The local intelligence community is divided on how to treat information given by Indonesian police that miners in Davao or their financier might have links with the group behind the bomb attacks on the Philippine Consulate General in Manado and in the resort island of Bali in Indonesia.
National Security Adviser Roilo Golez said intelligence agents are still evaluating whether to act on the data they have received. But police deputy intelligence director Roberto Delfin said the information from the Indonesian police was insufficient to start an investigation. "How can we start when we have no names or addresses?" Delfin said in a telephone interview.
The Indonesian report said the two men arrested in connection with the Manado bombing came from Tatellu, a small mining town near the Manado international airport in northern Celebes, Indonesia. Tatellu miners have had close contact with their counterparts in Davao, exchanging information on the use of chemicals, including explosive substances, for extracting and processing gold. An intelligence agent confirmed the existence of a Davao-Manado connection for explosives smuggling, but acknowledged that they have not determined if the contraband has been used in any of the recent terrorist attacks.
Traces of ammonium nitrate were found in the rubble of the discos leveled by a powerful explosive in Bali on October 5th. About 180 people, mostly tourists, were killed in the attack. The substance is also used for mining operations in Tatellu and Davao.
Indonesian police believe that an alleged financier of former guerrilla leader Nur Misuari could supply a possible link. The financier lives in Davao City. "That's being evaluated. We have our own findings, but it is very difficult for us to give our own evaluation on Bali, we have to depend on their evaluation there," Golez said.
A high intelligence official was skeptical about the findings of the Indonesian police. He told The Manila Times: "We can't see the connection at this time. If at all, the Manado bombing might be linked to the attack on the Philippine embassy in 2000."
Two men - Youche Humonggio and Idris U - were identified by witnesses as those who planted the bomb at the gate of the Philippine Consulate in Manado.
Both are residents of Tatellu village. Investigators there think that the bombers were just "pawns of an organized group with links in Poso, central Celebes and central Java-based radical Islamic organizations associated with Abdul Bashir." Bashir, a Muslim cleric, is believed to be the leader of the Southeast Asian terrorist group Jemaah Islamiah. Jemaah Islamiah aims to create an Islamic state in Malaysia, Indonesia and the southern Philippines.
President Macapagal-Arroyo yesterday authorized the arming of local security guards (barangay tanods) in "high-risk areas" nationwide as part of her Government's 10-point police-community plan to thwart terrorist activities plaguing the country. And amid the spate of bombings, the President, in a taped message, called on the Filipinos to "live our lives normally under the protection of our authorities. Let this be our unified act of defiance against terrorism." Mrs. Macapagal-Arroyo added that the bombings were the handiwork of "secretive and determined extremists."
Press Undersecretary Roberto Capco said the Government is tapping local security officials to help in the Government's dogged campaign against terrorism. Emerging from yesterday's emergency meeting called by the President, Capco said the President called for the "mobilization of all barangay tanods in the country." The President called the meeting following Friday's bus explosion in Quezon City which killed three persons and wounded 20 others.
To seek out probable terrorists in urban centers and the countryside, the Government launched "Oplan Kapkap" which authorizes all uniformed police personnel to make random searches of people in malls, buses and other places where people converge. Capco said this is part of the Government's 10-point anti-terror plan. He added that the Government is also deploying at least 1,700 additional policemen in Manila. "We want to increase police visibility in order to let the people know that their police force is working to protect them."
Opposition Senator Aquilino Pimentel Jr. was quick to brand the President's plan as a "knee-jerk" solution to the bombings that hit several key cities. He claimed that no Government agencies other than the police and the Armed Forces could solve this problem. "They are on top of the problem," he said.
Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) Chairman Bayani Fernando said that all passengers by public transportation must submit themselves to a thorough search by bus personnel before being allowed to board a bus or a jeepney. He added that local officials have the power to impose curfews at their discretion.
Some lawmakers expressed apprehension over the arming of local security guards, saying that, once armed, they are likely to commit abuses. Senator Robert Barbers, chairman of the Senate Committee on Public Order and Illegal Drugs, advised the Government to ensure that these local security guards can be trusted before arming them. He claimed that some of them are protectors of crime syndicates and bodyguards of drug and gambling lords. So instead of helping, they might become the problem
Senator Edgardo Angara suggested beefed-up police presence in bus terminals, shipping lines, malls, supermarkets, and other public utilities. "This is no time for knee-jerk solutions. This is the time for anti-terrorism and national security policies that we can back with resources and that should be implemented by competent police and military officers," he said.
Capco pointed out that only qualified security guards would be allowed to carry a firearm. They would also have to undergo training by the police and the military. But the firearms to be issued to them would be provided by the local government units "since they have the resources and the manpower." The national Government would provide training that includes the proper use of the firearms, so that they do not violate human rights.
Last week, Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) Secretary Joey Lina said anti-terrorism subcommittees would be established at the grassroots level - in local government units (LGU) - to strengthen the Government's campaign against terrorist groups. "The subcommittee at the LGU level would focus mainly on fighting terrorism, seeking out probable terrorists lurking in the countryside." These groups would be set up immediately in areas of concern, particularly in urban centers, big towns and cities - the most probable targets of terrorist groups. A memorandum would also be circulated to brief all governors, mayors, and other local officials on the creation of these anti-terrorist groups. He said officials of the DILG, from the Undersecretary down, would go around the country to consult with LGU officials on the proposed creation of the anti-terrorist network and then would evaluate which areas should be given the top priority. He said the Philippine National Police has started beefing up security measures in vital installations, communications, commercial malls, and other places frequented by civilians. The town or city mayors would chair the subcommittees, with members coming from the local legislative branch, down to local officials and local security guards. Lina said the police would process information provided them by local anti-terrorist groups for proper disposition.
