From studying at Madinah University in Saudi Arabia on a government
scholarship, to teaching at a madrassa (seminary) in the Philippine town
of Davao, to becoming a commander of the rebel Moro Islamic Liberation Front
(MILF), Ameril Umbra Kato's career has followed firmly one ideology - that sharia
is the only legitimate form of government for Philippine Muslims.
Now as the leader of a breakaway MILF rebel splinter group, he threatens to
undermine rejuvenated negotiations between the government and MILF, seen by
many as the best chance in years to resolve the decades old conflict on the
southern island of Mindanao. The 72-year-old Kato broke ranks with the MILF's
central leadership after Manila reneged on an earlier agreement in 2008 that
promised to give Moro Muslims autonomy over their traditional homelands.
He has since established the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom
Movement (BIFM) rebel group and has remained highly critical of the MILF's
perceived as useless negotiations with the government. The BIFM skirmished with
MILF fighters in July in a territorial dispute that left at least 24 guerillas
killed on both sides, according to local media reports. Kato is now trying to
rouse other rebel militias in his native Mindanao to stay true to the cause of
establishing an independent Islamic state rather than settle for an autonomy
agreement.
Kato first broke away from the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) when it
signaled in the 1980s it was willing to put down its arms in exchange for
autonomy agreement with Manila. The MNLF's negotiations with the Philippine
government led to the signing of the Jeddah Agreement in January 1987, which
was a departure from the MNLF's main demand at the time of the creation of an
independent Bangsamoro nation composed of Mindanao, the Sulu archipelago and
Palawan.
Anything less than full autonomy was unacceptable to Kato, which is why he
followed Hashim Salamat, an alumnus of Islamic Studies at Madrasat as-Sulatiyah
ad-Diniyah in Mecca and al-Azhar in Cairo, when Salamat founded the breakaway
MILF in 1977. Salamat and Kato were both influenced by the Islamic movements in
the Middle East and in particular the Muslim Brotherhood's Sayyad Quttib, and
they have since sought to bring about an Islamic awakening in Mindanao.
The MNLF's Jeddah agreement granted autonomous status to any Mindanao provinces
that opted for it in a plebiscite. After the 1989 plebiscite, only two Mindanao
provinces, Maguindanao and Lanao del Sur, and two provinces in the Sulu
archipelago, Sulu and Tawi Tawi, opted to do so in what became the
four-province Autonomous Region for Muslim Mindanao (ARMM).
With only four provinces to govern, then MNLF-leader Nur Misuari refused to
recognize the ARMM's territory as final. After the lengthy peace agreement
began to whither, Kato's contention that negotiations with the government for
anything but full autonomy for all of Mindanao's Muslims gained grass roots
validation.
Now he is once again playing the role of spoiler to peace talks between the
MILF and Benigno Aquino's government. Purporting to be advancing the vision
espoused by Hashim Salamat, which he claims has been abandoned by the current
MILF leadership, Kato is keeping the rebel spirit alive in Mindanao.
In late 2010, Kato began preparations to quit the MILF by setting up the BIFM
army of approximately 300 soldiers based in his native Maguindanao. In January
2011, he resigned his command in the MILF. Currently the BIFM's areas of
operations include North Cotabato, Maguindano, and strategic areas around
Liguasan Marsh, which is valuable territory because of the abundant gas
reserves it holds.
Although MILF leaders claim Kato has as many as 1,000 fighters and Kato claims
he has as many as 5,000, analysts believe both estimates are inflated. The
MILF, by comparison, has approximately 12,000 fighters. However, the
exaggerated numbers Kato claims may reflect a number of sympathizers within the
MILF who may join his BIFM if Kato's predictions about the negotiations, which
have recently stalled, come to fruition.
Both the MILF and Kato stand to gain by inflating the number of Kato's comrades
in arms. For the MILF, the possibility that failed negotiations will empower
Kato's army is leverage against the government, which may be inclined to accept
the MILF's terms rather than face the consequences of dealing with Kato's
harder line in the future. For Kato, many MILF fighters may switch allegiances
if the talks founder and may be encouraged to do so by boosted perceptions of
his army's strength.
As of late August, the peace talks between the MILF and the government that
were held in Kuala Lumpur were at a standstill. Aquino's negotiators have
proposed a formula known as "three components for one solution", including: a
roadmap for development and socio-economic rehabilitation in Mindanao; a peace
accord through the creation of a so-called Bangsamoro Commission which would
draft autonomy laws and supervise the implementation of the peace; and an
acknowledgement of historical injustices in Mindanao and an official retelling
of the history of Mindanao.
Kato claims that the MILF's acceptance of such a deal would not provide
Mindanao's Muslims "full autonomy" and would endanger his own survival because
he has been marginalized by the MILF's leadership. Kato also claims the
territory under his control is not covered by the government's Suspension of
Military Operations (SOMO) area held by the MILF and communities in the areas
of Maguindanao province have suffered from military incursions.
In Mindanao, where Christian Filipinos and Muslim Moros fight over land rights
and the MILF, MNLF and Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) vie for control of
territory, conflicts often escalate rapidly and draw in multiple armies. Since
2008, such conflicts have drawn the MILF, AFP, and BIFM into skirmishes with
one another and caused massive dislocation of civilian populations.
With his resentment toward the MILF growing and renewed peace talks between the
MILF and the government slowly falling apart, Kato is poised to play a decisive
role in Mindanao's future. Despite having a no-recruit policy, Kato's BIFM is
believed to be growing in support as the MILF fails to produce tangible results
at the negotiation table and thus rebel history is at risk of repeating itself
in Mindanao.
Jacob Zenn graduated from Georgetown Law's Global Law Scholar's Program
in 2011 and earned a Certificate in Refugee Law and Humanitarian Emergencies.
He worked at the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees Malaysia in
2009.
(Copyright 2011 Asia Times Online (Holdings) Ltd. All rights reserved. Please
contact us about sales, syndication and republishing.)
Head
Office: Unit B, 16/F, Li Dong Building, No. 9 Li Yuen Street East,
Central, Hong Kong Thailand Bureau:
11/13 Petchkasem Road,
Hua Hin, Prachuab Kirikhan, Thailand 77110
