ALL-OUT WAR VS ABUS President Aquino addresses a national television audience from Malacañang on Monday saying he has ordered an intensified military operation against Abu Sayyaf bandits, not Moro Islamic Liberation Front rebels. JOAN BONDOC
Saying “nobody wins in a war,” the influential Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) yesterday backed President Aquino’s decision against an all-out war against the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF).
In a statement, outgoing CBCP president Nereo Odchimar said that while the culprits behind the “massacres of our soldiers” should be brought to justice, an all-out war would be “ill-advised” and would cause more suffering for the people of Mindanao.
“We, Bishops as heralds of peace and hope, feel that it would be ill-advised simply to throw away the tremendous efforts that have been poured in the work for peace-building in Mindanao,” said the bishop of Tandag, Surigao del Sur.
“We affirm the general pulse of our brother bishops in Mindanao which is to continue the peace negotiations despite these recent setbacks,” Odchimar said.
“A lot of lives and resources have been wasted in the past in Mindanao; a lot of time, energy and resources have been invested for peace-building. We simply cannot possibly start from scratch all over again by resorting to an all-out war,” he added.
Valid indignation
Odchimar nevertheless acknowledged that calls for an all-out war and expressions of indignation were “valid.”
“The string of violent events in Mindanao in the past few days is expectedly causing reflex reactions from many sectors who are favoring an all-out war again in this war-torn and war-weary region of our country,” he said.
“No doubt, the reactions are an expression of indignation against the brutal murder of Rev. Fr. Fausto Tentorio, PIME, and the series of massacres of our soldiers by lawless elements,” he added.
But Odchimar also reminded everyone that “nobody wins in a war,” adding that the bishops had been calling for peace and actively participating in interfaith and multisectoral dialogues meant to help end the decadeslong conflict in Mindanao.
“This is the opportune time to share our commitment to true and lasting peace. Nobody wins in a war; let us renounce violence; let us not allow these violent acts of lawless elements to provoke us to further violence. Let us pray and work for peace in Mindanao and in our entire country,” he said.
Muslim lawmakers
Muslim lawmakers led by Tawi-Tawi Representative Nur Jaafar yesterday warned against vested interest groups from taking advantage of rising tension in Mindanao to push for an all-out war against the MILF.
“We must support pursuit operations against lawless elements, but not against the MILF. The just response to aggression must be discriminate; it must be directed only against unjust aggressors, not against innocent people caught up in a war not of their making,” Jaafar told a news conference.
Jaafar was joined by fellow Muslim Representatives Jim Hataman-Salliman (Basilan), Bai Sandra Sema (Maguindanao and Cotabato City), Pangalian Balindong (Lanao del Sur), and Nur Ana Sahidulla (Sulu).
The group lauded Mr. Aquino for remaining level-headed amid the hawkish factions egging him to fight fire with fire.
Demoralization
Cavite Representative Joseph Emilio Aguinaldo Abaya Jr., Liberal Party secretary general, reckoned that some political groups had already taken advantage of the alleged “demoralization” of the military to spark a fresh wave of destabilization efforts against the President.
“I’m sure those who feel the heat of the resolve of the President to pursue reforms, follow the daang matuwid, and make people accountable for their acts maybe the logical guess as to the perpetrators of a supposed coup,” Abaya said in a text message.
Abaya was apparently alluding to former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and her kin who had been slapped with various charges from plunder to tax evasion to election fraud.