supreme Court came in hopefully to shed light on the matter and to dispel all doubts clouding it.

Impatient

            GRP Peace Panel Adviser Rodolfo Garcia told ANC that those who were involved in the attacks were the younger members of the MILF who got impatient with the developments in the negotiations.

            This kind of reasoning, which the MILF also uses to justify the attacks unmasks the MILF’s state of organizational disunity. The manner by which its ground troops treat civilians in their operations in the field indicate the barbarity of the guerillas, one observer noted.

            Sen. Nene Pimentel in media interviews argued that all these things now are to be blamed on the Arroyo administration.

He said that the MOA that was originally brokered by Peace Adviser Ret. Gen. Germogenes Esperon served as the ignition force of the highly volatile peace condition in Mindanao. The MOA, argued Pimentel created false hopes among the many Muslims in Mindanao that they will finally have their Bangsa Moro when in reality it only further delays the final resolution of their quest.  

Any questions raised about the legality of the MOA have been viewed by many expectant Muslims as serious blocks to finally achieving their dream of a homeland in Mindanao.

Crumbling wall

The hitherto volatile Muslim-Christian relation has been put to serious test anew with the recent carnage that took place in the sleepy riceland barangay of Sto. Tomas in Kapatagan, Lanao del Norte on July 10 this year.

Two Maranao youths were found dead, their bodies bearing gunshot wounds  and their heads were  each severed  at a vacant lot owned by one of the alleged four Visayan perpetrators who belonged to a reputable family in the barangay.   After few weeks of manhunt, two were formally charged in court and one of them  was captured in Cebu by  police authorities. He is now detained at the Provincial Reformatory Jail in Tubod, Lanao del Norte.  A manhunt is ongoing for the other one while formal charges for the other two are now being prepared by authorities. Conflict over share of the proceeds of drugs or gun deals were among the angles being eyed by the probers. 

Right after the incident, people’s reaction, especially that of the non-Muslim residents in Sto. Tomas was a mix of uncertainty over their safety and aghast to the perpetrators. They practically fear, on the one hand, of an impending backlash from the relatives of the victims, which is characteristic of the Moro’s tradition of rido (clan-based vendetta), and blame, on the other  the perpetrators for causing such seemingly unforgivable violence in their midst.

Elementary school attendance was heavily affected. Only 50 out of 200 elementary students attended school even two weeks after the incident,  a school principal told this writer. The teachers, being mandated to report to work in the absence of a contrary official order,  surmounted insecurity by regularly attending classes.

The air of fear certainly affects not only the residents of Sto. Tomas. Neighboring barangays are now afraid to visit the place,  lest they be mistaken for the relatives of the perpetrators, exposing themselves  to the potential violence that the aggrieved families may afflict them. Even the employees of the local government are extra - cautious too. In fact, one preset activity in the barangay was subject to questions by those involved  whether it is safe to pursue it.

These and similar feelings prompted a meeting of concerned Muslim, Christian, and  government leaders from Lala, Sapad and Kapatagan towns on July 11, a day after the incident . Security forces from the Armed Forces and the Police were also part of said meeting which took place in the Function Hall of Kapatagan. 

 One observer, who’s been known to possess an “anti-Muslim” sentiment came out of the meeting with optimism. He told me he appreciated so much the declaration of Muslim leaders before the other delegates of the meeting who assured them that they will not allow nay tolerate rido-like tendencies or behavior among their members especially on the issue at hand.  Such leaders, who were aware that the crime did not have anything to do with faith but probably with drugs or gunrunning, urged in fact teachers and parents to let their children go to school as  they used to do before the bloody incident. Just as the Christians are wary of the past “Muslim-Christian” conflict in the 70’s, present-day Muslim leaders also felt the same, the observer said.

Said  declaration is a welcome development in the face of deep-seated mistrust especially among the Christian population or among the settlers (to be politically correct) towards our Moro neighbors, and vice-versa. And it is especially striking in that it somehow alters the well-entrenched bias of this observer towards the Muslims.

That July 11 meeting punctuated yet again of the importance of dialogue. Churches and government leaders should do similar activities more often. If the July 11 meeting initiated cracks of the wall of biases of this observer I spoke with, there is no reason that others of the same mindset will not reexamine themselves.

It was a breakthrough, and a contribution of  these communities to the  peoples’ quest for genuine peace in Mindanao.  

Unsay Kalainan? (aka Ampatuan Massacre)

Si Brando, iladong irihis ug bandido sa among lugar. Daghan na siyag gitulis, daghan na pod siyag gipatay.

