US: Six-month Sayyaf timetable ‘unrealistic’

The US government may be confident that combat and anti-terror skills can be passed on to the Philippine military in the RP-US war games, but expecting to destroy the Abu Sayyaf in the six months stay of participating US troops in Basilan and Zamboanga is "unrealistic," a Western diplomat said yesterday.

The senior diplomat, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the US is very much aware that the training of the Philippine military by US advisers may "hopefully but not necessarily" disrupt Abu Sayyaf operations, even if the 600 US military men will hold the training in the conflict arenas of Basilan and the Zamboanga peninsula.

The yearly joint military exercise, named "Balikatan 2002," takes a new turn this year with the games taking place in actual combat zones and US soldiers being armed for self-defense. The war games will be held for an unprecedented six months and may even be extended to one year.

In her guidelines for the conduct of the military exercises, President Arroyo said Balikatan is a facet of the global fight against terrorism and is sanctioned by the Constitution and the Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA).

But under the VFA, visits of US troops longer than four weeks are not allowed. The extended deployment has sparked concerns over possible overstaying of US troops in the country.

The Western diplomat insisted that the US troops have no intention of perpetrating their presence in the country. "They have no intention of overstaying. That depends on the Philippine government," he said.

Mrs. Arroyo has said in her guidelines that Balikatan is "time-built," meaning that it will last six months with some 600 US troops involved, including 203 assigned in Mactan, Cebu to train AFP personnel. Only a total of 160 US trainers will be deployed in Basilan, and of this number only two American trainers will accompany each AFP company.

"It (Balikatan 2002) is not designed to happen in six months (to destroy the Abu Sayyaf). The period is only for the training," the senior diplomat said. He described reports that the training and military exercise are aimed at pulverizing the bandits as "intrigues."

The Abu Sayyaf is on the US list of international terrorist groups and is believed to have longtime links to the al-Qaeda terrorist network of Osama bin Laden.

The diplomat also stressed that the military exercise will "avoid MILF areas" as it is "not directed at the MILF."

The US gave assurances that its troops in Basilan and Zamboanga along with the Philippine military would avoid the spilling over of the conflict to nearby provinces and areas controlled by the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) as it is aware of the ongoing peace negotiations between the Philippine government and the secessionist group of Salamat Hashim.

To the rescue

In Isabela City in Basilan, local government troops vowed to rush up the safe rescue of the American couple and Filipino nurse who are still being help captive by the Abu Sayyaf.

They also hope to solve the hostage crisis even before the expected arrival of US troopers.

Capt. Noel Detoyato, spokesman for the Armed Forces Southern Command, said the combined elite forces of the Scout Ranger, Marine Force Recon, and the US-trained Light Reaction Company continue to comb the jungles of Basilan to get closer to their elusive objective.

He admitted that the mere presence of the American troops will boost the hopes of the Filipino soldiers to rescue the hostages. "It’s not that we can’t do it," said one of the soldiers here, "we have also to protect the national pride," Detoyato said.

Maj. Gen. Glicerio Sua, chief of Task Force Comet which oversees the operations against the Abu Sayyaf and the rescue of the three hostages, said the forthcoming training would not affect their continued thrust deep into the central Sampinit jungle.

The main bulk of the Americans, who are members of the US Special Force Team Alpha, starts arriving today in three batches on board the MC-17 Globemaster.

According to Detoyato, they are expecting around 190 US troops who will directly participate in the training while around 500 will be working as support personnel.

He said those who are involved in the training will be visiting the military headquarters here "but they will not directly engage in the firefight."

Clamors are strong, however, from civilians and local government officials here that the US troops should join the direct offensive operation and put an end to the hostage drama and the Abu Sayyaf.

Meanwhile, a US congressman of Filipino descent said yesterday that Filipinos should welcome the presence of US troops in the country because it will help improve peace and order and encourage more foreign tourists and investors to come in.

Rep. Jeff Coleman of Pennsylvania also said that the presence of American troops in the country has a "definite beginning and a definite ending."

They will leave, he said, after completing their mission to help Philippine authorities eradicate terrorism.

Coleman, 26, the youngest member of the US House of Representatives, was in the country to spend his eight-day honeymoon with his wife in Cebu. Coleman’s mother hails from Marikina City.

The congressman also decried the "sensational" reporting in the media about the situation in the Philippines. As a consequence, he said, the foreign press which would pick up these reports have taken to picturing the Philippines as a "wild, wild west."

He described the opposition to the presence of US troops in the Philippines as "peripheral." He said the Arroyo administration is a "unified government." Coleman asked, "If the US does not help the Philippine government fight the Abu Sayyaf, who will?" — With reports from Rey Arquiza