THE SULU provincial government, led by Governor Abdusakur A. Tan II, hosted a meeting on Sept. 17 with members of the Commission on Human Rights (CHR), non-government organizations, local officials and family members of the seven men who were killed on Sept. 14 during an encounter with the military. In a statement, the Sulu government said it will hold off any conclusion and official statement on the “incident dubbed by some quarters as a ‘massacre.’” It said, “The documentation of the CHR is still ongoing and statement will be issued after collating all pertinent documents and account of kins.” The military’s Western Mindanao Command (WesMinCom), meanwhile, said it is open to any investigation into allegations that the seven men were fruit-pickers and not Abu Sayyaf members. During the encounter, which the military said involved about 100 militants, there were 17 soldiers wounded. ”Of course, we welcome (the investigation),” Lt. Col. Gerry Besana, (WesMinCom) spokesman said. The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) headquarter has earlier issued a statement asserting that the incident was a legitimate encounter with members of the notorious kidnap-for-ransom group. “We have all the documents to prove that and the blow-by blow-accounts are all in documents that we cannot just fabricate,” Mr. Besana said.
COMMITTEE
Meanwhile, the Philippine Center for Islam and Democracy, a Muslim think tank based in the University of the Philippines, called on the CHR, the Defense secretary, and the AFP chief of staff to form a committee that would look into the Patikul incident as well as the recent bombings in several parts of Mindanao. PCID is also proposing a gathering of stakeholders with the AFP and Defense chief “to create a plan that aims to further improve coordination and relationships of assigned troops in the region and those from the religious and the communities.” —with reports from Albert F. Arcilla and Philstar

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