Lanao del Sur Rep. Faysah RPM Dumarpa aired this warning as she urged Malacañang to take immediate steps in putting behind bars the recruiters of Filipinos who are willing to fight side-by-side with American soldiers in the Islamic nations of Iraq and Afghanistan.

"The Arroyo administration must arrest those who have been making a mockery of the government’s ban against the deployment of workers or soldiers in these troubled Islamic countries," Dumarpa said.

She explained that violators of the ban may be charged with large-scale illegal recruitment that carries the death penalty.

"Unless government takes a strong stand against the deployment of Filipino mercenaries to strife-torn Iraq and Afghanistan, the country’s chances of making the observer status at OIC might be put in grave danger," she stressed.

News reports have revealed that at least three US-based private military firms that have cornered multi-million peso security contracts have been recruiting Filipinos to do the job.

Dumarpa said there are reports that many Filipinos with combat experience have been lured by the huge financial rewards — ranging from ,500 to ,000 monthly — and are now in the battlefront.

She cited a 2004 article written by Bill Berkowitz entitled "Mercenaries R Us." Berkowitz wrote: "During the first Gulf War, one out of every 50 soldiers on the battlefield was a mercenary. The number had climbed up to one in 10 during the Bosnian conflict. Currently, there are thousands of Bosnian, Filipino, and American soldiers under contract with private companies serving in Iraq."