April 27, 2000, Philippine Daily Inquirer, Abu Sayyaf The beginning,

April 27, 2000, Philippine Daily Inquirer, Abu Sayyaf The beginning,

DESPITE its urong-sulong "ownership" of the abduction of Filipino, Malaysian and Caucasian tourists and staff from a Malaysian dive resort, the Abu Sayyaf has undoubtedly sustained, if not accelerated, the propaganda momentum. 

If indeed the Abu Sayyaf is behind the Malaysian misadventure, then it has succeeded in bringing the rest of the world into the Mindanao conflict. Though it is holding 28 hostages, many of them children, and even claimed to have beheaded two of the male adults among the hostages, the stand-off between the government and the terrorist group was deemed a parochial concern, of little interest to the rest of the world. With the kidnap of foreigners, however, the Abu Sayyaf finally made it to CNN, a step up from its own obscure existence in its holdout in Basilan. 

Though now best known for its terroristic activities and banditry, the Abu Sayyaf, write Marites Danguilan Vitug and Glenda Gloria in their book "Under the Crescent Moon: Rebellion in Mindanao," is believed to have its beginnings as an "Islamic resurgent group." 

Its founder, the charismatic preacher Abdurajak Janjalani had developed good relations with both the ulama (religious leader) in Basilan and the Tabligh, a group that Vitug and Gloria liken to the "born again" Christian sects. "The Tabligh is a cohesive organization of Muslims coming from different sectors of society and dedicating a portion of their lives to actively preaching and spreading the message of peaceful conversion to Islam and the importance of living one's life according to the teachings of the Prophet Muhammad," they write. 

But Janjalani brought his interpretation of a resurgent Islam many steps farther than even the "harmless" Tabligh sought. 

JANJALANI was himself of Muslim and Christian parentage. He went to the Catholic-run Claret College for high school in Isabela, Basilan, although he did not finish his secondary studies. In 1981, he received a scholarship from the Saudi Arabian government and was sent to Mecca where he studied Islamic jurisprudence for three years. On his return, he started teaching and preaching in mosques. 

"Many of his elders in the MNLF saw in Janjalani the future of the rebel organization," write Vitug and Gloria. "He was very much like them in their youth: quick to anger, passionate in his beliefs, unrelenting in fighting for them. Janjalani, they thought to themselves, would carry the torch. It wasn't easy not to be charmed by him. Janjalani took his faith seriously. He would pray five times a day, would follow the Koran by the book, and was an eloquent speaker. Thirty years after the young Misuari charmed the Moro people, Janjalani had appeared for a moment to be the MNLF chief's political reincarnation." 

In 1987, Janjalani, by then in his mid-20s, went for religious studies in Tripoli, Libya where he met many other Filipino Muslims his age. By then, though a supporter of the MNLF cause, he had become a vocal critic of Misuari. 

Once back in Basilan, Janjalani attracted droves of followers, especially college students, by his impassioned preachings, the same followers he eventually formed into the Abu Sayyaf. The Abu Sayyaf was "initially accepted by many in the Muslim community," mainly because it seemed to promise a return to the "pristine" definition and practice of Islam. But in time "it became obvious that Janjalani interpreted Islam the wrong way, at least to most Muslims." 

VITUG and Gloria say the Abu Sayyaf's adoption of "extremist" positions can be traced to the recruitment of Abdul Asmad, then one of the most promising student leaders of the Western Mindanao State University in Zamboanga City. 

Described by friends as a "true-blue activist" who was also highly critical of Misuari, it was Asmad who brought Janjalani into the network of Jamal Mohammad Khalifa, "an Arab known for his philanthropy in Western Mindanao but who was later identified as a supporter of international terrorists." Asmad himself worked for Khalifa under the International Islamic Relief Organization, an NGO that has helped Muslim refugees in conflict-ridden areas. Another key recruit, Edwin Angeles, also of Muslim-Christian parentage, is believed to have been a double agent who dealt with both the Abu Sayyaf and Janjalani, and with the military authorities. Observers say it was "only when Angeles came into the picture that the Abu Sayyaf turned to banditry and kidnapping." In fact, there are suspicions that it was Angeles who facilitated the sale of arms and ammunition from the military and police to the Abu Sayyaf. 

Indeed, say Vitug and Gloria, many Muslims suspect the Abu Sayyaf was created to "destroy the image of Islam," and that the military had somehow a hand in its creation and eventual domination in Basilan. "There is absolutely no doubt that it has been infiltrated by the military," say Vitug and Gloria, but they add that it is uncertain "whether or not Janjalani, who was admired by many in the Muslim community, formed the Abu Sayyaf to work for the military or if he had simply lost control over his own men." 

UNFORTUNATELY, there is little hope of shedding light on what Vitug and Gloria call the Abu Sayyaf's "nebulous" beginnings and shadowy existence. Its three most prominent founding "fathers" have all been killed. 

Janjalani was killed in an encounter with policemen on Dec. 18, 1998, and a month later, an alleged Abu Sayyaf member shot Angeles in the head. It was believed that it was Angeles who had "tipped off" the military about Janjalani's whereabouts. Asmad was killed even earlier, in 1994, "apparently a victim of 'salvaging' or summary execution by police and Marine troops who were tipped off to his presence in a hotel by a member of a national TV news team." 

Whatever its beginnings, or the reasons for its heightened activities, there's no doubt the Abu Sayyaf will continue to bring the world's attention to Mindanao, but to what end, no one knows.