The Republic Of The Philippines History Essay

The commonwealth Of The Philippines History EssayThe majority rule of the Philippines has a long and colorful archives with influences from numerous countries. It is primarily comprised of Roman Catholics in the north and Moslems, which be the minority, in the s protrudeh. The Islamics desire an freelancer Islamic state beca lend oneself they feel the authorities of the Philippines treats them as inferior. As their core accounts ar ignored, the Islamics resort to terrorist activities. The U.S. has identified them as threats to the Republic of the Philippines as well as U.S. interests. This paper identifies the internal threats, analyzes the situation and discusses recommended solutions to income tax re turn of events these terrorist transcriptions.Breeding Ground in the PhilippinesThe Confederate Philippines have long been a breeding understanding for terrorist activity (Bhattacharji, 2009). This is due to distress, a lack of cultivation as well as a lack of actual ize from their local anesthetic disposal. The Philippine giving medication gained their liberty in 1946 and has experienced numerous arm confrontations since. The United States (U.S.) has identified two internal threats deep down the Philippines. They are the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) and the Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG).The Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) is the ground from which both(prenominal) of the groups started. Both organizations are predominantly located in the self-governing Region of Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) covering Sulu, Mindanao, and Pa justicean located in the gray Philippines. It is eventful to at a lower placestand what the problem is and where it began in coordinate to be able to overcome it.The original settlers in Mindanao were Muslim and tribal re berthnts. In the 1950s, the Philippine presidential term gave away land to migrants and poor farmers from different(a) regions of the country. Christian settlers began populating Mindanao in a bundant numbers which soon ca procedured problems with the original inhabitants. The Muslim and tribal residents felt as though their way of manner, land, and sparing opportunities were being deprived. This grievance led to longing distrust between the Philippine government and the indigenous Muslim population. This in the end led to the birth of the MNLF within their region.The MNLF was founded in 1972 by Nur Misuari who was a prof at the University of the Philippines. This political organization was completed in shape to come off from the Philippines and establish an Islam state which would cover Sulu, Mindanao, and Palawan. The MNLF stated that represented the Philippine Muslim liberation movement which proceeded to start the Islam Insurgency in Mindanao. They intended to strive independence, or at a minimum local impropriety for the southern Philippines. The movement would posterior cost both sides great amounts in face-to-face sacrifice.thither were many lives lost during this insurgency with estimates ranging from 80,000 to 200,000 in total. Eventually the Philippine government would hold peace talks in 1976 with the MNLF which led to the capital of Libya Agreement being negotiated. The Tripoli Agreement basically set up a cease fire as well as autonomy with a broad understanding that Mindanao would remain get down of the Philippines. This agreement would intromit Muslims their own legislative assembly, economic and financial outlines, naturalizes, administrative transcription, executive council, courts, and particular(a) regional trade nourishion forces (Muslim Mindanao for journalists and another(prenominal) communicators, 2008).The cease fire eventually damage the MNLF more than it helped due to the internal factionalism which led to the group fragmenting into separate elements. in that location were disagreements within the organization on how to green goddess with the government. The more conservative members precious to hol d a violent insurgency while the liberal side favored non-violent opposition which led to a separation. The conservatives eventually left and unionized into the MILF.The MILF is the largest Islamic liberation organization in the Philippines with an estimated 15,000 active members, out of which 2,900 are troops. Salamat Hashim formed the MILF in 1977 and was backed by the ethnic Maguindanaos. Hashim received support from Egypt after the split and officially established the MILF on March 1984. Hashim didnt indirect request to accept treaties with the government and he wanted an Islamic education t overtakek in a more traditional manner. The MILF would experience the same issues later with the more ultra members leaving and forming the ASG (Economic expert.com 2010).The ASG is a more radical organization which splintered from the MILF because they too didnt agree with the way their mother organization dealt with the government. The ASG was founded by Abdurajak Janjalani in 1991 on t he island of Basilan. Janjalani fought in Afghanistan against the Soviet Union with the mujahedeen. The Abu Sayyaf task force was created in 1986 by an Afghan professor named Abu Sayyaf who operated his own guerrilla breeding school in the mountains near Peshawar, Pakistan (Barreveld, 2001). After returning to the Philippines, Janjalani formed the ASG to fight for an independent Islamic state in the southern Philippines. Janjalani named his group after his professor in Peshawar Abu Sayyaf-the Father of the Sword (Barreveld, 2001).In 1998 Abdurajak Janjalani was killed by the local police force in Lamatan, Basilan during a shoot out. This caused a power struggle within the organization which led to his younger brother Khadafi Janjalani eventually taking over. The government refers to them as