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MALUSO,
Philippines, 17 October 2004 - Once feared because of its
image as a stronghold of Abu Sayyaf extremists, Basilan Island
in the southern Philippines is now considered a peaceful province
and a growing economic hub.
And
if provincial Gov. Wahab Akbar, a former Moro separatist leader,
has his way, he would place the island's 350,000 population under
American sovereignty.
"If
I have my way, I want Basilan to be part of the United States
and we will call this great land the State of Basilan, then we
can have better lives," Akbar told Arab News on Wednesday.
Akbar
made the statement as he welcomed US Ambassador to the Philippines
Francis Ricciardone and party during their visit to the island
to inspect projects being funded by the US Agency for International
Development (USAID).
"We
are a little better now, in terms of economy, we are slowly and
steadily picking up and thanks to the United States for its continued
support to Basilan. I and my people are thankful to America,"
Akbar said unabashedly.
Considered
one of the 20 poorest provin-ces of the Philippines two years
ago, Basilan this year ranked 18th of the country's more than
70 provinces for revenue collection.
Ricciardone
agreed that the island once ravaged by Abu Sayyaf ruthlessness
is now on its way to economic prosperity.
"From
the looks of it, Basilan is transformed. That's what we have hoped,
a combination of development assistance, working with the local
government units, government agencies, non-government organizations
and with the wise work of the AFP (Armed Forces of the Philippines)
that judiciously used their force against the bad elements," Ricciardone
told reporters.
Ricciardone
and Andrew Natsios, USAID administrator, visited Maluso town where
a port improvement is being implemented by the Growth Equity in
Mindanao (GEM) thru USAID funding.
"The
economy is coming up. Projects like these are intended to connect
the islands, to connect the economy and the people prosper," he
said.
With
the party were John Tsagronis, senior policy advisor of USAID
in Washington; Eugene Martin, executive director of the US Institute
of Peace; Jesus Dureza, Philippine presidential assistant for
Mindanao; and Gov. Parouk Hussin of the Autonomous Region of Muslim
Mindanao (ARMM).
Security
was tight and Filipino soldiers guarded the port area where Natsios
briefly spoke about the US support to help the Philippine government
rehabilitate many poor provinces in the strife-ridden southern
region.
"I
have a message of peace from President George Bush and Secretary
of State Collin Powell and we want to tell the Filipinos that
the United States will continue to help the Philippines in terms
of development projects. We are happy to help the Filipinos and
through these development projects we will achieve peace," Natsios
told a huge crowd of civilians, mostly Muslims, gathered at the
port.
Students
carrying small American flags, lined up a dirt road where the
US officials passed. They chanted the names of Ricciardone, some
were saying "Long Live America."
"We
are here to see the projects and we hope to provide more assistance
to the Filipino people. We are friends," Ricciardone told reporters.
Ricciardone's
group also handed over computer sets to the Basilan National High
School in Isabela City. President Bush had earlier cited the southern
Philippines as one of the biggest of his country's battlegrounds
against extremists.
The
Abu Sayyaf had been linked to the Indonesia-based Jemaah islamiyah
and the Al-Qaeda network, which have been blamed for numerous
terror attacks all over the world.
In
2001 when Abu Sayaf gunmen were holding three Americans and several
Filipinos in Basilan, Washington sent its special forces to train
Filipino troops in the southern Philippines. At the same time,
it sent military engineers to help improve Basilan's infrastructure
network.
Administrator
Nastios of USAID noted that Basilan has now the biggest share
of GEM-USAID community level projects in Mindanao. Of the 700
projects introduced and accomplished, Basilan got 200.
"We
are here to emphasize this pledge and help to the Philippine government
and help them to stabilize peace," Nastios said.
Gov.
Parouk Hussin also said that ARMM, known for its negative image
as the "most troubled spot in the country, has become one of the
provinces with the lowest crime rate based on the statistics of
the Philippine National Police."
Hussin
is overseeing many of the USAID-funded projects, which includes
electricity generation in the southernmost islands of Tawi-Tawi
province.
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