Chinese demand answers in killing

• Source: Global Times
• [02:41 August 25 2010]
• Comments

Philippine President Benigno Aquino admitted at a press conference hours after the situation ended that the local police and the government failed in some regards.

But he was also vehement in blaming TV and radio stations for broadcasting live at the scene, saying it worsened the situation by irritating the gunman, who found out his brother, a policeman, had been arrested for carrying a gun during the negotiations.

Aquino declared today a day of national mourning for the victims, ordering all government agencies, including the country's embassies and consulates abroad, to lower the Philippine flags to half-staff.

Pak-nung Wong, a professor with the Chinese University of Hong Kong specializing in research on the Philippine police and military, told the Global Times that the police made at least two mistakes that led to the tragedy.

"Firstly, local police were strategically wrong to identify the gunman as just a desperate civilian. The ex-policeman was an extremely dangerous criminal armed with weapons, whom the police should have been highly aware of," Wong said.

"Secondly, the timing was bad for police to storm in. When the gunman put up a note 'Media Now,' it suggested that the negotiations between the suspect and the police had broken down, and instead of waiting, snipers should have been deployed right away to take down the hijacker," he said.

Su Hao, director of the Center of Asia-Pacific Studies at China Foreign Affairs University, advised against Chinese being overly critical of the Philippine police.

"I believe the Philippine police lacked experience and competence in rescuing the hostages, but their desire to rescue the hostages was strong," he said.

Wu Guoyi and Liu Linlin contributed to the story