Years from now, security forces across the globe will be looking back at the hostage incident in front of the Quirino grandstand last Aug. 23 as an important case study on what not to do in case a similar event arises. The blame game is far from over, and the investigation report on what really happened and why still has to be released, but one thing is certain: the tragedy is not just the responsibility of a single entity. Rather, the entire spectrum of weaknesses in Philippine society has to be addressed for the country to move forward in a positive way. It has been said that it takes a village to raise a child. In the case of the Philippines , it takes a chaotic society to create a villain like ex-policeman Rolando Mendoza. The government, the media, and other sectors all have lessons to learn from this tragedy. Pieced together from the hearings, news reports, and the survivors’ accounts, here’s a look at what is now public knowledge, and the questions that still need answers.
Click here to view larger version Legal system The root cause of Mendoza ’s actions was the decision of the Ombudsman and the Philippine National Police to dismiss him from the service in connection with an extortion case in 2008. He told negotiators that the authorities failed to consider his motion for reconsideration filed with the Ombudsman, and that he wanted to be reinstated while his case is being heard. Mendoza also handed over his case folder for submission to the Department of Justice (DOJ). However, his folder never reached the DOJ, and although Mendoza got the chance to speak on the phone with
Ombudsman Merceditas Gutierrez, what he received in the end was a letter stating she would review his case instead of a final decision. He described the response as “garbage" and fired a shot at the negotiators as they walked away from the bus, the start of the nightmare for the hostages. By the time the national police decided to issue his reinstatement order, it was too late as Mendoza’s shooting spree had begun. In such situations, according to a security analyst who has worked with the UK ’s Scotland Yard, the negotiation team should have “granted" Mendoza ’s demands without delay. “A promise extracted under force is not a promise that you are required to honor," the BBC quotes Charles Shoebridge as saying. “Nobody wants to give in to the demands of terrorists, but in a situation like this, which did not involve a terrorist group, or release of prisoners, they could have just accepted his demands. He could be reinstated in the police - and then be immediately put in prison for life for hostage taking." See:
Ten things the Philippines bus siege police got wrong How many more aggrieved policemen or soldiers are there who, like Mendoza, feel that justice delayed is justice denied? And how many more violent incidents will have to take place before the Ombudsman admits responsibility for weakening the justice system? Both Gutierrez and Deputy Ombudsman Emilio
Gonzalez III have refused to appear before the Incident Investigation and Review Committee (IIRC) led by the DOJ, leading the public to wonder if they have something to hide about Mendoza’s allegation of a
P150,000 payoff to resolve his case.
Law enforcement One major element of any crime is that the perpetrator has the means to do it, and in the early hours of the hostage crisis, one question quickly came to mind as cable television flashed images of the Armalite-toting Mendoza: Why does he still have guns, one of them an M-16 rifle, if he’s been dismissed? Indeed, any glimmer of hope among Filipinos that the local police could be counted on for assistance whenever any citizen is in trouble was probably dispelled as Manila’s law enforcers, supposedly the “finest" in the police force, bungled their way through the hostage crisis. During the negotiations process, video footage of the police indulging Mendoza’s every whim – food for everyone on board, gasoline to keep the aircon going, even a charger for his mobile phone – were almost painful to watch. All the while, the two policemen who had access to Mendoza had several opportunities to disarm the lone gunman and free the innocent civilians inside the bus. Yet, the negotiations dragged on, with tragic consequences. Officials who comprised the amorphous committee charged with resolving the crisis later admitted their
strategy was to “tire out" the hostage-taker. Television viewers, however, saw things differently: Were the negotiators treating Mendoza with kid gloves because he was a fellow policeman? As the day wore on, whoever was in charge of resolving the crisis did not appear to be taking it seriously, failing to debrief the hostages who were released early on or even the driver who managed to escape in the evening. No one even asked the travel agency representative, who was at the scene all day, about the layout of the bus or the identity of the hostages. Instead, the police seemed to have believed the driver’s panicked shouts that all the hostages were dead, prompting them to throw teargas inside the bus without regard for the safety of the tourists. During the assault, viewers could only cringe in dismay as the Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) team crept around the bus in an excruciatingly slow manner, taking away any element of surprise. Some wore helmets and vests, but others had no protective gear and proper firearms. Obviously, they had no clue how to enter the bus, using a sledgehammer and a flimsy rope instead of frame charges or ladders to blow open the doors and get in, as professionals would have done. Worse, some appeared to be
