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Sultanate of Sulu demand the return of Sabah from Malaysia?

Malaysia Hunts Missing Filipino Gunmen as More Fighters from Mindanao Arrived

More Sulu Rebels Arrived in Sabah After Full Scale Military Assault by Malaysia Fails to End Standoff

AFP
Wednesday, Mar 06, 2013

FELDA SAHABAT, Malaysia-Malaysian forces searched house-to-house Wednesday after armed Filipinos apparently escaped a military assault, as a Philippine guerrilla warned more fighters had arrived.

Malaysia Tuesday launched an attack with jet fighters and soldiers on up to 300 followers of Sultan Jamalul Kiram III of Sulu in a bid to end a three-week standoff in which 27 people had already been reported killed, including eight policemen.

But authorities later indicated the militants had escaped into surrounding farmland in the remote region of Borneo island, where residents were already on edge over reports of roaming gunmen and two bloody shootouts.
 
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Indonesia evacuates workers from Sabah
Ridwan Max Sijabat and Nurni Sulaiman, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta/Balikpapan | Headlines | Wed, March 06 2013, 10:18 AM

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Fear for their lives: Residents leave their village in Tanjung Labian near Tanduo, where Malaysia launched airstrikes and mortar attacks against nearly 200 Filipinos occupying a Borneo coastal village on Tuesday. The assault follows firefights this past week that killed eight Malaysian police officers and 19 Filipino gunmen. (AP)Hundreds of Indonesian migrant workers and their families are being evacuated from Sabah, Malaysia, amid an escalating stand-off between Malaysian security forces and Filipino gunmen, a minister said.

Manpower and Transmigration Minister Muhaimin Iskandar said in Jakarta on Tuesday that he had coordinated with the Foreign Ministry to ask the Indonesian Consulate General and labor attaches to help the migrant workers and their family working in the Felde palm oil plantation in the Tanduo village.

“I have instructed the labor attaché and asked the consul general to have the Malaysian police and the plantation company evacuate all migrant workers and their families who have been trapped by the armed conflict which has lasted for more than two weeks. Most of the workers have been in safe areas located far from the conflict zone,” he said.

More than 600 Indonesian workers had been evacuated, the minister said. They mostly come from East and West Nusa and Tenggara and were among 8,000 workers employed in 52 plantation blocks in Sabah.

Police in Kalimantan said that at least 18 Indonesian workers had returned home from Malaysia following the clash, crossing into Nunukan regency and Sebatik district.

“Nunukan police precinct and Sebatik police sector are working with other parties, including the local administrations, so that personnel at border areas are all set to anticipate any measures regarding the process of returning the workers home,” East Kalimantan police spokesman Sr. Comr. Antonius Wisnu Sutirta said.

Wisnu added that the conflict areas in Sabah were located far from the Indonesian border, and confirmed that the situation in Kalimantan was relatively safe.

Mulawarman military command spokesman Colonel Legowo WR Jatmiko, meanwhile, said that the military saw no need to deploy extra personnel to the border areas.

“As for now, the number of personnel from Battalion 407 deployed along the border remains at 650,” Legowo said.

On Tuesday, The Associated Press reported that Malaysia had launched airstrikes and mortar attacks against nearly 200 Filipinos occupying a Borneo coastal village to end a bizarre three-week siege that has turned into a security nightmare for both Malaysia and the Philippines.

The assault follows firefights this past week that left eight Malaysian police officers and 19 Filipino gunmen dead, several of the latter were members of a Muslim clan that shocked Malaysia and neighboring Philippines by slipping by boat past naval patrols last month and storming a remote village in Borneo’s
eastern Sabah state.

The crisis has sparked jitters about the spread of instability in Sabah, which is rich in timber and oil resources. Unknown numbers of other armed Filipinos are feared to have encroached into other districts in the area recently.

More than seven hours after fighter jets were deployed, Malaysian Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein reported no casualties among the Malaysian police or military personnel who had raided houses near palm oil plantations.

“On the enemy side, we have to wait because the operation is ongoing. We have to be careful,” he said.

Malaysian national police chief Ismail Omar said ground forces had encountered resistance from gunmen. Police were slowly combing an area of about 4 square kilometers to look for the Filipinos, he said.

Prime Minister Najib Razak defended the offensive, saying Malaysia had made every effort to resolve the siege peacefully since the presence of the group in Lahad Datu district had become known on Feb. 12, including holding talks to encourage the intruders to leave without any serious legal repercussions.
 
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DFA denies calling Sultan followers as 'terrorists'
By Cheryl Arcibal and Mike Frialde (philstar.com) | Updated March 6, 2013

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MANILA, Philippines - The Department of Foreign Affairs on Wednesday denied a statement of the Malaysian Foreign Ministry that Secretary Albert del Rosario called the supporters of the Sulu sultanate as "terrorists".

In a statement, the DFA quoted Philippine Ambassador to Malaysia Jose Eduardo Malaya and said the Malaysian statement that Del Rosario called the Sultan followers as terrorists is "out of context".

"According to Ambassador Malaya who was present at the meeting, the report is out of context and the Secretary did not label the Filipino group as 'terrorist'," the DFA said.

Instead, Del Rosario agreed with the statement of Malaysian Foreign Minister Anifah Aman that those responsible for the killing of Malaysian police forces committed "terroristic acts".

"In Semporna, there were alleged acts of terrorism. As reported by the Malaysian Foreign Minister, after the police forces were lured into an ambush and killed, their bodies were brutally mutilated and desecrated. If indeed these atrocities were committed as reported to him, the Secretary and the Foreign Minister both agreed that these were, at the very least, terroristic acts," the DFA said.

The March 4 statement of the Malaysian Foreign Ministry said Kuala Lumpur considers the group behind the "atrocities and brutalities committed in the killing of Malaysia's security personnel" as terrorists. Two Malaysian security forces were killed in Lahad Datu and six were killed in Semporna, Sabah.

