Friday, September 05, 2008 Military: All-out war vs MILF won't happen
THE Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) said an all-out war between troops and Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) rebels is a remote possibility amidst the government's decision to disband its panel negotiating the peace accord with the MILF.
AFP public affairs officer Ernesto Torres issued the statement even as he denied that Armed Forces Chief Alexander Yano had directed military commanders to gear up for an all-out war against the secessionist movement.
In fact, Torres is optimistic that the dissolved panel, headed by retired Army General Rodolfo Garcia, would be replaced by a peace mechanism to be able to resolve the problems in Mindanao through peaceful means.
"We do not expect any escalation of the fighting. We are not looking into that but we are prepared for any eventuality. We do not expect an all-out war to happen in Mindanao but we are prepared to address any eventuality," said Torres.
When asked what his basis was in saying the military is not expecting a war with the MILF over the dissolution of the government peace panel, Torres said: "We are still hopeful that the peace process would still work. We are not equating the dissolution of the peace panel to an escalation of fighting in Mindanao."
On whether the military considered an all-out war as one of its worst-case scenarios, Torres said: "During war-gaming, we discuss any possible scenarios... Any possible scenario that you can think of is being discussed and contingency plans are formulated to address any of these scenarios."
Meanwhile, another Army battalion was sent to Maguindanao to pursue one of the renegade MILF commanders responsible for recent atrocities in Central Mindanao.
Army spokesman Romeo Brawner said troops from the 54th Infantry Battalion based in Nueva Viscaya left the Subic in Olongapo City aboard a Philippine Navy ship last Tuesday and is due to arrive in Parang, Maguindanao on Saturday.
"This is just a contingency force because all the troops have deployed there have been more or less engaged already," said Brawner, adding that this is the sixth battalion to be sent for the ongoing offensive against the renegade rebels.
The military leadership ordered an offensive against the renegade groups of MILF commanders Umbra Kato and Abdullah Saber Macapaar alias Bravo after the rebels attacked Iligan City and four towns in Lanao del Norte Province that left 28 civilians, three soldiers and a policeman dead.
Brawner said the deployment is not in any way related to government's decision to dissolve its panel negotiating the peace talks with the MILF or with any anticipation of an all-out war breaking out between the two sides as a result of the government action.
"Not really. We are hoping that this would not escalate the fighting. This (offensive) is limited to just few commanders... The deployment (of the soldiers) was planned even before the panel was disbanded," he also said. (VR/Sunnex)