untrained for assault, scampering out of the bus after Mendoza fired at them. When it was learned that well-equipped and better-trained Special Action Forces (SAF) personnel were just waiting at the back of the grandstand to be called into action, even more questions were raised: What made Chief Superintendent Rodolfo Magtibay, head of the Manila Police District and the ground commander during the crisis, think the SWAT could do better than the SAF? Was it hubris that made him
refuse to yield to the SAF under Director Leocadio Santiago Jr. of the National Capital Region Police Office, his junior in the military academy who ranks higher in the police force? Next to the bungled assault, probably the most glaring insight into the culture of the Philippine police is the way the hostage-killer’s brother Gregorio Mendoza resisted arrest by fellow policemen. There was real fear in his eyes, not exactly a surprising image considering the record of the police in dealing with suspected criminals like the Kuratong Baleleng gang and alleged car thief Ivan Padilla. As the radio interview with the hostage-taker showed, the dramatic scene shown on national television triggered Mendoza ’s shooting rampage inside the bus. As the hostage crisis wore on, an international news anchor commented, “the Philippines does have some reputation for lawlessness, doesn’t it?" Sadly, the lack of professionalism shown by the police force during the hostage crisis merited the observation. It also leads to further questions: How many more suspended or dismissed police and military personnel still have guns – licensed or not? Is the PNP, and the military for that matter, taking steps to ensure that
disgruntled personnel will not resort to Mendoza-style tactics in the future in order to get heard?
Local government Because the incident happened in his turf, Manila Mayor Alfredo Lim headed the ad hoc crisis management committee that was convened to resolve the crisis. The committee’s vice chairman, Vice Mayor Isko Moreno, took the initiative of getting a response from the Ombudsman to appease the hostage-taker while Lim coordinated with Magtibay in deciding what to do. A former policeman himself, Lim shares responsibility for the decision to simply
wait for the hostage-taker to get tired instead of disarming him early on. Lim has also owned up to ordering the forcible removal of Gregorio Mendoza when the latter started making a scene in front of television cameras, a decision that led to a deadly conclusion. However, it is strange to note that both
Magtibay and Lim left the scene during the crucial hours of the evening, when shots had been fired inside the bus. Lim has said he went to the Emerald restaurant for dinner, but the curious will certainly ask: Why didn’t he simply ask a subordinate to get him food? Is it correct for the head of the crisis committee to leave the scene of an unfolding crime before it has been fully resolved?
National government As the country’s chief executive, President Aquino has taken responsibility for the fiasco at the Luneta that once more tainted the image of the Philippines’ law enforcers in the eyes of the world. Lim has said that Aquino made the correct instruction to his subordinates: ensure the safety of the hostages at all times. Unfortunately, it appears that Aquino’s command went unheeded, leaving Filipinos wondering, did the followers defy the country’s leader? The tragedy had some unintended consequences, one of them the revelation of a highly irregular decision made by Aquino: he had asked Department of Interior and Local Governments
(DILG) undersecretary Rico Puno to oversee the PNP, which is supposed to be the mandate of DILG Sec. Jesse Robredo. Politicians have been going after Robredo’s head since the day of the tragedy, but they are really barking up the wrong tree. It did make sense for Aquino to put Robredo in charge of local governance, as the former mayor of Naga City excels in this field, while Puno was made in charge of PNP as he is more familiar with the milieu. Nonetheless, Aquino’s choices came into question when Puno admitted that he went along with the crisis committee’s erroneous strategy to “wear out" the hostage-taker instead of nabbing him swiftly during the day. The disarray in the national government also came into focus with its incompetent handling of the hostage crisis, and allegations of rivalry between the so-called Samar and Balay factions in the Aquino camp surfaced once again. Why didn’t Malacañang designate a spokesman, considering that the hostage crisis was an international incident? Puno and Sonny Coloma, one of the two heads of the communications office, are reportedly part of the Samar group. Robredo and Ricky Carandang, who shares equal billing with Coloma, are identified with the Balay group. The crisis occurred barely two months into the new administration, which has not yet gelled and still seems to be in a state of confusion. It remains unclear if the staff who received the call of Donald Tsang did not really know the identity of Hong Kong’s chief executive, and the delay in providing information to Hong Kong, both on the part of Malacañang and the Department of Foreign Affairs, still has to be adequately explained.
