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Conclusion
The Inquirer editorial “Web of
Lies” continues:
“Dolorfino said the military
was merely ‘being proactive’ by launching an initiative in
‘community-based peace and development.’ He also said the
deployment, which has alarmed militant organizations that consider
the urban poor areas their bailiwick and see the posting of soldiers
as election-related harassment, was meant to help stop ‘the
culture of rebellion.’
“In notifying the Commission on
Human Rights [CHR] about its deployment plan in Metro Manila,
however, the military offered peace and order [that is to say, the
need to stop lawlessness] as the reason.”
The Inquirer pointed out the
inconsistencies of the AFP command. And the fears that what people
like Gen. Jovito Palparan are alleged to have done in the provinces
will be made to happen in the capital through AFP “saturation
drives.”
Seeing too many different reasons
given on different occasions by the AFP for deploying troops in
Metro Manila, the Inquirer sardonically said, “Apparently, the
true reasons are a work in progress.”
It’s a great pity that fears
and wrong perceptions have enveloped the AFP-NCRCOM’s deployment
of troops—a maximum of 10 men doing civic action work—in
selected poor, inner-city neighborhoods.
The NCR AFP commander, Maj. Gen.
Benjamin Dolorfino, won fame in his previous assignments in the
provinces for carrying out programs based on his belief in
“fighting war through other means.” His aim is to win hearts and
minds—not to defeat with the use of force if that is possible. A
disciple of Dolorfino wrote an article for The Times on “A better
way to fight.” It’s on page A3 (of the Sunday Times April 1
issue, in which the first part of this special report appeared).
It must not be left unstated that
the persuasive power of leftists—such as the fishers’ union that
made some bishops join the fight to drive the AFP out of their
barangays—is something that the AFP and its friends in the
civilian sphere must emasculate. Not with arms and brute force but
with ideas.
[For the main article of the
“Special report on AFP troops in the NCR” (“Where are the AFP
troops posted? What are they doing”) by Rene Q. Bas, the
quotations from the senatorial candidates were gathered by Times  --reporters
Maricel V. Cruz and Francis Earl Cueto.]
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