bandits primarily because of their thug like activities. This organization is famous for purloin for ransom operations, piracy, operating with Al Qaeda (AQ), attacking the Catholic fraternity by conducting abductions of teachers, nuns as well as priests. They have extorted from wealthy business community and companies and have terrorized their community through bombings and massacres.Militant organizations like the ASG and the MILF operate in the Sulu archipelago and eastern some island of Mindanao, where a rugged terrain, weak rule of law, sense of grievance among the countrys Muslim minority, and poverty make it difficult for the government to root them out (Bhattacharji, 2009). Both groups are considered threats against the Republic of the Philippines. The United States considers them a threat because of their ties with AQ and global terrorist organizations.The United States and the Philippine government signed a treaty of habitual relations between the two governments on July 4, 1946. This treaty identified the independence of the Philippines as of July 4, 1946 as well as recognizing the relinquishment of American sovereignty over the Philippines. In February 1 987, the Philippines adopted a new constitution that instituted the presidential-style republican form of democracy, which resembles the U.S. model much more than the European parliamentary system (Library of Congress, 2006). The Philippines has a centralized form of government and federal rule of law which is supreme to the states or provinces. There are other organizations in the Philippines government that mirror the U.S. such as their multitude.The Armed bear ons of the Philippines ( alpha foetoprotein) is made up with four branches of service consisting of Army, Navy Air Force and Marines. In total the AFP has approximately 150,000 military personnel forces and about half of which are militia (Global security.org 2010). The AFP Army has a Light Reaction Battalion (LRB) apt in counter terrorist operations and is used often in invade today. The LRB was developed, equipped, and trained by U.S. Army particular(prenominal) Forces. The Philippine governments gross municipal p roduct exceeds $160 billion however they spend less than 1% of their GDP on military expenditures. Aside from the LRB most of the AFP is under equipped and poorly funded.The United States and the Philippines have a mutual defence reaction treaty that has been in effect since 1952. Total U.S. military assistance to the Philippines bloom from $38 million in 2001 to $164 million in 2005, which would make the Philippines the 4th largest recipient of U.S. foreign military assistance (Library of Congress, 2006). The U.S. is supporting the Philippines government by providing for their military. This coincides with how we are conducting Irregular Warfare (IW) when considering the Trinity model. There are other areas that bespeak to be addressed in the Philippines as well.Economic festering in the Philippines has averaged 4.5% per year since 2001. Despite this growth, poverty worsened during the term of Macapagal-Arroyo, because of a high population growth rate and inequitable distribut ion of income (Central parole Agency, 2010). Thirty three percent of the Philippine population lives below the poverty line. This leads to subversion and crime which drains resources available to further develope the government. It provide too undermines confidence in the government from the population. The Republic of the Philippines has an extreme problem with crime and corruption at all take aims because of poverty and lack of education across the country. This personal effects the governments ability to take care of the relevent populations critical inevitably.The Muslims in the Philippines consist of thirteen ethno-linguistics groups. The Muslims who traditionally inhabited Mindanao, the islands of Basilan and Palawan, and the Sulu and Tawi-Tawi archipelago in the south of the Philippines identify themselves as Bangsamoro (Lingga, 2004). Christian Malays make up over ninety percent of the total population, Muslim only make up about four percent, Chinese 1.5 percent, and others 3 percent (Library of Congress, 2006). Muslims are often treated like second crystallise citizens because of their minority status. This is part of the reason why they want independence in the ARMM. The Constitution guarantees freedom of religion and separation of church and state, but Christianity predominates, and Muslims historically have been marginalized (Library of Congress, 2006).The Philippine population communicates in many languages however English and Filipino (based on Tagalog) are the official languages spoken with eight other major dialects. There are additional barriers or obstacles the country has to deal with because of this. This leads into how they communicate across the Philippines.Cell phones are the primary method of communications in their country. The Philippines is known to be the text messaging capital of the world. digital phones currently outnumber the landlines based telephones. It is very common for the military to use their cell phones as a me ans of communication during operations. This has the potential for via media during missions, which causes their commanders to collect phones from the soldiers before theyre briefed on the details of the operation.The lack of education in the southern Philippines reduces the necessity for newspapers or magazines to be sold. The Philippines government will use billboards, posters, and the radio to communicate their message to the local population in Mindanao. Additionally, they also use the mayors and village leaders by word of mouth system through the military.As an archipelago, the Philippines have more than 1,000 ports, of which 117 are regarded as international ports. About 12 of the 117 international