🔗 Share this article

That was the most terrifying experience of his life. Back in September 2016, Gerry Pendon was just five metres away from a blast at the Roxas night market in Davao City. The IS attack left 15 dead, among them his wife's brother. A lengthy battle between the armed forces and the jihadist group in Marawi City came after.

“It won’t happen again in Davao,” Pendon states.

Years later, the specter of IS again looms over one of the Philippines’ key cities, amid global attention over the four-week stay in the city of the alleged Bondi beach shooters, Sajid Akram and his son Naveed.

Pendon, who is a a massage technician at the night market, heard about the Bondi incident on the news, but similar to other residents interviewed, felt mostly disconnected.

Even the 2016 blast is a painful recollection he is working to forget. A monument for the 2016 victims sits in a corner of the night market, appearing incongruous against the celebratory environment as crowds came there for meals, massages and trinkets.

Active Investigations Amid Festive Preparations

Investigations into the Philippines activities of the pair coincides with the mostly Catholic country is gearing up for Christmas. Davao’s city hall has been decorated with a large Christmas tree, shopping centers are packed, and children go door-to-door to perform Christmas songs.

“It surprised me to see [the Akrams] in the news. But they were here for travel, not extremism,” says Emelyn Lorenzo, also a massage therapist at the market. Authorities have emphasized the investigation into their actions is active and the true reason for their stay is as yet unknown.

“It is regrettable that real concerns are hijacked by terrorism. Sadly, the reputation of brutal violence was incorrectly tied to the island's character,” noted Karlos Manlupig, executive director of peace-building NGO Balay Mindanao.

Confidence in Policing Record

Lorenzo is furthermore assured that nobody could perpetrate another act of terror in the city long ruled by the family of former president Rodrigo Duterte, whose legacy – both famous and infamous – was built on aggressively securitising Davao through hardline law and order and drug war campaigns. At one entrance of the night market, at minimum four officers stand checking bags.

The national government has pushed back against claims that it was a terrorist training ground for the suspected Bondi shooters. The country has a long history of unrest and marginalization that has seen some Islamic independence movements form alliances with international jihadist groups. But while IS-linked groups still exist, experts say they are small and degraded.

Authorities Trace Movements

What is certain, stated Eduardo Año, the Philippines’ top security official, is the two never left the city nor received combat training in the country, as was earlier claimed.

Investigators have said they are “not taking lightly” the father and son's visit in the country as they reconstruct the movements of the suspects during their month-long stay in Davao City.

Investigators say there are numerous locations the two could have frequented or connected with associates in the neighborhood. Scores of businesses sit between the hotel where they stayed and a nearby Jollibee, where they were reported to buy their meals.

Police are reviewing CCTV footage and tracing taxi trips to reconstruct their movements, and that every scenario are being considered.

Worries in Marawi City Over Bias

In Marawi, the site of a major conflict with extremist groups in 2017, inhabitants are concerned that renewed associations with terrorism could lead to tighter restrictions and worsen bias against Muslims.

Tirmizy Abdullah, a faculty member at the institution in Marawi City, said the Philippine intelligence community must determine what happened.

“[The Akrams’] time here should be properly investigated and the information should provide transparent and factual answers without converting questions into accusations against the region or its people,” Abdullah said.

Manlupig commended local initiatives in strengthening the security situation in Davao City but he said “that does not imply that extremism was eradicated”. He said the country must confront root causes and governance challenges that drive the motivations behind the violence while “persist in promoting acceptance and avoid discrimination and sectarianism”.