Three ships

The most effective anti-terror strategy is development, and nowhere in the Philippines does the United States push this strategy more vigorously than in Mindanao, a major arena in the worldwide anti-terror scenario, home base of the MNLF, MILF, Abu Sayyaf, and assorted other rebel and/or separatist groups, as well as "visiting forces" of the Jemaah Islamiyah and perhaps even al-Qaeda.

Thus the U.S. Agency for International Development or USAID has on the ground in Mindanao over 800 projects going at any one time, and U.S. Ambassador Kristie Kenney is tireless in visiting the southern island to inaugurate projects as diverse as a new schoolhouse, a small boat landing, computers for a public high school, a livelihood center—maintaining a high profile for positive American presence in the country. On any given day, even on the shortest notice, USAID is ready to inaugurate a project—or two, or even three. Just give them enough time to put up the welcome streamers; all projects are ready painted in their signature medium blue. The reed-thin ambassador seems to have even more energy than the most peripatetic party-hopper. Under the sun or in the pouring rain, from breakfast meetings and early morning flights to schoolhouse inaugurations, plant visits and industry briefings all the way to evening receptions, Ambassador Kenney is a whirlwind of goodwill—all smiles, shaking hands, admiring kids’ drawings tacked up on the classroom wall, talking to mayors and governors over lunch (I don’t think she ever eats in public) about possible projects and pushing free trade, giving speech after speech after speech—and remembering names.

In all her speeches, "partnership" and "friendship" are key words, repeated over and over like twin mantras until, hopefully, everyone within earshot—especially potential terror organization recruits, supporters and/or sympathizers—is convinced that these two "ships" are the firm foundation of RP-US relations.

Last month, on the occasion of the goodwill visit of another "ship", the USS Blue Ridge, flagship of the Commander of the U.S. Seventh Fleet, USAID and ship personnel undertook a number of engineering, humanitarian and medical programs in General Santos City, the ship’s third and last port of call in the country (earlier ports of call were Manila and Cebu, where similar friendship missions were also conducted).

Partnering with engineers from the Armed Forces of the Philippines and augmented by "Seabee" engineers and Marines from Okinawa, the sailors fixed up the elementary and high schools of Bawing, nestled on a hill overlooking Saranggani Bay. In addition to a fresh coat of paint and some minor repairs, the sailors came bearing gifts: clothes, toys, books, food (sacks of Calrose rice were among the goodies), and skateboards—eyed eagerly by the kids in each school; the kids in Bawing got an on-the-spot demonstration by Ambassador Kenney—from Project Handclasp, for which the spouses and families of members of the Seventh Fleet collect goods for distribution to the communities at the different ports visited by ships of the fleet.

The 24 medical personnel of the USS Blue Ridge held a medical clinic (a MEDCAP, which I think stands for medical capabilities, but I could be wrong; a one-day crash course in military lingo was all I had) at the school for residents of Barangay Bawing. From the common cold and tummy ache to teeth extractions and even circumcisions (when we visited around noon, the surgeons there had already performed seven such procedures), the visiting medics treated almost a thousand patients that day.

At the high school, a footbridge constructed by USAID was inaugurated. That simple footbridge is typical of the projects USAID undertakes in far-flung communities all over Mindanao: low cost, simple, and yet having a significant impact on the community. The Bawing footbridge spans a deep gully between the main part of the school and a new extension building which has two classrooms and the technology and livelihood education room, where students are taught cooking, food preservation and other practical things. Students and teachers used to have to go down and then up the gully, which fills up with sometimes rushing water during the rainy season. The footbridge allows them safe passage regardless of weather.

A year ago, Bawing high school was the recipient of a grant of ten computers from the USAID-GEM (Growth with Equity in Mindanao) program. Students are allowed an hour on the computer, and this is a great help with their schoolwork, one second year student told me as she adeptly clicked her way to a current events website—much quicker, I must admit, than when I try to access the wire services on my spanking new iMac5,2 (alas, the technology advances much faster than my abilities).

In the afternoon we were given a tour of the USS Blue Ridge by public affairs officer LCDR Greg Kuntz, who started his military career 24 years ago as a photographer. The ship was commissioned in 1970 and since 1979 has served as the command ship of the COMSEVENTHFLT (they do love acronyms, almost as much as we Pinoys love our alphabets). The ship currently has a crew of a thousand, 150 of them Fil-Ams, although it can accommodate up to 1,200 enlisted men plus 200 officers. The largest sleeping area, we were told, can accommodate a hundred sailors, although they are rarely filled to capacity.

At the GenSan port—built in the late 1990s with millions in grants from USAID, along with the fish port and the airport, which prompted nasty speculation that the Americans wanted to set up a base in GenSan—security was expectedly tight. A wall of cargo containers stacked two-high kept the ship from the curious eyes of the uninvited. A mini-tiangge was set up within the perimeter—internet cafe, billiard tables, massage service, souvenir stalls, and all-American fast-food joints (pizza and burgers) gave sailors shore leave but kept them within safe confines.

We met Captain Jeff Bartkoski on the bridge, the only part of the ship where photographs were not allowed, for reasons of security not so much of the equipment but the "Force Protect" staff on duty at all times. The ship is equipped with several GPS systems and three types of radar, but they still do "paper plotting"—literally plotting their course on paper—so that navigation goes on even without all the electronic gear.

The Seventh Fleet plays a "coordinating role in support of the regional war on terror," Captain Bartkoski tells us. While there is definitely a role for military action, the "most effective way" to win the war on terror is the "friendship and goodwill we build and the trust generated" by projects such as those in the communities in General Santos City. "The paint will fade, but the memory of our interaction with the people and the children will ultimately win the war on terror," says Bartkoski, a 1980 graduate of the US Naval Academy who will end his term as captain of the USS Blue Ridge later this year.

At the risk of betraying our true motives, we asked to visit the ship’s kitchen, and were happily surprised to find out that there are five kitchens on board—a kitchen for the admiral, another for the captain, one each for the two ward rooms (where the officers eat) and the huge main galley. There are up to 50 cooks on board, serving meals from breakfast up to "midrats"—that’s midnight rations to the rest of us, not quite a midnight snack but to feed those on what we landlubbers call the graveyard shift. The buffet spread laid out was sumptuous indeed; we would have loved to join the queue and fill up a tray, but LCDR (I cannot remember what this acronym stands for) Kuntz assured us of a hearty spread at the reception later that evening.

Last year, around 50 U.S. naval vessels visited our ports. While undoubtedly there are sore spots to these visits—a convicted Marine in custody is testament to that—they generally foster goodwill, adding to the "friendship" and "partnership" between the two countries.