'SARS' in Davao City

By Carlos Isagani T. Zarate



"IS it no longer safe for a Muslim to go there? I want to go to Davao City but I am afraid of getting arrested for no reason at all," Joseph Adam, a town engineer from Cotabato province, was quoted by the news agency Mindanews as saying in reaction to the series of abductions and warrantless arrests of Muslim residents in the aftermath of the twin-bombings that hit Davao City.

Adam's reaction summed up the collective concern raised not only by the Muslim community in Davao but also by church and human rights groups, particularly after the city and its environs were placed under the so-called "state of lawless violence." These concerns, no matter how nonchalantly--and, sometimes insolently--dismissed by authorities, are clearly not without basis. Several hours after the April 2 bombing of Sasa Wharf, Davao City's main seaport, grenades were lobbed at several mosques in the city. In the following days, at least six Muyslim residents were reported to have been abducted by hooded armed men on board unmarked vehicles. Among those abducted and who are still missing are Datu Sabdullah Ala, a community leader of Maa Riverside; Ustadz Alimudin Zulkiple and Ladzmar Jumadael, both of Sirawan, Toril; and Janita Ibaez.

On April 14, 2003, during an Interfaith Peace Dialogue attended by no less than presidential assistant for Mindanao and government peace panel chair Jesus Dureza and ranking officers of the police and the military, Muslim participants have again questioned the apparent "profiling" of Muslims in the government's drive against those responsible for the Davao bombings.

"We're afraid to move around because when there is a bombing, when there are violent incidents, we are always blamed. They would immediately round up Muslims and brand them members of this and that group," commented Datu Romy Umpar, a Maranao resident, during the dialogue.

The anxiety among the Muslim populace must have been so grave if the dwindling attendance in religious worship in the city's different mosques is an indication. Aleem Mahmod Adilao, president of the Ulama League of the Philippines-Davao and one of the convenors of the Bishop-Ulama Conference, lamented that the apparent failure of the authorities to stop the harassment fn Muslims prompted them to take measures like the buddy system to protect themselves.

Seeking to assuage the insecurity of those who attended the dialogue, Dureza initiated the creation of a task force headed by the Office of Muslim Affairs to look into the complaints of Muslim residents. The task force also includes representatives from the Commission on Human Rights, Public Attorney's Office and Integrated Bar of the Philippines.

Yet, hardly were the results of the dialogue set in place, when another Muslim community was "singled out" when members of the Task Force Davao, a composite of Marines and Army Special Forces deployed in the city immediately after the April 2 bombing, conducted a "martial law-style" raid on a coastal Muslim community on the pretext of looking for terrorists and alleged arms landing.

Three hundred soldiers, backed by two Simba armored personnel carrier, conducted a house to house search without presenting any search warrant. The troops left empty-handed but had clearly imprinted a message of fear in the hearts and minds of the stunned residents. Some houses had big X marks put on them without any explanation as to what the marks meant.

This type of "lawless" raid surely will not pacify the already fearful Muslim residents. Living in continued insecurity and discrimination is far worse than going through quarantine for being suspected as a SARS carrier.

Yet, as the situation in Davao now shows, the government in effect has declared that the Moro community is a "Systematically and Arbitrarily Restricted Sector (SARS)."

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The Macapagal administration is playing with semantics. In response to the growing clamor of business groups, some local officials and other concerned groups, President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo claimed that there is really nothing for her to lift at all since Davao City and its environs were not placed under a "state of lawless violence."

She forgot, conveniently perhaps, that immediately after the seaport bombing, she was widely heard on radio declaring the city under a state of lawless violence, which declaration was echoed several times by press statements from her office and other government press agencies. She also conveniently forgot that as commander in chief there are only three instances under the Constitution when the armed forces may come in to perform purely police functions, that is when the country or part of it is under a state of "lawless violence, invasion or rebellion." If there is no state of lawless violence in Davao City, what justification is there then for the continued presence of military personnel conducting raids and even assisting in the demolition of shanties of urban poor dwellers?

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LEGAL EDUCATION: In compliance with a Supreme Court mandate, the Integrated Bar of the Philippines Davao City Chapter will hold a two-day Mandatory Continuing Legal Education seminar on May 15-16, 2003 at The Venue, Jacinto Extension, Davao City. Subjects to be tackled include the Tax Aspect of the SPAV Law and the Anti-Money Laundering Law.

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