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Presidential assistant for Mindanao confirms reports of JI/MILF training
Presidential Assistant for Mindanao Jesus Dureza last Sunday night virtually confirmed that Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) operatives have been sneaking in and out of Mindanao to train in camps allegedly maintained by the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF). Dureza made the admission when asked at his weekly radio program Kalinaw para sa Mindanao (Peace for Mindanao) about the recent arrest in Malaysia of six Indonesians believed to be members of the al-Qaeda-linked Jemaah Islamiya. "Iâm pretty sure now that members of terrorist organizations are coming in and out of Mindanao for training in terrorism. I donât think the Malaysian government will invent stories that are not true," he said in the dialect. Eid Kabalu, MILF spokesman, earlier said the rebelsâ have a standing policy against terrorism, shown by a statement of the late MILF chairman Hashim Salamat renouncing the groupâs links with the Jemaah Islamiyah. Bolstering his claims that terrorist groups have penetrated Mindanao for some time already, Dureza cited the seizure of a large cache of explosives in General Santos City in early 2002. Slain JI operative Fathur Rohman al-Ghozi later pleaded guilty for the possession of about 1.2 tons of bomb materials, earning him a 17-year jail term for the confession. Al-Ghozi was slain in an alleged shoot out with government agents last year in Pigkawayan, North Cotabato, months after he bolted his supposedly tightly guarded detention cell in Camp Crame, the main headquarters of the PNP. While Dureza admitted that international terrorists have penetrated Mindanao for training purposes, he, however, assured that the government, in coordination with foreign governments, is doing its best to contain the threats of the terrorist groups in line with the worldwide war against terrorism. In saying that Mindanao has become a terroristsâ training ground, Dureza strongly called on the MILF to observe earlier agreements outlining the commitment of the Moro rebels to go after terrorists. "We have agreements with the MILF that they will help interdict the terrorists operating in their areas. One of these agreements is the ceasefire pact. Whether this reported training of terrorist agents is true or not, Iâm sure the groupâs leadership is doing specific actions that should be threshed out in the joint ceasefire committee," Dureza said. According to wire reports quoting an unidentified Malaysian security official, the six suspects were caught among a group of illegal immigrants trying to enter the eastern Malaysian state of Sabah on Borneo island several weeks ago but their arrest had not been announced until lately. Borneo is shared by Malaysia, Indonesia and Brunei and the men were trying to make their way back to Indonesia after attending training in Mindanao, the Malaysian security official said. Report said they have been served with two-year detention orders under Malaysiaâs Internal Security Act, which allows indefinite detention without trial. As he boosted the claims of Malaysia that the suspected international terrorists have trained in Mindanao, Dureza urged the residents to be vigilant and help the government in the fight against terrorism for everybodyâs sake. Posted by: Dan Darling 2004-03-18 |
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