Hong Kong hostages killed in Manila bus siege

On 23 August 2010, a former policeman hijacked a tour bus of 25 people and shot dead eight Hong Kong tourists on board in central Manila, the Philippines. Rolando Mendoza, the former 55-year-old Senior Inspector dismissed for trying to extort money from a chef in January 2010, seized the bus with an assault rifle in an attempt to get his job back. He posted signs of his demand on the windows of the bus and freed 9 people from the bus in the early negotiations. The hostage crisis lasted for 11 hours, before eight out of the 22 Hong Kong tourists on the bus were killed by the gunman and the gunman was shot dead by the rescue police. The drama was broadcast live by different TV stations in the city.

This incident shocked the international community, not just because of the tragic outcome of the hostage-taking but also because of the impotence of the Filipino police force revealed in the rescue operation. The failure of the police rescue team can be shown in three aspects. Firstly, the negotiation should not have failed. All was demanded by Rolando Mendoza was a reinstatement of his job, which was nothing when compared with the invaluable lives of 25 people at risk. The gunman had also shown willingness of not hurting the hostage by releasing some of them. Secondly, the negotiation should not have taken that long. The longer the negotiation, the more tense is the negotiation atmosphere and hence the greater the danger of the hostage. The rescue team knew the background and the demand of the gunman very clearly. Worse still, the process was being broadcast live, which had put extra pressure on the gunman. Given this context, 11 hours is too long and outrageously unacceptable. Thirdly, the rescue operation was indecisive and ill-organised. Special weapons were used and tactics policemen were sent only at the end of the negotiation, which was proved to be too late. The official reason for acting so cautiously was that the gunman, being a former policeman himself, may have expected what tactics the police would take in a hostage rescue operation. But this concern was much overweighed because there was evidence that the hostage-taking was not well planned.

Important as it is to evaluate the rescue operation of this incident, the cause of the hostage taking should not be ignored. Why did Rolando Mendoza do that? Was he a victim of wrongful dismissal? He had been dismissed for more than half a year. Why did it take that long for him to commit the hostage taking? Was that because there was no proper means for him to address his concern about his dismissal? A full investigation into this incident will certainly reveal more about the institutional problems in the Philippines.

source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-11055015