Misuari, back to haunt us Manila Times/Editorial So far 61 people are dead and 70 are wounded in the eight-day Zamboanga City siege. Almost 70,000 people have also been displaced. That is the extent of the human tragedy now unfolding before our eyes. At the center of all this trouble is Nur Misuari, founding chairman of the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF). He denies he has anything to do with the siege, thus virtually disowning Habier Malik, a close aide who marched into the city in his name and took more than a hundred innocent people hostage. It is a cowardly attempt to exonerate himself and wash his hands off the responsibility over the death and destruction his men have sown. Days before the first shots were fired, he warned the government of dire consequences if it proceeded to sign the peace agreement with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF). The message, in so many words, is that he and the MNLF alone represent the interests of Muslims in Mindanao. The government is to blame for Misuari’s latest tantrum. It should have come down hard on him when the first time he did something like it. In 2001, Misuari and his followers laid siege on the same city. That time scores died on both sides and thousands were driven out of their homes. He escaped to Malaysia after rebellion charges were filed against him, but he was extradited at the request of the Philippine Government. However, all that was all for show. He was placed under house—mansion is more like it—arrest in New Manila, where he spent months in luxurious splendor with his harem. Although later transferred to a cell in Fort Sto. Domingo in Sta. Rosa, Laguna, he was allowed to post bail, upon the recommendation of the Cabinet cluster. If there are lingering doubts about the special treatment accorded the man, consider the fact that the court, presided by Judge Winlove Dumagas, subsequently rendered a verdict of acquittal because, try not to puke over this one, “the prosecutor failed to produce enough evidence to prove his guilt.” As a nation we fail to follow through. We fail to execute the law and do justice to the victims. No wonder we move from one crisis to another.
Posted on: Mon, 16 Sep 2013 19:34:31 +0000
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