IMAGE OF THE DAY

Followers of Sultan Sharif Pulalun of Sulu and North Borneo stage a pro-Balikatan (shoulder to shoulder) rally in downtown Jolo on Saturday. About 250 US soldiers and a thousand Filipino troops are participating in the joint military exercises set to start next week. (HADER GLANG)

Sultan Pulalun’s pro-Balikatan

rally in Jolo draws a thousand
text HADER GLANG

Some 1,000 Muslims have gathered in the capital town of Jolo to support the joint US-Philippines anti-terrorism exercise, which will formally kick off on February 20 simultaneously in the islands of Sulu, Cebu and Luzon.

The gathering, led by the influential Sultan of Sulu and North Borneo, Sharif Ibrahim Ajibul Mohammad Pulalun, urged for full support to the holding of Balikatan Exercise 2006 in the troubled island province.

The demonstrators carried banners with “Welcome America” markings. “Welcome and Mabuhay!!!RP-US Balikatan 2006…the answer to peace, progress and development in Sulu!!!” a large banner said. “Balikatan give more humanitarian support to Sulu and the people,” another said.

They marched from a youth center in Jolo to the in frontage of the town’s police station, where they held a brief rally. Many marchers, particularly the women, were clad with traditional Tausug attire and carried Philippines and American flaglets.

Sultan Pulalun at the scene declared his full support to the Balikatan as he appealed to every Muslim in the province, young and old to welcome their American visitors and support the joint military exercises.

“Let us show to the world that we are peaceful citizens. We ask for nothing in return, but I humbly appeal to them to help our poor people and give them access to basic services on proper education and health services,” he said.

Lt. Col. James McAllister, head of the Joint Task Force-Philippines based in Sulu, thanked Sultan Pulalun’s warm welcome for US troops. “It is an honor and we are very glad that the people of Sulu are supporting the annual bilateral exercise.”

But the US’ humanitarian mission and civic activities in Sulu have come under fire by the Suara Bangsamoro group and its allies since the spate of killings early this month that happened in the villages of Patikul and Jolo towns.

The Suara Bangsamoro, which has been vocal against the presence of US forces and staged an anti-Balikatan last week, said the coming of US forces in Jolo only created more conflict in the island province, where killings happened almost everyday.

Sulu is a known stronghold of the extremist Abu Sayyaf. Just Friday, the group beheaded a man and gunned down a police agent, reportedly one of the security escorts of a foreign journalist covering the Balikatan exercise, in downtown Jolo.

Authorities tagged the brother Anni and Itting Sailani as behind the killings. The two were also implicated in the killing of a Filipino photojournalist Gene Boyd Lumawag in Jolo island in November 2004.

US military forces were credited with helping Filipino troops decimating the Abu Sayyaf group that had bombed several areas in the southern Philippines, killing scores of people and wounding hundreds. – (ZS)