Jolo blasts a glaring failure of martial law—Suara Bangsamoro

Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Director General Oscar Albayalde inspects on Monday, Jan. 28, 2019 the Cathedral of Our Lady of Mount Carmel in Jolo, Sulu, where twin blasts during a Sunday Mass left at least 20 killed and 112 injured. Photo courtesy of PNP

DAVAO CITY—A militant Moro group said the failure of government forces to stop the deadly explosion at Mt. Carmel Cathedral in a predominantly Muslim Jolo, Sulu, on Sunday despite martial law in Mindanao only proved that military rule, which only threatened the rights and freedom of citizens, was utterly useless.

Jerome Aba, spokesperson of Suara Bangsamoro, said people should demand the lifting of martial law as it failed to secure citizens, the main justification for its declaration in the first place.

“The series of bombings in Mindanao amid martial law only proves its ineffectiveness in securing peace in the region,” Aba said in a statement.

Aba said the Duterte administration failed to prevent bombings and quell violence in Mindanao despite the deployment of 75 percent of the country’s soldiers on the island, the mounting of thousands of checkpoints and the funneling of billions of funds to intelligence operations.

“With all (the human rights) abuses and bloodshed caused by his martial rule, Duterte should be made accountable for his failure in solving conflicts in Mindanao,” Aba said. “People should call for the lifting of martial law in Mindanao,” he added.

The twin blasts killed at least 20 persons and injured 80 others.

“The blasts happened days after the ratification of the Bangsamoro Organic Law (BOL), showing that unrest in Moro areas is far from over,”
Aba said.

“We fear that this incident will be used as a justification by the government to pursue intensive militarization of Jolo and other Moro communities which will then lead to human rights violation of the Bangsamoro,” according to Aba.

He warned that the government forces efforts to pursue the so-called “terrorist” would be “a convenient excuse to obscure AFP atrocities against the Moro people./lzb