Sole option: Nur Misuari must be repatriated

Philippine Daily Inquirer, Asia News Network, Manila

Nur Misuari is not going anywhere, except back to the Philippines and to jail, top administration officials are saying. "I don't think the Malaysian government would let Misuari go to third country without first informing the Philippine government," Vice President and Foreign Secretary Teofisto Guingona said Wednesday. Presidential Spokesperson Rigoberto Tiglao said the same thing: "We have had assurance and we are confident that the Malaysian government will not turn him over to any third party."

How sure are they? And what is the basis for their optimism?

When Misuari was caught sneaking from Sulu into the nearest Malaysian island of Jampiras last Nov. 24, President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo quickly announced that she wanted Malaysia to have first crack at dispensing its own brand of justice to the renegade governor of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao. The Arroyo administration was apparently counting on Malaysia to throw the book at Misuari for violating not only its immigration laws but also its draconian International Security Act.

In fact, the Philippine government accused Misuari of directly aiding the Abu Sayyaf, the bandit group that mounted a daring raid on the upscale Malaysian resort of Sipadan and kidnapped 21 mostly Western tourists and Malaysian workers last year.

At first, Malaysia seemed interested, or at least it didn't indicate any objection to the Philippine government's position. But now all the signals from Malaysia show not only a disinterest in prosecuting Misuari but also a growing exasperation with the Philippine government's indecision with regard to Misuari's repatriation.

Of course, Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad has studiously avoided giving any hint that Malaysia's patience with the Philippine government is wearing thin. Instead he has heaped all the blame on Misuari, saying, "Why can't he run away somewhere else? Each time he creates trouble back home, he flees to Malaysia. It sours up relations with our neighbors."

However, other Malaysian have been less than diplomatic in expressing what they think. Over the weekend, a top Malaysian police official flatly rejected the Philippine government's allegation that Misuari had a hand in the Sipadan raid, saying there was no evidence linking Misuari to the Abu Sayyaf. But Arroyo was quick to point out that was only the conclusion of the police. "That's not the level yet of the prime minister," she noted.

If she was expecting Mahathir to disown the police statement, the President must have been disappointed for none was coming. But if she wanted to get a more accurate reading of how the Malaysian government feels about being drawn into what is obviously a Philippine problem, maybe she should listen carefully to what Malaysia's Deputy Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi had to say.

Badawi told the New Straits Times of Malaysia that while his government would not give asylum to Misuari, the possibility of allowing him to leave for a third country was being discussed "thoroughly." An unnamed Malaysian official was also quoted as saying that if the Philippines didn't want to take back Misuari, "then we can give him safe passage to a third country." The message from Kuala Lumpur to Manila couldn't be any clearer: Either you deal with Misuari or we set him free.

Fair enough. Misuari is a Malaysian problem only because of his presence there. But he is first and last a Philippine problem. It was here where he committed acts of rebellion by ordering his followers to attack military outposts in Sulu, and it is here that he has to answer for the more than 100 deaths that his short-lived rebellion caused. It was here that he committed plunder by failing to account for billions of pesos poured into the regional government, and it is here that he should face the consequences for his mismanagement and greed. He is a fugitive from justice here, and he should be brought back to face trial here.

Given the serious crimes Misuari has committed, it is puzzling that the government seems not too eager to get him back. Is it afraid Misuari would serve as a rallying point for a revival of the MNLF separatist struggle?

It should fear even more having Misuari roaming around the Middle East and other Islamic states lobbying for political and financial support. Is it afraid that his followers would try to spring him out of prison? It's difficult to imagine the Moro National Liberation Front gathering thousands of fighters and sailing in their vintas to storm a prison in Luzon.

With Malaysia now saying it doesn't want to deal with Misuari much longer, the only option left for the Philippines is to ask for his repatriation. There never was any other option in the first place.