"Secretary Rosario (sic) agreed that this group should be labeled as terrorists," the statement from the Malaysian Foreign Ministry said.

The same statement added that Del Rosario "guaranteed" that the Philippine government will prosecute "to the fullest extent of the law" the Sulu group involved in the Sabah standoff.

During the meeting, the Malaysian Foreign Minister also emphasized that actions need to be taken against "[Sultan] Jamalul Kiram for his many statements inciting hatred and violence."

"We are not terrorists!"

Meanwhile, the sultanate of Sulu and North Borneo denied that the Royal Sulu Army members are terrorirts.

Speaking to reporters at the home of Jamalul Kiram III in Maharlika Village, Princess Jacel Kiram, daughter of the sultan said they do not espouse violence and that the Malaysian official is ignorant of the region’s history and of the 1963 Manila Accord.

“We are not terrorists! We do not espouse violence! We are the landlords of North Borneo, asking the squatter tenants to vacate the leased property,” Kiram said.

“If [they] know how to read history, no less than the Great Tunku Abdul Rahman signed an agreement with then President Diosdado Macapagal witnessed by President Sukarno of Indonesia in 1963, the Manila Accord wherein the claim of the Sultanate of Sulu shall not be prejudiced in the formation of the Federal State of Malaysia,” she added.

On Tuesday, Malaysia’s Foreign Ministry issued a statement where it said it considers the Royal Sulu Army led by Agbimuddin Kiram as a group of terrorists.

Kiram told reporters that it is Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak who should be considered a terrorist for having employed the full might of his country’s military against the more than 200 members of the Royal Sulu Army.

“Who is the terrorist? His (Razak’s) description of terrorism is when a superior force (is used) utilizing the air force, navy, army and the police force to annihilate a force of 200 inferior force whose only action is to defend their belief and their rights,” she said.

The princess also lambasted Del Rosario and Interior and Local Government Secretary Mar Roxas for "supporting" Malaysia’s intent to label Sultan Jamalul Kiram III a terrorist who should be arrested to satisfy Malaysia

Princess Kiram meanwhile asked Aquino to reprimand the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) for admitting responsibility for the loss of the family’s first letter to the president.

Kiram asked the president to review Republic Act 6713 or the “Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public Officials and Employees" particularly Section 5, which enumerates the duties of public officials and Section 11, which states the penalties for violations of the Code of Conduct.

http://www.philstar.com/nation/2013/03/06/916490/dfa-denies-calling-sultan-followers-terrorists




P-Noy urged to fly to Malaysia, negotiate for Sabah
Updated March 6, 2013

MANILA, Philippines - Fisherfolk group Pamalakaya on Wednesday urged President Benigno Aquino III to fly to Sabah and negotiate with Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak to prevent further bloodshed of hundreds of Filipinos including the men of the Royal Sultanate of Sulu by Malaysian armed forces.

"Mr. Aquino is the president of all Filipinos in Sabah who are staking their legitimate claim over Sabah. He should carry that collective and politically correct claim of the Royal Sultanate of Sulu and the rest of the Filipino people on Sabah,"Pamalakaya vice chairperson Salvador France said.

France said the president can ask the assistance and support of experts who can handle the situation and who will represent the position of the Philippines based on solid claim on Sabah.

"Aquino should be assisted by people with historic sense and love for the country and the people. He can play the role of peace maker if he has that political will," he added.

Earlier, Pamalakaya accused Aquino of giving tacit approval for Malaysia authorities to bombard the lair of followers of Sultan Jamalul Kiram III based on the recent pronouncements of Malacañang.

The group said the president should explore all diplomatic venues to convince the Kirams and the 200 Filipinos to pursue negotiations. -Dennis Carcamo

http://www.philstar.com/nation/2013/03/06/916462/p-noy-urged-fly-malaysia-negotiate-sabah



No Malaysian response to 'maximum tolerance' plea - DFA
By: Veronica Uy, InterAksyon.com
March 6, 2013 3:36 PM

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MANILA, Philippines -- Malaysia has not yet responded to the Philippines’ request for maximum tolerance in the treatment of followers of Sulu Sultan Jamalul Kiram III who went on a “journey back to their homeland” in Sabah, Foreign Affairs spokesman Raul Hernandez said Wednesday.

At a press conference, Hernandez also said the DFA has not received any report on casualties in Tuesday’s airstrikes and land operations against what the Malaysian government has called “intruders” and “terrorists.”

He said the DFA could not send their people to the conflict areas and has had to rely on information from the Malaysian government that DFA personnel on the ground can verify once the situation there settles down.

The DFA spokesman merely elaborated on the Q&A transcript the DFA sent to media outfits early Wednesday morning.

On reports that Secretary Albert del Rosario agreed to the “terrorist” tag Malaysia has given the sultan’s followers in Sabah, Hernandez said the secretary only agreed to describe the acts of mutilating and desecrating bodies, if true, as “terroristic acts.”

“He did not label the Filipino group as terrorist,” Hernandez stressed.

On the missing letter of Kiram

Hernandez reiterated that Del Rosario is taking full responsibility for the “lost” letter from Sulu Sultan Jamalul Kiram III even if he was not secretary at the time and would write the sultan an apology and a response to the letter.

“The letter is with us. And under the principle of command responsibility, the Secretary takes full responsibility,” he said.

Hernandez also said the DFA will not get in touch with del Rosario’s predecessor, Alberto Romulo, to inquire about how the letter was lost.

Del Rosario will “convey his deepest apologies” for misplacing the letter in the what President Benigno Aquino III earlier described as the “bureaucratic maze,” the DFA spokesman said.

Saying he does not have details of how the letter was found or which office it was sent to, Hernandez would only say it was found a week ago.

