‘MILF may have violated SAF rights’

MANILA, Philippines - The Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) “possibly” violated the human rights of elite police commandos its fighters killed in Mamasapano, Maguindanao on Jan. 25.

This is according to Brig. Gen. Carlito Galvez, co-chairman of the government-MILF coordinating committee on the cessation of hostilities (CCCH).

The MILF has claimed that it lost 18 fighters in clashes with commandos of the Philippine National Police Special Action Force (PNP-SAF), who were on a mission to arrest three suspected terrorists. Forty-four SAF troopers were killed, while at least five civilians died.

In a letter to Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) chief Gen. Gregorio Pio Catapang Jr., Galvez recommended that government investigators carefully analyze the site of the encounter between SAF’s 55SAC (Special Action Company) and the MILF, and the specific locations of the 44 dead policemen when their bodies were retrieved.

“The positioning of seven of the dead bodies in the far bank of the (Mamasapano) river and in the cornfield is very suspicious and must be further analyzed – on the possible gross violations of human rights committed by the MILF,” he said.

55SAC was to serve as blocking force of 84SAC, the assault team. All but one of 55SAC’s 36 members died.

The assault team lost nine members after killing suspected Malaysian terrorist Zulkifli bin Hir, alias Marwan. Two other targets – Marwan’s Malaysian associate Amin Baco and Filipino deputy Basit Usman – escaped.

The lone survivor of 55SAC is Police Officer 2 Christopher Lalan.

In a sworn statement taken by an investigator of the PNP board of inquiry (BOI), Lalan said some members of 55SAC were still alive in the early afternoon of Jan. 25, despite the long gun battle with Muslim guerrillas that started before 6 a.m. that day.

He said the blocking force had crossed the river in Mamasapano when they heard gunfire from the area where 84SAC was to assault the hideout of its three targets.

He said their officers instructed them to return to the other side so they could block any reinforcement from communities in that area.

But they turned back when they heard and saw through their night vision goggles armed men gathering and growing in number, he added.

Lalan recalled that their officers told them to fire only when they were fired upon and to conserve their ammunition.

“Between 5:30 a.m. to 6 a.m., a volume of gunfire was heard coming from different directions toward our location. That was the start of the gun battle. At about 6:30, I heard PO2 (Sungay) Kiangan shout, ‘Sir, Anniban is dead,’” he recounted, referring to Senior Inspector Cyrus Anniban.

At about 2 p.m. after a long exchange of gunfire, Lalan said he decided to escape with the permission of his senior officer.

“I saw that most of my comrades were already dead and that we were out of ammo and noticed some of my comrades crawling towards an area of lesser gunshots. I decided to extricate myself with the hope that I may be able to survive and so I asked permission from my senior officer that I would take my chance. So he let me go,” he said.

Galvez said the 18 MILF fighters who died in the gun battle came from the MILF’s 105 Base Command, led by Zacaria Goma.

“It only showed that the bulk of the MILF forces encountered by 55SAC came from the 105 Base Command, though it cannot be discounted that the engagement is considered as another case of ‘pintakasi’ with the death and wounding of other male civilians and BIFF members,” he said.

BIFF stands for Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters, an MILF breakaway group.

Galvez said the armed men the assault team clashed with after killing Marwan belong to BIFF.

He said ceasefire monitors learned that 84SAC was engaged in a firefight at 5:15 p.m.

He said the joint ceasefire committee tried to stop the MILF-55SAC gun battle between 6:38 a.m., when Ladiasan informed him that a firefight had erupted between what the latter thought were AFP forces and the MILF, and 4 p.m., when the exchange of fire ended.

He claimed that the ceasefire mechanism “was successful in containing the firefight,” although “unsuccessful in preventing the unnecessary loss of lives.”

“The information delay and the intensity of the fight gave the ceasefire mechanism a hard time to separate emotionally heightened protagonists due to heavy casualties and natural intention of both parties to gain advantage and survive the fight,” he said.

“Lack of information on the actual situation on the ground due to intentional withholding of information by PNP-SAF greatly affected and restrained our mediator and negotiations for a ceasefire,” he said.

Galvez, who reports to Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process Teresita Deles and government chief negotiator Miriam Ferrer as CCCH co-chairman, presumably gave a copy of his report to Deles and Ferrer.

Slain bandit wore SAF uniform

Four members of the BIFF believed to be among those who figured in the bloody Mamasapano clash last Jan. 25 were killed in a firefight with government forces in Maguindanao last Saturday, the military said.

Troops from the Marine Battalion Landing Team 8 encountered about 20 armed men believed to be Usman’s followers in Barangay Pusao in Shariff Saydona town at about 10 p.m.

Lt. Col Willy Manalang, commander of the team that clashed with Usman’s group, said the firefight lasted about 15 minutes and resulted in the death of four BIFF bandits.

Manalang said one of the slain rebels was wearing a SAF uniform. – With Alexis Romero, Roel Pareño