The government is negotiating with the United
States regarding the extent of increased
American military presence in the Philippines
and surrounding waters. China
has reacted by proclaiming that its armed forces would be adequate to confront
any foreign efforts to contest Chinese claims to most of the South
China Sea (including areas off the coast of the Philippines
where oil and natural gas have been found). The U.S.
does not want to get into a war with China
over its outrageous claims to the South China Sea, but
there is the problem of allowing a nation to just grab islands that have long
been recognized as belonging to a neighbor. The Chinese claims include revising
international law (the 1994 Law of the Sea treaty) that finally (it was
thought) settled who was entitled to what and where. This treaty left many
disputed islands whose ownership still had to be settled by negotiation. But China
is blowing right past the 1994 treaty (which China
signed) and saying, in effect, “what’s mine is mine and what’s yours is mine
too.” Chinese leaders have made these claims a matter of national pride,
painting themselves into a very dangerous corner. The Philippines,
and all the other nations that are locked in this territorial dispute are
forming an alliance, which contains the United
States. America
is willing to train more frequently with Filipino forces and spend more time in
the Philippines,
but the U.S.
does not want to get involved with confrontations with Chinese forces unless
forced to. What kind of force that might be has been left vague.
MILF and the government are stalled in negotiating the
details of their peace deal. Neither side believes that these disagreements
will derail the peace deal.
December 21, 2012:
The NPA declared a 26 day nationwide truce, to last from December 20 to January
15. This is the longest truce the NPA has ever declared. Due to the
decentralized nature of the NPA, some of its 4,000 fighters (organized into
over a hundred separate groups) will not obey the truce. Since the late 1960s
the leftist NPA has caused over 40,000 deaths. The NPA wants to establish a
communist dictatorship in the Philippines
but been in decline since the collapse of European communism in the late 1980s.
December 20, 2012:
In the north (Quezon) NPA rebels kidnapped a former NPA rebel and two village
guards and killed them. The leftist rebels consider those who leave the NPA to
be deserters and try to kill them whenever possible.
December 17, 2012:
In the south (Iloilo province)
troops doing disaster relief work were attacked by NPA rebels. One soldier was
killed and the attackers were repulsed with casualties (blood trails were
found). Soldiers in the area were ordered to be more alert because the local
NPA appears to be ignoring the 18 day disaster relief truce.
December 15, 2012:
The government declared an 18 day unilateral truce with the NPA, in part
because troops and police are needed to help victims of a recent massive
typhoon (Pacific hurricane) on the 4th that left over a thousand
dead and many more injured or homeless. Soldiers and NPA units began observing
informal truces five days ago, in areas hardest hit by the typhoon (which
damaged or destroyed NPA bases as well).
December 14, 2012:
MILF has ordered members of its combat units to not appear in public carrying
weapons or wearing their uniforms. That can be done on MILF bases, but in areas
where they might encounter soldiers or police. This new policy is meant to
prevent gun battles between armed MILF members and government security forces.
Police In the south (Davao
City) shot dead an Islamic
terrorist (Mohd Noor Fikrie Abd Kahar) who had threatened to detonate a bomb in
a backpack. Kahar was a Malaysian son of a police sergeant who was recruited
into Indonesian Islamic terror group Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) via Facebook. Like
many JI members he fled to the Philippines
and found sanctuary with local Islamic terror group Abu Sayyaf. Filipino police
have been searching for Kahar since early February when Kahar was almost
captured during a raid on an Islamic terrorist camp. Kahar, in his haste to
flee, left some personal items behind, including his Malaysian government ID
card. Police soon found that Kahar was a wannabe terrorist who was still out
there seeking an opportunity to kill for the cause. Police are unsure where
Kahar planned to place the bomb. Kahar had been keeping in touch with other JI
members via the Internet. He and his Filipina wife were located via a tip.
December 12, 2012:
In the central Philippines
(Palawan) NPA rebels attacked a police station, killing
one policeman and wounding another. The police chief was supposed to be there
but was absent and is being investigated for that. The police chief is also in
trouble over allegations that the NPA attack was in retaliation for police
extorting protection money from miners, which is a criminal activity the NPA
considers theirs alone.
December 11, 2012:
The government extended its modernization plan for the army another 15 years.
The previous plan had not worked out so well and the Philippines Army is still
one of the most poorly equipped in the region. This is largely because the
Philippines has not got a lot of money for the military and most of what is
available goes to pay for operations against Islamic and leftist rebels. Then
there is corruption, with is frequently found in procurement programs. This
means that the new equipment funds are often plundered by corrupt officers and
little or nothing actually gets to the troops.
December 6, 2012:
In the north (Leyte) ten NPA rebels attacked an army
detachment doing development work in a rural village and killed two soldiers.
Elsewhere in Leyte NPA men attacked a village and wounded a civilian. In both
attacks the leftist rebels were driven off by troops.
December 5, 2012:
The NPA said they would observe a 29 day unilateral truce with the
government, in part because troops and police are needed to help victims of a
recent massive typhoon. The truce will apparently only apply in the provinces
hardest hit by the Typhoon.
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