No Malaysian response to 'maximum tolerance' plea - DFA - InterAksyon.com
 
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Congress must check Executive's handling of Sabah crisis - Casino
By: Lira Dalangin-Fernandez, InterAksyon.com
March 6, 2013

MANILA, Philippines – The Sabah crisis has played out for nearly a month, but so far it’s only the voice of the Executive branch that has been heard on the matter. On Wednesday, party-list congressman Teddy Casino sought to correct this situation as he filed an urgent resolution asking Congress to look into the Executive's handling of the Sabah issue.

"Not only has President Aquino's actions antagonized the Sultanate of Sulu, resulting in a crisis; he has also undermined the country's claim on Sabah," said Casino, who is seeking a Senate seat.

Casino, representative of the party-list Bayan Muna, filed House Resolution 3042 seeking the "investigation on the ongoing armed conflict between Malaysia and the Filipino Muslims led by the Sultanate of Sulu and the propriety of the position taken by President Benigno Aquino III in supporting Malaysia and thereby undermining the Philippine claim on Sabah."

Casino observed that, "by calling for the surrender of Kiram's group, without conditions and echoing and justifying Malaysia's militarist solution to the dispute, Aquino has basically dropped the country's legitimate claim on Sabah. Surely, Congress and other bodies must do something to correct this," Casino said.

Casino stressed the need for the Philippine government to call for the cessation of hostilities and the peaceful settlement of the Sabah dispute.

Congress must check Executive's handling of Sabah crisis - Casino - InterAksyon.com




De Lima: Legal study on Sabah claim 90% done
March 6, 2013
Justice Secretary Leila de Lima on Wednesday said she is already finishing up her legal study on the Philippine claim on Sabah but added that she would not reveal it to the public without President Benigno Aquino III's permission.

De Lima said she was "90 percent" finished with her legal study and might complete it within the week.

"I can finish it this week but I don't want to rush into things. I don't want to reveal it just yet since there are also other agencies conducting their own studies," De Lima told reporters at a press conference in Manila.

The coastal town of Lahad Datu in Sabah is currently the site of skirmishes between followers of a Filipino sultan and Malaysian security forces. The Filipinos are there to assert the Sulu sultanate’s claim on what it calls its ancestral territory.

De Lima said apart from her, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) as well as the Office of the President are conducting their respective studies on the Philippine claim on Sabah.

De Lima also said the government has yet to determine what charges could be filed against the Sultan Jamalul Kiram III's followers.

The Justice chief said that for now, more than asserting the Philippine claim over Sabah, the government is more concerned about resolving the crisis that arose when around 200 supporters of Kiram sailed to Sabah to claim it.

"Puwede naman kasi pag-usapan ang Sabah claim later kapag tapos na itong crisis na ito. Huwag natin isasabay. Hindi natin puwede ipilit 'yan sa isang sovereign state like Malaysia," she said.

De Lima also echoed the DFA statement that the Philippine government has never branded the members of Kiram's group as "terrorists."

Kiram's followers arrived in Sabah last February 9 at the coastal Kampung Tanduo, and engaged Malaysian authorities in a standoff. The group, led by Kiram's brother Raja Muda Azzimudie Kiram, said they would not leave Sabah as they consider it their “homeland.”

Last March 1, Kiram’s followers engaged the Malaysian forces in a bloody clash that left 12 Filipinos and two Malaysian police commandos dead. On March 2, another clash left six Malaysian policemen and at least six Filipinos dead.

But Kiram’s followers refused to heed President Benigno Aquino III’s call to surrender without conditions, saying they had chosen “honor over life.”

On Tuesday, Malaysian police claimed that the followers of Sultan Kiram had been defeated but the monarch's camp said that his men remain alive and defiant. — Mark Merueñas/KBK, GMA News

De Lima: Legal study on Sabah claim 90% done | News | GMA News Online




'FOR DIGNITY AND HONOR' | Sulu sultan denies royal army in Sabah paid
By: Abigail Kwok, InterAksyon.com
March 6, 2013

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MANILA, Philippines -- Sulu Sultan Jamalul Kiram III on Wednesday denied offering money to fighters of the Royal Sulu Army for them to join his brother in going to Sabah to press their claim to the territory.

Kiram said he did not have the funds to pay the more than 200 followers who went with Raja Muda Agbimuddin Kiram to Sabah early last month.

After a lengthy standoff with Malaysian security forces in Tanduo village in Lahad Datu, fighting erupted last Friday. And on Tuesday, Malaysian forces mounted a massive attack against the sultanate’s followers.

However, as of Wednesday, security officials in Sabah acknowledged that their forces continued to look for Agbimuddin’s group and had expanded the search area.

"Ang sultanate handang magpakamatay. Hindi nasusuhulan (The sultanate is ready to die and cannot be bought)," Kiram said, reacting to reports about the money offer.

"Karangalan lang ang tinatanggap nila (Honor is the only thing they get). Dignity and honor," the sultan said.

'FOR DIGNITY AND HONOR' | Sulu sultan denies royal army in Sabah paid - InterAksyon.com



PHL-MY hackers in uneasy 'truce' as Sabah conflict continues
March 6, 2013

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A screenshot of a defaced Philippine site as of 4 p.m. on Wednesday, March 6. Pro-Philippine and pro-Malaysian hackers had engaged in a deface race last weekend amid the clashes in Sabah between Malaysian security forces and followers of Sulu Sultan Jamalul Kiram III. Pro-Malaysian hackers offered a truce before midnight Monday.

Pro-Malaysia and Pro-Filipino hackers have been uneasily quiet since Monday, thanks to an online 'truce' between the two groups even as armed forces from both countries continue to clash over Sabah.

However, as of Wednesday afternoon, at least one Philippine site (TuklasinNatin.com) remained defaced, with a message apparently aimed at Kiram and telling him to "take back your dogs."

"Bring your ship and take back your dogs, stop killing Malaysian army and police ... Otherwise we will attack Philippine website," it said.

