Anger over Manila hostage crisis
MANILA, Philippines - Police in the Philippines have defended their handling of a bus hostage crisis that ended in the deaths of eight tourists from Hong Kong, as anger mounts against Philippine authorities.
The Chinese government demanded answers from the Philippines on Tuesday, a day after the botched rescue attempt on a bus in the Philippines capital, Manila.
Yang Jiechi, the Chinese foreign minister, said his government was "appalled" at the incident, while residents of Hong Kong denounced Philippine police as incompetent.
The rising anger came as authorities in the Philippines admitted to deficiencies in the police operation to negotiate with an armed, dismissed former policeman who seized a busload of foreign tourists and locals on Monday.
Police eventually stormed the bus and killed Rolando Mendoza, the former police investigator, after negotiations broke down late on Monday night, ending an 11-hour standoff.
Investigation pledged
Benigno Aquino, the Philippine president, pledged to conduct a "thorough investigation", saying the incident showed the need for more police training and better equipment.
But Aquino said Mendoza's access to TV and radio made it hard for police to launch a rescue mission on a bus parked some distance from cover.
"Another aspect that I think not too many people are aware was that at some point in time, when the action did occur, the hostage taker had surrounded himself with his hostages," Aquino he told a midnight news conference.
"He used them as body shields, which made our forces hesitate to employ deadly force."
Aquino also defended the Philippine police decision to wait more than 10 hours before storming the bus, because they believed they could convince the gunman to stand down.
Al Jazeera's Wayne Hay, reporting from Manila said "A full investigation will be carried out into what went on during those 12 hours".
Failed negotiations
But some passengers criticised the police response. One passenger, who identified herself as Mrs Leung, lost her husband and two daughters in a hail of bullets when police tried to storm the hijacked bus.
"The Philippine government ... I can't accept this," she said, in comments broadcast on Hong Kong TV.
"[The gunman] did not want to kill us. He only shot us after the negotiations failed," she said, sobbing.
Mendoza had been dismissed from the police force in 2008 over corruption allegations and seized the bus in a bid to win his job back.
The 55-year-old, dressed in camouflage uniform and armed with a M16 rifle and a jungle knife, hitched a ride with the bus load of tourists as they were visiting historic sites in Manila - then declared he was taking them hostage.
A total of 22 Hong Kong tourists and three Filipinos were initially on board the bus.
Mendoza released nine people, including three children and two of the Filipinos, during police negotiations.
The remaining Filipino, the bus driver, escaped when Mendoza began shooting at the hostages by nightfall.
The crisis eventually ended when police threw tear gas inside the bus, opening fire.
Gregory Mendoza, the brother of the hostage-taker, said Rolando had taken the hostages to demand his full pension, which had been cancelled when he was sacked.
"He is not in the state of his mind, he is not the same Captain Mendoza as before," Gregory Mendoza told Al Jazeera before the end of the standoff.
"According to him, he lost his life because of the dismissal."
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HONGKONG CHINESE AND CHINA CITIZEN GET OVER IT!
THE NEW ADMINISTRATION IS TRYING THEIR BEST TO SUBDUED THE SITUATION. WHEN SOMEONE IS INSANE AND NOT IN THE RIGHT MIND, THINGS WILL GET OUT OF HAND. NOT EVEN THE MOST POWERFUL PERSON IN THE WORLD CAN STOP IT.
STOP BLAMING THE GOVERNMENT AND LET US TAKE FULL RESPONSIBILITY AND MAKE THIS CRISIS A LESSON LEARN TO ALL.
WHO CARES ABOUT WHAT THE HONGKONG CITIZEN THINK, THEY NEED TO CLEAN THEIR CLOSET ALSO. THEIR SINS AND DOINGS (INJUSTICE) ARE WORST THAN OURS.
CHINESE CITIZEN: LET ME REMIND YOU OF THE INJUSTICE YOUR GOVERNMENT HAVE DONE WITH YOUR OWN KIND RE: TIBETANS AND THE UGHUR. CHINESE GOVERNMENT ETHNIC CLEANSING TO THESE PEOPLE AND KILLING INNOCENT PEOPLE AND SILENCING AND KILLING THEM EVERYDAY AND INCLUDING THE ACTIVIST AND JOURNALIST WHO ARE OPPOSED TO THE DOING OF YOUR MAO CHE TONG COMMUNIST GOVERNMENT. THIS IS MORTAL SINS IF I MAY REMIND YOU.
