PHILIPPINES: PHILIPPINES SAY THEY WILL ALLOW U.S SOLDIERS TO OPERATE IN SULU ISLANDS BUT STILL NEED TO RESOLVE CONSTITUTIONAL ISSUES OVER MUSLIM REBELS
Record ID:
647566
PHILIPPINES: PHILIPPINES SAY THEY WILL ALLOW U.S SOLDIERS TO OPERATE IN SULU ISLANDS BUT STILL NEED TO RESOLVE CONSTITUTIONAL ISSUES OVER MUSLIM REBELS
- Title: PHILIPPINES: PHILIPPINES SAY THEY WILL ALLOW U.S SOLDIERS TO OPERATE IN SULU ISLANDS BUT STILL NEED TO RESOLVE CONSTITUTIONAL ISSUES OVER MUSLIM REBELS
- Date: 2nd March 2003
- Summary: (W3) MANILA, PHILIPPINES (MARCH 3, 2003) (REUTERS) 1. SLV PHILIPPINE DEFENCE SECRETARY ANGELO REYES WALKING TO THE PODIUM 0.06 2. WIDE OF JOURNALISTS 0.11 3. SCU (SOUNDBITE) (English) PHILIPPINE DEFENCE SECRETARY ANGELO REYES SAYING: "Balikatan 03-1 is on. Both the Philippine government and the US government and its respective militaries are committed in staging Balikatan 03-1. However it will be conducted in accordance with Philippine laws and sensitivities." 0.33 4. WIDE OF NEWS CONFERENCE 0.37 5. WIDE OF JOURNALISTS 0.41 6. SCU (SOUNDBITE) (English) PHILIPPINE DEFENCE SECRETARY ANGELO REYES SAYING: "During the dialogue with (U.S. Defence) Secretary (Donald) Rumsfeld, we brought forth to them our concerns, the constitutional requirements and the sensitivities of our people. Secretary Rumsfeld of course responded that he would not want us to violate the constitution, we will not allow it and so there is no intention on their part to have us violate our constitution and we will not do anything our country does not need or the country not want." 1.17 7. WIDE OF PRESS CONFERENCE 1.24 (W3) ZAMBOANGA, PHILIPPINES (MARCH 2, 2003) (REUTERS) 8. SLV SOLDIERS GUARDING SCHOOL GATE, CHECKING RESIDENTS 1.35 9. SCU U.S SOLDIER 1.40 10. CLOSE OF BANNER THAT READING: "HEALTH FAIR-SERVICE TO THE PEOPLE OF ZAMBOANGA-US AND ARMED FORCES OF THE PHILIPPINES" 1.44 11. VARIOUS OF VILLAGERS QUEUING FOR MEDICINES AND TREATMENT (3 SHOTS) 1.55 12. WIDE OF VILLAGERS REGISTERING FOR MEDICINES 2.00 13. SCU AFRO - AMERICAN U.S SOLDIER 2.02 14. SMV MOTHERS AND CHILDREN RECIEVING DRINKS (2 SHOTS) 2.15 15. VARIOUS OF US SOLDIERS MINGLING WITH VILLAGERS (2 SHOTS) 2.32 16. SCU (SOUNDBITE) (English) US MEDICAL TEAM LEADER MAJOR BILL AUTREY SAYING: "Really our focus is to provide medical attention to needy people, but at the same time, we are doing this to be able to build some support for the combined efforts of the Philippine military and the United States military. But our main purpose is to provide medical care for the people." 2.53 17. SLV VILLAGER IN WHEELCHAIR 2.58 18. VARIOUS , US SOLDIERS LOOKING DOWN FROM BALCONY OVER MEDICAL MISSION (2 SHOTS) 3.08 19. WIDE OF MEDICAL MISSION SITE 3.12 Initials Script is copyright Reuters Limited. All rights reserved
- Embargoed: 17th March 2003 12:00
- Keywords:
- Location: MANILA AND ZAMBOANGA, PHILIPPINES
- Country: Philippines
- Reuters ID: LVA5UZ3XN7I8D09O0YVZBLL74O4V
- Story Text: The Philippines has said it would allow U.S. soldiers
to operate in the islands of Sulu in the Southern Philippines
but must still resolve how they can help defeat Muslim rebels
without violating the country's constitution.
Philippine Defence Secretary Angelo Reyes said on
Monday (March 3) this was the agreement he reached with U.S.
Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld in talks in Washington on
joint cooperation to subdue the Abu Sayyaf group accused of
links with Osama bin Laden's al Qaeda network.
"Balikatan 03-1 is on. Both the Philippine government and
the US government and its respective militaries are committed
in staging Balikatan 03-1. However it will be conducted in
accordance with Philippine laws and sensitivies."
The planned operation, dubbed Balikatan-03-1, erupted into
controversy after defence officials in Washington said U.S.
troops would expand its training program and conduct combat
operations side by side Philippine troops against the Abu
Sayyaf in the southern island of Jolo, a 95 percent Muslim
area and an Abu Sayyaf lair.
Reyes said he could not reveal when the planned training
would start.
Unnamed Pentagon officials said last week that about 1,750
U.S. troops would go to the Philippines to help subdue the Abu
Sayyaf, a mainly kidnap-for-ransom gang claiming to fight for
an Islamic state in the south of mainly Roman Catholic
country.
They said at the time that American soldiers would engage
in joint combat operations with local forces but Manila later
denied this, saying its constitution banned foreign combat
troops from operating on Philippine soil.
"During the dialogue with Secretary (Donald) Rumsfeld, we
brought forth to them our concerns, the constitutional
requirements and the sensitivities of our people. Secretary
Rumsfeld of course responded that he would not want us to
violate the constitution, we will not allow it and so there is
no intention on their part to have us violate our constitution
and we will not do anything our country does not need or the
country not want."
Manila has said that American troops to be deployed on
Jolo will have to operate under the same conditions that
governed another batch of U.S. forces who trained local units
on counter terrorism for six months last year on Basilan
island, near Jolo.
On Basilan, the Americans were prohibited from firing
except in self defence. No incidents with the Abu Sayyaf
occurred in last year's exercises.
Located 960 km (595 miles) south of Manila, Jolo is a
mountainous island where about 300-400 Abu Sayyaf guerrillas
have been holding three Indonesian seamen and four Filipino
women Christian evangelists hostage since last year.
About 160 kilometers from Jolo, a U.S. military medical
team hiked to a hilltop village outside Zamboanga City in
Southern Philippines on Sunday (March 2) to provide free
services to more than a thousand people.
Security was tight around a school where the mission held
with passing vehicles were inspected and civilians were
frisked.
One of the US medical team leaders, Major Bill Autrey said
at least 10 more medical outreach missions will be sent to
several Muslim enclaves in Zamboanga City.
"Really our focus is to provide medical attention to needy
people, but at the same time, we are doing this to be able to
build some support for the combined efforts of the Philippine
military and the United States military. But our main purpose
is to provide medical care for the people."
There are about 400 US soldiers now in Zamboanga
conducting military training under the codename "Bayanihan".
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