Tungod sa iyang kaisog, saludo kaniya ang tanang isog sa among baryo gawas ni Waway, ang siga usab sa pikas barangay. Hilabihan gyod ang iyang kasuko niining Waway kay gawas nga dili kini motahod kaniya, iyang nahibaw-an nga nagplano usab kining motabok sa among baryong iyang gihawakan.

Busa, gitapok ni Brando ang tanan niyang bata-bata ug gimandoang buhaton ang tanan aron dili makasulod si Waway sa among baryo. Usa ka adlaw niana, samtang nagbantay ang mga sinugo ni Brando, ilang nakita ang grupo ni Waway nga nagpadulong sa among baryo. Mitaho dayon ang lider sa nagbantay ngadto kang Brando nga nagsingabot silang Waway. "Patya sila!" maoy singka ni Brando. "Pero naa silay kuyog mga magbabalak ug manunulat," maoy reklamo sa bantay. "Wa koy labot kanila! Patya silang tanan!" maoy subling singka ni Brando. "Apan bos, basin magabaan ta," dugang pangatarongan sa bantay. "Unsay magabaan? Ako ang diyos niining lugara!" maoy singka ni Brando nga sa iyang kasuko halos molugwa iyang mga mata.

Pagkaduol sa grupo ni Waway, gipaarakan dayon sa grupo ni Brando ang grupo nilang Waway. Way nahibiling buhi. Bisan ang mga iring nga naatlang miagi sa lugar nahitaboan, patay usab! Singkwenta y syete tanan ang patay way labot sa mga iring nga gidaginot sa mga bata-bata ni Brando.

Si Berta mao ang amo ni Brando. Buotan siya tan-awon, perminting puti nga tila ang iyang suoton.Bisan asa siya moadto tinahod bisan unsa nga dagkong grupo. Apan pareha ra silag taras ni Brando apan kini si Berta mas pino. Dili siya ganahan sa estilo ni Brando. Ingon pa niya kaniadto lud-on siya magtan-aw kon daghan ang patay sa iyang atubangan. "Alergic kog daghang dugo. Usa ka taro, ok na kanako," maoy pahimangno ni Berta sa iyang sinugo.

Tungod niini, pino pod molihok iyang mga tawo, morag di makabuak og baso. Basta naay moaksyog sukol sa ilang mga tawo,aw patay. Pero lagi, dili dinaghan. Ginagmay lang kay lagi si Berta lud-anon man.

Karon nga tigulang na si Berta, iyang gisugo iyang tawo sa pagkwenta. "Pila na ang imong napatay dong?" "Tresentos singkwenta y syete pa ma'am, apil mga magbabalak ug manunulat. Walay labot ana mga iring, iro ug mga manok nga miagi sa lugar nahitaboan ma'am." "Three hundred fifty seven, you mean?" maoy kompirma ni Berta. "Yes ma'am I mean," mao poy tubag sa iyang tawo.

"Good!"

Ang alagad sa kultura

Adunay nagdagan nga panghunahuna sa kadaghanan kanato nga kon dili makamao mo-iningles ang usa ka tawo, bugo siya. Mao nga ang uban, bisan ako kaniadto, aron ingnong brayt kinahanglang makat-on og iningles. Kon di man mahanas, at least (naa koy at least no?) naay sagol iningles sa mga inistoryahan o kaha sa mga sinulat. Pinaagi niini, mora pod tag brayt paminawon sa uban ug mao pod atong paminaw sa atong kaugalingon. Basta naa lay pulong “so” sa sinugdanan o kaha “at least,” payts na!

Naa koy higala nga kusog kaayo manghimaraot sa tanang Bisaya ug Binisaya. Basta dili siya mahimuot sa kalidad sa iyang nakita sama sa kanta, sayaw ug sinina moingon dayon siya: “Bisayaa ana oy!” Sakita uy! Wala siya masayod nga sa iyang gihimo, iya pod gisaway iya pagkatawo, iyang pagka-Bisaya.

Sumala sa mga nagtuon sa atong kasaysayan, gibunga kuno kini sa sistematikong paghansak sa langyawng kultura nga di-mabulag nga subak sa ekonomikanhong interes sa mga kolonyalistang nagpuli-pulig pahimulos sa Pilipinas.

Sa mga nasud nga mituok sa Pilipinas, ang Estados Unidos ang adunay lalom nga impluwensya kanato. Aron way angal sa ilang mga plano, gihansak ang iningles isip medium of instruction sa eskuylahan. Mao nga silotan mi kaniadto kon makasulti mig Binisaya. Apan sa akong bahin, talagsa ra ko ka bayad kay dili na man lang ko motingog ilabi na kon naa sa duol among klasmeyt nga tigbantay sa among inistoryahan.

