Weapons returned by MILF cannibalized

MANILA, Philippines - All of the 16 high-powered firearms, part of the cache of weapons that Muslim rebels took from the slain policemen in Mamasapano, were cannibalized before they were turned over to the Philippine National Police (PNP), a senior government security official revealed yesterday.

“Where is good faith there?” the official asked, referring to the statement of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) that they were returning the firearms their fighters took from the slain policemen as a gesture of sincerity on their part and commitment to the peace process.

The official said the returned firearms, while appearing to be in working order, had been tampered with and original parts replaced, including the bolt and trigger mechanism, firing pin and spring.

“These are serialized items and replacing them compromises the reliability of the gun. It can be dangerous in a firefight,” he said.

PNP officer-in-charge Deputy Director General Leonardo Espina, at last Thursday’s turnover of the weapons held at Camp Aguinaldo, said the returned firearms were stripped of scopes and other accessories.

Espina earlier called on the MILF and other parties involved in the Mamasapano clash to return all the firearms they seized from the slain Special Action Force (SAF) commandos, declaring these guns are government property.

In response to this call and as a sign of good faith, the MILF leadership returned 16 of the rifles. The turnover to the government was facilitated by the government-MILF joint Ad Hoc Joint Action Group (AHJAG).

Government peace panel chairman Miriam Coronel-Ferrer said the retrieval of the weapons by the MILF was a positive step forward in restoring public confidence in the peace process.

Ferrer also reiterated calls for the voluntary return of other weapons still in the possession of the MILF, civilians and other groups.

She said the MILF showed it was serious in its commitment to “pursuing the peace” by returning the weapons of the slain SAF troopers.

She welcomed the commitment of MILF peace panel chairman Mohagher Iqbal that the MILF would ensure that they would look for the rest of the weapons.

The MILF leadership, according to Ferrer, had informed the government panel of the difficult job of approaching its own forces to convince them to return the SAF weapons in their possession.

Many of those holding the weapons also had relatives who died from fighting the SAF troops in Mamasapano in Jan. 25.

The MILF turned over 16 assault rifles and another rifle broken in half. A mobile phone belonging to one of the slain policemen was also returned at a joint press conference of the government and MILF peace panels on Tuesday in Camp Siongco, Maguindanao.

The retrieved weapons were officially turned over to the PNP on Thursday.

Espina appealed to those in possession of the rest of the weapons to turn them over to the authorities.

In response, Iqbal said the MILF would look further.

“I am not discounting that there may be firearms that may not have been accounted for, but the efforts of the MILF to look for it will continue,” he said. – Jose Rodel Clapano