'Timid govts' are those in the U.S. eye

'Timid govts' are those in the U.S. eye

Philippine Daily Inquirer, Asia News Network, Manila

Many Filipino political leaders are in an uproar over U.S. President George W. Bush's threat to continue America's war against terrorism in any country harboring terrorist camps. Bush told the U.S. Congress Wednesday he was hoping that "all nations will heed our call and eliminate the terrorist parasites who threaten their countries and our own." However, he said, "some governments will be timid in the face of terror." And he added ominously: "If they will not act, America will."

It was an unmistakable warning to friend and foe alike that the United States would not be deterred from its pursuit of those who were responsible for Sept. 11. But it seems to have rubbed the sensibilities even of some of America's most ardent supporters. Defense Secretary Angelo Reyes said, "We are not going to allow the United States to impose its will on us and coerce us into doing anything against our national interest."

But National Security Adviser Roilo Golez said the Philippines shouldn't feel alluded to. The Philippines has never been accused of harboring international terrorists, Golez pointed out.

Indeed Bush clearly referred to "governments that are timid in the face of terrorism." And President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo has been anything but "timid" in responding to America's invitation to join it in its war against terrorism. Arroyo was among the first foreign leader to answer Bush's bugle call, rushing quickly to embrace America's war as her own. She has welcomed the help of American troops in going after the Abu Sayyaf group which has been linked to the al-Qaeda network of international terrorists. With the Philippines firmly in America's camp, her security adviser and spokesperson are saying, there is nothing to fear about Bush's warning.

That is one way of interpreting Bush's threat, and the most obvious one. But what if the Philippine government fails to crush the Abu Sayyaf, say, in the next six months? Will Bush declare it to be "timid" and simply order the U.S. Air Force to wipe Basilan and Sulu off the face of the earth? What if Arroyo wavers in her commitment to let U.S. Special Forces "train" Filipino troops right there in the jungle lairs of the Abu Sayyaf, will Bush not take that as a sign that she has grown "timid" in going after terrorists and order his troops to take over the fighting?

Timid is what Bush says timid is, and it spells trouble not only for America's enemies but also its friends. The Arroyo administration has gone to great lengths justifying America's involvement in the campaign against the Abu Sayyaf, stretching the constitutional and legal limits on the presence of foreign troops and foisting the fiction that actual combat constitutes on the job training.

Her decision to seek American help apparently enjoys broad support from a public that has become frustrated over the military's failure to wipe out a bunch of bloodthirsty terrorists who count a couple of hundred members, according to government estimates. But there are a few key sectors that are not convinced about the wisdom of inviting U.S. troops to solve what is basically a homegrown problem and who fear that America's military engagement in this part of the world will not end when the Abu Sayyaf is finally vanquished.

And some of these, particularly the Moro Islamic Liberation Front and the New People's Army, are the very same groups that the government is trying to convince to lay down their arms and give peace a chance. Bush's fighting words won't help disabuse them of their fears.