ports have major cargo and rider terminals (Library of Congress 2006). The ports in the southern Philippines need upgraded to support the fishing industry. lux percent of the roads are unpaved and the rest are in need of repair to some degree. The nucleotide needs upgraded in ali gn to support and build on the local economy.It is critical to address the political, military, economic, social, information, and infrastructure (PMESII) issues listed above. The Muslims will support the government and drop dead against the insurgency when their basic needs are being taking care of. This will in turn bolster the countries internal stability and will ensure that they have authenticity and influence over the relevant population.The U.S. realized how serious and evolving the global terrorist threat was after 9/11. The Philippines is an ideal location for AQ to establish training camps, base hit havens as well as recruitment base. Conditions for recruitment are perfective aspect when there is a lack of education bad economy, and there is a lack of support from the government. The U.S. goal is to eliminate or contain extremist Muslim terrorists organizations across the globe. The U.S. will do this in order to hold on our four enduring national interests which are sec urity, values, prosperity, and international order. The following paragraphs will explain the recommended way to defeat the terrorist threats.In order to do this in Mindanao both the U.S. and Philippines government will need to look at the consentient of government (WOG) concept and use the four elements of national power which are diplomatic, informational, military, and economic (D.I.M.E). Irregular Warfare (IW) is predominantly the U.S. way ahead when flavour at combating the insurgency. To be successful, IW will need to be utilise at all three levels of war.At the Strategic Level both countries will need to develop and fund plans to eventually gain reassure and influence over the relevant population. This is done at the national level and with ideally SOF elements used as the primary tool to get sign ground truth information to the decision makers. The U.S. deployed SOF forces into Mindanao in 2002 and are lock away conducting FID operations in the area today. The U.S. gov ernment will need to touch to monitor the status and make changes as necessary.The more indirect rise will be the focus when looking at the Operational Level. There is a Joint Special Operations Task Force (JSOTF) established in Zambowonga which takes the guidance and end state from the Strategic Level and applies it to tactical operations. The JSOTF is responsible for planning and conducting operations and campaigns. The enlisted staff positions needs to be make full with operators that have experience and ideally graduates of the Joint Special Operations Force Senior Enlisted Academy (JSOFSEA).The next level that IW would be employ is the Tactical Level. First Special Forces Group currently has a Special Operations Task Force (SOTF) on the island of Jolo. The SOTF is currently being run by a company rather than a battalion. This is due to the other requirements that need to be met in other countries. The Tactical Level is the most critical for numerous reasons. This is where t he plans come to life in order to replete the National Strategic Strategy (NSS). Whatever the operator does on the ground will either support the NSS or possibly hurt it.The U.S. military are conducting Foreign Internal Defense (FID) operations in the southern Philippines as part of the Operation Enduring Freedom-Philippines (OEF-P). They will need to extend to provide military assistance by training through, by, and with the AFP. As part of Operation Enduring Freedom-Philippines, U.S. military forces are strengthening the Philippines military and apply civic action to drive a wedge between rebels and the Muslim populace (Crisis Group, 2008).Philippine military and law enforcement agencies conducted intensive Civil-Military and internal security operations to eliminate terrorist safe havens in the Sulu Archipelago and central Mindanao (U.S. Department of State, 2009). many a(prenominal) of the programs that have been put in place are currently working. The economic development p rograms need more support from other countries. The Japanese government has been the largest provider of financial aid for Mindanao, having financed 166 different projects valued at a total of 363 million dollars since 2002 (Carames, et. al., 2008). The U.S. needs to work with other countries in order to get more participation in this area. The enticement or need to join the terrorists organizations will decrease if the jobs are available and the infrastructure is built up on the island of Mindanao and the ARMM.The State Departments USAID will need to continue to educate combatants from the MNLF, MILF, and ASG as well as providing micro-grants in order to bolster the economy. USAID as well as civilian non-government organizations (NGOs) will need to continue to work on infrastructure development. This is critical to the success of the campaign. When schools, roads, wells, and mosques are repaired the quality of life is dramatically improved.In conclusion eradicating the insurgency means an end to the unplumbed discrimination, respect for the Muslim religion in all its aspects. In order to minimize or stop the threat and terrorist activities we must attack ideologic and financial angles as well. Developing the economy, infrastructure and improving education in Mindanao will win over the local populace faster than use military force. This must be done in order to protect the Philippines national interests. The U.S. will continue to have an invested interest in the Philippines so that we can prevent Mindanao from becoming a safe haven and training ground for Muslim extremists across the globe.