PHILIPPINES: LOOKING AHEAD TO THE TRILATERAL

UNCLAS MANILA 002130 SENSITIVE SIPDIS STATE FOR S/CT, EAP/MTS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV PREL PTER RP JA AS SUBJECT: PHILIPPINES: LOOKING AHEAD TO THE TRILATERAL STRATEGIC DIALOGUE REF: STATE 84610 ¶1. (SBU) SUMMARY: Embassy Manila provides the following for use with the upcoming Trilateral Strategic Dialogue (TSD) to be held in Washington. The Philippine government has been an active partner in trilateral and bilateral counterterrorism cooperation, and continues to achieve significant progress in combating terrorist elements including Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG),Jema'ah Islamiyah (JI),and the New People's Army (NPA). Pursuant to reftel, post provides herewith an update on trilateral counterterrorism efforts in the Philippines, as well as an outline of bilateral CT cooperation which may be relevant to future trilateral collaboration in the four proposed programmatic-themed working groups. END SUMMARY. PHILIPPINE PORTS PILOT PROJECT (PPP) -------------- ¶2. (SBU) During 2007, the Philippine government welcomed a proposal by the governments of Australia, Japan, and the United States to enhance the security of two ports in southern Mindanao: Davao and General Santos City. With the approval of the Philippine Anti-Terrorism Council (ATC),a team of experts from the trilateral partners' embassies conducted a needs assessment of the two ports and Davao International Airport May 7-10, 2007, and provided the results of this assessment in September. Following several months of analysis, the Philippine government in March concurred with the results of the assessment. ¶3. (SBU) Following on the successful completion of the ports assessment, officers from the three partner embassies met in January to discuss ways to improve cooperation with the Philippine government in the prosecution of terrorist suspects. Most recently, trilateral partner embassies have contributed to a joint matrix showing each embassy's completed and planned counterterrorism activities; this will ultimately result in a comprehensive new workplan to build on the lessons learned from the Ports Pilot Project (PPP). BIOTERRORISM -------------- ¶4. (SBU) Post's Economic Section oversees the U.S. Department of State, Bureau of International Security and Nonproliferation, Office of Cooperative Threat Reduction (ISN/CTR) Biosecurity Engagement Program (BEP),which was launched in 2006 to address the threat of bioterrorism. Three factors make Southeast Asia a priorty for BEP: a burgeoning biotechnology industry, a high rate of endemic tropical infectious diseases such as Avian Influenza (AI) and Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS),and the established presence of transnational terrorist groups. Post has engaged the Philippine Department of Agriculture's Bureau of Animal Industry (DA/BAI) in BEP-organized workshops, as well as surveillance and diagnostics training. Activities of upgrading laboratories and creating pathogen-monitoring systems are ongoing with the Philippine Department of Health (DOH) and the Regional Institute for Tropical Medicine (RITM). In October, we anticipate the transfer of animal-incinerator equipment that will upgrade Philippine animal laboratories; post will facilitate corresponding technical consultations and training. COUNTER-RADICALIZATION AND STRATEGIC COMMUNICATION -------------- -------------- ¶5. (SBU) In August, Post's Public Affairs Section hosted the Syrian-American Imam Mohamad Bashar ARAFAT of Baltimore, Maryland, who led discussions on the importance of interfaith dialogue, addressing both Christian and Muslim audiences on the theme of "Muslim and Christian relations: Obstacles and Opportunities." In addition to media interviews and talks at universities, city governments, and houses of worship, Imam Arafat reached audiences in Mindanao via digital videoconference. In July, Post's Anti-Terrorism Assistance (ATA) unit coordinated a week-long course in "Mitigating Prison Inmate Radicalization" in which 30 officers and staff from the Philippine Bureau of Corrections participated. LAW ENFORCEMENT, TERRORIST FINANCE, AND LEGAL SECTOR -------------- -------------- ¶6. (SBU) ICITAP-Provided Training: During the past year, post's ICITAP office has overseen the inauguration of the first-ever USG-funded police training on Jolo Island, an area often considered on the front lines of the Philippines' fight against Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG) and Jema'ah Islamiyah (JI) terrorist elements. The six-month training program has enhanced the capacity of Philippine National Police (PNP) officers who are increasingly called on to assume public-security functions that have hertofore been the responsibility of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) in conflict-affected areas. Successful completion of the Model Police Station (MPS) program included two stations in Mindanao (Zamboanga and Marawi); the project involved training and development in 14 critical law enforcement subjects. Although the MPS program is not specifically counterterrorism in focus, the training it entails in such areas as crime scene exploitation, evidence handling, and others will support the apprehension and prosecution of terrorist elements. ¶7. (SBU) Diplomatic Security Anti-Terrorism Assistance: Post's Anti-Terrorism Assistance (DS/ATA) Program Manager