ZAMBOANGA CITY (Mindanao Examiner / Mar. 2, 2013) – Members of the Sulu sultanate who are holed up in Sabah’s Lahad Datu town fired mortars on Malaysian security forces that triggered a brief battle that left 12 people dead on both sides, sources said.
It said the attack killed 2 Malaysian policemen and wounded three others – a police commando and two army soldiers – in the village of Tanduo. It said a post manned by Malaysian Special Forces was also hit by mortar fire.
“Malaysian troops were fired upon first by the Suluk. Two Malaysian police died and two army troops were also injured by Sulu army mortar fire. Malaysian SF is still in place. The SF has not fired a single shot. One of the SF post was hit by a mortar round fired by the Sulu army. They have the intention to stay put and fight,” one source told the regional newspaper Mindanao Examiner.
It said about 200 followers of Sulu Sultan Jamalul Kiram headed by his brother Raja Muda Agbimuddin Kiram have occupied the village since last month and demanded that Malaysia recognize and allow them to stay in Sabah which is being claimed by both the Sulu Sultanate and Malaysia.
Among those killed on the Malaysian side were a police inspector and a sergeant and 10 from the side of Sultan Kiram.
Sultan Jamalul confirmed that 10 of his followers were killed and that four others are wounded in the fighting which he claimed was triggered by an attack by Malaysian forces without any provocation. Those killed were buried immediately in Lahad Datu, according to Abraham Idjirani, a spokesman for Sultan Jamalul.
The source said Agbimuddin’s followers have dug trenches around the village which has been cordoned off by Malaysian security forces.
“The Sulu army are well dug in. They do not want to leave Sabah. They demand for Malaysian to recognize them as Royal Sulu Army and to stop Malaysian government from deporting Suluk from Sabah. The Malaysian SF has not assaulted Sulu army position. Still hoping there will be no bloodshed,” it said.
Manila on Saturday called on followers of Sultan Jamalul to surrender peacefully to avoid further bloodshed.
Sec. Ricky Carandang, chief of President Benigno Aquino’s Communications Development and Strategic Planning Office, said: “Since the onset, our primary goal had been to resolve the situation without violence. That is why President Aquino urged the followers of the Kiram family to lay down their arms and return home, so that their grievances can be addressed through sober, productive dialogue.”
“There now exists a small window of opportunity to arrive at a peaceful conclusion to the situation in Lahad Datu; we are exerting every effort to seize that opportunity, and are hopeful that the Kiram family and their followers will seize it with us, so that further bloodshed may be avoided.”
Purported photos of slain followers of Sultan Jamalul also surfaced in Facebook, but they were actually library pictures of dead Thai soldiers. Some reports in Facebook also claimed that as many as 60 Malaysian troops died in the clashes and that it was not reported by the Malaysian media.
Sultan Jamalul vowed to fight for their historical rights over Sabah, which was called Borneo in the past, and said they are ready to give up their life to defend themselves against attacks by Malaysian security forces.
He said his brother phoned him to report about the situation in Lahad Datu.
“Buhay pa naman yun kapatid ko at kausap ko siya kanina lang…tuloy itong laban na ito…kung mapatay nila ang aking kapatid eh may kapatid pa kami, marami pang mga tao diyan (na magtatanggol sa Sabah),” Sultan Jamalul said.
Local Muslims said they are supporting the Sultanate of Sulu and North Borneo and vowed to retaliate should Malaysia attack and killed the leaders of Sultan Jamalul in Sabah.
“Tiyak na maghihiganti ang mga Moro kung totoo ang balitang marami ang namatay sa Sabah. Pati MNLF at Abu Sayyaf at NPA ay maghihiganti,” said Bensaudi Tulawie in Zamboanga City.
He said Manila should throw its support to Sultan Jamalul instead of threatening them and their families with criminal charges for making a strong stand on the Sabah claim.
Bensaudi said he and his families and friends would also campaign strongly against Aquino’s senatorial slate because of the government’s pressure on Sultan Jamalul to give up and return home and save bilateral relations with Malaysia. “We shall campaign hard against Aquino’s senatorial line up, especially those who are also critical on the issue of Sabah,” he said.
Mid-term elections for the local and national candidates in the Philippines are set on May this year, and how Aquino handles any issues regarding about Muslims and Islam are being closely watched in the South. (Mindanao Examiner)
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