Bayan Muna slams AFP move to ban relief mission in Marawi

CHECKPOINT: In this May 26, 2017 file photo, soldiers frisk a Muslim man at a checkpoint near Marawi City. Authorities have been verifying the identities of people in key cities in Mindanao after President Duterte  proclaimed martial law on the island in the wake of clashes between government security forces and terrorists linked to the Islamic State group.  BULLITMARQUEZ/AP

MARAWI CITY — Bayan Muna Representative Carlos Isagani Zarate said on Thursday the military has barred the Kalinaw Mindanao National Interfaith Humanitarian Mission from entering the Lanao del Sur provincial capitol even if they showed soldiers “adequate papers from the Office of the Civil Defense.”

Zarate said they were supposed to distribute 400 relief packs but soldiers manning a checkpoint near the capitol would not let them in.

He said the mission that he was leading, along with former Bayan Muna Representative Teddy Casiño and Gabriela Representative Arlene Brosas, were denied entry upon orders of a Captain Mocsan.

“The delegation was informed that the civilian authorities could not do anything about it because ‘Marawi is under martial law’,” Zarate said.

While they were denied entry, Zarate said they saw “several relief trucks from other agencies and organizations that were allowed to pass through.”

“Clearly, this goes beyond refusal of humanitarian relief for the victims. What is the AFP hiding from us in Marawi City?”

Zarate said they were puzzled by the fact that the decision not to allow them in was reached only on Wednesday evening, a few hours before they tried to enter the city.  Zarate did not explain how Bayan Muna came to know that the military’s ban on them was decided upon on Wednesday evening.

“We believe that aside from the fact that the military wants to cover up the real situation of the evacuees and hide the dire war scenarios of Marawi City stemming from the government’s all-out war in the city, they are also hiding the true role of US forces in the city.”  SFM

Bayan Muna Partylist Rep. Karlos Isagani Zarate (INQUIRER FILE PHOTO)