Crackdown widened in Mindanao

The military broadened yesterday its anti-terrorist crackdown in General Santos City to cover virtually the entire Mindanao in a bid to stem the tide of bomb attacks in the South.

This developed as police intelligence agents arrested three more suspects, bringing to five the number of persons arrested in connection with the latest spate of bomb attacks in General Santos City that left at least 15 people dead and scores of others wounded last Sunday and Monday.

Lt. Gen. Roy Cimatu, commander of the Armed Forces’ Southern Command (Southcom) based in Zamboanga City, said he ordered the Army’s 4th and 6th Infantry Divisions (IDs), which cover northern and western Mindanao as well as the Ca-raga region, to sustain their all-out drive against suspected terrorists to ward off further attacks.

"We must hit their sanctuaries, hit them in their lairs in urban centers in Davao, Iligan, Pagadian, Zamboanga, including Ipil," Cimatu told reporters.

"Their commanders’ task is to neutralize would-be bombers in these urban centers," he said.

The Army’s 4th Infantry Division under Maj. Gen. Alfonso Dagudag has jurisdiction over the provinces of Agusan, Surigao, Bukidnon, Davao and Davao Oriental, while the 1st ID led by Maj. Gen. Glicerio Sua operates in the Zamboanga peninsula, Basilan, Sulu and Tawi-Tawi provinces.

Task Force Gensan, composed of more than a thousand soldiers from the Marines and the 6th Infantry Division which covers Central Mindanao, was mobilized to assist local authorities in General Santos go after the bombers and set up checkpoints in strategic spots of the city.

Lt. Gen. Roy Kyamko, commander of the 6th ID, went to General Santos to personnel assess the security situation in the area.

"We are scouring and securing the whole area. There is nothing to be worried about, everything should go on normally," Kyamko said.

On Tuesday, police and military agents raided a suspected bomb factory in Buloan town in Maguindanao and seized several improvised bombs, explosive powder and high-powered firearms.

No arrests were made as the terrorists were apparently tipped off about the impending raid.

Cimatu said military and police agents have conducted 11 raids in General Santos, Cotabato and Maguindanao which netted three more suspects.

He said the probers were trying to determine if the bomb attacks were the result of a strategic alliance among the separatist Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF), the Abu Sayyaf and the communist New People’s Army (NPA).

"One of the suspects apprehended was an MILF member, and all of a sudden, you see a leaflet of the NPA, and there was another member who was apprehended who claimed to be MNLF member, and a caller who claimed to be Abu Sayyaf," Cimatu pointed out.

Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Director General Leandro Mendoza identified the three suspects who were cornered during a pre-dawn raid on their hideout as Jejhon Macalinsan, 18; Abubakar Amil Hamsan, 47; and Arsul Ginta, 31.

The raiders also seized explosive materials, a caliber .38 revolver, four 60-mm. mortars, five fragmentation grenades and subversive documents, including pamphlets of the leftist Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (Bayan).

Bayan is largely believed to have strong links with the National Democratic Front (NDF), the political arm of the local communist insurgency movement.

The mortar round was similar to the explosive used in the deadliest of the three bomb blasts that hit the city on Sunday and Monday. It exploded in front of the Fitmart Mall, killing 15 and wounding about 60 others.

Police said the three suspects were caught in the act of manufacturing more improvised bombs.

The first two suspects have been charged with multiple murder and illegal possession of explosives.

The hideout also served as office for a Muslim cooperative, the Bangsamoro Women’s Association, police said.

The owner of the house, identified as Aran Sala, was not around at the time of the raid.

A woman at the house, Abina Lumbawa, said the three suspects had been staying in the place for two months in exchange for serving as helpers.

Central Mindanao police chief Senior Superintendent Bartolome Baluyot tagged Macalinsan, Amilhasan and Ginta as members of the secessionist Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF).

Baluyot said Macalinsan has admitted having phoned a fake bomb threat to a telecommunications company in the city on Tuesday.

Police were checking if the women’s cooperative was acting as a front for the 12,000-strong MILF which has forged a truce with the government to pave the way for peace negotiations.

The phone call had been traced to Macalinsan and the house was immediately placed under close surveillance.

"We are looking at the possibility that they have a connection with groups like al-Qaeda," Baluyot said, referring to an international network of terrorists headed by Osama bin Laden.

The MILF and the NDF do not have a formal tie-up, but were known to have a tactical alliance which allows their ground commanders to work together against the government.

"It appears from our investigation that their plan is to sow terror," Baluyot added. "We hope to make more arrests soon."

Crackdown will stabilize Gensan situation — Palace

Malacañang expressed optimism that the police-military crackdown in General Santos will speed up the return of normalcy in the city.

"The intensified crackdown is now bearing fruits and the declaration of a state of emergency is no longer an issue," National Security Adviser Roilo Golez said.

He said the drive will be sustained "until all (bombing) cases are solved."

President Arroyo presides today a meeting of the Cabinet oversight committee on internal security to tackle the developments in General Santos.

Acting Press Secretary Silvestre Afable said President Arroyo has not set any time frame for the completion of the crackdown in General Santos and its possible expansion to cover neighboring areas.

Meanwhile, Catholic church leaders in Mindanao condemned the bomb attacks even as they expressed condolences to the friends and relatives of the victims.

"We deeply sympathize with the casualties and share with the survivors, their relatives and friends their profound sadness and bitter suffering," Marbel Bishop Dinualdo Gutierrez said.

Gutierrez, who also heads the Episcopal Commission on Social Action, Justice and Peace of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines, called on the government to immediately arrest and prosecute the perpetrators.

He also urged the government to install an "effective and proactive system of safeguarding the people’s lives and property, and to courageously serve without counting the cost of one’s vested interest."

In another development, the Northern Police District (NPD) formed an anti-terrorist council and deployed some 2,000 plainclothes and uniformed policemen to thwart any bombing attempts within its area of responsibility.

NPD director Chief Superintendent Vidal Querol met with local officials of Caloocan, Malabon and Valenzuela cities and the town of Navotas to draw up measures to counter possible terrorist attacks.

NPD intelligence head Chief Inspector Sotero Ramos Jr. said they were also tapping civilian volunteers to monitor public areas such as malls, bus terminals and the Light Rail Transit system.

"Every thing was itemized on what job a specific group would do in case of any eventuality. Every team has its own task," Ramos said. — With Jaime Laude, Sandy Araneta, Pete Laude, John Paul Jubelag