Broadcast Media In the Philippines, it has become a repeated phenomenon for emotionally disturbed persons who take the law into their hands to demand media coverage. Radio and television, the media of the masses, are the most effective means to get their message across so one might expect broadcast journalists to follow certain guidelines that will ensure the safety of innocent civilians. However, as the world has seen, it seems that Filipino broadcasters need to re-examine their media ethics, and maybe their conscience as well, to ensure that the Luneta tragedy will not happen again. Much of the commentary on the role of the media in the hostage crisis has focused on ABS-CBN and GMA, which aired the crucial hours live on national television. Both stations showed the Manila police forcibly taking away Gregorio Mendoza, a scene that allegedly made the hostage-taker go berserk after seeing it on the television inside the bus. At this point, it would not have mattered which station he was watching, as the same scenes were flashed on the screen. What would have made a difference could be a decision from the television news managers to cut the airing of the sensational family drama. Indeed, if the news managers had realized that the hostage-taker was watching the news live, would they have aired the position of the snipers and the assault team? Would they have shown the hostage drama continuously, at the expense of other prime time shows? Did the safety of the hostages cross their minds, or was the chance to get exclusive footage more important to them? The issue of exclusivity has become a matter of concern for media watchers, in the light of the
RMN interview of news anchor Michael Rogas that has been making the rounds of the Internet. The police have complained that they could
not get through to Mendoza during the critical moments of the crisis, and the audio clip of the interview repeatedly stresses that it is an exclusive. Listeners have questioned why Rogas was asking Mendoza about his message to snipers and his “final decision" on the hostage crisis, which only seemed to fuel his anger. Again, one wonders if the radio station was motivated by the desire for a peaceful resolution, or simply a scoop.
The Filipino family From the radio interview, it is evident that what made Mendoza finally snap was the televised scene of his brother being forced into a police car. As a longtime policeman, Rolando Mendoza probably had the same sense of trepidation that his brother felt, triggering his bloody rampage. Still, the questions remain: if the Mendoza family did not pander to the television cameras, would the carnage have been averted? Was his family even remotely aware about Mendoza’s plan? How could he have gone to Fort Santiago carrying an M-16 rifle and dressed in police clothes without his family knowing it? The family has apologized to the Hong Kong victims, but it will take a long time for the families of the eight innocent tourists who only wanted to see the beauty of Manila to forget this tragedy.
MOVING FORWARD Listening to the hearings conducted live by the IIRC, one gets a picture of a decorated officer often described as
“mabait" and even “principled" by friends and family, who is driven to an extreme act because he felt it was the only way he would be heard. There is no justification for his crime, but troubled as he was by the prospect of retiring soon without his benefits and his great sense of injustice about the way his case was treated, any concerned Filipino would want to understand
Mendoza’s tragic end. Clearly, the Ombudsman and the PNP have a lot of explaining to do, and unless they clean up their tarnished institutions, it would not be surprising to see more misdeeds arising from their lack of action in upholding justice in this country. Local officials need to learn to look at crime more seriously too, and not belittle hostage incidents whether foreigners or Filipinos are involved. Often, the cavalier attitude that Filipinos have towards public safety has resulted in disaster, and it is hoped that the DOJ-led investigating committee will come up with strong recommendations for much improved government response in times of crisis. There has been some soul-searching in the broadcast media as a result of the tragedy; at this point, the need to be more circumspect and to exercise the greatest degree of responsibility in reporting sensitive crimes, and deciding when to air unfolding events live, are some of the serious lessons learned from the hostage crisis. But at the same time, it should not be used by the government as an excuse to curtail media freedom. Most of all, this incident has to be a turning point for President Aquino, whose leadership has been thrown into question because of the way he has handled the crisis. It is obvious that his penchant for Solomonic solutions and his disturbing habit of appointing his buddies to critical positions have crippled his administration. In a way, it may be providential that the tragedy happened early in his tenure. President Aquino still has enough time to sincerely start looking at national interests rather than party or family loyalty. Exhorting everyone to follow “the correct path" is well and good, but from here on, he must also begin shaping a government that Filipinos deserve. –
with reports from Sophia Dedace and Jam Sisante, GMANews.TV Yasmin D. Arquiza is the Managing Editor of GMANews.TV. 
GMA Brandtalk
Tracking
Archives
