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Mount​ ​Holyoke​ ​College​ ​Center​ ​For​ ​The MOUNT HOLYOKE COLLEGE CENTER FOR THE ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ STUDY OF POLITICAL VIOLENCE ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ October 27, 2017 ​ ​ ​ ​ Marawi Has Been Liberated, But What Now? ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Filipino efforts to crush extremism will likely be in vain unless core concerns are addressed. ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Samantha Kell ​ ​ Romeo Ranoco / Reuters. ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Five months after the start of militant occupation in the city of Marawi, the Filipino government has finally declared the area liberated. Islamic extremism is not a unique, nor a new phenomenon ​ ​ in the Philippines, and has become a plague that terrorises most of the world. Militant groups capturing major cities has happened before, most infamously with the Maute Group--the ISIS-linked group that led the occupation of Marawi--taking Lanao del Sur in a brutal attack on ​ the Armed Filipino forces (AFP). ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Here, it’s important to look briefly at the history of extremism in the Philippines--why it arose and what continues its prominence in the Roman Catholic-majority nation. In addition to the Maute Group, other major players are the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF), Abu Sayyaf, and Ansar Khalifa Philippines (AKP). Two of these groups--BIFF and Abu Sayyaf--broke off from a separatist movement called the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) that advocated for autonomy of the Muslim-dominated regions in the Philippines--most notably the island of Mindanao and a few small surrounding areas. It formed in the 1960s after the Jabidah massacre, an incident in which an estimated 23 Moro (Muslim) military trainees were ​ killed by the AFP. In 1976, they brokered a peace deal, the Tripoli Agreement, with the Filipino ​ ​ government with the aid of Libya. ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ The Jabidah massacre is suspected to have been a government plot, though no perpetrators have ever come forward, continuing the culture of unsettlement and dissatisfaction. From there, groups like BIFF and Abu Sayyaf broke off, calling for full independence of Mindano rather than autonomy. Resorting to terrorism to resist the government and draw attention to themselves, Abu Sayyaf--formed in 1991 and known as the “ISIS of the Philippines”--is known as one of the most brutal groups, having killed 116 people in the bombing of a passenger ferry in 2004. The ​ Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters formed in 2010, though both offshoots of MILF see the origin group as a detriment to their policy, and both sides have claimed the other “irreconcilable ​ adversaries”. ​ The Maute Group also formed as an offshoot of MILF, and has actively clashed with government forces since its founding in 2012. With strong influence allowing it to terrorize major cities, the Maute group quickly took the limelight as the main perpetrator behind the battle of Marawi. AKP emerged in 2014 with a video pledging allegiance to the Islamic State, and has largely worked alongside other existing and more well known groups, like the Maute Group and Abu Sayyaf. In the aftermath, The Maute brothers--Abdullah and Omar--have been killed, as well as the ​ ​ wanted terrorist Ipsilon Hapilon, which will majorly cripple terrorist action in the near future. However, a large problem still remains: extremism grew as a result of government negligence ​ due to the expanding war on drugs. Terrorist Activity has risen sharply in the past year. The Maute Group was able to capture Lanao del Sur and Marawi, and bomb Davao City, all since 2016. While Duterte has promised a crackdown on terrorism and extremism, resources are already spread thin with his ongoing campaign, and this doesn’t address the concerns at the heart of the issue of Moro treatment and repression. Without more in-depth action, terrorism will not be stopped in the Philippines, just further delayed as leaders are killed and replaced. ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​.
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