THE PHILIPPINE National Police (PNP) called on the public not to give in to “scare messages” that have circulated in the wake of the Nov. 13 Paris attacks and ahead of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) summit being hosted by the country this week, among them an Internet video purportedly conveying a threat from the terrorist Islamic State (IS) group.
PNP spokesperson Chief Supt. Wilben Mayor on Monday reiterated that there were “no specific threats” in connection with the Apec meetings, a gathering of leaders and delegates from 21 member states, which is posing the toughest security challenge for the government in recent memory.
The supposed IS video was still being “verified” since such online materials “could be easily manipulated,” Mayor said.
Surfacing on the social media over the weekend, the video showed armed, masked men in black outfits facing the camera, with three IS flags as their backdrop. With dark foreboding music, it carried a voice-over in Filipino by two speakers who threatened to avenge the “humiliations” supposedly inflicted by the government on Muslims.
The clip, which ran for about four and a half minutes, appeared to have been shot inside a hut. It briefly cuts to a scene showing the men undergoing physical training in what appeared to be a tropical forest clearing.
“Let us not be intimidated by these kinds of threats or propaganda,” Mayor said during a briefing at the Apec security task group command center at One Esplanade in Pasay City.
He said the matter was being addressed by the national intelligence center composed of 20 government agencies and ground forces deployed in Metro Manila.”
In a separate statement, Mayor said “we have received reports of a ‘scare message’ circulating, warning of purported terror threats. I believe there is a deliberate effort at disinformation. Such messages must be disregarded and reported immediately to authorities.”
But in an interview at Camp Crame, PNP chief Director General Ricardo Marquez, who also heads the Apec security task group, said “we take every information seriously.”
“We give them to our intelligence fusion center. We’ll have them process it. It can be used [by the task group],” he said.
Following the Paris terror attacks, he said, “we have not received any special concerns for adjustments of security (from Apec delegates). Even prior to the incident in Paris, our foreign security counterparts have communicated their security concerns and they have been addressed substantially by the security task force.”
“We call on you, our people, to also rally behind us. Part of that [support] would be reporting unattended baggage on the road. Part of that is reporting if there are suspicious looking individuals in our streets or in our neighborhoods, so we could check them,” the PNP chief added.
Reports of suspicious activities or individuals can be sent to the PNP text hotline 0917-8475757, he said.
More US donations
Also on Monday, the PNP received new pieces of high-tech equipment from the US government in time for its Apec security operations.
The US Department of Energy, through the National Nuclear Security Administration, donated four vans fitted with equipment for detecting radioactive material and substances used in chemical or biological warfare.
“As part of our preparations for Apec, we panel (or inspect) all areas of engagement
—the routes, billet (hotels) and venues. And part of the paneling is for (the presence of) radioactive materials. It’s timely these vans arrived last week. [Now] we have more mobile detection equipment to cover all the Apec venues,” Marquez said.
Representing the US Embassy during the turnover rites was Deputy Chief of Mission Michael Klecheski. “We are very pleased with the way (the summit) has been organized. We now look forward to the actual proceedings,” the diplomat said in a speech.
Klecheski noted that the Philippines and the US had been partners since 1995 in the campaign against the trafficking of nuclear and radiological materials. “This program… has invested $35 million over the years to help ensure the safety and security of the Philippines and its trading partners, (including) the United States.”