The Men of "A" Co, 41st Inf. Bn in the Battle of Camp Barkat, Tipo-tipo, Basilan

A military operation to carry out Oplan Kansulod was conducted by 41IB, 4ID, PA in the area of Tipo-Tipo, Basilan from 22 to 30 January 1979 to clear objectives from the control of secessionist Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) rebels. During that time Muslim secessionist rebellion was still at its peak in Mindanao.  

Tipo-Tipo, Basilan where my battalion was deployed was a poor municipality with small population of mostly Muslim Yakan tribe. It was one of the hot spots where bloody armed encounters between government soldiers and Moro rebels frequently took place. The municipality has a rolling terrain with low hills and plains. The vegetation in the surroundings are coconut trees, coffees, forests especially in elevated grounds and scattered small areas of under developed corn or rice fields. There are also balono and balite trees especially along the unpaved road connecting the municipality to Lamitan. Because of the armed conflict, the people converged in the municipality proper or in the small villages and leaving large areas uninhabited.   

The battalion’s operating units were composed of Alpha and Bravo Companies. I was assigned as one of the platoon leaders of Alpha Company. During that time I was a 26-year old lieutenant, and most of my men were younger than me. The other platoon leaders were Lt Feliciano Lao and Lt Reynaldo Gonzales who was also the executive officer. Our company commander was Lt Isidro Reyes.

Our operational area was a place that was abandoned by the populace. In it were few dilapidated houses that were long unoccupied. Seldom did locals venture there lest they would be mistaken for a rebel. There were coconut trees and coffees with unharvested ripe berries. Flying lemurs or “kagwang” unmindful of our presence did their routine gliding from one coconut tree to another. If not for the chirping of birds or sound of other wild animals the place would be totally still. In the evening the roar of pump boat in the coastal village of Bojelibung was audible. Despite the serene atmosphere, past incidents served to warn those who would be there that it was a dangerous place to stay because the enemies were seasoned warriors who were veterans of many battles not only in Basilan, but also in neighboring islands. And they had much familiarity with the terrain as well as the local populace to boot.

Initially, the operation went smoothly as planned. The company was able to clear out all its early objectives. The enemies were dislodged and fled away after brief skirmishes.Then final phase of our operation came. The exit point was the small village of Limboupas. On our route of advance was a certain area that was called Camp “Barkat”. But in there was no camp at all and there were no inhabitants. That place was virtually a battle ground with a notoriety of being the site of battles between government soldiers and MNLF rebels where both sides suffered heavy casualties.

In the afternoon, after lunch, Alpha and Bravo Companies broke camp for the conclusion of the operation. Bravo Company moved ahead of Alpha. After several minutes we followed suit. And hours later as we moved on, we heard sound of gun fires. At first, we thought that there was no cause of concern because gunfire sound was just common occurrence in the locality even in ordinary days. But the sound kept getting louder and louder so that we sensed that something was amiss. Over the radio, Lt Reyes called Bravo Company. It was the radioman who answered him that they were being ambushed. Later, there was no longer reply when Lt Reyes asked for more information which alarmed him.

Acting with dispatch, Lt Reyes then ordered his platoon leaders and key NCOs to advance toward the direction of the gun fires. Along the way, the radio man of Bravo and some NCOs who were separated from their comrades emerged, joined us and narrated the incident. Finding the site of the encounter, the company continued its advance. But as we get near, we were met with a deafening sound of fires accompanied by hail of bullets. Because of the heavy fires, the men had to crawl and creep using bushes and young coconut trees as concealment and cover. At times, amid the heavy exchange of fires, I could hear the whizzing of bullets just a few inches over my head.

Our advance ended in an place where there was an open area that looked like an abandoned cornfield. Further advance was difficult because it would render us a sitting duck of enemy snipers. The enemies could not advance to us either because they too would be exposed to the same predicament. In our position we only had bushes and young coconut trees to protect ourselves. The enemies on the other hand had a more vantage position being in a higher forested ground.  

From their respective positions the two sides exchanged intensive fires. The officers and the key NCOs had to tell their men to control their fire lest they ran out of ammunition. In the heat of the gun battle, our machine gunner was hit by a sniper bullet on the leg. Lt Reyes had to order the medics to bring him to the rear for treatment. The fierce firing continued and neither side could get the upper hand because the space separating them was an open field which could make an advancing soldier or a rebel a sure hit of a bullet.

As the fighting continued, the late afternoon was inching into the evening, and with it the volume of fires gradually dwindled. When darkness fell, the firings on both sides stopped but they were just observing each other. The officers told their men to dig in, hold their positions and prepare to brace themselves for an assault by the enemy. We felt that the enemy was just there in the near vicinity but they were probably expecting us to initiate the attack. But nothing came to happen that evening until the break of dawn.

