Hearing it from the US state department, one would think American security personnel played no more than a peripheral role in the Mamasapano encounter. Here’s how its spokesperson, Jen Psaki, put it at the department’s daily press briefing last March 18: “At the request of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, personnel serving in the Joint Special Operations Task Force-Philippines responded to assist in the evacuation of casualties after the firefight. The operation was planned and executed by Philippine authorities.”
joma sison on mamasapano “Internal US policy disagreements may be behind Mamasapano tragedy” by Inday Espina-Varona
http://rp1.abs-cbnnews.com/blogs/opinions/03/21/15/internal-us-policy-disagreements-may-be-behind-mamasapano-tragedy
“Aftermath of Botched Philippines Raid Should Concern Washington” by Gregory B. Poling http://csis.org/publication/aftermath-botched-philippines-raid-should-concern-washington
One is amazed at the gaggle of culprits we have at Mamasapano, of which the US is one, for likely providing real time information during the attack. I wonder exactly what Randy David means, though, by the statement:
“A problem that most US forces have is that they are so focused on mission accomplishment they often lack the patience to let the host nation operate in accordance with its own capabilities as well as customs and traditions.”
Given the Americans in Napenas HQ, likely there to provide intelligence information, an allowed role, are said to have tried to get artillery fired by Pangilinan, a role that is disallowed.
Does David believe Americans trying to save SAF lives should not be done, because of the legal rule? Should the Americans have been patient and kept their yaps shut? Or, in battle, do you focus on the objective, as the Americans did, to win and to save lives?
It gets a little confusing, eh?
Let’s put aside the fact that no Filipino officer will take orders from foreigners, friendly or not. Let’s put aside even the chain of command that the AFP follows. The fact is the AFP ground commander said he was not given accurate target coordinates.
Considering how close the opposing forces were to each other, it was prudent for the AFP not to fire his artillery for fear of hitting the SAF commandos his artillery was supposed to save.
The American thought firing artillery in the general direction of the conflict would save SAF commandos, the AFP commander knew that firing in a general direction could kill SAF commandos.
The only one who seemed confused was the American observer who obviously had no idea of the consequences of what he was asking the AFP commander to do. Maybe more than 44 SAF commandos and 18 Moros would have died. It’s a good thing that the American observer had no power to call in a napalm airstrike. It would have been another case of “Kill’em all and let God sort it out.”
A little common sense goes a long way, Joe.
You have more details than I have. My assumption is the American may have had a good picture of the battlefield. If not, then you are right.
Skill would also help. If the artillery had time fuses, they could have fired an air-burst of white phosphorus over the suspected enemy locations and adjusted from there.
Lumabas na ang report ng MILF. Parang mas objective kesa dun sa BOI at Senate reports.
oo nabasa ko. i dont know about *objective.* parang more like defensive. narinig ko rin ang speech ni presidente sa PNPA. i thought he was going to tie it all up… in fact all he did was iterate his old excuse, he did not know it was going badly, in effect he did not say anything new except the paghingi ng pag-unawa. medyo mahirap unawain kung bakit super preoccupied siya sa zamboanga post-siege problems gayong napakaselan ng oplan exodus, at inaamin niyang alam niya na nagka-problema. di na niya inisip mag-follow-up on his own, alamin, usisain kung kumusta na.
Defensive in a way that pinapaliwanag nila yun side nila which I thought was valid din naman such as pinaputukan sila so nagpaputok din sila.
Kaya nga pag unawa.Abala siya sa Zamboanga kasi malaking bagay din para sa Zambangueño din ang pagdalaw at follow up niya post siege problems. At the same time buo ang tiwala niya dun sa mga pinoporward sa kanya na reports so hindi din natin masasabi na nagkulang siya dahil hindi siya nag take-over as ground commander.
Sa katotohanan lang, yun lang talaga ang masasabi niya tungkol sa nangyari at wala naman siyang masasabi na magiging sapat para dun sa buo na ang isip kung ano ang tingin nila nangyari, kung ano dapat ginawa niya, at kung ano dapat niyang gawin.
So may namatay sa operation mula sa magkabilang panig. Ganun talaga ang guerra. Hindi naman natin masasabi na kung ganito o ganun ang ginawa walang mamatay o konti lang ang mamamatay kasi oras na nagumpisa ang putukan nasa kamay na ng panginoon ang buhay ng mga kawal at rebelde. More planning? More coordination? Pwede. Pwede. Gawin na ang lahat, pwede pa rin pumalpak.
gets ko naman, boom. sana lang hindi ibig sabihin na di na natin malalaman kung anong naganap talaga, o di naganap, sa mamasapano between/among SAF, MILF, and AFP. a quest for information, the better to understand.
Sa palagay ko hanggang diyan na lang yan, wala ng maidadagdag sa atin kaalaman. Nagsubmit na ng report ang BOI at ang MILF. Ang senado tapos na ang hearings at binubuo na ang final version ng kanilang report. Yun Batasan hindi pa tapos mag hearing, baka may matuklasan pa na bago pero I am not optimistic.
Ang sa akin lang ang hindi ko nagustuhan sa nangyaring senate probe ay inuna ang fault-finding sa fact-finding.
Kaya tuloy nagkaroon ng opotunidad na gamiting platform ang hearing para mag moro-bashing ang mga unggoy na tulad ni alan peter. Pati yan si Brenda sinabi niya full of lies ang draft report pero pumirma siya.
Lumabas din yun pagka Imperial Manila ng mga ibang senador. Humingi ng proof of sincerity from the MILF when in fact e pinasok yung teritoryo nila ng hindi man lamang dumaan muna sa mga procesong napagkasunduan ng peace panels. Ewan ko kung ignorante yun mga senador o sumasakay lang sa popular sentiment na pro-SAF at anti-MILF.
Ang mali ng presidente ay hindi niya sinalubong yung mga patay. Hindi niya nabasa ang pulso ng taumbayan. Ikalawa, hindi niya ipinaliwanag kaagad ang role ni Purisima. Okay lang naman kung nandoon si Purisima kahit suspendido siya kasi siya ang familiar sa intel at oplans laban kay Marwan atbp. Ayun nagkaleche-leche tuloy. Naghahanap ng masisisi ang tao, siya ang tinamaan.
At oo nga pala, ang pangatlo niyang mistake ay sinisi niya kaagad si Napeñas. Sana hinayaan na lang niyang lumabas yun organically kasi talaga naman obvious yun mga mistakes ni Napeñas, lalabas sa testimony ng mga resource persons na itinuloy niya yun operation kahit sa umpisa pa lang e nagkawindang-windang na yung timetable. E tinira niya kaagad si Napeñas so natural iisipin ng tao na pinagtatakpan niya yun bata niyang si Purisima at naghuhugas kamay siya. Hay buhay…:-)
“A heavy price paid for botched terrorist raid by Philippines and U.S.”
http://www.latimes.com/world/asia/la-fg-botched-terror-raid-20150910-story.html
‘Marwan killed by aide’
MILF says it’s the only truth on Mamasapano
http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/721568/marwan-killed-by-aide
“Iqbal’s version aims to condone massacre” by Jarius Bondoc
http://www.philstar.com/opinion/2015/09/14/1499546/iqbals-version-aims-condone-massacre