Saturday, August 16, 2008 Speak Out: High price to pay By Gen Roger Deinla (Ret)
GEN. Hermogenes Esperon earned credentials by serving nine years in Mindanao.
He said he will not allow an inch of land to be delivered to the rebels without due process or a fight.
As a late comer on the scene, Esperon has to look back to find his bearing on the issue on the Bangsamoro Juridical Entity (BJE) ancestral domain.
For many of us who fought for flag and country since 1968 against the Mindanao Independent Movement, Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF), Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), the fund raising arm Abu Sayyaf and other groups, we feel we have done our job preserving the integrity, law and order in that part of the country.
This despite the material and moral support to rebels from Middle East countries like Libya and the tolerance of Malaysia of rebels setting up bases in Sabah that also served to funnel resources by (that could only RP naval ships) into Mindanao.
Being unprepared, we really had miserable time defending government posts at great loss of lives.
Back then, we all called them Southern Philippines Terrorists (SPT) because they acted and behaved like one.
Now we are about to give-up more lands comprising more than half of Mindanao and wide swathes of rich marine resources, giving MILF the power on diplomatic and foreign relations, separate security forces, separate currency and financial and economic control of the area.
It was a dream come true for the MILF, the document having been signed or initiated by both parties on July 27, 2008 and announced as good news by President Arroyo in her State of the Nation Address.
The government panel headed by Foreign Affairs Secretary Alberto Romulo, accompanied by Esperon, Gen. Rodolfo Garcia and Ambassador Kristie Kennedy left for Kuala Lumpur and announcing in effect, “Peace in our time,” while still at the airport.
Unfortunately, the temporary restraining order issued by the Supreme Court on Aug. 4, 2008 canceled the event.
The incident was reminiscent of Chamberlain announcing “Peace in our time” in September 1938 waving a document (just a piece of paper) signed by Hitler that there will be no more territorial problems after he grabbed up Austria and Czechoslovakia.
It was just the preliminaries of conquest by Hitler.
It’s difficult to say that the MILF wanted more territory.
But right after the failed formal signing in Malaysia, the MILF announced it was a “done deal,” meaning it could act accordingly---an initial victory for them.
History is replete with lessons of geopolitical schemes and deceit. How can we be so naïve?
Right now, the MILF must be preparing to occupy those extended ancestral domains. Those opposing the deal will defend and fight for their survival.
Hopefully the MILF will exercise restraint. If not, then there will be high price to pay. We could be back to square one, wasting more lives to defend lands.
The thousands of soldiers who lost their lives in the battlefield fighting for the country’s integrity could be squirming in their graves.
