“THEY RETURNED to the control of the military,” Maj. Gen. Emmanuel Teodosio told reporters.
Radio reports said the soldiers who surrendered walked from the building complex they had seized to a nearby car park, where government troops were waiting. The military said at first that 50 people had surrendered but later lowered the number, and there were believed to be many more still inside.
With demands that the government resign, troops in camouflage uniforms set up gun posts and rigged explosives at 3 a.m. around the outside of the Glorietta complex, which includes one of the capital’s largest shopping malls.
The military responded by sending marines to positions nearby. Television footage later showed them shaking hands with some of the rogue officers, raising questions about what government forces would do if ordered to mount an assault.
Around 10 a.m., seven hours after the takeover began, President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo went on national television and set a 5 p.m. deadline for the rebels to surrender.
“There is absolutely no justification for the actions you have taken,” Arroyo said. “You have already stained the uniform. Do not drench it with dishonor. Your actions are already hovering at the fringes of outright terrorism.”
Later Sunday, Arroyo declared a nationwide state of rebellion and ordered the military and police to “immediately carry out the necessary actions and measures to suppress and quell the rebellion with due regard to constitutional rights.” The order gives authorities power to carry out arrests without warrants.
A White House spokesperson told NBC News that the Bush administration has “seen the reports and is monitoring the situation” in Manila.
REBELS: NO COUP ATTEMPT
The rebel soldiers pledged to remain. In an earlier statement, they demanded the government resign and said they were prepared to die to force change.
“We are not attempting to grab power. We are just trying to express our grievances,” Navy Lt. Sr. Grade Antonio Trillanes told reporters on the scene.
He said that the explosives were for self-defense. “If they try to take us down, we will be forced to use it,” said Trillanes, who is among the officers Arroyo ordered arrested.
Trillanes claimed to have the support of 2,000 officers and soldiers. Radio reports said about 100 men were involved. They were armed with rifles and wore red arm bands with a symbol of sun rays. A warning shot was fired as a delivery truck approached.
Unlike the two “people power” revolts that peacefully ousted two presidents in recent years, there appeared to be little public support for the mutiny. The military chief of staff declared loyalty to Arroyo.
RUMORS IN THE AIR
Rumors of a coup plot had been spreading for the last week. Arroyo took action Saturday, publicly announcing that she had ordered the military and police to hunt down and “arrest a small band of rogue junior officers and soldiers who have deserted their post and illegally brought weapons with them.”
The officers responded in a video released just before the takeover, accusing the government of selling arms and ammunition to Muslim and communist rebels, staging recent deadly bombings to justify more aid from the United States, and preparing to declare martial law to stay in power.
The takeover began hours later. Checkpoints quickly went up around Manila and armored personnel carriers at the gates of the presidential palace were reinforced with more vehicles and elite troops.
Australian Ambassador Ruth Pearce initially was prevented from leaving a ritzy apartment complex where a number of foreign diplomats live. But all residents were later evacuated, some left carrying children and luggage. Many appeared alarmed as they passed a rebel machine gun outside the building.
Pearce told reporters everything was “fine” as she emerged hours after the renegade soldiers seized the building.
Philippine Defense Secretary Angelo Reyes had said two Americans were also trapped in the building but their fate was not immediately known. There was no further information on any held Americans.
HISTORY OF COUPS
National Security Adviser Roilo Golez said he hoped for negotiations and a peaceful resolution.
“We have to be very prudent about this,” he told reporters outside the palace. “This is similar to the 1989 coup attempt.”
There were several coup attempts against former President Corazon Aquino in the late 1980s by officers complaining about corruption.
In a 1989 attempt, rebellious troops also occupied the commercial center. They held onto it for several days until they were persuaded to surrender.
RESIGNATIONS DEMANDED
In their statement, the rebellious officers called themselves “Soldiers of the Nation” and talked of disillusionment over corruption and favoritism. Soldiers and officers in the past have complained about low pay; the military is poorly equipped and trained, and hampered by budgetary constraints.
“We demand the resignation of our leaders in the present regime,” the statement said. “We are willing to sacrifice our lives today, to pursue a program not tainted with politicking.”
Interior Secretary Jose Lina ordered the arrest of Sen. Gregorio Honasan, citing an intelligence report reportedly linking the former army colonel to the mutiny. Honasan denied he had any “influence or control” over the mall takeover.
Military Chief of Staff Gen. Narciso Abaya said 10 of the wanted officers were from the army and navy - including several captains, the highest rank, mostly from the special operations command.
Eight served in the fight against Muslim separatists in the country’s troubled south, and most had been decorated for gallantry under fire.
Arroyo, a 56-year-old economist, has enjoyed generally solid public support and is one of the staunchest U.S. allies in Asia. The United States has been working closely with the 120,000-strong Philippine military, which has been battling Muslim separatists and communist rebels for the last three decades.
In May, President Bush held a state dinner at the White House for Arroyo, praised her “unwavering” partnership in the war on terrorism. He said he would visit the Philippines, perhaps this fall.
Earlier Saturday, Manila Archbishop Cardinal Jaime Sin called on Filipinos to be vigilant, saying in an open letter that “credible sources” in the government and military believed that plotters were set on “undermining and if possible overturning even with violence the democratic institutions of our country.”
As the leader of the Philippines’ powerful Roman Catholic Church, Sin has extensive government and military contacts.
He played a key role in the “people power” revolt that toppled late dictator Ferdinand Marcos in 1986, and massive anti-corruption protests that forced out President Joseph Estrada in January 2001.
NBC News’ Kelly O’Donnell at the White House, The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.
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