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By Julmunir I. Jannaral
, Correspondent
(Third of four parts)
The television newscast gave Hana Villanueva the
shock of her life. The footage showed her husband being presented by
President Arroyo as the fifth Abu Sayyaf bomber arrested by the
police in a raid in Cubao. With the arrest of Abdulwali Ancheta
Villanueva and the rest of the Abu Sayyaf suspects, authorities
announced they had foiled a “Madrid-level” attack on Metro
Manila, alluding to the series of bombings that destroyed four
commuter trains in Spain’s capital last month and killed almost
200 passengers.
According to Defense Secretary Eduardo Ermita,
who is in charge of the government’s antiterror campaign, the
arrest of the other suspects belonging to the Abu Sayyaf’s Metro
Manila cell has eased the threat of a devastating terrorist attack.
Arrested at the same time as Villanueva were
Alhamser Manatad Limbong, also known as “Kosovo”; Abdurasid Lim;
Radzmar Sangkula; and Redendo Cain Dellosa, who is known by his
Muslim name Habil Ahmad Dellosa.
Hana insisted that her husband was not arrested,
since the arresting officers had no warrant for his arrest.
“It’s a big lie, he was abducted,” she said angrily.
In the case of the 30-year-old Dellosa, his
sister, Marilyn Dellosa Laudit, denied her brother is an Abu Sayyaf
member. Although he has converted to Islam, “does it mean it
automatically makes a person a terrorist?” she asked.
Dellosa was last seen on March 22 by his family
attending the graduation of his cousin in Santa Ana, Manila. After
that, they were informed that he was being held in Cell F of the
Police Anticrime and Emergency Response headquarters at Camp Crame.
Laudit sought help from the lawyer Remedios
Fatima Balbin, who also handled Dellosa’s case when he was
suspected of having terrorist links along with his fellow Muslim
converts like Ahmed Santos, after they set up a madrasah, or Koranic
school, in Anda, Pangasinan.
Balbin said the case against Dellosa and the
others had been dismissed for lack of evidence.
“This is most sad when authorities always
associate terrorism with Islam,” Rex Dimacuta said.
Another Muslim convert accused the government of
using the Muslims as political tools. “The Muslims are being used
as props by the government for its political agenda,” said Yusuf
Ledesma.
The tension in the Muslim communities has
subsided somewhat, but fear remains. Although they are supposed to
get protection from the police, the residents are stilly wary. Some
of them believe that instead of protecting them, the police would
turn out to be their tormentor.
Pelaez Maradang is especially distrustful of the
police. A Muslim who sells jewelry at the Greenhills Commercial
Center in San Juan, Maradang was also picked up by a team from the
Taguig police on the night of March 28, on suspicion of drug
trafficking.
The police raided his home in Garden Royal
Villas in Pinagbuhatan, Pasig City, without any search warrant.
The timely arrival of television reporters
averted what could have been a bloody confrontation as hundreds of
Muslim residents blocked the car carrying Maradang and the arresting
team. The residents let the car through only when the police assured
them that they would be taking Madarang to the Eastern Police
headquarters in Pasig City to get his statement.
He was released the next day.
(Concluded tomorrow)
(To be continued)
Part 1 |Part
2 |Conclusion |
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