There was a lot to digest the past few days and I don’t mean just the crazy food I encountered. I mean there was bangus, their milkfish, tilapia, far better than any grocery store version (mainly because it was freshly caught), those one-armed but fat crabs and finally what the drinking male population there called “jumping salad” – freshly caught small shrimps called suahe, mixed with a dash of salt, soy sauce, diced tomatoes, onions and water cress that was passed around. The only odd thing (for me) was that the shrimps were still very much alive and as they jumped up and down, one had to dip in and eat a handful of these that went well with their coconut wine (tuba). Although they tasted good, I was eager to hear then what the men had to share with me more than their adventurous dining fare. My abdominal signals tell me I should start taking this decoction of boiled guava leaves. So, enough of the food. I meant there was a lot in my mind to digest. And now that I’m in safer grounds, I can tell you a little more.
First of all, a backgrounder. The region in question was a mix of large and small islands dotting the borders of neighboring Southeast Asian countries, who were, in earlier, peaceful times aggrupated into what was known as MAPHILINDO (Malaysia, Philippines and Indonesia), the forerunner of the now bigger ASEAN. There were territorial scuffles in the past among the 3 countries that have been managed to be placed in the back burner for now, but these past quarrels still smolder and politicians, ideologues and/ or terrorists could have a heyday just exploiting these issues. Islamic Fundamentalists linked to Al Qaeda founded the Jemayah Islamiya during a meeting in Malaysia whose aim was to carve a separate Islamic State consisting of territories from southern Philippines and parts of Indonesia and Malaysia. The Philippines shares a porous southern border with Indonesia, the world’s most populous Muslim nation.
Before it became a British protectorate in 1878, the territory known as Sabah or North Borneo was awarded by the Sultan of Brunei in 1703 to the Sultanate of Sulu whose heirs and descendants were based in the islands within Philippine territory. This territorial issue was exploited by the past Philippine dictator, Marcos, in a covert operation which was finally blown open in the Jabidah Incident,in the late 60’s where the trainees for the operation with the exception of a lone survivor, were massacred by Marcos. Although the new Philippine government did not condone the incident, the claims to Sabah and compensation due the Sultan remained unsettled. The incident only made Mahathir and his generals then and now wary of any potential covert or overt threat to the territory. The struggling Philippine economy and the rise of the ASEAN pushed this issue to the background.
In the mid 70’s, as the Portuguese withdrew from its former colony of East Timor, the Indonesian military under then Pres. Suharto , in a preemptive fashion befitting the Bush Doctrine, invaded and occupied East Timor, claiming it as its province. The East Timorese, already culturally divergent as influenced by their former Portuguese colonizers, resisted , forcing Indonesia to send in not only more troops and paramilitary units, but also Indonesian immigrants who were religiously and ethnically different from the largely Roman Catholic East Timorese. The religious undertones (“Crusader” War vs. Muslims ) used by the Indonesian paramilitary unit in their fight to retain East Timor as Indonesian territory echo to this day among the Indonesian military and segments of Indonesia’s largely Muslim populace. That the final outcome was decided in a UN-supervised vote acceded to by the civilian Magawati government which favored East Timorese Independence, made the Indonesian military feel more like a sore loser. One may call it as an irritating twit, but one of the earliest countries to congratulate East Timor on their Independence and offered assistance on reconstruction was the largely Roman Catholic Philippines, Indonesia’s neighbor.
Mindanao, the southern island of the Philippine archipelago, due the inefficient reaches of a weak Manila-based northern central government, was historically influenced by its closer neighboring islands which were well within either Malaysian or Indonesian territory. Radio signals were stronger from either Indonesia or Malaysia. Strong trade and barter ties were kept alive by its nearer accessibility by outboard motor-equipped bancas or power boats. The 300 years of Spanish colonization in the Philippines failed to change the cultural face of southern Mindanao which retained its Muslim heritage. Because of its southern porous border, Indonesians could easily migrate to Mindanao, learn the native Tagalog dialect in 6 months and pass off as Filipinos, as have some Filipinos done reversely as they settled in Sabah or parts of Borneo and learned Bahasa.
