WASHINGTON, D.C.--In her weeklong trip to the United States, three days of which were the state visit to this American capital, President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo not only charmed her way to her host, US President George W. Bush, and the American people but also to the mainstream American media.

The state visit, highlighted by her talks with President Bush and the state dinner at the White House, were played up in the major American newspapers and in such influential TV networks as the CNN International, NBC and ABC, as well as in the major wire organizations like the AP, Reuters and AFP.

During her Washington visit, the President was interviewed twice by CNN International, the first by Daljit Dhaliwal, and the second, where she recapped the highlights of her talks with President Bush, by veteran broadcast journalist Wolf Blizer.

The influential Washington Post published two full-length articles on the state visit, with a Page 1 teaser, entitled "U.S.-Philippines Anti-Terror Accord," saying that the US had promised the Philippines aid in fighting Muslim rebels under an expanded anti-terrorism effort.

The main Post story on Page 2 entitled. "U.S. Offers Increase in Philippine Terror Aid," was accompanied by a three-column photo showing President Bush introducing President Macapagal-Arroyo to US Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld and Gen. Richard Meyers, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

The photo also showed Foreign Affairs Secretary Blas Ople and Executive Secretary Alberto Romulo at the background.

Unfortunately, true to its interpretative journalism tradition, most of the American media outlets used as their slant the supposed agreement between the two leaders that would allow the US to send combat troops to fight the Abu Sayyaf terrorists in Mindanao.

In its main story, the Post said that the two leaders have pledged to expand collaboration in their campaign against terrorism with the White House promising more than $95 million in military aid and new deployment of US forces to help defeat Muslim rebel groups in the Philippines.

But later in the joint press briefing, President Bush clarified that the US plan to send troops to the Philippines in the fight against terrorism would be subject to the constitutional requirements of the Philippines.

Also in a press brief briefing at the Philippine embassy later, the President pointed out that what she and President Bush agreed on was that the US government would help in eliminating the terrorist threat in the Philippines in the manner that the Philippine government would want it to do.

On several occasions, the President had emphasized that US forces would not be allowed to join in combat operations in Mindanao but only to train and equip Filipino forces who should be the ones to engage in the actual fighting against the Abu Sayyaf.

The New York Times carried on page A-15 a full-length article, entitled "Bush Affirms U.S. is Ready to Send Troops to the Philippines," accompanied by a photo of the two Presidents during a joint press conference in the White House.

The Los Angeles Times, also with the same slant, carried in its World Section an article, entitled "Bush Pledges More U.S. Troops to Help Philippines."

The Post devoted one whole page in its Style Section to the state dinner at the White House hosted by President and Mrs. Bush for the visiting Philippine president.

The lifestyle article, entitled "Dinner With Two Tough Cookies," had a five-picture montage showing President Bush welcoming the President and First Gentleman Jose Miguel Arroyo to the State Dining Room of the White House where the dinner was held.

The article also carried the guest list that included the "Who’s Who" in American and Philippine officialdom.

The conservative Washington Times carried on Page 1 a three-column photo of the President trooping the line with President Bush at the formal arrival ceremonies at the South Lawn of the White House.

The caption of the photo says that President Bush called President Macapagal-Arroyo as his "strong ally in the war on terror" and pledged to deploy more US troops to help fight the Muslim rebels in Mindanao.

The Times devoted the whole of its page A-10 to the meeting between the two presidents at the White House and the state dinner later in the evening.

Three more photos of the event, an enlarged 5-column photo of smiling but aging World War II veterans welcoming the President when she arrived at the White House, was published on page A-10.

Another photo of the President and First Gentleman, being escorted by President Bush and American First Lady Laura Bush for the state dinner, accompanied the sidebar to the main story, entitled "Bush Will Send More Troops to Fight Philippine Rebels."

The sidebar, devoted mainly to the state dinner, quoted President Bush as describing the Philippine president as "fierce fighter of terrorism in the Philippines."

The main Times story was devoted to the highlights of the meeting between the two leaders that included the continuing commitment of the US to the Philippines in its war against local terrorists and in uplifting the lives of the Filipino Muslims affected by the conflict.

The sidebar, written by Times staff writer Sharon Behn, had a more human touch when it said that aides had rushed to place a small foot stool behind the lectern "for the diminutive Philippine president to stand on in the dining room."

The sidebar also said that the state dinner, which was only the third since Mr. Bush took over, "had a quite tone, with a guest list free of the glitterati that adorned such evenings at the White House during Bill Clinton’s two terms."

ZAMBOANGA CITY— "It is better for us to endure the pains and sufferings of war in one or two years than to have eternal sacrifices in the hands of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF)."

This best describes the sentiments of the evacuees now being attended to by government agencies in Lanao, Sirawai and in some parts of Central Mindanao as they started appreciating government efforts to bring perpetrators of several terrorist acts in the region to justice.

Citing several reports in areas affected by punitive military operations, Southern Command chief Maj. Gen. Roy Kyamko said terrorist or not, the military would leave no stone unturned in their pursuit operations against armed groups like the MILF because "they have committed criminal acts."

"Arrest warrants have been issued to top officials of the MILF and we are determined to bring justice to people to whom they have committed these atrocities," said Kyamko.

In a television interview over IBC 11 here, the Southcom chief expressed optimism that the Armed Forces would emerge victorious in the fight against terror, citing the cooperation the military is getting from the civilian population.

He said Civilian Volunteer Organizations and barangay tanods have been a big help in information gathering as to the whereabouts of the rebels that led to the capture of several MILF bases in South Central Mindanao.

Local officials as well as several Mindanao congressmen, according to him, have also expressed support to the ongoing pursuit operations quoting them as saying that "it was timely for the AFP to demonstrate that it still has the capability to crush the MILF."

Kyamko also reported that Muslim businessmen and leaders in the town of Munai, Pantao Ragat and other surrounding municipalities have withdrawn their moral and logistical support to the terrorist cells of terrorist leader Yahyah Lucsadatu quoting them as saying that "they are already fed up with the terror and havoc brought about by the terrorist."

"The MILF is now suffering the agony of losing the war against government troops," he said. "The rebels are just paying the price of following a false ideology which is terrorism."

On the reported presence of 12 foreign nationals believed to be linked to the Jemaah Islamiyah terrorist group in South Central Mindanao, Kyamko said there was nothing concrete yet on the veracity of the report. He said, however, that "if they are proven to be involved in terrorist bombings, we have to bring them to justice, too."

On criticisms that the AFP operations were nothing more than a state-sponsored terrorism which has displaced thousands of families, Kyamko said majority of the Mindanaoans supported the government war on terrorism.

ZAMBOANGA CITY—Contrary to published reports, only one soldier was killed in action as a result of punitive military actions against terrorist rebels in selected targets in Mindanao.