Raps filed vs 4 MNLF leaders, 25 others

MANILA, Philippines - Charges of rebellion and violation of human rights were filed on Friday against four leaders of a faction of the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) that laid siege in Zamboanga City for two weeks, leaving scores dead and thousands of people homeless.

Authorities filed charges of rebellion and crimes against International Humanitarian Law under Republic Act 9851 with the prosecutor’s office in Zamboanga City against Habier Malik, Asamin Hussin, Bas Arki and Handji Ami Adjirin, all ranking MNLF leaders now being hunted by authorities.

Police also charged 25 other rebels who were captured or who surrendered during the fighting. The case was docketed as IX-INO-06-inq 131-00377.

Senior Superintendent Edgar Danao, chief of the regional police Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG), said they used as evidence the confession of other MNLF rebels detailing how the attack on Zamboanga City was planned.

Malacañang said the investigation into the Zamboanga City caper of the MNLF faction will also include possible financiers or other backers.

“Maybe we will see that in the coming days... We know that the President has ordered an investigation into the incident,” deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte said.

There have been questions on how the MNLF faction of Nur Misuari managed to sneak in heavy firearms and ammunition into Zamboanga City and who possibly financed them.

President Aquino earlier said they received reports that the firearms and ammunition were gradually brought inside Zamboanga City over a period of one year as the siege was being planned.

The President also said the evidence on Misuari’s involvement in the siege was becoming clearer, especially after he cancelled a meeting in Indonesia for the review of the implementation of the 1996 peace agreement between the government and the MNLF.

Aquino said he wanted the charges against Misuari to be airtight so he could not escape from responsibility again in case he really masterminded the siege to sabotage the ongoing peace process with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF).

There are suspicions that groups or personalities also do not want the peace process with the MILF to succeed. Other groups may want to humiliate the Aquino administration in general.

But Valte said they could not speculate on such motives.

She said the focus of the government right now is to drive out the rebels to ensure the safety of civilians and bring back normalcy in Zamboanga City.

“Moving forward, we will see in the investigation if the (MNLF) forces received help from other people or other groups,” Valte said.

Fighting continues

The intense gunbattle between government forces and the MNLF rebels in Zamboanga continued on its 13th day with increasing civilian casualties.

The number of civilians killed in the conflict increased to 52 with the death of an elderly woman and three others in separate incidents.

A mortar round hit a residential building yesterday, killing an elderly woman in a village more than a kilometer from where government forces are engaged in a gunbattle with MNLF rebel forces.

The military said the wayward mortar round hit the second floor of the building owned by Norma Lladones in Barangay Tetuan of this city.

Lladones, 71, died instantly from the explosion that also destroyed the entire second floor of the three-story residential building.

The other day, a bomb exploded inside a passenger bus, killing three people in Barangay Labuan several kilometers away from the city proper.

Authorities suspected the rebels are launching diversionary attacks to ease the pressure from government forces against the MNLF.

The government sustained 10 casualties while the number of the wounded also increased to 123 yesterday.

Policemen killed in the fighting remain at three, with 13 others wounded.

The troops, however, killed six more rebels, bringing to 98 the total casualties of the MNLF.

“A total of 174 civilian hostages were also rescued,” Maj. Angelo de Guzman, assistant information chief of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, added.

The fighting has displaced more than 100,000 people who fled from their homes and are now staying at evacuation centers.

Most of the evacuees have no place to return to since their homes were razed by the rebels, who also took dozens of civilians as hostages.

The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), meanwhile, expressed concern over the plight of the thousands of children affected by the armed conflict.

“We condemn in the strongest terms any action undertaken in conflict situations that violates children’s rights. Children have a right to special protection under international law, and every measure must be taken to ensure their protection,” UNICEF Philippine representative Tomoo Hozumi said.

UNICEF called on the government to take active measures to prevent the outbreak of diseases in the evacuation areas and provide special care for the children caught in the conflict. – Aurea Calica, Jaime Laude, Roel Pareño, Rhodina Villanueva