60 Days Martial Law in Mindanao Island - Philippines

matettosan (42)in #steemit • 7 years ago

Today is the 25th day of Martial in Mindanao.

What is Martial law?

Martial Law is the imposition of direct military control of normally civilian functions of government, especially in response to a temporary emergency such as invasion or major disaster, or in occupied territory.

President Rodrigo Duterte declared martial law last 23rd of May 2017, 10:00 PM in the entire Mindanao island in the middle of the ongoing clashes between government troops and Maute group terrorists in Marawi City. checkpoint-marawi - abs cbn 2.jpg

What happened to trigger martial law?

The security forces battled dozens of gunmen in Marawi City.
The violence was the latest in a series of deadly clashes with militants who have pledged allegiance to the Islamic State (IS) group, and are based throughout Mindanao.

Now, who are the militants?

Authorities said they were battling members of two of the best-known groups to have declared allegiance to IS, the Abu Sayyaf and Maute organizations. The Abu Sayyaf is infamous for kidnapping foreigners and killing them if ransoms are not paid. The ISIS-inspired Maute group has been active in recent months as it seeks the support of the international terror group.

Is martial law necessary?

President Duterte had repeatedly said the growing influence of Islamic State was one of the nation’s top security concerns, and martial law was necessary to stop it.

What happens next?

The constitution limits martial law to 60 days unless congress agrees to extend it.

I live (45.8 km) approximately 1 h 9 min from Marawi City and I feel so unsafe especially because I can hear many threats and warnings from the local government apprising us to be alert at all times. At least 200 have died in the firefights while more than 200,000 residents have fled the city since clashes started.