we are just mad at the government so we took a mall hostage.
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmp...philippines_14
Armed Men Seize Manila Commercial Center
1 hour, 1 minute ago
MANILA, Philippines - Dozens of armed men stormed a major commercial center in Manila's financial district early Sunday, hours after the president ordered the arrest of mutinous soldiers believed to be plotting a coup.
Men in camouflage uniforms were seen setting up explosives in the parking lot of the Glorietta complex, which includes one of the capital's largest shopping malls, and in front of the adjacent Intercontinental Hotel.
The incident came hours after President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo (news - web sites) had ordered a group of junior military officers arrested for mutiny Saturday after they deserted with their weapons. Her whereabouts were not clear Sunday, and the government made no immediate statement on the shopping center takeover.
"We are not attempting to grab power," navy Lt. Sr. Grade Antonio Trillanes, one of the officers Arroyo ordered arrested, told reporters outside the mall. "We are just trying to express our grievances against this government and against the chain of command of the Armed Forces of the Philippines.
"These explosives are set to defend our position. If they try to take us down, we will be forced to use it."
He claimed to have the support of 2,000 officers and soldiers.
Military spokesman Lt. Col. Daniel Lucero urged the men to surrender. "This is not the right way to express our sentiments," he said in a statement.
Radio reports said about 100 men were involved. They were armed with rifles and wore red arm bands with a symbol of sun rays. A warning shot was fired as a delivery truck approached.
About six security guards of the upscale Rustan's department store shut the doors and fled. The armed men rigged the doors with explosives.
Armored personnel carriers that had been dispatched to guard the gates of the presidential palace were reinforced with more vehicles and elite troops early Sunday. Four other APCs were seen near the Intercontinental, but it was unclear if they were rebel forces or government loyalists.
The officers issued a statement early Sunday demanding the government resign and saying they were prepared to die to force change.
A separate video showing 36 officers accused the government of selling arms and ammunition to Muslim and communist rebels, staging recent deadly bombings to justify more aid from the United States, and preparing to declare martial law to stay in power.
Rumors of a coup plot have spread for the last week, but Arroyo's military chief said late Saturday that the president has the armed forces' "solid support."
In a country with a recent history of coup attempts and rumors, shoppers crowded malls late Saturday and traffic was busy — despite the president's order. But checkpoints went up around Manila after midnight.
Two days before her annual state of the nation address, Arroyo was clearly concerned though claimed the mutiny was "an exercise doomed from the start."
After an emergency Cabinet meeting Saturday, she went on live radio to say she had ordered the military and police to hunt down and "arrest a small band of rogue junior officers and soldiers who have deserted their post and illegally brought weapons with them."
House Speaker Jose de Venecia said a plot by military men "to destabilize the government" had been foiled.
In their statement, the officers called themselves "Soldiers of the Nation" and talked of disillusionment over corruption and favoritism. Soldiers and officers in the past have complained about low pay; the military is poorly equipped and trained, and hampered by budgetary constraints.
"We demand the resignation of our leaders in the present regime," the statement said. "We are willing to sacrifice our lives today, to pursue a program not tainted with politicking."
Military Chief of Staff Gen. Narciso Abaya, who attended the Cabinet meeting, said 10 of the wanted officers were from the army and navy — including several captains, the highest rank, mostly from the special operations command.
Eight served in the fight against Muslim separatists in the country's troubled south, and most had been decorated for gallantry under fire.
Arroyo, a 56-year-old economist, has enjoyed generally solid public support and is one of the staunchest U.S. allies in Asia. The United States has been working closely with the 120,000-strong Philippine military, which has been battling Muslim separatists and communist rebels for the last three decades.
In May, President Bush (news - web sites) held a state dinner at the White House for Arroyo, praised her "unwavering" partnership in the war on terrorism. He said he would visit the Philippines, perhaps this fall.
Earlier Saturday, Manila Archbishop Cardinal Jaime Sin called on Filipinos to be vigilant, saying in an open letter that "credible sources" in the government and military believed that plotters were set on "undermining and if possible overturning even with violence the democratic institutions of our country."
As the leader of the Philippines' powerful Roman Catholic Church, Sin has extensive government and military contacts.
He played a key role in the "people power" revolt that toppled late dictator Ferdinand Marcos in 1986, and massive anti-corruption protests that forced out President Joseph Estrada (news - web sites) in January 2001.
Supporters of Estrada continue to challenge Arroyo's legitimacy as leader. The president has said she won't run in elections next May, although rumors persist that she will change her mind.
There were several coup attempts against former President Corazon Aquino in the late 1980s by officers complaining about corruption.
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