THE DAMAGED WAS DONE AND NO WAY TO UNDO THE SITUATION BUT TO LEARN FROM EXPERIENCE. THIS IS A LESSON LEARN FOR US ALL AND I HOPE WE CAN MOVE FORWARD AND GO OUT AND ABOUT WITH OUR DAILY LIVES.
CONDOLENCES TO THE VICTIMS AND TO THE FAMILY OF THE ACCUSED.
LET'S MOVE ON WITH OUR LIVES.
hongkong fatchoy
andyan naman si RONALD SINGSON sainyo, sya na lang pagdiskitahan nyo ng galit nyo... patawan nyo ng bitay! para patas na tayo!
Haaay naku! Bagsak talaga ang
Haaay naku! Bagsak talaga ang grado di lang ng media lalo na ng ating kapulisan. Hanggat maaari pinipigilan kong batikusin ang ating kapulisan sapagkat alam ko na mahirap ang kanilang trabaho at malaki ang isinasakripisyo nila para sa ating bayan pero yung nangyari kanina, susmayosep! di katanggap tanggap dahil sa dami ng kapalpakan. Ako ay hindi isang eksperto sa hostage taking incidents at hindi rin pulis, pero heto ang aking mga obserbasyon sa mga kapalpakan kanina.
kulang sa planning, dapat umaga pa lang alam na ng ground commander ang schematics ng bus, dapat lahat ng aspeto ng bus na kailangan nilang malaman ay inalam nila para sa advantage ng law enforcers kasi napakaimportanteng malaman nila ito kung sakaling magkaroon ng madugong enkwentro tulad ng nangyari kanina dahil ang bus ang primary hostile area ng hostage taking incident. Para sa kaalaman ng ating kapulisan, halos lahat ng airconditioned bus ay may escape hatch sa bandang likuran na pwedeng iaccess/ buksan ng galing sa labas (Na huli na nilang nadiskubre) kung wala naman nito, sa pinto sa harap ng bus ay usually may manual over ride switch na pangbukas ng main door sa ilalim ng bus sa pagitan ng hagdan ng bus at right side na headlight. Mapapansin nyo na ito yung madalas na sinusungkit ng mga konduktor pag nasa terminal pa ang isang airconditioned bus habang nagpupuno ng pasahero upang silay makapasok. Kung nagresearch lang sila ng kaunti di sana sila lumabas na katawa tawa sa buong mundo sa pagpupumilit na masuhin ang mga bintana, pinto, at winshield ng bus.
Kulang sa stratehiya, ng makalabas ang driver at sinabing patay na lahat ng nasa bus ay buong buo itong pinaniwalaan ng ating mga ground commander, ika nga our police force took the story as gospel truth hook-line and sinker nat nagpautos ng assault sa bus ng walang kaplano plano. Di ba nila naisip, pano kung di totoo? Bear in mind that this is a hostage situation, where the primary objective is the safety of the hostages. A daring assault no matter the intention is a threat to any hostage taker and puts the safety of the hostages on the line the moment an assault is commenced. So dapat bago nag assault dapat lahat may plan a, b at c that will cover every scenario possible that may arise because of the said assault.
Dapat alam ng assaulting team kung ano gagawin, kung papasukin, pano papasukin, mamasuhin ba? pano kung di mabasag? (Tulad ng nangyari e di kulelat cla kasi ayaw mabasag nung plexiglass eh) Pano kung buhay at magresist at magpapautok (Tulad ng nangyari, eh di kulelat uli kasi andun na sila bigla pang nagdapaan kasi nagpaputok hostage taker). Pag may resistance igagas ba natin, di ba dapat meron tayong masks para sya lang ang maapektuhan at pede nating istorm papasok. (Di tulad ng nangyari pagkatapos igas pati mga pulis walang magawa kasi pati sila nauubo at nahihirapang huminga)
Sa isang assault kasi timing is everything dapat di numero. Dapat lahat ng conceivable scenarios may nakaplanong reaction ang kapulisan hindi yung parang dun lang nagiisip when the situation presents itself. Assaults should be swift and fast kasi the longer it takes the higher the risk that the hostages safety is compromised.
