Philippines arrests two colonels over coup plot

[Minstrel Boy]

Philippines arrests two colonels over coup plot

23 Dec 2004
Source: Reuters
By Manny Mogato

MANILA, Dec 23 (Reuters) - The Philippine military has arrested two colonels for planting a bomb at a stock exchange building as part of a plot to overthrow President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, security officials said on Thursday.

"We have in custody two colonels in connection with an alleged plot to seize power and install a military junta," a senior army official said on condition he was not identified.

"There are still efforts to account for other people involved in this military adventure."

Arroyo had placed soldiers and police on alert on Tuesday night, hours before 300,000 people poured into the streets of Manila for the funeral cortege of film idol and former presidential challenger Fernando Poe Jr on Wednesday.
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/MAN149586.htm

[bin.dare]

1. i doubt there were any arrests ...

... two unnamed colonels arrested says unidentified senior army official. yea, right.

from WSWS: http://www.wsws.org/articles/2004/jul2004/phil-j02.shtml

Arroyo was installed in power in early 2001 in what amounted to a virtual coup against the elected president Joseph Estrada, backed by the military and sections of business. While Estrada’s “corruption” was the pretext, the real reasons for his removal lay in the deteriorating economic situation and fears in the ruling elite that economic restructuring was not proceeding rapidly enough.

The ousting of Estrada followed a campaign of largely middle class protests led by Arroyo and former presidents Cory Aquino and Fidel Ramos, and backed by various left parties, including the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP).

...

Under the guise of “military training,” Arroyo permitted US troops to operate alongside the Philippine Armed Forces in fighting Islamic separatist rebels in southern Mindanao. The government also signed a Military Logistics and Support Agreement (MLSA) that provides the US military with extensive storage facilities and services in the country for the first time since the closure of the Clark Airfield and Subic Bay naval bases in 1992. In return, the US has provided military and financial aid to help prop up the Arroyo administration.

...

Chief of the US Pacific Command Admiral Thomas Fargo, who was also present at the ceremony, visited a military camp in the southern Philippines on Sunday and urged tougher measures against the alleged terrorist group Jemaah Islamiyah.

In response, Philippine Defence Secretary Eduardo Ermita announced on Monday that joint counter-terrorism exercises with the US military will take in the Philippines. The following day, police rounded up four men, alleging they were members of Jemaah Islamiyah who were preparing to disrupt Arroyo’s swearing-in. The police claim to have found bomb-making manuals and materials in the house where the suspects were staying.

...

[ronnykmarshall]

2. Marcos may be dead

but his legacy lingers on.

Makes me sick that our government proped that SOB up for years along with his shoe crazy wife.