This weakly enforced southern border problem and bureaucratic corruption in a Manila-entrenched government contributed to the power vacuum and the rise of radicalism in southern Mindanao in the late 1960’s. Filipinos from the middle islands (Visayas) were encouraged by the Manila government during the Marcos dictatorship to migrate to Mindanao causing further ethnic wars and the rise of private armies in the region. Soon enough, a Muslim armed group arose – the Bangsa Moro Army came into being. Later,in the 70’s front groups such as the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF), with leftist alliances appeared which led to a military assault and occupation of Jolo, the capital of the Sulu islands, the southern tip of Mindanao ( much like the Florida Keys). After its retake by the Philippine military and a mediation through the Organization of Islamic Countries (OIC), the MNLF acquiesced to reforms and integration into the Philippine military.
A splinter radical group, the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, (MILF) pushed for government recognition as well and was able to negotiate for concessions such as limited territorial autonomy. As military encounters in southern Mindanao increased in frequency and ferocity involving the MILF, an all- out war was declared by the new civilian Philippine government which uncovered huge tracts of land given by the government to Muslims in the area for agriculture used as MILF military training camp (Camp Abubakkar). Irrigation dikes were emptied and used to transport the MILF troops and arms. A factory for manufacturing rocket-propelled grenades (RPGs) was found as well as weapons cache bearing Malaysian markings. With the capture of its training camp, and later demise of its leader, Hashim Salamat, the MILF acceded to being a legal non-governmental organization, with its arms bearing members intact and monitored. It was during this stage that the Al Qaeda terrorist group, Abu Sayaff made its first public appearance thru a series of daring raids and hostage taking of western tourists with the help their super-fast power boats (with 5 Volvo outboard motor engines). The group was hounded until its main camp was captured and its leader Abu Sabaya killed in the ensuing gunbattle at sea. Now, another group, Abu Sofia, is having its debut. Hhhmm.
The area I’m talking about with such a history includes miles and miles of coconut trees on sprawling hills and valleys. So far, US military forces in the area have been taking a cautious but correct strategy. So far. One of the pluses that came about was when the US engineering brigade built an airport runway large enough to handle international air traffic on the southernmost island, Basilan, within a month’s time that astounded the locals who were used to the slow pace of development. The time to pour in development aid to the area seems ripe for now rather than manage a delayed military damage control later. A developed economic infrastructure could help the populace cooperate with the Manila government's desire for stricter border controls.
So, to get back to that Presidential comment asking the present President of Indonesia to explain why he wants international troops out of Indonesia in 3 months time, I think the complexity of the area’s history , culture and politics would answer that. The culture is, after all, Indonesian, not Texan. In Asia, you don’t ask the father of the house to explain why he wants his yard cleared of guests within a certain period. So if Yudhoyono gives the usual Asian mystical smile as a response, we don’t really see the expletives in Bahasa (that I don’t dare translate ) that comes with it. With the loss of East Timor, then another secessionist problem in Aceh, and a huge Muslim population, even in the light of the aid flowing to tsunami victims, the man is understandably wary. So,I’m glad foreign policy advisers quickly did their homework and didn’t allow Presidential abrasiveness to light up this powderkeg of a region by insisting for a public explanation. The Philippine military are doing a great job at holding off periodic attempts of Jemayah Islamiya at making further inroads for terror , although the terrorists will keep trying.
Historically though, there seemed to be evidences that the area has been used as staging grounds for similar terrorist activities that culminate in the West such as 9/11 and the train explosions in Spain. Right now, a bacterial (meningococcemia) outbreak in a mountain top resort is still being investigated.
This is just enough info to make for political indigestion. Do you know that drinking the tea from boiled guava leaves gives prompt relief from diarrhea ?