Lahat ng ito ay nangyari matapos magpractice ang mga pulis ng 3 beses ng pag assault sa bus sa isang lugar malapit sa roxas boulevard kanina ayon sa report ng gma 7. Sa practice daw ok kasi madaling napasok ang bus at nabasag agad ang mga pinto at bintana. Kung hindi ba naman gunggong ang kapulisan nagpractice nga pero practice gunggong din, akala nila lahat ng bus pare pareho. meron lang atang nahanap na bus eh yun na ang pinagpraktisan. Kung nagpractice man sila, dapat nagpractice cla sa exact identical na bus na lahat ng specs are exactly the same sa subject bus, as in lahat ng chracteristics hanggang sa kapal ng salamin anong mga materials para di sila nagmukhang tanga.
Swerte sila kasi mukhang hindi talaga masamang tao yung hostage taker kasi despite the assault di nya inubos mga hostages. Kasi kung halang ang kaluluwa nito di lang patay lahat ng hostages pati mga gunggong na pulis natin malamang madaming namatay dahil sa kaplpakan. This does not seem to be a really hostile hostage incident kasi the hostage taker seemed to be very cooperative and psychologically stable as assessed by experts during the negotiations as reported. In my opinion the ugly result of this hostage taking incident is because of the mismanagement of the ground crew especially the ground commander who is responsible in dealing with this hostage crisis.
Ang sa akin lang minsan di naman kailangan ng intensive training para ihandle ang ganitong sitwasyon kailangan lang ng common sense. Ang problema di kasi naituturo yun eh and it seems sa ating mga kapulisan it isn't so common at all. Yun lang!
Win-Win Situation
In hindsight it’s 20-20. Everybody becomes an expert and I guess that includes me. But honestly the tragedy yesterday is an eye opener for all of us. I felt bad for President Noynoy because he is less than 100 days in his presidency. My question is why didn’t the Ombudsman make a deal or some sort of a compromise --given Captain Mendoza’s tenure in the government. After all, he was only asking for his job back so he could get his retirement benefits. It could have been a win-win scenario for the Philippine government. I know that the government wants to save money but how much money are we really talking about if Captain Mendoza was reinstated.? With the current situation -- 8 tourist killed, tourism marred, distrust of Philippine security system, and probably the Aquino government would be paying blood money to Hongkong deceased families besides hospitals bills, mortuary bills. It would have been cheaper to just give in to Captain Mendoza demands and save the government money and reputation, or work a deal with Mendoza like paying-off the total bribe money he received, and probably a demotion but with retirement benefits but less pay. Like I said this could have been a win-win scenario for everybody.
I disagree that Philippine police are not trained or equipped to handle this crisis. More money is not the issue here. For one, they could be ill-prepared or out of practice. They could have instituted a mandatory internal monthly training with emphasis on lessons learned. Media is another story. Media should try not to report everything they see. Sometimes less is more in this type of event. If the element of surprise is not there the negotiator would be ill-equipped to do his job. The media exposes and diminishes that advantage by reporting everything. The disaster like this one could have been prevented if a 15 minute news delay was implemented. But again nobody could have foreseen the tragic sequence of events. My other observation is, who was really-in-charge of t his hostile take-over? Besides the President?
I felt sorry for the Chinese nationals who lost their loved ones in this unforgivable tragedy. I felt sorry also for the Aquino government whose young governance was tested and failed. His people failed him. But I know P-Noy will come back because the Filipinos all believe in him. Again, discretion is a better part of valor.
Manila bus hostage INCIDENT
I don't diminish the sentiments of the Chinese people but branding the whole Filipino race as if we were all like Rolando Mendoza (the hostage taker) is like blaming the German populace of what Hitler did during the WWII.
They have their own issues in regards with their homeland security....i suppose! All nations have!
It might not be an isolated case since there were Americans, British nationals taken as hostages down south of the Philippines but we should be fair in our thinking!