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Wednesday, February 16, 2005
Editorial: Getting desperate
IF THE Valentine's Day bombings that struck the cities of General Santos, Davao and Manila were the handiwork of people involved in the ongoing Jolo, Sulu clash then it may be an indication that the Nur Misuari faction of the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) is getting desperate.
That is if we go by the headlines of some national dailies, which reported that the government troops are getting closer to routing the remnant followers of the jailed MNLF founder.
Then again despite their advantages in numbers, weaponry and funding, it had taken more than a week for the government's soldiers to finish the fully armed Misuari followers which is a testament to the latter's resilience and commitment to their beleaguered leader.
So what other theories are being thrown our way by local and law enforcement officials as well as self-styled political and military analysts? If it was the Misuari faction then they're better organized and armed than initially thought of by the country's military leaders.
Still another theory has it that the communist New People's Army (NPA) is behind the attacks in order to distract and confuse the government.
But then the NPA had always been sowing terror in the country sides and its civilian-political groups the Communist Party of the Philippines-National Democratic Front (CPP-NDF) had made no secret of its efforts to align not only with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) but with every other group that had shown dissatisfaction with the government and what it deems as the "corrupt and feudalistic political-economic system" ruling over the country.
From their standpoint the CPP-NPA-NDF would beg to disagree and reiterate that the terror attacks are intended to create a scenario that would justify the use of more force to quell elements suspected of being against government as well as the continued implementation of the "war against terror."
Whatever the reasons the Valentine's Day attacks caught the government and the Filipino people by surprise and showed that there are elements out there determined to bring down government and everything it stands for.
Mayor Vicente Emano's claim that the Sulu conflict would take longer than this week may have some basis but even if the armed clashes between the MNLF faction and military end the ensuing bitterness and disillusionment will linger on long after the last shot had been fired.
(February 16, 2005 issue)
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