A line in the defaced page mentioned terrorism, the term the Malaysian government started using on Tuesday to refer to Kiram's followers.

"Terrorist are terrorist.. Nothings Changed!" the message in the defaced site read.

The defacement of TuklasinNatin.com was noted as early as Monday morning, hours before pro-Malaysia hackers offered a truce to their pro-Philippine counterparts.

PHL Anonymous hackers 'quiet'

Meanwhile, a Philippine hacker group claiming ties to the international hacktivist group Anonymous has not announced any attack on Malaysian sites since the offer of a truce Monday night.

Its Facebook page had no entry involving a cyberattack since Tuesday.

The defaced site also bore a photo of Kiram, whose followers are still engaged in a clash with Malaysian security forces in Sabah.

Truce offered

On Monday night, pro-Malaysia hackers offered a truce of sorts with their pro-Philippine counterparts, amid the ongoing crisis in Sabah that has spilled over to cyberspace.

The hackers, in what they called a "last defacement" of a Philippine site, proposed that they and Philippine hackers "stop attacking each other."

"Well, it's time for us to PEACE and stop attacking each other. To end up this war, this is our last defacement and from now on none of us will step or touch your country site and none of you are able to touch our country site," they said in a message posted on the defaced website of the Calauan, Laguna government website (calauanlaguna.gov.ph).

"If you (are against) this agreement, we won't accept any apology or excuses," they added.

The defaced page also included what appeared to be the logos of the hacker groups.

Since last weekend, Philippine and Malaysian hacker groups had been defacing the website of the other country amid the crisis in Sabah.

Real-world clash

Last Friday, followers of Sulu Sultan Jamalul Kiram III engaged Malaysian security forces in a violent shootout that left at least 12 Filipinos and two Malaysian commandos dead.

On Saturday night, another clash left six Malaysian policemen and at least six Filipinos dead.

Last Tuesday, Malaysian forces assaulted the area where the Kiram followers were believed to be hiding.

Malaysia has been tracking down the followers of Kiram, who rejected President Benigno Aquino III's call for them to surrender without condition. — TJD, GMA News
 
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Muslims condemn ‘sellout’ to Malaysia
By Christine F. Herrera | Posted on Mar. 07, 2013

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SOME 300 militant student activists, women and indigenous people joined their Muslim brothers and sisters in the Philippine Council for Islam and Democracy in accusing President Aquino of “selling out” the Sultanate of Sulu to Malaysia.

The protesters stormed Mendiola near Malacanang and denounced the President for committing treason as he allegedly did nothing when the Malaysian forces attacked the Filipinos in Sabah.

“(The President) essentially gave the green light to the Malaysian government to proceed and massacre the Filipinos in Sabah. This is unforgivable, blood is (in) his hands,” Vencer Crisostomo, Anakbayan chairman, said.

“The Aquino administration should share the liability for the bloody end of the standoff in Sabah for its noynoying on the grievances of Filipinos,” Kabataan President Terry Ridon said.

Members of the PCID, Anakbayan, Kabataan, Migrante, Katribu, Bagong Alyansang Makabayan, Bayan Muna, Gabriela and Kadamay marched to Mendiola around 10:30 a.m., with Muslim women dressed in abaya and hijab as frontliners to air their protests.

Yusuf Ledesma, co-convenor of PCID, said they would seek the intervention of the United Nations and the United States.

“Masakit ang aming kalooban,” Sharif Juhur Hali of the Islamic Directorate of the Philippines said over the alleged mishandling of the crisis.

Anakpawis Rep. Rafael Mariano chided the Foreign Affairs Department for agreeing with Malaysia to tag the Filipino Muslims who sailed to Sabah as ‘terrorists.’

The country’s claim over the disputed territory is historically, politically, and legally legitimate,” Gary Martinez of Migrante International said.

Makabayan senatorial candidate and Bayan Muna Rep. Teddy Casiño urged the House to immediately investigate the Executive’s mishandling of the Philippine claim on Sabah.

House Assistant Minority Leader Rep. Ferdinand Romualdez described the Aquino administration as a “failure” in addressing the Sabah crisis.

Romualdez added that the past administrations, even in the payment of “blood money” for Filipino convicts, has been condoned in order to save the Filipinos and that should be no different under the incumbent administration.

“The administration should do everything in its power to prevent any deaths or bloodshed,” he said.

Muslims condemn




Sulu sultan denounces terrorist tag by Malaysia
By Ferdinand Fabella | Posted on Mar. 07, 2013

Sulu Sultan Jamalul Kiram III on Wednesday slammed Malaysia for branding his followers in Sabah as terrorists after Malaysian security forces launched a wave of attacks aimed at driving the Filipino contingent out of the town of Lahad Datu.

“Terrorists? We own Sabah. Would you call someone a terrorist if he only wants to live in his land? If he lives in his own house? If he protects his property?” the ailing 74-year-old sultan said in Taguig City residence.

The state-owned Bernama news agency earlier quoted Malaysian officials describing the sultanate’s forces as “armed terrorists” and said Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario shared this view.

The Palace quickly denied that Del Rosario had called the Filipinos terrorists, saying he only agreed that the act of ambushing and killing Malaysian policemen could be considered “terroristic acts.”

Kiram said his brother Raja Muda Agbimuddin Kiram and his 215-man contingent in the disputed Sabah could not be described as terrorists because they are well within their rights to stake their claim on the resource-rich region.

Kiram said the terrorists were the Malaysian security forces that are using disproportionate force, including fighter aircraft and artillery against the lightly armed “royal army.”

Kiram also denied that his followers beheaded one of the Malaysian policemen during an encounter in Lahad Datu.

“They were trained only to defend themselves and fight in accordance to the laws of Allah and man,” the sultan said.

He said he last talked with his brother late Tuesday night who told him they are in good condition and have not suffered any casualties, contradicting Malaysian reports.

