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Diplomatic and political observers are reading different meanings
into the visit of US Ambassador to the Philippines Kristie Kenney at
the headquarters of Chairman Al Haj Murad Ebrahim, leader of the
secessionist Moro Islamic Liberation Front. The interest is
understandable.
Her visit is the first by an American ambassador
to a guerrilla stronghold in the country. Whether she came on
invitation or had suggested the meeting, we do not know. The tryst
could have been arranged by a third party. Nobody knew about the
visit until it was over.
Interest is piqued by the absence of a
fleshed-out statement on the visit. Perhaps protocol does not
require a statement, joint or individual. Mrs. Kenney, coming out of
Murad’s headquarters, was reticent on the subject. The MILF chief
was also sparing in his explanation to the press.
Apparently, Mrs. Kenney was interested in the
progress of the talks between Malacañang and MILF negotiators on
the settlement of the decades-long Moro insurgency and the creation
of a new autonomous region under MILF rule. Reference was also made
about an exchange of views on the Balikatan joint RP-US military
exercises taking place in several places in Mindanao and Luzon.
These concerns are paramount to the US
government. Washington has invested heavily in the development of
southern Mindanao. Cessation of hostilities will hasten the return
of peace and normalcy, speed up growth and make the southern
Philippines prosper. Peace in Mindanao means stronger
stability for the nation and the rest of Southeast Asia.
The success of the Balikatan war games also
matters to the US and the Philippines. Lately, however, several
Muslim leaders have expressed objections to the exercise, fearing
military intrusions into MILF territory or misconduct by American
troops. The ambassador must have quieted these fears at the
meeting. Official government statements on Balikatan have also
focused on humanitarian projects, not military drills.
But the skeptics have their fears. Were there
discussions about strengthening US military presence in the South,
with an MILF nod? Some 500 GIs are permanently stationed in
Mindanao, albeit on a rotating basis. Not only would the troops
need augmentation, but US facilities could use considerable
expansion and buildup.
Washington considers Mindanao an important
outpost in the global war on terrorism. A terrorist group, the Abu
Sayyaf, must not only be crushed but also engaged to understand its
thinking, tactics and strategy. There are lessons to be learned from
the Abu and its murderous affiliates. New weapons and intelligence
systems could be tested on the ground. Apart from achieving peace
and growth in Mindanao, the Pentagon or State Department War Rooms
must also be thinking what the future holds for US interests.
We leave the conjectures to the skeptics. We
trust the terse statements from Ms. Kenney and Mr. Murad on the
nature of the visit. We do not think protocol was ignored or
sovereignty violated. But a formal statement from the US Embassy
would have been helpful. It was not, after all, a social call. When
the history of the MILF war and the founding of the Bangsamoro is
finally written, the visit will surely provide a very interesting
chapter.
Adrian’s legacy
THE Samahang Plaridel and the Unyon ng Manunulat
sa Pilipinas paid joint tribute to writer and journalist Adrian
Cristobal at a hotel by Manila Bay Wednesday night. After a program
of music and tributes, the two groups passed a resolution addressed
to the National Commission on Culture and the Arts and the Cultural
Center of the Philippines endorsing the late literary icon for the
exalted honor of National Artist.
A noted intellectual who was also a lifetime
essayist, opinion writer, playwright, journalist and biographer,
Adrian left an impressive body of work that had enriched Philippine
literature, journalism and history. His intellectual vigor and
supple writing belied the person of a school dropout whose felicity
with culture and the liberal arts was honed through self-education.
Adrian, besides being publisher of The Manila
Times, was the guiding spirit behind notable scholarly journals,
newsmagazines and writing groups. He was vice chairman of the
Samahang Plaridel, an association of journalists, and founder of the
Unyon ng mga Manunulat. Coffee shops, fine restaurants and writing
workshops provided the stage were he presided over memorable
literary and intellectual salons.
Says a part of the resolution:
“Adrian E. Cristobal was an extraordinary
writer who excelled in both literature and journalism. Between these
two disciplines and vocations, he created a remarkable body of work
that ranged over many forms and genres. From fiction to drama, from
biography to historiography, from film writing to writing skits,
from editorials to newspaper columns, from speechwriting to writing
political tracts—whatever the form of the written word, this
quintessential Filipino writer excelled with wit to spare.
“To the many honors that he received in life,
we fervently believe that the nation should add, in this year of his
passing, the Order of National Artist for Literature and Journalism.
Then shall Adrian E. Cristobal live on in the bosom of his country
and his people.”
The Manila Times associates itself with these
sentiments.
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