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Arroyo Unleashes Army To Crush "Rebellion"
by Kazi Mahmood for IslamOnline
KUALA LUMPUR, May 1 (IslamOnline & News Agencies) - In a bold move, with full confidence, Philippine President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo unleashed the army in order to "save the republic" on Tuesday, validating to jailed former president Joseph Estrada that she is in control of the country's leadership.
Arroyo was besieged at the Palace in Manila after thousands of pro-Estrada supporters packed in an angry mob stormed Malacanang in an attempt to oust her from power.
A ragged army of Estrada supporters, many of them young men from the slums and said by the authorities to be high on drugs and alcohol, turned the streets outside Malacanang presidential palace into a war zone.
The Red Cross tallied 138 injured and police made 103 arrests in the worst rioting to hit Manila since late dictator Ferdinand Marcos was toppled in 1986.
The army, however, stood by Arroyo's side, and the presidential guard used all means possible to repulse the unexpected assault early Tuesday night. The attack resulted in four deaths, including that of two policemen.
On Tuesday afternoon, Arroyo invoked emergency powers and declared "a state of rebellion" in Metro Manila. In a news briefing, presidential spokesman Rigoberto Tiglao explained that Arroyo was forced to declare a state of rebellion since the situation could no longer be considered a mere protest.
"This is no longer a protest but a criminal activity with the intent to topple the administration," Tiglao said. "We view this as a rebellion, which is similar to a rebellion by the Abu Sayyaf, for instance."
"Intelligence reports confirmed that there are armed groups who want to topple the government," Tiglao said.
He added that the move is only for a limited period, "just enough to last until all the perpetrators of this violent overthrow of government are neutralized."
Two pro-Estrada senators, and former police chief Panfilo Lacson, were arrested Tuesday afternoon, accused of instigating a crowd of Estrada supporters to march on the palace, thus endangering the presidency.
Observers in Manila said they felt this was the beginning of the end of an Estrada move to topple Arroyo and create another People Power-type movement, called EDSA (a shrine in Manila) III.
Before Estrada supporters were arrested, the Bureau of Immigration had issued a hold-departure order against several Estrada allies for their alleged participation in the plot to topple Arroyo.
Arroyo, bolder than ever, said in a press statement that she was relieved pro-Estrada forces did not succeed in buying out elements of the army to attempt a coup d'etat.
She said that if the opposition had attempted an armed plot to unseat her, it would have allowed her to "crush them".
During a news briefing at Malacañang, Arroyo said that Estrada supporters had seriously considered storming the Palace Sunday night, but they eventually backed out of the conspiracy.
"There would have been [an attempt] last night [Sunday]," the President said. "There was going to be a power grab, but it fizzled out."
"They planned to bring down the legitimate government so they could set up their own junta," a disheveled and sleepless Arroyo said in a television broadcast.
The alleged plot called for "a night of revolution," she added. "I was hoping they would act, so I could crush them."
Arroyo also said the government would have used, not just "reasonable" force on these groups, but "force without an adjective".
Commenting on the rioters themselves, Arroyo said, "Many were on drugs… it was as if they were programmed to hate."
Estrada, who is behind bars on plunder charges, faces death by lethal injection if found guilty. The charges against him are non-bailable according to Philippines laws.
Estrada's supporters have been demanding that Arroyo step down from the presidency and re-assume the vice presidency. They also want snap presidential polls to be conducted and, finally, the resumption of Estrada's abortive impeachment trial, in which pro-Estrada senators had walked out declaring they would not proceed further with the impeachment.
The latest news from Manila indicates that anti-Estrada rallyists and members of various cause-oriented organizations have started to gather once more at Edsa Shrine in Mandaluyong City Tuesday afternoon, just hours after the place was cleared of Erap (Estrada's nickname) loyalists, to start what they said is an overnight vigil.
Responding to an appeal by Manila Archbishop Jaime Cardinal Sin, citizens belonging to many groups and religious organizations helped in cleaning up the Edsa Shrine and began efforts to "reclaim" and "secure" the area in case Estrada loyalists choose to return.
The rallyists said they would hold an overnight vigil and pray for the enlightenment of Estrada's supporters, blamed for acts of violence and vandalism committed at Edsa.
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