Declaring war without thinking---stupid idiots

Is there a plan to overthrow the Aquino administration by using Mindanao as a staging ground for more violence? It seems like it. 


Who are these forces maneuvering to oust this government? Are these forces linked with the former dispensation? Are these forces linked with Big Business names now dragged into alleged misfeasances committed during the past regime?


Several sources want the Aquino administration to engage the enemy by declaring war. War only benefits the rich, particularly those involved in selling arms and ammunition. It is the people who bear the brunt of human cruelty during wars.


When violence is met by violence, it sparks an endless cycle of hatred, despair, and human isolation. Humans forget their humanity during wars and commit endless violations of rights that last even after the war. 


Obviously, those who call for war are just sitting in their armchairs, thinking of the benefits of war to themselves and not really mindful of what would happen to freedom-loving citizens, Bangsamoros and non-Bangsamoros in those areas. Think about the children who will lose their fathers and their mothers in a war of attrition. Think about the destruction of properties and of nature if war is declared.


Obviously, those who want to replace this government, want this government to engage more closely in a war where no one really wins. If the Aquino administration harkens to these hawks, a war would divert its attention from the greater task at hand---hauling grafters and big-time thieves to jail and correcting the structural errors of the bureaucracy. 


Don't tell me that those who support a war there are probably supporters of Big Business and BIg-time grafters and smugglers whose lives are being constantly threatened by the successful anti-graft and corruption fight of this administration?


Don't tell me that those who want Noynoy to commit the error made by Erap before, want him replaced by Binay? 


What happens if, say, this administration decides to deploy more troops in Basilan, a place where most people are armed to the teeth? More misery, more deaths and more destruction will take place. 


These people who call for war are making these suggestions from the hip. They are not thinking straight. 


A further deployment of troops there will escalate the tension and transform the place into a regional battlefield of causes and ideologies---a very dangerous proposition. Basilan does not have an overlord such as Maguindanao and any other place in Mindanao. There is no strong hegemon there, only petty rulers and overlords who are very territorial and command small armies. When you deploy outsiders there, they will be killed. 


A war will affect the national economy, especially the stock and money markets. This will further weaken the state and will affect economic growth. 


In a time where the country has been wrecked by natural disasters in the North and interacine conflict in the South, a war is such a foolish thing to do.

Bayanihan

IMagine Filipino soldiers wearing traditional barung saya, with a guitar in tow, serenading the poorest folks in Bicol. Imagine them carrying a traditional nipa hut on their shoulders while the rest of them help the poorest of the poor in their field work.


No, no, no, this is not a dream. This basically sums up the new anti-insurgency strategy of the AFP which they call "Bayanihan."


From "Bantay Laya" which is militarist in approach, the new approach is a sing and dance routine called "bayanihan" or civil-military work. Engagement is thru civil works not thru an armed encounter. Meaning, the new definition of an "encounter" really is "engagement."


What would be the effects of this new strategy? Well.


First, this will re-model or re-imagine the image of the Filipino soldier in the countryside. This strategy is more of an image-building one, than anything. 


What the AFP wants is supplant or represent the national government in insurgency infested areas. If we are to look in the map, insurgency breeds in largely poverty stricken areas, and these areas are mainly away from the centre of power. IN our system, the farther you are from the center, the lesser you reap the economic benefits of whatever growth the government gets. 


Insurgency hotspots highlight the inability of government to extend its power over these territories. The lesser government presence is in those areas, the higher the possibility of rebel control. When people feel neglected, they then turn to alternatives. The supplantation of government therefore completes itself when the entire area gives the revolutionaries the power to administer their daily affairs.


Now, it would take some years for the AFP to fully change their image, from an oppressor to a friendly. It would also take some years for the people to turn from frightened and oppressed masses to a cooperative one simply because of years' of barbarity some AFP units did in certain areas of the country.


It would, therefore, not be as easy as the State envisions this to be, simply because Filipinos have long memories especially those living in agrarian areas. 


