Philippine president pardons 9 coup plotters

• IBTimes RSS
• Print
• E-Mail
• digg
• Del.icio.us

Arroyo made the announcement during a nationally televised ceremony marking the oath-taking of new military chief Gen. Alexander Yano. He replaced a general known for fiercely defending Arroyo against coup plotters and other threats.

The government has struggled in recent years to head off unrest in the 120,000-strong military by fighting corruption, introducing reforms and modernizing equipment as it battles communist and Muslim rebels and al-Qaida-linked militants. The underfunded military is one of Asia's weakest.

"The dismal failure of destabilization attempts underscored just how out-of-touch the plotters are with the mood of the nation," Arroyo said. "The nation wants peace, order and stability, not more political shenanigans."

Arroyo paid tribute to outgoing military chief Gen. Hermogenes Esperon for his loyalty and battlefield successes against communist guerrillas, military dissidents and militants from the Abu Sayyaf and the Indonesian-based Jemaah Islamiyah terror groups.

Esperon had urged Arroyo to pardon the young officers, who were convicted last month and sentenced to prison terms of 12 to 40 years.

Esperon said the officers showed remorse and good behavior during nearly five years of detention, which he said served as a warning that military adventurism was not the way to seek reforms.

After their conviction the most senior among the nine, army Capt. Gerardo Gambala, read a joint statement at a news conference acknowledging that they had erred in launching the daylong mutiny. They asked fellow soldiers not to follow their example.

During the July 2003 coup attempt, the officers and about 300 other soldiers took over the upscale Oakwood hotel and a nearby shopping center in Manila's financial district of Makati, rigging the area with bombs. They denounced corruption in the government and military.

They later surrendered.

• 1
• 2