They are all mad.

A soldier's words.

I was recently in the Philippines, a land with the friendliest people I have ever met.

One day my wife and I decided to explore the hills above Dumaquete. To do this we caught a bus and for the last 13 kms had to travel up a rough track on the back of a motorbike. My wifes motor bike driver was called Mario, an ex soldier who had spent 35 years in the army.

For the last 17years he was based in Mindanao Island. The Philippines is extremely Catholic the result of some 400 years of Spanish occupation.However on the large southern island of Mindanao, there has always been a significant Muslim population, owing to its proximity to Indonesia and Malaysia.

Periodically some of these Muslims become terrorists, and seek in their usual extremely violent way some sort of autonomy, which they have been granted. Hence the Philippine army maintains a significant presence there to stop the bombings and murders.

Mario said this about these Muslims:

• They are all mad
• They are lazy
• They hate Christians
• They fight and kill each other
• The terrorists rob, kidnap and murder people
• They rape old women
• They have no respect for men in uniform

Words from someone who knows,-17 years experience- and it rings true of what we often read in the news.

I do not believe that  people with a strong Muslim faith are compatable with democracy and good citizenship.