CORREGIDOR ISLAND — President Benigno Aquino III on Monday compared the unnamed 'conspirators' allegedly behind the Sabah incursion to the late President Ferdinand Marcos in their complete disregard for Moro lives.
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| President Benigno Aquino III lowers a time capsule during the groundbreaking rites commemorating the 45th anniversary of the 1968 Jabidah Massacre on Corregidor island on Monday. Also in photo are Secretary to the Cabinet Jose Rene Almendras, presidential spokesperson Edwin Lacierda, PCOO Sec. Herminio Coloma Jr., Mindanao Development Authority Chairperson Luwalhati Antonino and political adviser Ronaldo Llamas. |
"Hanggang ngayon, alam nating may mga nagtatangka pa ring gamitin ang karaniwang Moro upang magtulak ng sariling agenda," Aquino said in his speech here during the commemoration of the 45th anniversary of the Jabidah Massacre.
In Baguio City the previous day, Aquino said the "conspirators" provided hefty funding to followers of the Sulu sultanate to assert their territorial claim on Sabah in Malaysia.
Jabidah Massacre refers to the killing of a number of young Moro recruits from Sulu and Tawi-Tawi — estimates ranging from 68 to 200 — by their military handlers in 1968. The recruits were said to be part of a secret commando unit called Jabidah, which was tasked to invade and reclaim Sabah from Malaysia.
“Ipapadala sila sa Sabah. Doon, gagawa sila ng gulo, at magsisimula ng destabilisasyon—hindi bilang mga sundalo ng Pilipinas, kundi habang nakapostura bilang mga kawal ng Sultan ng Sulu. Sa gitna ng gulo, gagawa ng paraan ang rehimeng Marcos para maangkin ng Pilipinas ang Sabah. Hindi po nagtagumpay ang plano,” Aquino explained in his speech.
According to author Paul F. Whitman's account, the recruits were killed when they got mutinous after discovering their true mission. The massacre was blamed on Marcos, who was on the third year of his administration at the time.
Sabah, reportedly rich in resources, is currently the site of sporadic skirmishes between the followers of Sulu Sultan Jamalul Kiram III and Malaysian security forces.
In his speech, Aquino once again noted that Kiram may have received assistance from individuals who are trying to sabotage his administration, particularly the government's ongoing peace negotiations with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF).
"May nagsusubo pa rin sa kanila sa panganib, ipinapain ang kanilang kaligtasan, habang ang mga pasimuno naman ay kumportableng nanonood mula sa malayo," the president said.
“Sa halip na sabihing, ‘Umuwi na kayo, mahalaga ang buhay ninyo,’ sige pa rin ang pag-uudyok, sige pa rin ang panggagatong, na tila ba mga piyesa lamang silang pineperdigana para sa kung anong nakakubling layunin,” he added.
The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) is currently conducting an investigation to unmask the alleged conspirators.
Tragedy
For the first time since it started early in February, Aquino called the Sabah bloodshed a “tragedy.”
“Trahedya po ang nangyayari sa Lahad Datu, gaya ng trahedya na nangyari sa Jabidah. Ngunit ang pinakamalaking trahedya ay tila hindi pa tayo natututo sa mga aral ng nakaraan—na ang pagsunod sa batas at ang pagrespeto sa mga patakaran ang tanging makatarungang tugonsa mga hamong kinakaharap natin,” Aquino said.
Aquino also admitted that the government has yet to confirm the official number of fatalities in the ongoing conflict, with figures running from 50 to more than 60.
In his speech, Aquino emphasized that all Filipino lives are equally precious, and that Marcos was wrong to treat the young Jabidah warriors’ lives as loose change.
“Ang masasabi ko po: Kung para sa iba ay barya lamang ang buhay ng mga Moro, ng ating mga kapwa Pilipino- barya lamang na pwedeng isangkalan para sa sariling interes- para sa akin, mali ang pananaw na ito,” he said.
Communications Undersecretary Manolo Quezon, meanwhile, noted a “parallel” between the Jabidah Massacre and the ongoing Sabah conflict.
“In a sense as historian, there is a parallel. [The Sabah crisis] is no longer an event that can be ignored, the question [now] is the body count,” he said to reporters in a chance interview.
“Bear in mind [that] waging war is unconstitutional whether covert or overtly. [History] shows how dangerous it was. Why do you think na there is a deep trauma in Malaysia because of Jabidah? Sa ibang neighbors, nagtatanim sila,” he added.
Coincidental timing
Quezon disputed the idea that the Jabidah commemoration was spurned by the events in Sabah, saying that with or without the crisis, the commemoration would most likely have taken place.
“It helps to focus [the public’s] attention, it’s certainly very timely. There is a confluence of events. It will come in same time and month of 45th anniversary, and there is an opportunity to recognize it,” he said.
Quezon also said that the commemoration of the 45th anniversary of the massacre is a way of uniting the narrative of the Philippines’ history with that of the Moro Pinoys’
“[This is a] good way para kilalanin na nagkamali ang estado sa Moro citizens at ang pagbubuo ng isang peace agreement ay isang pagtatanggap ng kasysayan nila bilang bahagi ng ating kasaysayan,” he said.
The government in October 2012 signed the Bangsamoro Framework Agreement with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, a landmark peace deal that will pave the way for the creation of the Bangsamoro political entity, to replace the “failed” experiment of ARMM. — KBK, GMA News
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