Martial Law Lifted in Philippines, but Violence Persists
By PATRICK BARTA
Philippine President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo lifted martial law in a southern province where 57 people were massacred late last month, but unrest in the southern Philippines continued.
A group of armed men stormed a jail on the southern island of Basilan on Sunday morning, smashing through a wall to free at least 31 inmates, authorities said. One attacker and a guard were killed.
Some of the escapees were believed to be members of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front and Abu Sayyaf, Muslim rebel groups linked to past violence in the region, police said.
The jailbreak -- which occurred more than 60 miles from last month's massacre -- underscored the lawlessness in a region tormented by bandits, private armies and insurgents, including Communists and al Qaeda-linked Muslim separatists.
There was some good news Sunday: Officials said gunmen released 47 hostages who had been held in a jungle hideout elsewhere in the south. A group of around 15 abducted the hostages from a village on Thursday, but freed them after government negotiators agreed not to arrest the gunmen for the abductions or for past criminal activities, the Associated Press reported.
The decision to lift martial law late Saturday in another zone of the southern Philippines also suggested tensions there may be easing. But the area's problems are far from resolved, and analysts warn there could be further outbreaks of violence in the months ahead.
Mrs. Arroyo declared martial law in Maguindanao province earlier this month to enable the military to disarm suspected militia members after an apparent feud between rival political clans erupted into a massacre on Nov. 23. The move allowed police and soldiers to make arrests without warrants.
Opposition politicians criticized the decision to impose martial law, which they feared could lead to widespread civil-rights violations and hand too much power to Mrs. Arroyo's government ahead of national and local elections next May.
The Philippines Supreme Court had ordered the government to respond by Monday to several petitions challenging the legal basis for the move.
On Sunday, government officials said they felt they had made enough progress to relax their grip after executing several missions in Maguindanao in recent days.
Soldiers raided properties controlled by members of the Ampatuan clan, which is accused of leading the Nov. 23 massacre that killed 30 journalists and others linked to the rival Mangudadatu family. The government also uncovered large supplies of arms, including assault weapons and armored personnel carriers.
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Associated Press Prison guards cover a hole after armed men knocked down a concrete wall and barged into a jail, freeing at least 31 inmates.
In the past several weeks, authorities have replaced the province's entire 1,000-person police force, and have arrested as many as 600 suspected militants, including some the government said may have been plotting a rebellion.
Prosecutors have filed multiple murder charges against Andal Ampatuan Jr., a local mayor, for allegedly leading the massacre. His father, former Gov. Andal Ampatuan Sr., and other clan members have also been arrested and charged with rebellion.
The family maintains its innocence.
"We set specific objectives and we felt we had accomplished those objectives," said Cerge Remonde, a spokesman for Mrs. Arroyo, of lifting martial law.
He said a state of emergency, which allows security forces to set up road checkpoints and seize weapons from civilians, would remain in place in the zone.
The region remains restive. Officials have been targeting as many as 2,400 armed Ampatuan loyalists, many of whom may still be at large.
Analysts have said it could take months, if not years, to pacify a region where the government has long supplied weapons to family-based militias to help them hem in Communist and Muslim insurgencies.
Write to Patrick Barta at patrick.barta@wsj.com
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