American soldiers in Monday's Sulu killings?

(Published in Zamboanga Today on February 10, 2008.)

The widow of Private First Class Ibnon Wahid and some other local residents of Barangay Ipil, Maimbung, Sulu claim to have seen one to four American soldiers in Monday's killings at said area. These testimonies are raising furor among local folk who now say that US soldiers should not be allowed to be in any part of Sulu province.
Yesterday, an anti-US organization issued a statement that reads: "The Stop the War Coalition condemns in the strongest possible terms the brutal massacre of innocent civilians in Sulu.

A survivor's claim that US troops participated in perpetrating the massacre
demands a full hearing and a thorough investigation. Her claims are credible: As a survivor, she directly witnessed the incident. As a witness, she has nothing to gain but expose herself to danger by accusing the US troops of complicity in the murders. Moreover, her statement corroborates previous claims that US troops have been engaged in active combat in the Philippines.

The Stop the War Coalition demands the suspension of US military deployment
to the country -- including the stationing of the Joint Special Operations
Task Force-Philippines and the scheduled Balikatan exercises -- pending the
result of an investigation."
The Philippine Constitution does not allow foreign military forces to participate in combat operations while within Filipino territory. The US forces under the Joint Special Operations Task Force-Philippines are not exempt from this, nor are the visiting US forces under the annual bilateral military exercises dubbed as 'Balikatan'.
The laws governing US military presence in the country have confined specifically participation in combat operations to advising Philippine Armed Forces, training our AFP units in counter-insurgency and counter-terrorism tactics and strategies, and participating in civil-military operations. The latter is for the purpose of bringing in development such as humanitarian programs in the locality, specifically in the area where there are suspected terrorists or where the most wanted terrorists are believed and identified by the intelligence units of the Philippine Armed Forces."
With respect to the recent killings in Sulu, a local testified having seen an American soldier rowing a rubber boat, and having seen 4 US soldiers in the naval boat that awaited the victims to be evacuated to the mainland. The main witness, a widow of one of the integrees who was on vacation to be with his family during the incident, however had not stated categorically that the American soldiers seen were actually firing shots at them.
US military in the Philippines are here to advise and support the Philippine military. If US facilities were used in the operations, it could not be done without a prior request by the Philippine military, and these soldiers cannot just be at the site without the request of the forces on the ground and the approval of the Western Mindanao Command.
While investigations may still be conducted, this could be the loophole. One yet has to find the definition of 'participation in active combat operations' because the word 'active' may mean being at the combat zone, fully armed, and exchanging fires. In which case, the US forces may not be covered by such accusations and all these ranting will merely fall flat in court. (Frencie L. Carreon)