COTABATO CITY, Philippines – While the debate escalates in Congress with some lawmakers calling to eliminate the threat posed by the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF), the rebel group is challenging politicians to arm themselves and join the fighting.
“If they really want war, (President) Aquino and these politicians should bring guns and march to Maguindanao,” BIFF spokesperson Abu Misri Mama said in a phone interview.
Mr. Aquino in his second public statement after the Mamasapano clash warned threat groups like the BIFF he would run them over and he would make them face the full force of the law.
“If they will come here, we will give them what they want. We will show them a real war that is far different from what they see in the movies,” Mama said.
The reference on the difference between an actual combat and a war movie is a shot at Senator Alan Peter Cayetano who claimed during the hearing that he knew things about war from movies that he watched.
Mama said the BIFF has become anxious that the congressional hearings might lead to an all-out-war that would affect the lives of many civilians.
“Not only the BIFF or the soldiers will be affected by a big war, the civilians will suffer most,” Mama said.
The BIFF has described itself as a guerrilla revolutionary organization that is fighting for an Islamic state in Mindanao.
“We are not terrorists. We are fighting a legitimate cause. The soldiers, SAF (Special Action Force) and the US government are the terrorists because they intrude into our land and want to take it away from us,” Mama said.
Mama also accused the US government of “terrorizing” other countries for its economic interest and then tag those who have been resisting as terrorists.
“The US government terrorized the Middle East for oil. They are intruders because the Arabs are the native inhabitants in that area. The same thing is happening in Mindanao most especially in Liguasan Marsh for its oil deposits,” Mama said.
In a document released by Wikileaks, the US Embassy in Manila wired a “sensitive but unclassified” message to the Central Intelligence Agency, Secretary of Defense, Secretary of State, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and the United States Pacific Command saying that 70 percent of the US$80 billion to US$1 trillion worth of mineral resources in the country is in Mindanao which include natural gas and oil deposits.
Department of Energy reports said that the Cotabato Basin, which includes the Liguasan Marsh, has an estimated 202 million barrels of oil and at least 821 billion cubic feet of gas while the Sulu Sea has at least 209 million barrels of oil and 716 billion cubic feet of gas.
Led by former Moro Islamic Liberation Front 105th Base commander Ustadz Ameril Umra Kato, the BIFF splintered from the MILF after serious disagreements on the conduct of the peace negotiations with the government.