Who Are You Falling For?

He was there. No, I wasn’t. Yes, you were. It’s quite unnerving when you have high officials of your country’s defense point fingers at each other. It gets even more chaotic when you discover that the one who’s supposed to lead them claims to have nothing to do with a clash which left fatalities from those in battle and those who weren’t. And while the nation chews its popcorn in anticipation of the ongoing senate investigation on the Mamasapano encounter, we may have to open our eyes wider and look at how the story is being played.

Former SAF Chief Getulio Napeñas and resigned PNP Chief Alan Purisima.
Photo taken from newsinfo.inquirer.net

For one, we rely heavily on media to inform us about what is happening. Specifically, we may be relying more on major news programs. The recent string of news reports about the clash made famous the term “fallen 44”. These also gave special insights on the lives of the Special Action Forces (SAF) members. What’s striking is not simply that we have had another bloody fight between government forces and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) but the overconcentration of media coverage on the SAF which begs the question,  what about the fallen 17 of the MILF (or 200 plus as claimed by SAF)? It’s hard to reconcile that the media is independent and free from bias when it tends to highlight more the side of the SAF.

photo taken from abs-cbnnews.com

Another issue is that given this media framing of the incident, we may be reinforcing yet again the stereotype on Muslims as “utak pulbura” or their inclination to wage war. Islam as a religion fundamentally advocates peace and not all Muslims prefer arms. If we are sincere about the peace process, we have to seriously strike that balance even in news reporting.

photo taken from GMA 24 Oras

For a last quick perspective on this, we have to internalize the effect of a broken chain of command referring to SAF director Getulio Napenas skipping disclosure of oplan exodus (the SAF operation in Mamasapano to capture high profile terrorists Marwan and Usman) to DILG secretary Mar Roxas and acting PNP chief Deputy Director General Leonardo Espina. Why did he choose to reveal only later on their operation to his direct superiors? And why does resigned PNP chief Alan Purisima refuse involvement in the plan when Napenas says otherwise? There seems to be a bigger secret waiting to be discovered.

This covert operation may also remind one a tad bit of the Jabidah massacre purportedly hatched by the late strongman Ferdinand Marcos which killed over 20 Tausug soldiers. In the latter, the Tausug young fighters were supposedly recruited by the government to reclaim Sabah however the plan became a blur until these fighters were reportedly shot, burned, and buried somewhere in Manila bay by their recruiters. Jabidah was oplan merdeka and like oplan exodus it was also planned privately. The massacre led to the creation of the Moro National Liberation Front, the former group of breakaway MILF. The Mamasapano incident on the other hand involved the semi-government backed SAF and MILF plus BIFF.

A wall inscribed with remnants reminding one of the Jabidah Massacre.
Photo taken from rappler.com