Hearings requested on U.S. role in Philippines
By William Cole
Advertiser Military Writer
Questioning whether U.S. objectives can be met without sending troops into the battle zone, U.S. Rep. Neil Abercrombie is seeking congressional hearings on the deployment of American soldiers to the Philippines as part of of the campaign against terrorism.
Advertiser library photo • April 21, 2001
Abercrombie, D-Hawai'i, on Monday wrote a letter to House Armed Services Committee Chairman Bob Stump of Arizona asking for hearings "at the earliest opportunity" on U.S. military involvement in the Philippines.
U.S. Rep. Neil Abercrombie is concerned about U.S. troops in the Philippine battle zone.
Terms for a military exercise aimed at helping Manila wipe out Muslim extremist group Abu Sayyaf were finalized yesterday after the two countries settled a month-long disagreement over ground rules and decided U.S. troops would be under Philippine military control.
Approximately 660 U.S. troops are part of the effort, including 160 special operations troops expected to assist Filipino soldiers on Basilan Island. The force includes more than two dozen members of Special Operations Command Pacific from Camp Smith. Soldiers will be armed, but are required to fire only in self-defense.
"(But) there has not even been agreement on what to call this military action," Abercrombie said. What Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld terms a "training opportunity" with "the possibility of an exercise," the Philippine government labels an "exercise," Abercrombie said in the letter.
"All of these terms mask the truth — that American soldiers have been sent into a hostile area to help kill or capture members of a criminal organization," he said.
The "evasions and uncertainties" suggest a lack of agreement that could impede or endanger U.S. soldiers, he added. Among the issues Abercrombie said need to be examined include whether objectives can be accomplished without the presence of U.S. troops in the battle zone.
Abercrombie also notes that Abu Sayyaf is not the only rebel element in the southern Philippines. "How do we conduct operations against one without targeting the personnel and assets of another," he asked.