Second, a more engaging role for the AFP means lesser fights and encounters and more negotiations than actual engagement. This would mean, lesser allocation for bullets and guns and more allocation for civil works, especially road works. This is a good strategy because even if this strategy fails to quell the decades-old rebellion in the countrysides, in the long run, this benefits the entire polity. 


However, I feel extremely optimistic if the AFP applies this strategy in Mindanao. For one, the Bangsamoros only desire is peace. If the AFP manages to dismantle their Tadtads and other para-military units in the area and replace them with civil-military teams, this would probably lessen the incidence first, of criminality and second, of insurgency. If the AFP manages to position itself as a harbinger of peace instead of death, then, the organisation may be able to solve the peace and order problem in Mindanao, quicker and faster than what other generations of AFP generals failed to accomplish. 


This happens on the ground, what about at the top? If the AFP thinks that centralised authority will be completely crippled when individual units "cooperate" with them thru "Bayanihan", that is a long shot. First, the centralised authority is completely ideological and political. It would take a long convincing for old revolutionaries to consider peace than revolutionary work. 


By the way, that image of a soldier carrying a nipa hut on their shoulders should probably raise alarm bells, if implemented in the countrysides. Why? Because people might suspect that they are being hamletted to some area away from their actual homes. Joke.


It would be nice if we see a coalition government spring from this new administration. That is the political solution to this decades-old insurgency---giving power to those whose lives have been dedicated to the advancement of the people's cause. 

Adel Tamano's backer is Vicki Belo, and no Moro

I had a meeting with organizers of the Muslim communities two days ago. There's this nasty rumour that fellow Muslim Adel Tamano's campaign is being supported by no less than "beauty expert", Dr. Vicki Belo. Nothing wrong there except that Belo was involved in the nasty Hayden Kho sex scandal and cases were filed against Belo for alleged medical "malpratices".

If Belo is supporting Tamano, no one among the legitimate and hard-working Muslim organizers support him. No one is actually going the rounds, campaigning hard for Adel. What happened?

Two things: first, Adel Tamano did not approach any Muslim group for help. Hence, his fellow Muslims think that he is too proud to ask for their help. These organizers, as you know, made possible former president Joseph Estrada's decisive win in Mindanao and some parts of Luzon. Remember that Muslims are everywhere---Muslims have a large community in Pangasinan, a vote-rich province and Pampanga. Even in Cavite, Metro Manila and Bulakan. Tarlak also has a huge Muslim community. These organizers, have been them through war and peace, are hard-working ones. They are feeling very bad about Tamano.

And second, majority of Muslims hate Adel Tamano for issuing anti-Muslim statements and most of all, for not keeping his promise of staying with the camp of former president Joseph Estrada.

Adel Tamano is one of our most promising young leaders. He is intelligent, more capable than other candidates actually if you think about it. Yet, he destroyed his name when he changed parties because of some rumour that the administration will not allow Erap to run as a candidate AND he continues to disdain any association with Muslim groups.

POor Adel. His dismal rankings in the surveys show that he needs to do more than serving as Belo's spokesperson to generate enough "buzz". And he must not deny his being a Muslim.

Another thing---some elder Muslims, very influential in the communities, say that they think it is haram for Adel to allow his wife to eat pork in his table. I don't know where they got this information and surely, I will ask Adel to give his side about this. There is a rumour spreading among Muslims in the Philippines that Adel's wife (a Christian) is eating pork and other dishes considered haram (illegal). Fact is, they say, pig meat is stored in Adel Tamano's refrigerator. How true?

Short Appeal to the Bangsamoros

Assalamu alaikum wah rahmatullah!

I just received word that Imam Boratong, the alleged notorious big-time drug dealer who operates the Pasig shabu tiangge is still in operation. I humbly ask our fellow Muslim brothers to form a strike force and obliterate Boratong's group who continues to besmirch the good name of Muslims in Pasig and throughout the Philippines. Let all Muslims throughout this land condemn the illegal drug trade especially this is haram, a sin, a totally despicable and spiteful thing which only Muslims themselves should excise from the face of the earth. Let all true believers of Islam arm themselves with the Will of Allah SWT and put an end to this perversity.