PEACE TALKS WITH MILF NOT FAST ENOUGH, SAYS MALAYSIA. Malaysia said Tuesday that talks between the Philippine government and Muslim rebels were not moving fast enough because of the continued violence in Mindanao.
As mediator in the government's peace negotiations with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, Malaysia called on the secessionist group to stop performing acts that showed "terrorist tendencies." Mohamad Najib Tun Abdul Razak, Malaysian defense minister, urged the rebels to "work within the constitutional framework" of the Philippines. In his keynote speech before the National Conference on Regional Security, Najib said Malaysia, a mostly Muslim state, did not support or condone Islamic secessionists seeking change through "extreme" behavior outside the political arena. "We respect the territorial integrity of the Philippines," Najib said.
The conference, held in Makati City and attended by about 100 defense officials, academics and diplomats, was organized by the Center for Strategic Studies of the Office of the Presidential Adviser for Special Concerns. The call for jihad, or Muslim holy war, had long been abused by extremists to instill fear and create terror, Najib said. He urged "all sides" to see the big picture, rather than dwelling on "parochial issues and interests." He cited the Abu Sayyaf kidnap gang as an example. "This group is using Islam to confuse people," he said.
As for other Muslim rebels, Najib said: "(They) must concentrate on bringing greater development to the community instead of merely aiming to seize power. Let us call for a jihad against poverty, against ignorance, against underdevelopment and against prejudice."
Source: Philippines Daily Inquirer, 30 April 2003
16 DIE IN NEW OUTBREAK OF FIGHTING IN MINDANAO. In the worst outbreak of fighting since February, some 600 Muslim separatist rebels staged Thursday separate attacks in two towns of Lanao del Norte province, leaving at least 16 people dead and at least 10 others wounded.
MILF spokesman Eid Kabalu said the latest offensive was part of the secessionist group’s "continuing active defense against military forces," but denied that any hostages had been taken. The attacks followed a rebel ambush in North Cotabato province on Wednesday afternoon, which killed an anti-MILF village captain, his son, two escorts, and injured 10 other victims. Only late last month, government and rebel negotiators meeting in Kuala Lumpur had agreed to resume the stalled peace talks.
The MILF attacked Kolambugan town at about 5 a.m. and Maigo town about an hour later. The attacks, occurring on opposite ends of Maigo's borders, were apparently aimed at leading to full occupation of the municipality, in the way the rebels occupied Kauswagan town in March 2000. The skirmish left an MILF fighter killed, said a civilian witness, one of early morning travelers who could not leave because of the attack. No fatalities were reported on the part of police. But the clash left 10 civilians dead, among them a three-year-old child and a Dipolog City-based businessman, Rally Falame, 49. After taking control of the highway, the rebels stopped passing vehicles and used these to block parts of the road and the bridge, apparently to block government reinforcements.
Source: Philippines Daily Inquirer, 25 April 2003
MACAPAGAL UNVEILS 10-POINT MINDANAO RECOVERY PROGRAM. Pres. Macapagal-Arroyo has unveiled a 10-point program for the rehabilitation of war-ravaged areas in Mindanao dubbed the "Mindanao National Initiative" or Mindanao Natin.
In a speech before the 1st Muslim Summit held at the Midtown Hotel in Manila, the President said she is allotting 5.5 billion pesos for the implementation of the program in the next 14 months. Ms Macapagal said this was in addition to the Official Development Assistance (ODA) financing amounting to 1.3 billion dollars that the government will pour into the region. Mindanao Natin will be implemented in over 5,000 barangays of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, Regions IX and XII, Lanao del Norte and Damulog in Bukidnon.
The President said that unless the country came up with a solution to what is known as the "Mindanao problem," it would not realize its full potential as a nation. The President said the 10-point initiative includes the following components:
Substantial implementation of the 1976 Tripoli Agreement that called for, among other things, greater participation of Muslims in government.
Rehabilitation of the so-called Pikit-Pagalungan-Pagagawan cluster and the Carmen-President
Roxas-Damulog cluster, which were affected by recent fighting between government forces and Muslim rebels.
Formation of the "Sala'am Soldiers,'' half of whom are to be Muslims, whose task would be to protect Muslim communities.
Financing and provision of skills for livelihood opportunities in agriculture, trade, industry and services.
Source: Philippines Daily Inquirer, 25 April 2003
MILF: BLAST MEANT TO DERAIL PEACE TALKS, CALL IN GI’S. The Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) claimed yesterday that the renewed terror bombings in Davao City were a calculated move to derail peace negotiations between the Muslim separatist group and the government.
MILF spokesman Eid Kabalu said the bombings might have also been intended to prompt the government to call in US troops to fight the MILF. "Or it could have been aimed at really igniting a Muslim-Christian war in Mindanao," Kabalu told reporters.
Despite speculations that the MILF was behind the bombing, Malacanang said the government was still committed to pursuing peace negotiations with the rebels. Government chief negotiator Jesus Dureza said the government panel is awaiting the official results of investigations into the incident. Dureza expressed his belief that the MILF is also committed in resuming peace talks with the government panel in Kuala Lumpur with the Malaysian government acting as third party facilitator.