Kiram’s daughter Princess Jacel said calling them “terrorists” was unacceptable.

“We are not terrorists…. We are the landlords of North Borneo asking the squatter tenants to vacate the leased property. The Philippine government’s insensitive stand on the Sultanate of Sulu’s aspiration to settle and reclaim their homeland has emboldened Prime Minister Najib Razak to give the order and initiate a violent and barbaric offensive attack against Rajah Mudda’s group,” she said.

Princess Jacel also questioned the effectiveness of Del Rosario’s visit to Kuala Lumpur over the weekend, asking how the crisis could be resolved peacefully when the sultanate was deliberately left out of the talks.

Del Rosario on Wednesday took responsibility for the misplaced letter that the sultan had sent President Benigno Aquino III I June 2010.

President Aquino had earlier admitted that the letter – which asked that the Sulu Sultanate be consulted on Malaysian-brokered peace talks with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front – had been “lost in the bureaucratic maze.”

“Since years later the so-called missing letter was found in the DFA under the principle of command of responsibility, the buck stops with me,” Del Rosario said in a text message.

But the sultan’s spokespersons dismissed Del Rosario’s admission as being “too late,” given that the standoff in Sabah had turned violent.

“Why only now? And now that they have it [the letter], what’s next? We’ve been asking the Philippine government to at least talk to us, but they haven’t,” said Fatima Kiram, wife of the sultan.

The sultanate’s spokesman, Abraham Idjirani, agreed.

“I don’t know what good it will do now,” he said.

The letter had also asked the newly elected Aquino to discuss the Sabah claim with the Malaysian government during meetings of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.

It also reiterated that the authority given to the Philippine government to claim the disputed territory was revoked by the sultanate in 1989.

In General Santos City, President Benigno Aquino III said the Kirams had turned over their proprietary claims over Sabah to the government in 1968.

The President also ruled out the possibility of the Philippines going to war over the unsettled Sabah claim, despite the death of 23 Filipinos near the town of Lahad Datu.

The President recalled that the country almost went into war with Malaysia, adding that one newspaper even headlined that the Philippines has enough ammunition to last for a six-day battle.

“So if we look at the Sabah problem, the question becomes this: is the interest of the Kirams also the interest of the country? Naturally, both are our concerns. But I have been thinking — where did the problem start? Did not the problem begin from the end of the Kirams when they leased Sabah to the British?”

“If they have a problem with their lease agreement, and if we have interest on this, it should be resolved peacefully. If their past agreement had mistakes, then we should correct this. But we are not advocating violence,” the President added.

In 1963, the Philippines broke ties with Malaysia after it included Sabah in its territory.

In 1967, an attempt to land Filipino commandos on Sabah under “Operation Merdeka” was aborted after all commandos but one were killed. The lone survivor of the carnage, Jibin Arula, revealed what was eventually known as the Jabidah massacre.

The President said the Sabah conflict had now turned into “a propaganda war.”

“Are the suggestions of some people for us to support those in Sabah who are armed (group of Raja Muda Agbimuddin Kiram) correct?” he said. “The relationship between the Philippines and Malaysia has been colored by this Sabah issue. Let us not forget the proprietary rights that the Sulu sultanate has turned over to the government is not yet too clear. But in their conflict with Malaysia, we all get dragged into it,” the President said.

Moro National Liberation Front founding chairperson Nur Misuari earlier blasted Mr. Aquino for “siding with the enemy of his people.”

“What kind of leader are you when you abandon your people?” Misuari said. “If the President has nothing to say, he should not open his mouth anymore.”

“What he has done is very bad,” he added. “It is unbecoming for a head of state to be siding with the enemy of his own people. These are his own people. I don’t know who is advising him and for what reason. He is aligning this country with Malaysia, a colonial power occupying the land of our people. I am against that.” With Joyce P. Pañares and Rey E. Requejo

Sulu sultan denounces terrorist tag by Malaysia - Manila Standard Today


What Marcos failed to achieve…
By Ramon Tulfo
Philippine Daily Inquirer

Malaysia ordered air strikes and mortar attacks against 200 men sent by the Sultan of Sulu to occupy a coastal village in Sabah.
Malaysia will regret its action because it was tantamount to declaring war against the Tausugs, the fiercest of Philippine Muslim tribes.

Ironically, it was Malaysia that helped the Tausugs fight the government of President Marcos in the 1970s and ’80s.

* * *

Nur Misuari, founding chair of the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) that waged war against the government, is back in the limelight after many years in oblivion.

He warned President Noy that any attempt to arrest Sultan Jamalul Kiram III would result in “total chaos” for the country.

Misuari, who has royal blood, has the backing of the long dormant MNLF, its members spoiling for a fight.

Better for our government to let the Tausugs fight the Malaysians in Sabah, which they claim is their homeland, rather than fight the Tausugs in the country.

* * *

Ironically, it was P-Noy’s mother, the late President Cory Aquino, who brought Misuari back to the country from a self-imposed exile in Saudi Arabia.

Misuari was already a forgotten figure among his people when “Tita” Cory, upon the advice of her brother-in-law, Butz Aquino, and then Interior Secretary Aquilino Pimentel, recalled him from oblivion.

President Noy is now suffering from his mother’s wrong decision.

* * *

There is no way Misuari had no hand in the dispatch of 200 men to Sabah by the Sultan of Sulu.

Sultan Kiram doesn’t have men and arms to back up his claim of ownership of the former North Borneo island—the MNLF has.

Kiram doesn’t have the money to launch a large-scale expedition to Sabah.

My sources close to the sultanate told me that even before Kiram sent his men to Lahad Datu, about 2,500 armed Tausugs had already been prepositioned in Sabah.

During the standoff or before the attack on Lahad Datu by Malaysian security forces, 150 armed Tausugs from Palawan province were able to land in Sabah.

