Partido Lakas ng Masa (PLM) commiserates with the families of the police forces slain in the encounter in Mamasapano, Maguindanao.

We join the voices of people calling for an open and independent investigation on what really happened during the encounter.

So far we have heard the explanations from SAF chief Getulio Napeñas, from acting PNP chief Leonardo Espina, and even from President Noynoy Aquino himself. But their statements spawned a lot of questions that still need answers.

Who from the higher-up really ordered the SAF operation? This is a critical issue as the answer will pinpoint the degree of responsibility of those involved in the botched operation which claimed the lives of 44 police commandos and other combatants and non-combatants in the area.

We want to know the role of the U.S. forces in the operation, as there are reports that they were in the vicinity right after the operation. The United States was also responsible for offering the bounty of $9 million dollars for the heads of Murwan and Usman, and it could have been informed of the operation beforehand.

Only through an open investigation conducted by an independent body, such as the Commission on Human Rights, with the participation of concerned people’s organizations and civil society organizations, especially in the Bangsamoro region, can the truth be known, and appropriate actions taken.

Lastly, PLM reiterates its support to the draft Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL) as a step towards attainment of peace and autonomy for the Bangsamoro people. We are concerned that the BBL, already watered down, will be stymied by legislators clamoring for the punishment of the MILF. We find the demands of Senator Frank Drilon and others for the MILF’s surrender of Usman and Arwan, both of whom do not belong to the MILF, ludicrous and merely designed to scuttle the BBL process. We definitely reject the calls of right-wingers to go back to the all-out war policy and to use the horrendous incident to inflame hatred against the MILF and the Bangsamoro people.

PLM, January 29, 2015