Republic of the Philippines

UNIVERSITY OF RIZAL SYSTEM

Province of Rizal

COLLEGE OF EDUCATION

Antipolo City

Course Code: Hist 1

Descriptive Title: Reading in Philippine History
Instructor/ Lecturer: ALEXANDER O. RECINTO
Topic: Controversial Issues in Philippines History
Name: Jovy C. Merto
Glaiza Jane G. Militante

Jabidah Massacre Never Happened

I. Introduction
To begin with, the study will be about the Jabidah Massacre. Also, we will tackle
on how the Jabidah Massacre is considered as a hoax.
Jabidah Massacre, dated in March 18, 1968, was the alleged killing of Moro army
recruits who mutinied allegedly upon learning the purpose of their training. It is said that
there are various interpretations of the events. A version that says that the recruits
refused to continue their training and demanded to be returned home and the other
version that states that they mutinied because they were angered by the delay in
receiving their allowance, the poor living conditions on Corregidor, and the experience
of having to live on miserable rations for three months.
Moreover, this research study aims to develop consciousness on the said
controversial issue. As we go along, we will be able to understand the different views
whether the Jabidah Massacre is a hoax or not.
II. Discussion
Jibin Arula’s Perspective: A said Survivor of the Jabidah Massacre
On January 3, 1968, Jibin Arula was said to be the only survivor from the Jabidah
Massacre. From his statement on the interview, there was implemented an operation
Merdeka, it was allegedly top secret operation of Marcos to seize the Sabah Malaysia.
Jabidah, is a command group who executed the operation. Based on the reports of
Arula, they have 3 factors of Oplan Merdeka. One of these: the government are scared
to Pan-Islamic movement which happened in Mindanao before. Second, the federation
of Malaysia was vulnerable that time so it is an ideal to invade. And third, the anti-
smuggling operation of the government to Sabah and Mindanao, there will be having
secret operation or trading and it is considered as smuggling, and the group was formed
to invade Sabah Malaysia. It said that if the Malaysia filed about formal complaint
against United Nations, the Philippine government would claim that they are part of the
army in Sultan in Sulu.
It started on December 30, 1967, aboard with the recruits of Philippine Navy
Vessel from Simunol Tawi-tawi going to Corregidor, they traveled for 2 days and 1 night.
When they're about to land in Corregidor island, they command them to follow
restrictively the schedule for them to have knowledge since they are trainees. The
trainees are about to lost hope and energy because they didn’t receive any allowance,
and they don't have enough foods and comfortable bed for them while their officers are
in an air-conditioned room particularly in hotel. That's why some of the trainees made a
petition letter about paying them and asking for the improvement living condition. So
that, Major Eduardo assured them to pay and they gave a fiesta food and an
entertainment.
But unfortunately the good foods and entertainment became a bad news because
this means that they are officially resigned. The trainees complain to go back and the
rest of the trainees was transform to Capinpin Rizal and there were only 24 men who
left, so they moved to the camp and 12 people were the first batch to come take the
airplane since the airplane can only carry 12 people. Arula is on the second batch. They
went to the airport and that place is an unfamiliar airport because that is a runaway
which there have military aircraft and they’re accompanied to 13 Non-Muslim trainees
and the ride to a weapon carrier truck, and when they are on the destination, Lt.
Eduardo Nepomuceno command them to go down from the track and said them to line
up, when Arula drop his bag, he suddenly heard some series of gun shots and he saw
his colleagues was like a domino who’s falling down one by one. Arula got scared so he
ran but unluckily, he was shot on his left thigh and the last thing he can remember is
when he was rescued on the forest by the two fishermen in Cabalo Island in Cavite.
After the killings, the presidential helicopter arrived at the camp where the dead
trainees are located. They made cover up mission to rub out all the evidences of the
massacre which was ordered by the army of Chief General Romeo Espino. It said to
clean the place and cremate the dead bodies. Also, it is said that they dropped the
evidences in Manila bay, reassuring that no evidence can be found.
Jabidah Massacre: A hoax
On the other side of the coin, it is said that the Jabidah massacre was a big hoax.
According to Teodoro "teddy boy" Locsin Jr., a former reporter of the Philippine Press,
he admitted on his radio program about the former Senator Benigno "Ninoy" Aquino Jr.
directed him to falsify the report about Jabidah Massacre to frustrate the plans of
Marcos to conquest Sabah Malaysia. The original claim was from lawyer Larry Gadon,
published in “The Daily Tribune” on November 7, 2015. But the early version about the
confession of “teddy boy” have been deleted but the copies still remain on the web
archive service. According to Locsin, it is said on the tweet on 2016, Locsin himself said
in a 2016 twitter post that it was the murdered police colonel Rolando Abadilla who
authorized the training of Moro recruits in a special operation called Oplan Merdeka and
that the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos was "stunned" that his "infiltration force" was
"massacred". What came to be known as the Jabidah Massacre is the murder of Moro
recruits by members of the Philippine Armed Forces on March 18, 1968 on Corregidor
Island.
The death toll remains controversial today. They were Apprentices in the
Philippine Army who were supposed to infiltrate Sabah, an island nation in Malaysia that
the Philippines also claim as Marcos' orders. In senate hearing held on March 18,
1986, the only survivor Arula was testified on the massacre happened and after his
testimony, Senator Benigno "Noynoy" Aquino Jr. delivered a speech about the issue on
March 28, 1968, it was said "there have been some killings that come under the
heading of murder. And, for this, the guilty must be hauled before our justice and made
to account and to pay".
III. Conclusion
To sum it up, Jabidah Massacre is indeed a controversial issue to talk about with
for it involves something about the past Philippine president as well as the Muslim
people that resides in the Philippines specifically in Mindanao area. Whether the issue
really happened or it is true that it is only a hoax and a propaganda, this still needs to be
learned about because Jabidah Massacre cost so many lives of the Muslim people.
Moreover, the conflicting views that were presented above really made us think deeply
on neither of the two are we going to believe.
In conclusion, the controversial issue still needs further studies so that we Filipino
people including the future generations will be able to understand the said issue as
clear as a crystal. The issue was not only concerned about the Muslim people but it
seems to be concerned of us Filipinos as a whole nation.
IV. References
https://filipiknow.net/historical-controversies-philippines/
https://www.rappler.com/newsbreak/jabidah-massacre-merdeka-sabah
https://www.rappler.com/newsbreak/fact-check/hoax-teddyboy-locsin-forced-falsify-
jabidah-massacre-ninoy-order