Command & Control

Crime plummets as Filipinos flock to watch Pacquiao

By Robin Hicks | 6 May 2009

Police in the Philippines saw crime levels plummet to near zero when Filipino boxer Manny Pacquiao fought Ricky Hatton last Sunday (3rd May 2009), aided by the deployment of free live screening facilities.

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Only one crime was reported in the gun-ridden Philippine capital of Manila during the televised bout, while police rushed one fan to hospital after he suffered a heart attack while watching the bout.

At least 10,000 people watched a free live screening in Pacquiao’s home city of General Santos, while in Manila’s Tondo area another 2000 people packed a gym to watch the fight.

Political violence also ended temporarily in the archipelago, aided by the deployment of screening technology.

Eid Kabalu, a spokesman for the 11,000-strong Moro Islamic Liberation Front, the largest Muslim guerrilla group, said that fighters trooped back to their communities to watch the fight on television screens.

While pleased with the result, the rebels said Pacquiao ended the contest too quickly. “They came from the fields. They haven’t even warmed their seats and it was over,” Kabalu said. “I wish our rebellion would end that quickly.”