Manila calm after mutiny ends, Arroyo speech awaited
( 2003-07-28 09:13) (Agencies)
Philippine soldiers removed barriers in Manila's financial district on Monday after a weekend mutiny by renegade troops ended peacefully, but analysts said there was deep unease about which way the nation was headed.
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A mutinous soldier flips over his bullets as they agreed to go back to barracks after taking over an upscale hotel and shopping complex at Manila's financial district of Makati, Philippines, on Sunday, July 27, 2003. [AP]
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"The future beckons with what looks like the crosswinds of a raging storm," wrote columnist Teodoro Benigno in The Philippine Star, adding that the uprising was part of general disaffection with the government of President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo.
Outwardly, however, there were few signs of the discontent.
In the Makati financial district, where the renegades barricaded themselves for almost 20 hours in an upscale shopping mall, squads of workers cleaned the streets ahead of the usual Monday morning rush to work.
The Glorietta mall, one of the most popular in Manila, is close to the stock exchange, the city headquarters of local and international banks, and the offices of multinational companies.
Although Arroyo looked elated as she announced the end of the mutiny on television late on Sunday, analysts said repercussions would be profound.
Arroyo is scheduled to give her annual State of the Nation Address to both houses of Congress later on Monday.
Many analysts feared the mutiny could be the start of a throwback to the 1986-1992 rule of president Corazon Aquino, which was marked by a string of coup attempts and which stymied the Philippines at a time of rapid growth for its Southeast Asian neighbors.
"Their uprising, even if aborted, is historically significant," wrote Benigno. "Like the tip of an iceberg, it swirls down to a great body that could one day rush to the surface and break into pieces and convulse the nation."
The peso currency and the local share market were likely to open sharply weaker on Monday, analysts said. But the effect on the overall economy was likely to be deeper, they said.
"This incident will certainly have a negative effect on our economy," said Trade Secretary Manuel Roxas in a statement on Sunday. "Even now, the business sector is reeling in a state of shock."
The renegades accused the government and senior officers of corruption, collusion with Muslim rebels and planning to impose martial law to avoid presidential elections scheduled for 2004. They gave up without firing a shot, saying they did not want needless bloodshed, but the issues are not likely to be forgotten.
The mutiny is likely to overshadow most other topics in Arroyo's address, but another embarrassing event -- the recent escape of one of the region's most notorious Muslim rebels from a top-security Manila prison -- is also likely to come up.
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