What is behind America’s support for the creation of a Bangsamoro entity?

In an op-ed article on the Wall Street Journal about the treasonous agreement between the Arroyo regime and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), Professor Brett Decker of John Hopkins University provides us with an idea of what position the United States should take on the issue:

He said: “…perhaps most importantly for the outside world, greater Islamic independence and less Philippine control over the Islamic regions would invite even more terrorist activity in an area that already has strong ties to al Qaeda. With the deployment of U.S. Special Forces to the southern Philippines now in its seventh year, joint U.S.-Philippine operations have pacified the most lawless Muslim areas. Expanding the Islamist sphere of influence now threatens to undo this success.”

Based on two factors, this analysis makes perfect sense.

First of all, It is no secret that the MILF is reputed to be tolerating, if not outright aiding, the Islamic terrorists in the south, including those who beheaded the country’s gallant Marines who were searching for a kidnapped Italian priest. This reputation is still in question, but it is a fact that the MILF is neither compact nor disciplined. Proof of this is the presence of various factions within the MILF that the group’s leadership could not even control. Like even if the central command of the MILF are not in favor of terrorism, it doesn’t have the capacity to control other MILF members who do.

Secondly, just like what Rick Carandang said, the political leadership of the so-called Moro people are composed of warlords who clearly don’t have the ability, nor the desire, to bring stability to the region. 

These mean, therefore, that it would be in the best interest of Washington’s so-called war on terror for the Bush administration to oppose the creation of this Bangsamoro juridical entity (BJE). 

But judging from the actions of US Ambassador Kristie Kenney, it seems that the Bush administration is throwing its full support to the creation of the BJE, which will practically be an independent Islamic state within a state. Indeed, the ambassador’s comments expressing this is irritating. 

In Kuala Lumpur last Tuesday, for instance, Kenney called the issuance by the Supreme Court of a temporary restraining order (TRO) on the signing of the agreement a “temporary setback.”

A setback? For whom?

It is a setback for the secessionist, but as far as the majority of the Philippine nation is concerned, the TRO temporarily saved the Philippines from territorial dismemberment.  

And what was Kenney doing in Kuala Lumpur anyway?

An Inquirer source said that had the signing pushed through, Kenney would have announced a PhP 25 million US development assistance package for Mindanao. The question is, who would receive this package? The Manila government or the MILF? Why did Kenney not announce the aid package after the signing was postponed? Is the signing of the agreement a pre-condition for the package?

If it is, why? To push the Philippines into signing the agreement? If so, why?

We should remember that prior to this whole brouhaha, Kenney had been meeting with leaders of the MILF, including its chairman Al Haj Murad, in one of the rebel group’s camps in Mindanao.

It is a no-no for any ambassador to meet with a leader of a group that seeks to secede from his host country. Had Kenney been her country’s envoy to China and met with the Dalai Lama, she would have been kicked out! But the Arroyo regime didn’t object to her meeting with Murad. Neither did it, as far as I know, inquire about what the ambassador and the chairman talked about.

We can only speculate on what Kenney and Murad disscussed in their meetings. But the conspiracy theorist in me is beginning to believe that a deal has been made between the two. And that deal could very well be about the exploration and exploitation of Mindanao’s natural resources, which include, according to some, precious oil.

Now this probably explains the provision in the agreement that grants the proposed BJE the authority to establish trade and other economic agreements with foreign countries.

If my conspiracy theory is true– and I can say it is not far-fetched at all– then this would be the second time the Americans double-crossed the Filipinos. The first time was of course in 1898 when the Americans pledged to support Philippine independence just so they can get the Filipinos to fight and defeat the Spaniards for them, only to colonize the country afterwards.

Analysts say that if the creation of this BJE does not push through, the MILF can say that the Manila government negotiated in bad faith, which will give them the reason to declare outright independence. 

If this happens, will Washington recognize such declaration the way it supported Kosovo’s? I wish Kenney can answer this.

Clearly, there is a lot more about this Bangsamoro issue than what meets our eyes.