October 7, 2007: In the
Netherlands, NPA leader Jose Maria Sison was released from prison. Sison is
still being prosecuted for ordering the murder of two NPA rivals several years
ago, but there was not enough evidence to keep him jailed. Sison has been in
the Netherlands for twenty years, running the NPA terror operations in the
Philippines, but safe from prosecution by the Filipino government. For years,
leftist European politicians indulged terrorist groups like the NPA, and
provided sanctuary for terrorist leaders, fund raisers and logistics efforts
for terrorist operations elsewhere. In the last decade, there has been less
support for the leftist terrorists, who are increasingly seen more as criminals
than political idealists. But old habits die hard, and even though the NPA has
been declared an international terrorist organization, it still has many
European leftists supporting it.
October 6, 2007: Another
bombing attempt in the south was foiled when troops discovered and defused the
explosive device. A man was caught fleeing the area, and identified as an
Islamic terrorist.
October 5, 2007: Two bombs
went off in the south in Kidapawan City. A child was killed and at least 30
people wounded. One bomb went off under a bus, another on a road side. No one
took credit, and police were unsure if the culprits were criminals (trying to
extort money from a bus company or in a dispute over who controls criminal
activity in an area.) In the south, the tactics of criminal gangs are often
indistinguishable from those practiced by Islamic radicals. Some gangs do a
little of both, like Abu Sayyaf (which began as a local MILF group that went
rouge, then got religion).
October 4, 2007: NPA
rebels have increased their extortion operations against large companies
operating in rural areas. The companies are faced with the choice of making the
payoffs, or spending more money on security guards, and the risks of
interrupted operations. The rebels usually avoid injuring company staff, so as
not to antagonize locals (who are already unhappy with the NPA for threatening
their jobs, for companies have been known to shut down operations in the face
of NPA harassment.)
October 3, 2007: The search
for Abu Sayyaf rebels continues in the south, with two clashes in the last few
days leaving four marines and ten rebels dead. The 8,000 soldiers and marines
keep combing the areas in the south where Abu Sayyaf recruits, and has the most
support. This pressure prevents the Islamic terrorists from establishing
training and base camps to support terror operations in the rest of the
Philippines.
