Sabah dispute causing grief for both Pinoys, Malaysians

As is the case with most armed conflicts, civilians have been the most affected in the ongoing clashes between Malaysian forces and followers of Sulu Sultan Jamalul Kiram III in Sabah. Since the start of the standoff there in early February, many Filipino and Malaysian families in Sabah have abandoned their homes in fear of being caught in the crossfire. GMA reporter Maki Pulido reported last February 28 that around 180 families from Tanduao, Sabah, moved temporarily to Tanjung Labian after Kiram's armed men arrived in their hometown. "Dito na [kaming] lahat, nag-alisan lahat [doon]," Ben Hamid, a Filipino from Tawi-Tawi who had been living in Sabah for many years, told Pulido. He said food was a problem as they left their livelihoods behind. He said all they could take with them were their clothes. "Yung hanap-buhay namin wala na," Hamid said, adding they just want the conflict to end so they could return to their peaceful life. According to the Commission on Filipinos Overseas, there were 569,081 Filipinos in Malaysia as of December 2011. Of this number, 26,006 were permanent residents, 95,485 were temporary, and 447,590 were irregular. But according to Malacanang, there are around 800,000 Filipinos in Sabah alone. A separate report on March 4 by Pulido said some residents in Semporna temporarily moved into boats because there were no evacuation centers available. The news website Borneo Insider quoted a Malaysian resident as saying that their "peaceful town has become a nightmare to live in." "We are moving out because these are uncertain times. We heard the gunshots. My children are afraid," Julasri Yaakob told an Agence France-Presse reporter in the report. Some of the Filipino residents in Semporna used to live in Sulu and Tawi-Tawi, but said they were not afraid that they would be targeted since they were not the cause of the conflict. On Tuesday night, March 5, some 50 Filipinos fled Sabah and returned to Mindanao by boat in fear of being caught in the middle. Sabah is home to more than three million people, with an estimated 800,000 Filipinos, many of them undocumented Philippine Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz said 289 Filipinos were deported just last Sunday from Sabah and Peninsular Malaysia, although she added this was not connected to the Sabah dispute. She said 897 Filipinos have been deported from there in 2013 alone. — Kimberly Jane Tan/KBK/HS, GMA News