Australia warns vs travel to parts of Mindanao
MANILA, Philippines — Australia cautioned its citizens against traveling to some parts of Mindanao due to terrorist activities.
Australia’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade advised its citizens to reconsider travel to eastern Mindanao and to avoid central and western Mindanao, including the Zamboanga Peninsula, the Sulu archipelago and the southern Sulu Sea area.
“Reconsider your travel to eastern Mindanao and do not travel to central and western Mindanao due to very high levels of violent crime, high threats of terrorist attacks and kidnapping,” it said.
It also advised Australians to “exercise a high degree of caution in the Philippines overall.”
The travel advisory was updated in the wake of a New Year’s Eve blast in a mall in Cotabato City that left two people dead and injured at least 30 others.
The British government also issued a travel advisory for western and central Mindanao as well as to the Sulu archipelago “because of terrorist activity and clashes between military insurgent groups.”
Armed Forces of the Philippines chief Lt. Gen. Benjamin Madrigal Jr. said the military is taking the travel alert seriously.
“We advise our troops to double their efforts to prevent these violent incidents from happening so that we can encourage foreign investments and tourism in Mindanao,” he said. — Gaea Katreena Cabico
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