Pinoys saw ISIS as PHL’s top threat even before Marawi crisis — global study

Filipinos identified ISIS (Islamic State) as the top threat in the Philippines even before the Maute group's attack on Marawi City, a study from the Pew Research Center shows.

In the international survey, conducted by the nonpartisan US think tank from February 16 to May 8, seven out of ten Filipinos cited the terror group as the security risk they feared the most.

The clashes between the ISIS-inspired Maute terrorists and government troops in Lanao del Sur's capital began on May 23.

Climate change, China's power

The effects of climate change came in second among Filipinos at 65 percent, followed by foreign cyber attacks (64 percent).

China's "power and influence" as a "major threat" to the Philippines ranked third on Filipinos' concerns at 46 percent, compared to Russia's power and influence (26 percent) and the US' (25 percent).

Asia Pacific

In the Asia Pacific, ISIS is seen as the top regional threat at 62 percent, followed by climate change (61 percent).

It was the top major threat among respondents in the Philippines (70 percent), along with those in Indonesia (74 percent), India (66 percent) and Australia (59 percent).

In Japan, the top threat for respondents was cyber attacks from other countries (76 percent), while South Korea and Vietnam were most concerned about China's power and influence (83 percent and 80 percent respectively).

The Pew Research survey was conducted among 41,953 respondents in 38 countries.

Nearly 800 people have died and more than 400,000 have been displaced in the Marawi conflict, which is nearing its 100th day.

The attack prompted President Rodrigo Duterte to declare martial law over the entire Mindanao island group. — Margaret Claire Layug/BM, GMA News