"Chinese and Taiwanese syndicates are operating in the Philippines. But there are no Filipino syndicates when it comes to these laboratories," Rodel Babasa, USDEA assistant country attaché to the Philippines, told The STAR during last Monday’s formal opening of the third Philippine-US "Baker Piston" exercise at the Southern Mindanao training center of the Philippine National Police (PNP) in Barangay Mintal here.
Forty operatives of the PNP, National Bureau of Investigation, Philippine Army and the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency are taking part in Baker Piston.
Babasa said Filipinos involved in the illegal drugs trade are mostly of Chinese descent who serve as local conduits of the international syndicates.
"That is why no Filipino national (was found) in the shabu laboratories that had been dismantled. These laboratories are always manned by Chinese nationals because these international syndicates do not trust anyone, including Filipinos, in the processing of the substances," he said.
Babasa said there is still a lot to be done in combatting the illegal drugs problem in the country.
"There are indications that there are still active and actual shabu laboratories in certain parts of the Philippines," he said.
Meanwhile, militant groups, including the Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (Bayan Muna), criticized the presence of American anti-narcotics experts here for the Baker Piston training.
"Bayan strongly believes that the exercise is part of a US plan to enter Mindanao through its key cities by developing ties with local authorities and offering them palatable dishes in the guise of humanitarian work and civil service," the militant group said in a statement.
But James Fawcett, anti-terrorism and force protection officer of the Joint Inter-Agency Task Force West, expressed hope that both the Philippines and US could change such a perception.
"The Baker Piston is not a military-to-military exercise but more of a law enforcement activity," he said.
Babasa said the USDEA will continue to support the Philippine government’s efforts in fighting the drug menace.
"We could say we have already seen some successes since we started the Baker Piston exercises in 2003. And you could see it in police officers who are now better trained not only in (investigating) the operations of drug syndicates but also in tactical proficiency to protect themselves (during) shootouts," Babasa said.
He credited the networking that resulted from the Baker Piston exercises in the cities of Davao, Baguio and Zamboanga for the busting of big-time shabu laboratories in Cebu City, Metro Manila, Bataan and Davao City.