The Philippine government appears to have learned its lesson on terrorism and is taking the extra mile in trying to avoid the occurrence of another “Marawi seige”.
In line with this, Presidential Spokesman Ernesto C. Abella said Manila has opened a new round of security mechanism with Jakarta and Kuala Lumpur. Following joint maritime patrols in June, the three countries last Thursday launched joint air patrols as part of efforts to rid Southeast Asia of extremist threats.
“The fight against terrorism in the region continues to get a boost. The coordinated joint air patrols between the Philippines, Indonesia and Malaysia were launched in Malaysia to better counter the movement of terrorist groups and to strengthen the security of our three nations and that of the region,” Abella said.
The Philippines, Indonesia and Malaysia have vowed to strengthen border security after Marawi City suffered from an almost takeover from the Daesh-inspired Maute Group in May.
“By sharing information and exchanging best practices, we hope to improve the interoperability of our forces and help better secure areas of common maritime interest,” Abella explained.
Defense Secretary Delfin N. Lorenzana, during the launching of the joint air patrols, said the security mechanism intends to bolster the region’s fight against terrorism. “The effect of this is we can prevent others from coming, in and also from escaping, because a lot of the fighters are also Malaysian and Indonesian and nationals from the Middle East,” Lorenzana said.
Under the security mechanism, the air patrols will make rounds monthly among the three countries, with Malaysia taking the lead on the first round of operations. The Philippines will take over in the next round, followed by Indonesia.
After rounds of operations, they will decide whether to include more countries in the joint air patrols.
Meanwhile, in a television interview aired last Friday, President Duterte said the conflict in Marawi City “is almost over”.
“It’s almost over—almost is because of the hostages. The monkey wrench…is because of the lives of the hostages,” the President said.
Duterte added he cannot force the issue because it might cost the government more lives of soldiers and civilians. Nonetheless, he vowed to finish the conflict without having to hurt cultural and religious sensitivities, such as bombing mosques and other places of worship.
The conflict in Marawi City, which will be on its fifth month on October 23, has claimed 1,010 lives as of last Friday, according to the military.