Walking a tightrope over the Iraq uprising

WHAT’S a war so many thousand miles away got to do with us? Do we fly back the 98-man Philippine humanitarian contingent we had sent to Iraq to keep them out of harm’s way? Do we also repatriate the 3,000 Filipinos working there in the employ of companies?

Why are these Filipinos in Iraq in the first place? It seems so remote and hostile a country to be hosting Filipinos.

It all started last year, when the US-led “Coalition of the Willing” drove out Saddam Hussein from power and occupied Iraq. The reconstruction needed help from the coalition partners and the Philippines was one of the countries that sent humanitarian contingents for medical, reconstruction and security work. The other Asian countries that sent their own contingents, which were bigger than ours, were Japan, South Korea and Thailand.

Incidentally, the Philippines was the first country in Asia that supported US President George W. Bush when he declared a global war against terrorism after the terror attacks on New York and Washington on September 11, 2001.

The Philippines has since been on the forefront of the antiterror war in Southeast Asia where the Osama bin Laden’s al-Qaeda has linked up with the Jemaah Islamiah, a group that wants to set up an Islamic state in the area in the long term but has focused on targeting Western interests in its terror plot. It was reported to be responsible for the bombing at Bali, Indonesia, where some 200 people, mostly Western tourists, died.

Jemaah Islamiah is also believed to have linked up with Abu Sayyaf in Jolo and Basilan. Abu Sayyaf, which is known for kidnappings, killings and beheadings, was responsible for a 2002 explosion in Zamboanga where an American soldier died.

The US has helped the Philippines fight Abu Sayyaf through antiterror training of Filipino soldiers and through military aid.

The Philippines’ commitment to the global antiterror war prompted the country to send a small contingent of soldiers, policemen and humanitarian workers to Iraq to help in the reconstruction there. Also, 3,000 other Filipinos are in Iraq because of jobs they got in companies that have contracts in that country. It’s really the prospect of earning money for sending home to their families back here that prompted these Filipinos to take jobs in Iraq.

But Iraq wasn’t a paradise after Saddam’s regime was driven out. The Shi’ite Muslim majority was restless, frustrated and impatient for change. It took a young, radical cleric Muqtada al-Sadr to rouse the Shi’ites to a rebellion and before long his militants were on a rampage west and south of Baghdad, with killings and abductions involving the military and civilian targets alike. Although the Shi’ites make up the majority in Iraq, they were persecuted under the regime of Saddam, who was a Sunni Muslim. The Sunni Muslims, although the minority, controlled political power under Saddam.

So far, there is not Filipino casualty in the recent rampage. However, a Filipino truck driver was abducted but was later released along with other foreigners.

Now, what to do? Do we pull out the Filipino contingent there? Do we evacuate the 3,000 Filipino workers?

There is a clamor for the return of the 98-man contingent on ground that they may be caught in the crossfire, not to mention that they might be targets for kidnapping as the Iraq rebels want to send the signal that punishment might come to foreigners who support the US occupation in Iraq.

President Arroyo is walking a tightrope on the issue of support for the US occupation in Iraq. She has to show his unflagging support for the US at this time by keeping the Filipino contingent there. We cannot be like Spain, whose new Socialist government has announced it was pulling out its 1,400 troops from Iraq after the commuter train bombings in Madrid on March 11 were traced to Islamic terrorists. It was apparently a cop-out on the part of the new Spanish government.

President Arroyo’s support to the US effort is a double bladed sword. It may win her support from the Bush administration in return, now that she is seeking a fresh six-year term as president. But at the same time, she has to be careful that her stand on Iraq does not become an election issue against her. Luckily for her, it has not been raised in the election campaign. But if there are Filipino casualties in the violence-torn Iraq, it would become a poll issue and might even cost her votes.

The case of the 3,000 Filipino workers in Iraq may have to be treated differently. With our country having 3.9 million jobless, it would be better for the 3,000 workers to stay in Iraq. Let’s just hope that the violence in Iraq does not escalate so the Filipino workers won’t have to be evacuated back to the Philippines where they will only join the ranks of the unemployed.

From: http://www.manilatimes.net/national/2004/apr/21/yehey/opinion/20040421opi2.html