UP prof raises questions on Janjalani DNA results

A University of the Philippines professor on Monday raised questions on whether the remains dug up by security forces in December and subjected to DNA tests were that of Abu Sayyaf chieftain Khadaffy Janjalani. Ma. Corazon de Ungria, head of UP DNA analysis laboratory, said the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) was able to establish, through the DNA test it conducted, that the body was owned by the brother of Hector Janjalani. But it remained unclear if the remains were that of Khadaffy, she said in an interview with GMA News' Unang Hirit. She said that based on what she read from the newspapers, Khadaffy has four other brothers. She said there is a possibility that the body does not belong to the ASG leader but to his other brothers. "Kasi wala silang ante-mortem…kung me ante-mortem sila direct comparison yun between Janjalani's ante mortem and Janjalani's post mortem. Ngayon ang na-establish ng FBI ang bangkay na ito ay sa kapatid ni Hector," she said. Meanwhile, GMA News' Flash Report said Abubakar Janjalani, father of Khadaffy, still refused to believe that it was his son who was killed by the military. The Janjalani patriarch said his family will not believe the claim of the military until they see the remains of his son. He believed that his son is still hiding in Mindanao although there had been no communication with made with his son. But in an interview with radio station dzBB, Armed Forces chief Gen. Hermogenes Esperon maintained that the result of the DNA test conducted by the FBI on Janjalani is "very conclusive." He said the DNA test had to undergo three phases: the maternal line to determine if they have the same mother, paternal line to determine if they have the same father and the nuclear test for both parents. Esperon announced Saturday that Janjalani was indeed killed in a clash with Marine soldiers in September, citing results from DNA testing done by US authorities. He said the DNA samples taken from Janjalani and the latter's brother Hector, who is serving prison time at the New Bilibid Prison, have matched. Janjalani had been arrested but escaped from a detention cell at the National Police headquarters in 1995. He took over as Abu Sayyaf chieftain after his elder brother, group founder Abdurajak Abubakar Janjalani, was killed in 1998. Janjalani's remains were reportedly recovered by the military from a gravesite in Patikul town in Sulu province on December 27. - Amita Legaspi, GMANews.TV