An additional 600 Tausugs landed in Sabah last week, according to my sources.

The men who landed in different areas in Sabah are being harbored by their fellow Tausugs in the former North Borneo.

There are 800,000 Filipinos, mostly Tausugs from Sulu and Tawi-Tawi, who are in Sabah.

Let’s do some Math: 2,500 plus 150 plus 600 equals a very formidable fighting force of combat-savvy Tausug veterans.

We’re not even counting the number of armed Tausugs who came to Sabah in small numbers before Sultan Kiram brought his men to Lahad Datu.

What President Marcos failed to achieve in 1969, the MNLF just might succeed in taking Sabah this time around.

* * *

So who is (are) behind Sultan Kiram’s decision to send an expedition to Sabah?

Apart from Misuari, what about the Sultan of Brunei?

The Sultan of Brunei has an interest in Sabah because it used to belong to the Sultanate of Brunei.

In the 1600s, the Sultan of Brunei faced a revolt by some of his men and sought the help of the Sultan of Sulu in quelling the rebellion.

The Sultan of Brunei, out of gratitude for the Sulu Sultanate’s help, gave away to the latter North Borneo, which was then part of his kingdom. This is what we now know as Sabah.

In 1878, the Sultan of Sulu leased North Borneo to the British North Borneo Company. The Malaysian government, which inherited Sabah from the British, continues to pay rent to the Sultanate of Sulu.

What Marcos failed to achieve



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MNLF enters Sabah
(The Philippine Star) | Updated March 7, 2013

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MANILA, Philippines - As Malaysian forces searched house-to-house in Sabah for armed followers of Sulu Sultan Jamalul Kiram III, battle-hardened fighters of the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) managed to penetrate a tight naval cordon in the Sulu Sea to reinforce the sultan’s forces.

The MNLF said fresh fighting in Lahad Datu last night left nine fighters of the sultanate’s army dead.

Malaysia’s defense ministry, for its part, announced that 13 Filipinos were killed in an air and ground assault last Tuesday.

“Many (fighters) have slipped through the security forces. They know the area like the back of their hand because they trained there in the past,” Muhajab Hashim, chairman of the MNLF’s Islamic Command Council, said.

“We are expecting more of them to join (the fighting) even if our official instruction is for them to refrain from going,” he said.

The trip between Tawi-Tawi and Sabah takes about an hour by speedboat.

The MNLF waged a decades-long insurgency against the Philippine government before signing a peace pact in 1996.

Hashim could not say how many MNLF fighters had managed to slip through naval cordons set up by the Philippines and Malaysia, but said “thousands” had earlier expressed interest in joining. The MNLF’s Islamic Command Council oversees the group’s armed forces, which was supposed to disarm as part of the 1996 peace pact but never fully complied.

He said that although MNLF leaders had not officially instructed their men to sail to Malaysia, they fully supported the sultan’s efforts to reclaim the Malaysian state of Sabah as his territory.

“MNLF fighters are adherents of the sultan, we are followers. So there is more than an alliance,” he said.

“We feel very strongly against the attacks against our brothers from Sulu,” he said.

However, Hashim’s claim was belied by Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) acting Gov. Mujiv Hataman. “No reinforcement arrived there. I’m betting on that,” he said.

Malaysian security forces launched a major offensive with jet fighters and armored vehicles on Tuesday to end a three-week stand-off with followers of Kiram that left at least 40 people dead including eight policemen, based on the latest count.

However, the sultan’s aides said in Manila that the militants, believed to originally number between 100 and 300, had escaped Tuesday’s attacks.

Sketchy casualty figure

Prime Minister Najib Razak had declared the operation on Tuesday was “weeding out” the holed-up followers of Kiram.

But authorities later indicated the militants had escaped into surrounding farmland in the remote region of Borneo island, where residents were already on edge over reports of roaming gunmen and two bloody shootouts.

“Follow-up action and house-to-house searches are being carried out carefully to ensure the safety of the policemen and soldiers,” state news agency Bernama quoted police as saying.

A senior MNLF official said a new Malaysian offensive last night killed nine followers of the Sulu sultan.

“The Malaysian armed forces ground and air assault resulted in the killing of nine RSF KIA (royal sultanate forces killed in action). Heavy fighting still ongoing, no KIA or WIA (wounded in action) on the side of the Malaysian Army,” the MNLF official said.

But he said Kiram’s armed followers were able to inflict “heavy casualties” on Malaysian security forces in Bukid Garam, Semporna at around noon yesterday. He did not give figures.

He said the Malaysian troops were on a convoy of military trucks when waylaid by the sultan’s gunmen, who also seized weapons and supplies.

“For the RSF in Lahad Datu it’s victory or graveyard. They may be running away today but they will come back and fight again tomorrow,” the MNLF official said.

Malaysian police said one gunman was shot yesterday, and warned residents to be on alert for members of the group who had likely escaped into palm oil plantations that dominate the coastal area and who could be posing as farmers. It was not clear if the police were referring to the same gunman reported in Bernama.

The report said the armed “terrorist” tried to ambush Malaysian security forces conducting mopping up operations yesterday morning.

The gunman, who was unidentified, reportedly fired at the Malaysian policemen and soldiers, who fought back.

“However, the body of the shot terrorist was retrieved by his accomplices,” Bernama quoted Police Inspector General Tan Sri Ismail Omar as saying.

The Malaysian side did not suffer any casualties, the report said.

Malaysia’s The Star Online, for its part, said the bodies of nine of the sultan’s followers have been unearthed in a mass grave in Kampung Tanduo.

“This is the proof, the bodies that we managed to gather, and we are in the process of collecting more bodies,” the report quoted Defense Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi as saying.

“The total is 13. There could be more,” he said, referring to the number of bodies found.

Malaysian authorities will conduct a “full post mortem” on the bodies to determine how they died.

Ismail said the sultanate’s followers have been disguising as ordinary civilians to evade pursuing state forces.

