SWAT men blame lack of gear for botched hostage rescue

The lack of proper gear for a rapid assault hampered the effort to rescue the hostages during the August 23 hostage-taking, members of the Manila police’s Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) team said on Saturday. “Kulang po kami sa equipment. Sa akin lang po, kung may explosive device na nagamit sana sa pagbreak ng salamin, baka po mas may nangyari," PO3 Edwin Simacon said on Saturday during the second day of the Incident Investigation and Review Committee (IIRC)’s probe on the incident. (We lacked equipment. If you ask me, perhaps we could have done better if we had explosive devices that could have been used to break the glass windows.) Simacon, one of the SWAT operatives who launched the assault, added that his team did not have night-vision goggles and appropriate weapons when they launched the final attack to take down hostage-taker Rolando Mendoza and rescue the remaining hostages inside the bus. “Siguro po, mas maganda kung assault rifles po ang nagamit. ‘Yung ginagamit po namin panahon pa ng Vietnam War," he said. (Maybe it would have been better if assault rifles were used. The ones we’re using date back to the Vietnam War era.) Simacon was possibly referring to the more recently-developed commando assault carbines favored by anti-terrorist units, in contrast with the standard M16 infantry rifle or “Armalite" used since the Vietnam War. It took the assault team more than hour to control the bus and end the hostage crisis, which resulted in the death of nine people—the hostage-taker and eight tourists from Hong Kong. (See: Massacre in nation's heart: Timeline of Manila bus siege) Lawyer Roan Libarios, a member of the IIRC, revealed on Friday that four of the eight tourists may have died at the height of the MPD’s assault against the hostage-taker. (See: 4 hostages may have died at the height of hostage crisis assault) Vests no longer bullet-proof? PO2 Francis Ungco, another SWAT team member, meanwhile revealed during the inquiry that the bullet-proof vests his teammates were wearing might have been easily pierced by shots from the hostage-taker’s weapons. “Iyung sinusuot po naming vest, hindi na po kami sure kung bullet-proof pa ‘yun (Those vests we were wearing, we’re no longer sure if they’re still bullet-proof)," Ungco said. He added that the heavy downpour during the assault might have also weakened the material used in the bullet-proof vests. “Dapat po hindi nababasa ‘yun [the vests]. Fiber lang po kasi siya. May expiration date din po kasi ang bullet-proof vests," he said. (The vests should not be drenched in water. They’re just made of fiber. Our bullet-proof vests have expiration dates.) Ungco was possibly referring to a type of light material used in armored vests some years ago that became unstable when moist and gradually deteriorated with repeated exposure to sweat and humidity. The police officer added that it would have been better if all the assault team members wore vests with steel plates, which can protect them from M16 bullets such as those fired from Mendoza’s rifle. Ungco however said that despite his team’s lack of equipment, they were still confident of saving the hostages inside the bus. “Hindi naman po naapektuhan ang confidence namin. Sa kakayanan po namin, tiwala po kami doon (Our confidence was not affected. We trust our own capabilities)," he said. Cops’ spirit was there Justice Secretary Leila de Lima, who heads the IIRC, for her part said that it is important to know the problems encountered by the police to be able to find ways to have more efficient response in similar conflict situations in the future. “Makikita ninyo naman what were the efforts exhausted by these men on the ground … Kaya importante ang mga ganoong tanong para malaman ang challenges na kinakaharap ng ating kapulisan," she told reporters after the inquiry. (You all see what were the efforts exhausted by these men on the ground … That’s why those questions were important for us to know the challenges being faced by our police forces.) She added that while the SWAT members were determined to launch a successful assault, logistical problems hampered the operation. “Kung nandiyan ang spirit nila, pero wala naman ang karampatang suporta in terms of logistics and training, kaya nagkakaroon ng mga ganyang pagkukulang," she said. (If their spirit is there, but lacks corresponding support in terms of logistics and training, then these kinds of lapses will keep cropping up.) De Lima required the SWAT team members to submit a list of equipment they used; a list of training programs attended by the members as individuals; and a “wish list" of additional equipment that they need. The IIRC’s probe on the hostage-taking incident will resume on Monday, when the bus driver, Alberto Lubang, and chief negotiator Police Superintendent Orlando Yebra are scheduled to face the five-member panel, according to De Lima. She added that the panel will conduct an ocular inspection of the Quirino Grandstand, where the hostage-taking took place, on Tuesday and of the bullet-riddled Hong Thai Travel bus now kept in storage at Camp Bagong Diwa, on Wednesday. —JV, GMANews.TV