EDITORIAL -Consolidating gains

Apart from the economy, there is another bright spot in this perpetually troubled land: the campaign against terrorism. Forensic experts are verifying whether remains unearthed from a makeshift grave in Mindanao are those of Dulmatin, the Indonesian Jemaah Islamiyah member long wanted for the 2002 nightclub bombings in Bali that killed 202 people. A captured Abu Sayyaf suspect who led government forces to the grave claimed the remains are those of the JI bomb-maker, who fled to the Philippines together with JI member Umar Patek after the Bali attack.

The captured suspect’s story could be a mere smokescreen to take the heat off Dulmatin, who has a $10-million prize on his head. Dulmatin has reportedly enjoyed the protection of Islamist and separatist militants in Mindanao. But if DNA tests prove that Dulmatin is dead, it would be another major blow against terrorism after the elimination of Abu Sayyaf chieftain Khadaffy Janjalani, the group’s spokesman Abu Sulaiman and several other terrorist commanders in the past two years.

The government should not allow these victories to go to waste. Abject poverty, illiteracy and official neglect allowed terrorists to sell ideas of intolerance, hatred and violence to people in several island-provinces in the south. The terrorists have a long reach, staging deadly bombings in Metro Manila as far back as December 2000, and setting off explosives even on a ferry in Manila Bay.

That ferry bombing was staged when security forces thought the Abu Sayyaf had already been greatly weakened after the group was driven out of its jungle strongholds in Basilan. The attack showed that there is no room for complacency in fighting terror.

There is general agreement that a military solution is just part of the answer. To deprive terrorists of popular support, to deprive them of sanctuaries, development must be brought to their areas of operation. This involves improving the delivery of basic services such as education, shelter and health care. It involves the provision of livelihood opportunities, sanitation and access to safe water.

Much will depend on local government executives, who must make their constituents realize that they have a personal stake in ending the violence. Even if it turns out that Dulmatin is still alive, the government must make sure people in the terrorists’ areas of operation will start enjoying the dividends of peace.