Abu Sayyaf in Basilan: A deadly redux

Western officials said Basilan is a complex issue and that the elimination of the Abu Sayyaf was not the only concern by the U.S. campaign there, which lasted only six months.

This campaign — in which the U.S. and Philippines armed forces joined forces not just in anti-terrorism operations but in such activities as digging wells, constructing bridges, curing the sick — involved as well the strengthening of government insitutions, particularly law enforcement, officials said. “The government’s system in Basilan is now functioning,” said a Western senior military official who declined to be named because he was not authorized to make such assessment.

“Most people there think that they’re much better off today,” a Western aid official said in an interview, who also requested anonymity for the same reason. “Their lives are improving. They have health care.”

Zachary Abuza, an expert on Southeast Asian terrorism at Simmons College in Massachusetts who is currently writing a book on Islamic separatism in the Philippines, said the campaign’s transfer to Sulu was at the expense of Basilan. “I think the US and the Armed Forces of the Philippines have thrown everything they have into Jolo,” he said in an email exchange. “They are thin elsewhere.” When in January the Philippines announced that it was pulling out troops from other provinces and send them to Basilan, Abuza said “that was a clear indication that things were not going as well there as everyone was saying.”

“I don’t think that what the Armed Forces of the Philippines and the US did in Basilan was a failure,” Abuza said. “It’s just that they left so damn quickly.”

Lingga, however, said the Basilan campaign failed because Manila and Washington had the illusion that the law and order problem on the island can be solved merely by going after the Abu Sayyaf and by building roads and bridges.

“The problem in Basilan or Sulu cannot be isolated from the overall problem of the Bangsamoro people,” he said. “I have doubt on the effectiveness of the government strategy as used in Basilan because it does not address the grievances and aspirations of the people.”

The best way to fight terrorism, Lingga said, “is to address people’s grievances and to open democratic avenues where people can pursue peacefully their political aspirations.” Self-determination for Muslims in the south, he said, “will open the window of opportunity to resolve the long-drawn conflict peacefully.” (Carlos H. Conde/PinoyPress)