Apan, maayo baya sab nga makamao ta sa iningles ug bisan unsang langyawng pinulongan. Ilabina niining wwwdotcom nga kalibotan. Apan kon kini gihimo sa pinugos ug nahimong instrumento sa atong pagkahimulag sa atong kultura ug tagsa-tagsa ka mga katilingban, seryoso gyod ang problema.

Seryoso gyod ang atong problema isip nasud. Hilabihan ang atong pagkabulag-bulag karon. Matod sa akong igsoong nakatrabaho didtos Taiwan kaniadto, ang pinakabangis nga motratar nga mga superbaysor ngadto kanilang mga bag-o kadtong mga Pilipinong bisor. Ang magnilibakay ug magdinaotay mga Pilipino pod. Apan katingad-an. Sa panahon nga grabe kaayo ang krisis, hilabihan ka matinanbangon ang mga Pilipino sa usag-usa. Tan-awa tong nakalabayng bagyong Ondoy ug Pepeng mi-aksyog angal ang ABS-CBN sa pagbaha sa Pilipinong gustong motabang sa mga biktima. Miawas ang mga boluntir. "Hunong sa!" matud sa ABS-CBN. Busa, ang mga sociologist nagkapuliki og ekspleyn nganong ingon ini ang kinaiya sa mga Pinoy.

Adunay pagpatin-aw niini ang mga banggiitan sa atong kasaysayan. Matud nila, ang atong katigulangan anaa pa lang sa yugto sa pagtibuok sa usa ka panghuna-huna ug pangandoy isip nasod nga gilangkoban sa daghang isla ug tribo apan nabugto kining maong proseso sa kolonyalismo. Pananglitan, ang katawhang Moro mitikang na unta gikan sa pagka-barangay ngadto sa usa ka kaliwatan ug aduna na silay konsepto sa teritoryo sulod sa ilang sistemang politikal nga gitawag og sultanato. Tungod sa ilang giabot nga panaghiusa, mas kusgan silang misukol sa langyawng agresyon. Mao man gani nga wala gyod mailog ang tibuok isla sa Mindanao sa langyawng gahom. Tungod niining taastaas nga ang-ang sa panaghiusa, ilang gitan-aw nga ang tanang pwersa nagpugong sa kahingpitan sa ilang damgong usa ka nasud, ilang giisip nga kaaway. Mao tingale kini hinungdan sa dili mahumanhuman nga pag-alsa sa katawhang Moro sa Mindanao gikan pa kaniadto hangtod karon. Mindanao Indpendence Movement ni Datu Udtog Matalam niadtong sayong bahin sa 1960. MNLF ni Nur Misuari ug karon MILF nila Hashim Salamat. Naa pay Abu Sayaf. Susama pod niini ang giagbot sa taga Cordillera.

Ang mga Tagalog ug mga Bisaya usab miabot na gyod sa kahimatngong nasodnon, mao tong sa wala na nila maagwanta ang sobrang buhis, diskriminasyon, pagpangulipon ug pagpangilog og kayutaan sa Espanya nga nasundan sa Amerika ilang gipalanog ang singgit alang sa kagawasan batok sa langyawng paghari. Apan wala mahingpit ang mga tinguha sa atong katiguwangan. Gitunobtunoban sa mga naghari ang bag-o lang mituyhakaw nga nasodnong kahimatngon ug gipulihan sa kahimatngon sa ulipon.

Sa tinguhang matuman ang ilang katuyoan, gigamit sa Kolonyalista nga hinagiban ang edukasyon. Ug sanglit pipila man lang ang adunay katakos mosulod sa mga tulonghaan, pipila lang usab ang nakapahimulos sa pormal nga edukasyon.

Ang resulta mao nga nabahin ang katawhan sa duha ka dagkong mga hut-ong: ang gamayng hut-ong sa mga edukado ug adunahan sa usa ka bahin, ug ang kinabag-ang kabos kinsa gitawag nilag "ignorante," sa pikas bahin.

Matud pa ni Dr. Macario Tiu, kanhi pangulo sa humanities department sa Ateneo de Davao nga kining naumol sa pag-estroya ug pagsulat sa pinulongang inengles nga nahimong produkto sa usa ka gatos ka tuig nga langyawng impluwensya, nahimong bag-o ug gamay nga katilingban, nahimulag ug halayo sa ordinaryong katawhan.

Sa iyang artikulo nga nag-ulohan og Return to Community, gisulti ni Dr. Tiu: “The educated elite are dominant and influential but are nonetheless fragile because they are few. They have no base. They have no body. They have no mass. And because they come from different original communities they cannot unite, or if they can unite, the unity is weak, (d)riven as they are by unresolved ethnokinship jealousies and rivalries, big and small.”

