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Sunday, March 09, 2003
MILF leaders gone into hiding
By John Dave G. Vergara
DAVAO -- Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) leaders went into hiding Saturday after law enforcement authorities filed criminal charges against them over the bomb blast of Davao International Airport last Tuesday that killed 23 people.
As this developed, officials of the Office of Muslim Affairs (OMA) in a press conference said they would extend legal aid to the two relatives of the suspected suicide bomber who are now detained at the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) headquarters.
The MILF leaders decided to go into hiding after security officials vowed to capture them once arrest warrants are issued.
"For our safety, for everybody's safety, we have relocated," MILF spokesman Eid Kabalu said in a telephone interview.
"This will complicate matters more because the government can no longer have backdoor mediations with us," said Kabalu.
He denied the MILF was involved in recent bomb attacks, particularly the blast in the Davao airport.
He shrugged off Manila's plans to charge the MILF leaders, saying previous charges had always been dropped.
Minutes later, communication lines with Kabalu and other MILF leaders were cut off.
Prosecutors have said they have a document confirming that an alleged MILF member carried the bomb that killed him and 20 others.
Mayor Rodrigo Duterte corroborated saying investigators "was able to connect the bombing to the MILF," hence, MILF leaders are to be included in the criminal charges.
One piece of evidence discovered by authorities that linked the bombing to the MILF was the pipebomb, a device used in the bombing allegedly a forte of the MILF.
But Kabalu claimed the document was a fake and accused the military of black propaganda against the MILF.
Southern Command chief Lieutenant General Narciso Abaya said a joint police-military task force was ready to arrest the MILF leaders but warned of retaliatory attacks.
If officers try to arrest the MILF leaders, "we expect there will be additional terrorism but we will respond to the terrorism. We will stop the terrorists from further harming the people," Abaya said.
The likely targets for arrest are MILF leader Hashim Salamat, political chief Ghadzali Jaafar, military chief Al Hadj Murad and Kabalu.
In the past, the general location of these leaders was well known and many were accessible to the media.
Murad in an earlier interview denied military reports that pinpoint them as mastermind behind the bombing. He said they are also condemning the dastardly act.
Murad said despite Duterte's strong statements against top MILF leaders during the Expanded Regional Peace and Order Council (RPOC) meeting Thursday they still support and respect Duterte.
Murad said they "hope Duterte would be enlightened by Allah and not easily influenced by war mongers."
Legal aid
Meanwhile, Undersecretary Zamzamin Ampatuan of OMA said the two detained suspects are entitled to privileges the law accords them, foremost of which is the presumption of innocence.
Ampatuan said Terso and Undungan Sudang, who were charged Friday with multiple murder and frustrated murder, are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond reasonable doubt.
"Due process has to take its course here as guaranteed by the Constitution.
We should accord them the necessary protection as provided by law. But if their guilt is eventually proven by the prosecution, then the full force of the law shall be enforced on them," Ampatuan said.
Ampatuan said the OMA will provide the necessary legal assistance to the two accused, including the services of lawyers if they cannot afford to obtain one.
He said that the para-legal staff at the OMA will also be assigned to look into this case.
Terso Sudang, a barangay captain of Kabacan, Cotabato and Undungan Sudang, father of Muntazer Sudang, the suspected suicide bomber who died in the same bombing incident was earlier arrested together with eight other relatives.
The Sudangs tried came to claim the body of Muntazer at the Davao Medical Center (DMC) when CIDG agents picked them for questioning.
The CIDG accused the Sudangs of being active members of the MILF under the direct control of Salamat.
Terso Sudang, however, denied all the allegations saying that they were all lies.
Terso and Undungan tried to claim the remains of Muntazer Sudang Wednesday at the DMC morgue. They said were surprised when members of the CIDG arrested them.
Initial intelligence reports of the military revealed that Muntazer carried a backpack containing the explosives that ripped through the waiting shed in front of the DIA. It was not immediately clear if the suspect planned to leave the package in the airport or if he planned to die in the attack.
Police also blamed the MILF for a motorbike bomb that went off outside a church-run school in nearby Tacurong town on Friday, killing the bomber and wounding at least two schoolgirls.
Despite the arrest threat, Mohaqher Iqbal, a spokesman of the MILF central committee, said Manila could still contact them through the Malaysian government which was due to host formal peace talks between the two sides later this year.
The surge in attacks is believed to be in retaliation for the military's capture of an MILF enclave, the so-called Buliok complex last month, leaving more than 100 MILF fighters dead.
Salamat was believed residing in the Buliok complex until it was overrun. Murad is in Malaysia while Jaafar and Kabalu were in the Cotabato City area.(Sun.Star Davao/AFP)
(March 9, 2003 issue)
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