Bernama said Malaysian citizens have been asked to be “extra careful” and to get updates from the nearest police detachments.

“The mopping and searching will cover a wider area, given there are signs the intruders moved to another location,” the police official told reporters. “The security forces are tracking down their movements and will take the appropriate action.”

He said late Tuesday after the assault that no militants had yet been found dead or captured. He did not explain how they could have escaped a cordon in place for the past three weeks.

“I have instructed my commanders to be on alert because we believe the enemies are still out there,” Ismail told reporters. “We of course hope that they have not escaped.”

Yesterday, army trucks carrying dozens of soldiers continued to enter the village of Tanduo where the group had originally been holed up, while a helicopter hovered overhead.

Fighter jets bombed the group’s camp in the Felda Sahabat plantation early on Tuesday after the Malaysian prime minister said his patience had run out. Philippine officials had urged the group, which numbers close to 200, to return home.

Kiram, who lives in Maharlika Village in Taguig City, claims to represent the Sultanate of Sulu in Mindanao and is demanding recognition and payment from Malaysia for their claim as rightful owners of Sabah.

His family and supporters in Manila said they had been in telephone contact with his brother Agbimuddin, who is head of what they called the royal sultanate army in Sabah. Agbimuddin is also called Raja Muda or crown prince.

“Agbimuddin had just called us informing that he and his royal army members are safe,” Abraham Idjirani, sultanate secretary-general and spokesman, said. Idjirani said Agbimuddin had to limit his calls for security reason.

Idjirani said Agbimuddin had expressed belief they were being labeled terrorists by Malaysia to justify its attacks.

Agbimuddin also said his group had split up to avoid detection.

The security headache could prompt Najib to delay an election that must be held by June, adding to nervousness among investors over what could be the country’s closest ever polls.

The insecurity has disrupted operations in Sabah’s huge palm oil industry. Prolonged trouble could dampen growing investor interest in energy and infrastructure projects in the state, although the main oil fields are far from the standoff.

Malaysians, accustomed to watching neighbors Thailand and the Philippines grapple with Muslim insurgents, have been shocked by the drama, and authorities have been criticized for the ease with which the invaders slipped into Sabah.

The crisis comes as Malaysia’s 56-year-old ruling coalition is bracing for what is expected to be the country’s closest-ever election against a formidable opposition, which has slammed the handling of the incursion.

The episode began Feb. 12, when Malaysia’s government said an estimated 100 to 300 armed Filipinos had landed in Sabah and were surrounded in the sleepy farming village of Tanduo.

The MNLF was founded by radical Muslim scholar Nur Misuari to fight for a Muslim homeland in Mindanao in the late 1960s, and had once received support from Malaysia.

The Sulu sultanate’s power faded a century ago but its heirs continue to insist on ownership of resource-rich Sabah, and still receive nominal Malaysian payments under a lease deal originally struck by Western colonial powers. Jaime Laude, Roel Pareño, Alexis Romer

MNLF enters Sabah | Headlines, News, The Philippine Star | philstar.com
 
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Official press release made by Malaysian defense minister Zahid Hamidi. It says that they found 12 Sulu rebel deadbody after the airstrike.

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It looks like 3 days deadbody.



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Yup that's another failed propaganda of Malaysia. :sniper:

They just sparked the worst from this group.

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Obviously these are the victims of their own failed bombings that missed their targets. The Royal Sulu Army wears camouflage while the dead bodies are all wearing black uniforms.

Good luck to 7 Malaysian Army battalions. This could bring more headaches to the Malaysian authorities since they have to cover a larger area since the group split into small band of fighters.
 
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UN calls for end to violence in Sabah
By Tarra V. Quismundo
Philippine Daily Inquirer
Thursday, March 7th, 2013

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MANILA, Philippines – The United Nations has called for an end to violence in Sabah as it appealed for a dialogue among parties involved to peacefully settle the dispute.


In a statement issued from his office, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon also called on parties involved to uphold international human rights standards amid escalating hostilities there.

“The Secretary-General is closely following the situation in Sabah, Malaysia. He urges an end to the violence and encourages dialogue among all the parties for a peaceful resolution of the situation,” said the statement issued Wednesday in New York.

“He urges all parties to facilitate delivery of humanitarian assistance and act in full respect of international human rights norms and standards,” the statement read.Ban also expressed concern for civilians caught in the crossfire, as hostilities escalated between Malaysian forces and armed followers of Sulu Sultan Jamalul Kiram III this week.

This is the first time the UN issued a statement on the situation in Lahad Datu, where Kiram’s followers have been standing their ground for more than three weeks now asserting ancestral ownership of the territory.

It was silent on the dispute between the Philippines and Malaysia for ownership of Sabah — a matter which the Sulu Sultan said he would elevate to the world body.

Fighting broke out Friday between the armed group and Malaysian forces amid failed appeals for Kiram’s followers to leave Lahad Datu. The death toll has been rising on both sides.

The Philippines continues efforts to negotiate for Kiram group’s unconditional surrender as Malaysia stepped up efforts to round up the Sulu fighters, including the launch of air and ground strikes.

UN calls for end to violence in Sabah | Inquirer Global Nation



Malaysia may seek extradition of Sulu Sultan over Sabah violence - report
March 7, 2013

Malaysia may seek the "extradition" of Sulu Sultan Jamalul Kiram III and his group due to the violence in Sabah between Kiram's followers and Malaysian security forces. The fighting has been going on since March 1 with total fatalities now numbering around 24.

In a Malaysian television interview, Malaysian foreign minister Datuk Seri Anifah Aman said this possibility had been "put forward" to his Filipino counterpart Albert del Rosario.

"The group's leader has made statements that have incited anger and hatred. Does the Philippines have laws to bring him to justice? If not, maybe we will ask the Philippines to hand him over to us," he said on a talk show on Malaysia's TV3 Wednesday night, according to a report on state-run Bernama news agency.