Ang masa sa pikas bahin, iyang giingon: “... the original communities that they have left behind are lost in limbo too. They have the worldview, they have the culture, they have body and mass, they have the wisdom of the race - but there are no leaders to tap into their wisdom and propel them forward.”

Dili na nato mabalik ang kasaysayan ug dili pod mahimong mohunong kita sa pagpaningkamot nga mahiusa. Daghan ang dalan ngadto sa kahiusahan. Alang sa mga manunulat ug ubang alagad sa kultura, usa sa mga pamaagi nga ilang gihingusgan mao ang paghatag og bili sa atong tagsatagsa ka pinulongan.

Misumpay si Dr. Tiu sa samang artikulo nga kinahanglan gyod nga mobalik kita sa atong tagsa-tagsa ka mga katilingban pinaagi sa pagmugna og mga sugilanon, balak, drama ug mga nobela nga unang naggamit sa atong tagsatagsa ka pinulongan. Iyang gihagit ang mga manunulat sa pagsumpay-balik sa naputol nga kutay tali sa katawhan ug sa mga manunulat pinaagi sa paggamit sa kaugalingong pinulongan diha sa ilang mga minugna.

Niining dapita buot kong idugang sa punto ni Dr. Tiu nga dili lang igo ang pagmugna og mga produkto sa kultura gamit ang tagsatagsa ka pinulongan. Kinahanglang matngon ang mga tagsulat nga ang ilang mga obra nagtumong sa pagpataas sa pagsalig sa mayoriyang katawhan sa ilang katakos nga mohimo og kausaban sa ilang tagsatagsa ka katilingban nga wala mag-agad sa kalooy o kamanggihatagon sa mga adunahan ug gamhanan.

Malikayan unta sa mga tagsulat nga malukong diha sa mga temang gi-semento mismo sa kolonyalismo: “ang kalisod sa katawhan maoy badlis sa kapalaran,” o “naglisod si Juan kay siya tapolan,” o kaha “mag-antos aron ma santos”-- atubangan sa pagpanglutos. Kay kon dili, basin ang mga obrang gimanso sa lumad nga kultura ug pinulongan magsilbe pa hinoong lawod nga mag-ulang sa katawhan sa usa ka bahin ug sa mga alagad sa kultura sa pikas.

Gary, Bayang, Joy sing peace in Zambo

Multi-awarded musical artists Gary Granada and Bayang Barrios together with Zamboanga del Sur’s Fr. Joy Suson continued to stir hope among the people in Mindanao in their recent concert-lecture held in San Pablo and Aurora towns in Zamboanga del Sur, October 13 and 15 respectively.

The artists were the lead performers of the ecological and peace concert sponsored by the said Catholic parishes.

Gary Granada started off by defining what "peace" was all about. He said in Cebuano: "Ang peace o kalinaw usa ka konkretong konsepto. Sama kini sa fish o isda, makaon" referring to fish embroidered in the church clothing, which he said practically meant food.

"Ang fish, makaon. Kung walay pagkaon, walay kalinaw," (Fish is food. Without food, there is no peace) Gary asserted, pointing out that so much injustice breeds social conflicts such as rebellion and other criminal activities. To emphasize his point further, Gary sang one of his classics, “Bahay.”

On environment, Gary said, because of some people's drive for super profits, they destroyed the environment in the pretext of delivering development programs to the affected communities. His old song entitled "Dam" aptly explained the recent catastrophe that hit most of Northern Luzon involving the irresponsible release of dam waters to downstream communities at the height of storms Ondoy and Pepeng.

Bayang Barrios on the other hand, endeared the crowed when she sang the lullaby "Ugoy ng Duyan." Her grace in ethnic dance also added color to the new compositions she had on environment and peace which were mostly had ethnic instruments as accompaniment.

Pagadian Diocese Priest Fr. Joy Suson, currently serving San Pablo Parish in Zamboanga del Sur and who was also part of the cast, showed off his feats in song-writing and stage performing. Dubbed as Pagadian’s Singing Priest, Fr Suson’s original "Kultura" and "Paraiso" were attention-grabbing pieces especially for the audience who were not used to hearing "alternative" music.

>In one of his preliminaries, Fr. Suson was grateful to both Gary and Bayang for responding to their invitation positively to do concert in Pagadian Diocese despite the meager fee the organizers gave them.

Fr. Suson or “Joy” to his friends earned his AB-Philosophy from St. Columban College and Holy Infant Seminary in Pagadian City and his theologate from St. Mary’s Theologate in Ozamis City.