🔗 Share this article

It was the most terrifying time of his existence. During the fall of 2016, Gerry Pendon was just five meters away from a detonation at the Roxas night market in Davao City. The ISIS strike claimed 15 lives, among them his brother-in-law. A lengthy battle between the army and the jihadist group in Marawi City came after.

“It will not occur again in Davao,” Pendon states.

Nine years later, the threat of IS reappears over one of the country's largest cities, amidst international scrutiny over the 28-day stay in the city of the accused Bondi beach shooters, a father and son, Sajid and Naveed Akram.

Pendon, who is a a masseur at the night market, saw news of Bondi on the television, but similar to other residents spoken to, felt largely removed.

Even the 2016 bombing is a bad memory he is attempting to put behind him. A memorial for the 2016 victims is placed in a section of the night market, looking incongruous amid the joyful mood as hundreds flocked there for meals, massages and souvenirs.

Ongoing Probes Amid Festive Celebrations

Investigations into the visit to the country of the pair coincides with the mostly Catholic country is preparing for Christmas. Davao’s municipal hall has been adorned with a large Christmas tree, malls are packed, and children go door-to-door to perform Christmas songs.

“I was taken aback to see [the Akrams] in the news. But they were here for tourism, not extremism,” says Emelyn Lorenzo, another a massage therapist at the market. The government have made clear the investigation into their activities is continuing and the true reason for their trip is as yet unknown.

“It is just a shame that legitimate grievances are hijacked by terrorism. Unfortunately, the reputation of savage attacks was incorrectly tied to Mindanao’s identity,” noted Karlos Manlupig, executive director of advocacy group Balay Mindanao.

Faith in Security Record

Lorenzo is also confident that nobody could perpetrate another act of terror in the city for a long time governed by the political machine of past leader Rodrigo Duterte, whose name – both renowned and notorious – was forged through aggressively securitising Davao through strict law and order and anti-drug initiatives. At an entrance of the night market, at minimum four officers stand checking bags.

The Philippine government has pushed back against allegations that it was a terrorist training ground for the suspected Bondi shooters. The country has a long history of instability and marginalisation that has seen some Muslim separatist groups establish links with international jihadist groups. But while IS-linked groups remain present, experts say they are small and diminished.

Police Piece Together Movements

What is clear, stated Eduardo Año, the Philippines’ top security official, is the two never left the city nor obtained military-style training in the country, as was initially suggested.

Investigators have said they are “taking seriously” the pair’s presence in the country as they reconstruct the actions of the pair during their month-long stay in Davao City.

Police say there are numerous locations the two could have gone to or met contacts in the vicinity. Many of businesses sit between the GV Hotel and a close by restaurant, where they were reported to buy their food.

Detectives are reviewing security camera video and following cab rides to establish their itinerary, and that all possibilities are being considered.

Concerns in Marawi Over Stigma

In Marawi, the site of a major conflict with IS-linked militants in 2017, residents are worried that new terrorist labels could lead to tighter restrictions and worsen bias against Muslims.

Tirmizy Abdullah, a academic at the university in Marawi City, said the Philippine intelligence community must determine what happened.

“[The Akrams’] time here should be carefully probed and the intel should provide transparent and factual answers without converting questions into finger-pointing against Mindanao or its people,” he said.

Manlupig commended local initiatives in improving the safety conditions in Davao City but he said “it is not true that extremism was eradicated”. He said the country must confront economic and social issues and governance challenges that drive the reasons behind the unrest while “continue pushing for tolerance and prevent discrimination and polarization”.