Waging peace

JOLO – In most other places in this country, this would be a boring story: doctors providing medical, dental and veterinary assistance; engineers building schools and artesian wells in impoverished villages.

The teams undertaking these humanitarian missions, however, are American troops, and they are ringed by heavy security provided by a special counterterrorism task force of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) as well as paramilitary teams provided by the local government.

These benign missions, after all, are the United States’ contribution to Balikatan 2006, which is part of Washington’s strategy to deny sanctuary to terrorists.

Sulu gained international notoriety several years ago when Abu Sayyaf bandits raided the Malaysian resort island of Sipadan and brought their foreign hostages to this province. The bandits, led by the late, unlamented Ghalib Andang, a.k.a. Commander Robot, earned at least $20 million from that caper.

Andang is dead, but several of his cohorts including Abu Sayyaf chieftain Khadaffy Janjalani are still alive and could have taken refuge in Sulu after being driven out of their jungle lairs in Basilan during Balikatan 2002.

That’s according to Army Brig. Gen. Alexander Aleo, commander of the anti-terrorism task force code-named Comet that is participating in Balikatan 2006.

US Army Col. James Linder has a similar assessment. "I feel that those who foment the ideas of intolerance and hate are here and are coming to Jolo, and the people of Jolo deserve better," he told me here yesterday.

Sulu is perceived to be so dangerous non-government organizations and international aid agencies are reluctant to come here.

The Balikatan in Basilan was a much larger exercise; it marked the return to the country of US troops after the shutdown of American bases in 1992. The Basilan joint exercises involved the use of "live targets."

Many Filipinos believe the Balikatan in Sulu, which started last Saturday, has the same objectives as the first one in Basilan. Both governments, however, deny this and point out that this time, US troops will be confined to medical and engineering missions.

Linder, commander of the US Joint Special Operations Task Force -Philippines whose troops are in Sulu, calls it "waging peace."

* * *

Both governments agree that the challenge in Sulu is tougher than in Basilan.

Aleo estimates that there are 30,000 loose firearms in a province with an estimated population of 675,000. Unlike in Basilan, where a large Christian population suffered for years from Abu Sayyaf atrocities and thus supported Balikatan 2002, this province of Tausugs is hostile even to the AFP.

"They look at the government as the enemy," Aleo told me.

This is what the Americans – and the local government officials who invited US troops here – hope to change, and in the process deny terrorists sanctuary.

"My greatest challenge is to show the people of Jolo that there is hope. Hope for development. Hope for their children. Hope for methods of problem resolution through means other than violence," Linder told me as his troops embarked on a medical mission in Barangay Panamao while US military engineers built a new high school together with the AFP in Barangay Tiptipon yesterday.

US troops have been here since late last month, and Linder is confident that residents of Sulu want peace and development.

Sulu Gov. Benjamin Loong, who predicted that yesterday’s crowd in Panamao would surpass the 1,200 who received medical assistance the other day, said there is "99 percent acceptance" of US troop presence in the province.

That picture could be overly optimistic, and the heavy security thrown by the AFP around US troops here indicates an aggressive threat and resistance to American presence. Linder, in a speech at the informal opening of Balikatan last Saturday, also conceded that terrorists "will most certainly try to attack us while we are here."

Both Linder and Aleo, however, are largely undeterred.

"There is a future here and it’s time for Sulu to renounce the violence," Linder told me.

* * *

The joint military operations here, which both governments refuse to call war games, have been marred by reports of sex workers in downtown Jolo, a bomb explosion, and the shooting of wild animals by a US Navy SEAL.

Linder points out that his troops are confined to a camp in downtown Jolo. They learned about the sex workers, he said, only from news reports. The bomb explosion, which is being investigated by the local police, has been linked to a vendetta following a fight among civilians in a videoke bar. And the shooting of animals is under investigation, with US officials promising disciplinary action on the SEAL if warranted.

Both the AFP and US troops prefer to focus on their main objective. A sustained, successful campaign could make AFP and US troop presence here unnecessary, leaving the maintenance of peace and order to the local police. For Washington, it would be one less part of the world to worry about al-Qaeda-linked terrorists.

"This is counterterrorism – just showing people that there’s an alternative, there’s an opportunity," said US Embassy spokesman Matthew Lussenhop. The ongoing joint exercises, he added, provide valuable training for both Philippine and US troops.

* * *

"We’d much rather do this than fight people," said Lt. Col. Mark Zimmer, public affairs officer of the US joint task force.

Long-lasting changes in Basilan turned Balikatan 2002 in that province into a model for successful counterterrorism in the age of al-Qaeda.

A combination of US-supported military operations and swift implementation of badly needed infrastructure projects, including the construction of roads, bridges and schools deprived the Abu Sayyaf of its base of support in Basilan.

But that Balikatan lasted several months, with US military humanitarian missions continuing to this day. What can be achieved in Sulu in two weeks?

A glimpse of the benefits of a secure environment, says Linder, which could encourage NGOs and more aid donors to come to the province. The development that is made possible by that secure environment can then turn the Philippine government, in the eyes of Sulu residents, into a friend rather than an enemy.