While he noted the Philippines and Malaysia do not have an extradition treaty, he said that "in the spirit of (the Association of Southeast Asian Nations), we can request for them to be brought here."

Any legal action will be based on what is "right and good" for both the Philippines and Malaysia, he added.

"Our options are open until we move to another level, make decision and hold discussions with the Philippines," he said.

Kiram's forces are now being hunted by Malaysian forces following bloody clashes last March 1 and 2.

On Tuesday, Malaysian forces assaulted an area where Kiram's followers are believed to be hiding.

'Subject to discussion'

When asked if the Kiram followers caught in Sabah would be charged in Malaysia or brought back to the Philippines, he said this is "subject to discussion."

"(Philippine President Benigno Aquino III) asked them to surrender and return home and the Philippine government pledged to take action in accordance with its laws," he said.

But he also noted that if Malaysian police arrest the followers, "we can also use our laws."

"When it happens, I and the Philippine Foreign Secretary will discuss to find the best way," he said. — DVM, GMA News

Malaysia may seek extradition of Sulu Sultan over Sabah violence - report | News | GMA News Online


Aquino explains why he’s not sending our armed troops to Sabah
By Maila Ager
INQUIRER.net

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DAVAO CITY, Philippines—”What do you want me to do?” an exasperated President Benigno Aquino III asked during a political rally here on Wednesday, explaining his administration’s actions on the Sabah situation.

Speaking at Team PNoy’s campaign held at the Rizal Park, Aquino lamented criticisms that he has been receiving for his alleged lack of actions to address the problem in Sabah.

“Hindi raw po ako maka-Filipino. Kulang raw ang ginagawa ko para sa kanila (They say I am not pro-Filipino, that what I am doing is not enough),” he said.

“Ang gusto po yata nila ipadala natin ang ating buong sandatahan at samahan sila sa marahas na pakikipagbakbakan tulad ng pagtulak nila sa peligro sa ating mga kababayan. (It seems what they want for us to do is to deploy our entire armed forces and join them in their violent means, like pushing our countrymen into disaster.)”

“Gusto ba nilang isubo na rin natin ang 95 milyong Filipino sa kaguluhan? Sino po ngayon ang walang pakundangan sa kapwa Pilipino? (Do they want us to submit our 95 million Filipinos into such chaos? Who has no consideration for our fellow Filipinos now?),” he said.

Aquino added he had always reminded and appealed to the sultan of Sulu and his followers in Sabah to return to the country and peacefully discuss the problem.

At the same time, Aquino maintained that he would not allow one’s personal interest to prevail over the welfare of the majority of Filipino people.

“So ano ho bang gusto nilang gawin ko? Pag pinadala ba natin ang sandatahang lakas natin dyan, yung Malaysia ba hindi mag iisip na; ‘Aba, tumutulong ba kayo sa solusyon o lalaki pa ulit ang problema dahil dumami pa lalo ang mga armado? (So what do they really want me to do? If we send our armed forces there, do they know that Malaysia would think: ‘Are you helping in providing solution or contributing to the gravity of the problem because of the increased number of armed men?)” he said.

“Pag dumating naman po dun ay hind armado baka naman mamaya ma-hostage pa ang ating sandatahang lakas, lumaki na naman ang ating problema.Tama po ba? (If we send unarmed troops, they might be taken hostage, our problem will get bigger. Am I right?)” the President asked the crowd.

“Tama (Right),” the crowd answered back.

Aquino reiterated that the Sabah situation could only be addressed through a fair, peaceful and reasonable dialogue.
 
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Yup that's another failed propaganda of Malaysia. :sniper:

They just sparked the worst from this group.

1zh2nx2.jpg


Obviously these are the victims of their own failed bombings that missed their targets. The Royal Sulu Army wears camouflage while the dead bodies are all wearing black uniforms.

Good luck to 7 Malaysian Army battalions. This could bring more headaches to the Malaysian authorities since they have to cover a larger area since the group split into small band of fighters.

How is this Malaysian propaganda. Also I hope the Malaysian military hunts down all of those pesky MNLF soldiers.
BTW, funny how your name is Malaya.:omghaha:
 
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No to Sulu Sultan extradition - Aquino
By: Dexter San Pedro, InterAksyon.com
March 7, 2013 2:21 PM

MANILA, Philippines – In a move reminiscent of Malaysia’s actions toward billion-peso scammer Manuel Amalillo, President Benigno Aquino III on Thursday rejected suggestions from Malaysia that Sulu Sultan Jamalul Kiram III be extradited for ordering his followers to go to Sabah, saying the latter has to first face criminal charges in the Philippines.

"From my perspective, let them face the issues. Let our citizens here in the country face the charges that we will be proffering first, then we will talk about other developments after they have satisfied the requirements of our laws," Aquino said in an interview aired over state-run Radyo ng Bayan.

The President’s tack is similar to the one Malaysia used when the Philippines tried to arrest Amalillo, who fled to Sabah November last year after he was ordered arrested for scamming Filipinos of 12 billion pesos.

Sabah police arrested the Aman Futures Group owner for holding a “fake” Philippine passport late January and refused to hand him over to the Philippine government.

No to Sulu Sultan extradition - Aquino - InterAksyon.com
 
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Official press release made by Malaysian defense minister Zahid Hamidi. It says that they found 12 Sulu rebel deadbody after the airstrike.

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mayatpenganassulu03.jpg

mayatpenganassulu02.jpg




It looks like 3 days deadbody.



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You are right, these are the dead Sulu intruders killed in the first encounter many days ago, found in a shallow hole covered by timber planks, dug by the Sulu gunmen.

Meanwhile, It has been reported that so far 52 Sulu intruders have been killed, these are confirmed by body counts. No Malaysian casulaty since air strikes began day before yeaterday.
 
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