When morning came reinforcing troops from the battalion headquarters with an Armored Personnel Carrier (APC) joined the company. Even with more troops in the scene, the rebels still gave their parting shoots before withdrawing from the area. And shortly thereafter, the dead were recovered and the wounded were evacuated.

The battle of Camp Barkat, Tipo-Tipo, Basilan was a memorable and cherished event in the mind of the officers and men of Alpha Company as well as Bravo Company, 41^st Infantry Battalion who participated in it. Kudos to the heroic soldiers especially those who were wounded or gave up their lives. I would also like to pay tribute to the late retired Colonel Isidro Reyes who as a lieutenant commanding our Company was able to weather the storm despite the overwhelming odds against us. With his good leadership, he was able to hold at bay the well positioned and numerically superior enemies with only one fatality in Alpha Company. I also extend my deep appreciation to our gallant machine gunner, the late Pfc Santiago who lost his life in the battle.

Malaysia Getting a Dose of Its Own Medicine in the Sabah Conflict

A 19th century flag of the Sultanate of Sulu

The failure of the Philippine government to successfully take the territory of Sabah in Malaysia North Borneo for itself, and the relegation of the issue to the back burner to foster diplomatic and economic relation with Malaysia made the heirs to the Sultan of Sulu take the matters into their own hands over the ownership issue of the resource-rich place.                                                                                                                  

Former Philippine President Diosdado Macapagal’s official reminders to Great Britain that Sabah belonged to the Sultan of Sulu and by extension to the Philippine government  just fell on deaf ears when that country included Sabah in the Malaysian Federation in 1963. President Ferdinand Marcos who succeeded Macapagal made a drastic move to take Sabah by secretly training Tausug recruits in a secluded island in Corregidor to infiltrate the disputed territory. The plan failed when the recruits knew of their mission and mutinied. To cover the plot, their military trainers gunned them down. However, one recruit was able to escape by floating and swimming in Manila Bay. The privilege speech of Sen. Benigno Aquino Jr in the senate revealed the incident which was termed “The Jabidah Massacre”. The report so incensed the Filipino Muslims that it sparked their rebellion in the 70’s.

One of the early sultans of Sulu (second from right, sitting)

(Photo from Wikipedia)

The armed conflict that followed came with a big cost to the Philippine government.  The fighting lasted almost two decades and claimed more than 100,000 lives of soldiers, Moro rebels and Christian and Muslim civilians. It also displaced millions of people in Mindanao and worsened the incidence of poverty in the already economically depressed affected areas.

It is believed that Malaysia added fuel to the fire of the conflict in Mindanao. Sabah Malaysia was used as a safe refuge of Filipino rebels taking a respite from the fighting. It was also used as a training ground for Filipino Muslim rebels and a point where arms and ammunition were smuggled to different landing areas in southern Philippines.

The escape of some Filipino Muslims from the conflict in the 70’s have increased the number of Sulu immigrants to Sabah which is just an hour of boat ride from the nearest islands of Tawi-tawi in Mindanao. Moreover, the Sabah government’s process of aggressive Islamization deliberately encouraged the immigration of Filipino, Indonesian and even Pakistani Muslims into Sabah. From 37.9% of Muslims in 1960, Sabah’s Muslims are now 65.4% of the total population.

The recent conflict in Sabah started when the Sulu Royal Army of the Sultanate of Sulu landed in Lahad Datu, Sabah on February 12, 2013 purportedly to return to the land that belongs to them. They were given ultimatums by the Malaysian government to leave the area to prevent violence and bloodshed. The Philippine government too pleaded to Sultan Jamalul Kiram to order his men to unconditionally return to the Philippines.

When a peaceful means to resolve the standoff failed, the Malaysian troops assaulted the Sulu Royal Army’s position resulting to casualties on both sides with the Sulu Royal army suffering the heavier losses. Later, fighter jets and artilleries were used to pound the Sulu Royal Army’s position. Ground troops also surrounded the militants. The death toll now is 61 including eight from the side of the Malaysians.

The United Nations ordered a cessation of hostilities. Sultan Kiram then took the opportunity to declare a unilateral ceasefire to relieve pressure on his beleaguered troops. Malaysia however, refused to accept a truce unless Kiram’s army unconditionally surrenders to the Malaysians.

Despite the continuous bombardments from the Malaysians, the Kirams say that their army’s command and control group is still safe and sound. And that most of their fighters know the terrain of the place like the palm of their hands and that they are protected and provided refuge by the Tausugs who are residents of the area. It still remains to be seen whether the Malaysian authorities can annihilate the militants or the later will be able to mount protracted guerrilla warfare against the Malaysian forces and its government.