All sorts of armed groups dominate a populace long neglected by government," she says. "Local rulers compete for legitimacy with armed rebel groups, bandits, Muslim preachers, Catholic volunteers, loggers legal and illegal, the Marines, the Army. In this sense, Abu Sayyaf was ripe for growth. Modern history has proved that whenever the legitimacy of a state suffers and the economy goes down, other forces come to the fore as an alternative."
This is the issue in a nutshell. The area from Indonesia to Mindanao is refered to as the "Sulu Highway". It is a route for smuggling of all types, drug, human, weapons, etc. The Philippine government has neglected this area south of Mindanao for a long time. Now, the Philippine government wants to control the area and the locals want nothing to do with it. The people on Jolo have seen the lifestyle of the Filipino's in the north and just want to be treated equally, but that is not forthcoming.
If the people of Jolowere to be the recipients of more infrastructure, the may be a little more responsive to the influence of the Philippine government.
Our SF guys have been doing a great job there, but we aren't really wanted, except for the high-tech materials and support we supply to the Philippine military.
BINGO!