MANILA: Philippine officials confirmed on Tuesday that a

MANILA: Philippine officials confirmed on Tuesday that a
handful of Australian federal police have been providing forensic
expertise, training and intelligence to Filipino counterparts,
and said their operations were not covert.

The officials were reacting to a statement by the Australian
Federal Police in Canberra that it currently has members deployed
in the Philippines to assist in a counterterrorist capacity.

Australian media reports said Australia has been fighting a
covert operation in the Philippines for at least a year, helping
combat an alarming rise in Islamic fundamentalism and terror.

"They're forensic, for training. They come and go," Philippine
national police chief Arturo Lomibao said.

Foreign affairs spokesman Gilbert Asuque said the presence of
Australian police was covered by two agreements -- on combating
terrorism and transnational crime -- which were signed during
Prime Minister John Howard's visit to Manila in 2003.

Asuque denied their presence was covert, saying the visits are
coordinated through the countries' foreign ministries.

The Sydney newspaper The Daily Telegraph, citing an
unidentified police source, said Australian police were involved
in preventing a Madrid-style bombing of the Manila train system,
tracking terrorists and confirming that a February 2004 ferry
fire that killed 118 was sparked by a terrorist bomb.

Philippine officials said last year that they were receiving
support from Australia's police, mainly dealing with
investigations into terror attacks. The U.S. Federal Bureau of
Investigation also has been helping Philippine investigators. --
AP

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ANPAu..r..
ASEAN-Thailand-Southern Violence
Suspected insurgents kill three Muslims in southern Thailand
JP/11/ASEAN

Muslims killed Muslims
in S. Thailand: Police

THAILAND: Militants stormed a house and killed three fellow
Muslims at evening prayers in an apparent attempt to intimidate
government sympathizers and garner support for a violent
separatist movement in southern Thailand, police said on Tuesday.

More than 880 people have been killed since January last year
when a resurgent separatist movement in the country's three
predominantly Muslim provinces bordering Malaysia -- Pattani,
Yala and Narathiwat -- resumed a campaign of bombings and
killings.

Police Capt. Thaweeksak Thengworawit said the gunmen stormed
the rented house in Pattani late on Monday and opened fire on the
praying men, before speeding away.

Thaweeksak said the killers left a note with the bodies that
read: "All of Allah's fighters stand up and fight to protect the
religion and liberate Pattani ... Those who cooperate or spy for
the enemy or don't come to us, we will come to get you."

Police said they believed the attack and letter were intended
to persuade Muslims to support the separatist cause and
intimidate those who support the central government in the
Buddhist-dominated kingdom. -- AP

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ANPAu..r..
ASEAN-Malaysia-corruption
Malaysia ruling party moves on vote-buying - paper
JP/11/ASEAN

UMNO moves on
vote-buying

MALAYSIA: Malaysia's ruling party has summoned senior members
to answer claims of vote-buying at party elections, a newspaper
said on Tuesday, referring to polls seen to have embarrassed the
prime minister in his fight against graft.

At least seven members of the United Malays National
Organization (UMNO) have been given "show cause" letters to
appear before the party's disciplinary board on Thursday and
Friday, the New Straits Times reported, citing party sources.

The officials include some who ran for UMNO's three powerful
vice-presidents' posts and some who were elected to the party's
policy-making supreme council, the report said.

The UMNO elections last year were marred by allegations of
vote-buying, called into question Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad
Badawi's control over his own party and raised doubts that he had
enough support among his own rank and file to fight corruption.

Only months before, Abdullah had led the party to a huge
election victory on a campaign to clean up corruption. Abdullah
said he was unaware of the identities of those to be questioned
and would not interfere in the matter. -- Reuters