global terrorism, mindanao muslims, and philippine-american relations

in a recent issue of the international herald tribune, nicholas platt expressed his views regarding the relationship of the united states with the republic of the philippines, especially in light of president gloria arroyo's withdrawal of filipino troops from iraq. the u.s. described it as an encouragement to terrorist hostage-taking. platt, a former u.s. ambassador to the philippines, argues that the relationship between the two nations must be evaluated from a bigger picture. he also affirmed the importance of the philippines as a u.s. ally in a war against global terrorism.

i am impressed with the depth and sincerity of his analysis, particularly with the issue of muslim separatist movement in mindanao:

the mindanao region in the southern philippines is the scene of a bloody decades-long conflict between separatist muslim rebels and the manila government, which has resulted in thousands of casualties and displacement and disruption of lives. at the heart of this conflict are muslim filipinos known as the bangsamoro people, who have long sought self-determination, right to land and greater equality...as all sides take a fresh look at the negotiations, there is an important job ahead for the foreign-policy research community. we need to understand in greater depth the critical issues for the bangsamoro people, including the status of ancestral land, autonomy and political rights, increased resources for schools to improve education including in the madrassas, greater equity and economic opportunities. it is these issues, rather than radical islam, that drive the separatist conflict.

arguably, the best source of knowledge on these questions are muslim intellectual leaders from mindanao communities. but the united states has so far denied them a hearing. earlier this may, when some 20 credentialed experts and stakeholders were scheduled to meet at a conference on mindanao at the asia society in new york, u.s. authorities at the los angeles airport detained professor abhoud syed lingga, a filipino muslim and chair of the bangsamoro people's consultative assembly. professor lingga, who represents a thoughtful muslim perspective on the mindanao conflict, had a valid u.s. entry visa, and a track record of participating in other international events, including at the united nations.

but on arrival he was labeled "inadmissible into the united states" and flown back to manila. in a show of solidarity, the other speakers cancelled, and the conference was called off. the incident was front-page news in mindanao for a week.

the conference has been rescheduled for late september. the asia society, in cooperation with the u.s. institute of peace and the woodrow wilson center for international scholars, is inviting, among others, representatives of the u.s. government, military officials and policy experts to discuss the challenges for resolving the mindanao conflict. allowing muslim leaders to speak and u.s. officials to hear them this time would be an important step in the right direction.

u.s.-philippine relations have long been close. the united states is the philippines' largest trading partner and a major source of development assistance, much of it focused in mindanao.

manila was among the first governments to embrace u.s. anti-terrorism policy after 9/11. it is time for washington and manila to resume and redouble their cooperation both on the global war against terrorism and for a negotiated tend to the conflict in mindanao.

i hope many americans would listen to him, especially those hawks in the white house. would george w. bush really listen? i hope so... i hope so...wow! i have such high hopes, eh?