oversees a broad variety of CT training, including courses in Interdicting Terrorist Activity, Explosive Incident Countermeasures, Post-Blast Investigation, Advanced Computer Forensics, and Cellphone Forensics. During the past year, PNP officers of appropriate ranks have also been dispatched to participate in ILEA-Bangkok courses that included "A Police Executive's Role in Combating Terrorism," "Combating Domestic and Transnational Terrorism," and "Fraudulent Travel Documents." ATA coordinated an eight-month program of training at Front Royal, Virginia, for Philippine handlers and vets of bomb-detection dogs, and funded the provision of trained dogs, kennels and veterinary facilities, plus necessary furnishings and supplies. ¶8. (SBU) Philippine Biometric Initiative: DHS/ICE Attache has developed the Philippine Biometric Initiative, a program focused on identifying "not-yet-known" terrorists by collecting fingerprints, photographs, and rap sheets of suspected terrorists in PNP custody. Forty-two Biometric Data Collection Kits (BDCKs) were purchased with support from the Joint Interagency Task Force-West (JIATF-W),and placed with local PNP stations in selected areas. In April, DHS/ICE Attache conducted training for 89 PNP and Bureau of Jail Management and Penology personnel in subjects that included maintenance of BDCKs, fingerprinting, computer processing of digital photos, encryption of files, as well as computer and communications security. As of August 1, biometric data for 100 suspected terrorists have been obtained. ¶9. (SBU) Terrorist Finance: Embassy's Economic Section has the lead on all terrorist-finance issues, and coordinates efforts by Treasury, Justice, FBI, and other USG agencies in assisting Philippine counterpart agencies in efforts to locate, freeze, and seize the assets of designated terrorist organizations and individuals. The Economic Section's Terrorism Finance Coordination Officer also assists the Philippine government with its own terrorist designations under UNSCR 1267, including, most recently, the Rajah Soliman Movement (RSM). BORDER, TRANSPORT, AND MARITIME SECURITY -------------- ¶10. (SBU) Coastwatch South and Related Programs: The Coastwatch South (CWS) program continues to move toward full implementation. When completed, CWS will include 12-17 coastal radar sites connected by a string of air, ocean surface, and ground surveillance and interdiction assets, covering the vast sea-lane approaches to Davao, Sarangani, and the Sulu Archipelago, in what has been called the "Terrorist Transit Triangle." With FY2008 NDAA Section 1206 Funds, the USG will supply via JUSMAG four coastal radar stations and the equipment necessary to get CWS headquarters up and running at Camp Navarro in Zamboanga. JUSMAG has requested four additional radar stations under FY2009 1206 Funds, and the Philippine government is constructing an additional station on Taganak Island, off the coast of Sabah (Malaysian Borneo) in the Philppines' remote Turtle Islands. ¶11. (SBU) Additional equipment being supplied to the Philippine Navy in support of CWS includes six 7-meter Rigid-Hull Inflatable Boats (RHIBs),four 11-meter RHIB boats, together with storage facilities, trailers, spare engines, crew-served weapons, radios, GPS, night-vision devices, and other supporting equipment. The Philippine Navy's Islander surveillance aircraft will be equipped with Forward-Looking Infrared Radar (FLIR) pods. Under FY2009 1206 Funds, JUSMAG has requested Zodiac boat packages for the Philippine Naval Special Operations Group (NAVSOG) and CENTRIX Secure Information Exchange technology for CWS headquarters. ¶12. (SBU) Special Boats Unit: ICITAP is moving ahead with the Special Boat Unit for PNP Maritime Police in Puerto Princesa, Palawan province's capital city which lies on the Sulu Sea. The Sulu Sea is well known as a crossroads for movement of terrorists, undocumented aliens and victims of trafficking, as well as illicit firearms and other smuggled goods. The Special Boat Unit will entail the provision of five specially-built police boats, as well as construction of dock facilities, an office building, and boathouse. This project, the completion of which is anticipated for March 2009, will greatly enhance the ability of police to interdict the transit of criminal and terrorist elements and illicit materials. ¶13. (SBU) Megaports Program: The objective of this program, overseen by the Embassy's Economics Section, is to detect radioactive materials that could be smuggled into or out of the country by terrorists to make weapons of mass destruction. The program features large-scale radiation-inspection monitors through which trucks carrying shipping containers must pass. In July 2005, the U.S. Department of Energy (USDOE) signed an Agreement with the Philippine Department of Science and Technology to implement the program at two ports: Manila's South Harbor and the Manila International Container Terminal (MICT); construction of the portals was completed in March 2008. With the cooperation of the Philippine Ports Authority (PPA), Philippine Customs, and the ports' private operators, USDOE has trained a Philippine interagency team in the use and maintenance of the equipment, which is now operational. ¶14. (SBU) Post's point of contact for the TSD CT consultations is Political Officer Philip Thompson: phone (63-2) 301-2583; fax: (63-2) 301-2472; E-mail: ThompsonPA@State.gov. LINDBORG