Esperon: Government casualties in Mindanao operations is not an issue

By Ronron
August 23, 2007

Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) chief of staff Gen. Hermogenes Esperon, Jr. said Thursday that the number of casualties the military has incurred in the operations in Basilan and Sulu since last month should not be an issue to the public.

In a news conference in Zamboanga City, Esperon explained that suffering casualties is normal to the military organization since it is part of their job.

Since July 10, 57 soldiers have already died in separate operations against Moslem rebels in Basilan and Sulu. Over a dozen others were also wounded.

“We must remember that we are fighting terrorists here. We are not going to picnics. We are getting into close quarter battle. We are in the pursuit,” Esperon said.

He said that even if there are many soldiers’ lives lost, many leaders of the Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG) were also neutralized in the spate of operations.

“And you must take note that we have been recovering body count. It’s very hard to do that,” Esperon said.

During the command conference at the AFP Western Mindanao Command (Westmincom) in said city yesterday, President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo commended the soldiers involved in the separate operations for their professionalism, heroism and strength, said Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro, Jr.

“In view of the fact that the soldiers have displayed professionalism and heroism, she would like to honor these soldiers and she has instructed myself and the chief of staff, in coordination with the DBM (Department of Budget and Management), to study the possibility of increasing combat pay of the troops actually involved in combat operations,” Teodoro said.

Soldiers are only receiving P240 per month in combat pay, said AFP information officer Lt. Col. Bartolome Bacarro.

In closing, Esperon said: “So the question really is not why are there a lot of casualties. The question, probably, is why are our soldiers willing to do it, go for the enemy? (That will) tell you a lot on the state of morale and discipline (of the soldiers).”

He went on: “It tells you a lot on the commitment to defeat the Abu Sayyaf. It tells you also that your soldiers are willing to sacrifice for the safety of the people not only here in Basilan, Sulu, and Zamboanga, but also for the people in other areas.”

Esperon refused to give a timeline as to when the government forces will finally put an end to the estimated 350-strong ASG, but he assured that the operations in Basilan and Sulu will be relentless, side by side with development projects for the provinces.

“You watch out for it, we will speed it up,” he said when asked how long will the military operations last.

“If you have noticed, we have a large presence. We have been very quiet since July 10 exactly because we wanted some pre-positioning. And now, we are there, we are ready to hit,” the military chief added.

In the same press conference, Sulu Governor Abdusakur Tan expressed support to the military operations as he also acknowledged that it has already caused the displacement of 2,751 families in his province.

“We cannot also allow lawless elements to continue roaming the hinterlands of our respective provinces because we have to go by the rule of law,” Tan said.

After the command conference in Zamboanga City, Arroyo proceeded to Basilan where she joined soldiers in a “boodle fight” for lunch. From there, she went to Bohol where she attended the Local Peace and Security Assembly for Central Visayas sponsored by the National Security Council./DMS