HOLDING GROUND: NO NEED TO PLACE MAGUINDANAO UNDER MARTIAL LAW
MANILA, DECEMBER 1, 2009 (STAR) Security officials yesterday said there is no need to place the entire Maguindanao under martial law following the massacre of 57 people in Ampatuan town in the province last week.Defense Secretary Norberto Gonzales said the government’s effort to contain the tension in the province is holding ground.
“We are watching how the situation develops there. As of now, I think whatever government is doing so far is really effective,” he said in an interview at Army headquarters in Fort Bonifacio, Makati yesterday.
He said Buluan Vice Mayor Esmael Mangudadatu and his rival Datu Unsay Mayor Andal Ampatuan Jr. have been warned against resorting to fresh violence after the incident.
“If we look at the statements of both families, it looks like they are letting the law take its due course. We do not know their secret plans, but what we see is that the police and the Armed Forces know what to do there. The families know we are serious and we told them there is no need to continue the use of violence,” he said.
‘Gov’t on top of situation’
Lt. Col. Romeo Brawner, Armed Forces of the Philippines spokesman, agreed that the declaration of martial rule in Maguindanao is not yet necessary.
“As far as maintaining peace and order in the area, the AFP and the PNP are still on top of the situation,” he said.
Col. Leo Ferrer, acting chief of the Army’s 601st Infantry Brigade, said his forces, along with the police, are keeping relatives and supporters of Mangudadatu and Ampatuan at bay to prevent confrontations or clashes.
Ampatuan is now detained in Manila after being tagged as principal suspect in the massacre.
Ferrer said a company of soldiers has each been deployed in Buluan and Datu Unsay town, specifically to prevent clashes between the two clans.
AFP chief Gen. Victor Ibrado hinted at the possibility of transferring a brigade of elite Marines to Maguindanao to maintain peace and order in the province.
He said they are putting this in the list of their options to dispel speculations that Army troops in the area are sympathetic to a political clan.
On the other hand, Speaker Prospero Nograles said the proposal to declare martial law in Maguindanao may not be a wise thing at this point because a state of emergency should be enough to address the problems of peace and order in the province.
“A limited state of emergency in Maguindanao and nearby provinces is sufficient to address the problem related to the massacre,” he said, noting that Congress might not be able to stamp its approval on martial law in light of the holiday and election seasons.
But Nograles, a lawyer by profession, kept an open mind on the suggestion of Quezon City Rep. Matias Defensor, his colleague in the House of Representatives who heads the committee on justice.
“This issue (martial law) must be recommended by the national security cluster group and the military on the ground to enable the President to correctly assess the situation in Maguindanao,” he said.
Politically, it would also be very unlikely for lawmakers – both senators and congressmen – to support the martial law idea, he added.
“I don’t think our senators and congressmen will favor this because it will certainly cause public uproar which can endanger their re-election bid.”
Defensor, father of former presidential chief of staff Mike Defensor, earlier urged Mrs. Arroyo to declare martial law in Maguindanao if only to avert more violence in the war zone, and immediately arrest the culprits in the massacre that left 57 people dead.
He doused fears of government detractors, saying the House and the Senate can revoke it right away anyway.
“Under the 1987 Constitution, Congress has the power to revoke a proclamation of martial law within 48 hours after it was declared. The Constitution also allows the President to place only Maguindanao under military rule,” he said.
Defensor said those who would oppose his proposal should challenge it “not on the basis of political expediency but on the basis of how Filipinos could best obtain justice for the slain women, journalists and civilians” in the carnage.
Meanwhile, former President Joseph Estrada said he would not tolerate “warlordism” in the country should he be given another fresh mandate in 2010.
Estrada, who filed his certificate of candidacy (COC) with his running mate Makati Mayor Jejomar Binay and their senatorial slate, said he would always adhere to the mandate of the chief executive to protect the integrity of the Philippines as a sovereign country. – James Mananghaya, Delon Porcalla, Jose Rodel Clapano
Nearly 3,000 OFWs detained on criminal charges By Pia Lee-Brago (The Philippine Star) Updated December 01, 2009 12:00 AM
MANILA, Philippines - There are around 3,000 Filipinos detained overseas on criminal charges, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) reported yesterday.
DFA said 70 percent of these have committed immigration-related offenses, while the rest are in custody for theft, drug trafficking and other common crimes.
Sixty-two Filipinos are detained in nine countries in the Middle East for drug related offenses, while 43 others, most of them women, are detained in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
One of them, a certain Jason Mallorca Pineda, who was jailed in Dammam, Saudi Arabia in 2008 for allegedly receiving 21.2 grams of methamphetamine and selling it to fellow Filipinos, is awaiting the final decision of the Grand Court of Dammam.
Saudi authorities said he confessed to the crime. He remains in detention since Saudi law does not grant bail for drug-related offenses and has zero tolerance for such offenses.
Chief News Editor: Sol Jose Vanzi
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