Immediately following the blast, President Arroyo directed Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte to coordinate with local law enforcement authorities in the investigation. Duterte was earlier appointed crisis manager by Mrs. Arroyo following the Davao airport blast last month. Duterte, for his part, went slow in blaming the MILF for the Sasa wharf bombing, a big deviation from his stand when the March 4 airport bombing occurred.
Kabalu said the MILF is also conducting its own investigation into the bombings and extending assistance to the government to find and arrest the culprits. According to Undersecretary Zamzamin Ampatuan, OMA chief, a third force with ties to the al-Qaeda network of international fugitive Osama bin Laden operating in Asia, could have carried out the bomb attack. Ampatuan theorized that the March 4 bomb attack at the Davao airport and the Sasa wharf incident were carried out by one group. He, however, warned authorities against implicating Muslim groups in the attack, as this may further drive a wedge between Christians and Muslims.
Source: Philippine Star, 4 April 2003
3 DAVAO MOSQUES BOMBED. Unidentified men bombed three mosques in Davao City before dawn yesterday, hours after a bomb ripped through a row of food stalls outside the passenger terminal gate of the Sasa wharf that left 16 people dead and 57 others wounded Wednesday night.
The first blasts were at the mainly Muslim district of Tibungco south of the city. At about 2 a.m., five hooded men in a car hurled two grenades at the mosque and then sprayed it with rifle fire before fleeing, police said. A few minutes later, another bomb exploded outside a mosque in the center of the city in the mixed Christian-Muslim district of Toril, a police report said. Less than an hour later, unidentified men in black jackets hurled a grenade at the doorstep of a mosque in the Mini Forest area along Quezon Boulevard. There were unconfirmed reports that at least 14 Muslim scholars or "Tablegs" sleeping inside were injured in the blast.
Unidentified men also hurled grenades at the regional office of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) in Bunuwan, Agusan del Sur, almost the same time a bomb exploded at the Davao wharf late Wednesday, officials said. Officials said this was the second time a grenade was hurled at the DENR office since November last year. Agusan del Sur police director Ramon Espiritu said no one was killed or injured in the incident but suspected that illegal loggers might have carried out the grenade attack.
On the grenade attacks in Davao City, officials were divided on the motive and what group could have carried out the attacks. Some officials said the mosque explosions could be viewed as retaliatory act for the series of bombings that struck the city late Wednesday and the explosion that rocked the Davao City international airport that left 22 people dead and 159 others wounded last March 4. On the other hand, some military and police officials believed the series of grenade attacks were the handiwork of another group trying to sow tension between Muslims and Christians in the city.
President Arroyo met with investigators of the bomb attacks and visited the site of the wharf blast. She also dropped by a hospital to console the wounded. Mrs. Arroyo had placed Davao City under a "state of lawlessness," effectively putting the military in charge of maintaining peace and order. National Security Adviser Roilo Golez said the wharf bombing prompted Mrs. Arroyo to declare a state of lawlessness so the military can assist the police in tracking down the suspected bombers.
Source: Philippine Star, 4 April 2004
GOV'T, MILF AGREE TO RESUME PEACE TALKS. After two days of "exploratory talks" in Kuala Lumpur, the government and the Muslim separatist Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) have agreed to resume formal peace negotiations.
In a joint statement, the peace panels said Sunday they agreed to take "appropriate steps to pave the way for the resumption of the formal GRP-MILF peace negotiations." They also agreed to exercise "mutual restraint" to prevent the escalation of fighting in Central Mindanao. The government also agreed to refrain from blaming the MILF for violent incidents. Both sides also agreed to involve Libya in the peace talks.
The government and the MILF reiterated their "commitment to achieve a comprehensive, just and lasting political settlement of the conflict in Mindanao."
Signing the agreement for the government were Presidential Adviser for Mindanao Jesus Dureza, chair of the panel; and delegation members Norberto Gonzales, presidential adviser for special concerns; Social Welfare Secretary Corazon Soliman; defense undersecretary Antonio Santos; and panel executive director Diosita Andot. Representing the MILF were Lanang Ali, chief negotiator; and Michael Mastura, Musib Buat and Mohajirin Ali.
The informal talks were held on March 27 and 28. The news from Malaysia coincided with reports of more armed encounters in the field. But as in past instances, the reports could not be independently confirmed.
Source: Philippines Daily Inquirer, 31 March 2003
FIGHTING RAGES ANEW AS MILF REBELS TRY TO RETAKE BULIOK. Intense fighting has returned to the town of Pikit, North Cotabato, and surrounding areas, after what the military said was a massive attempt by the Muslim separatist Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) to retake the Buliok complex, their stronghold that government forces captured late last month.
Southern Command chief Lieutenant General Narciso Abaya said the attacking rebels blasted the area with mortar and rocket fire, and he had to dispatch helicopter gunships and attack planes to disperse the MILF formations and halt the offensive. The Agence France-Presse said Abaya estimated the number of rebels at over a thousand. Abaya said the rebels' hijacking of a bus and taking of some 50 passengers as hostages on Sunday were a diversionary tactic for their initial assault. He said there were no government casualties but did not know if there were any on the MILF side. MILF sources said two soldiers were killed.
The MILF, through its information officer Mohagher Iqbal, admitted that its fighters were in the area "and almost done with their objective." Colonel Carduzo Luna, commander of the Army's 602nd Infantry Battalion here, said the efforts of the MILF to regain Buliok "are all useless." Luna said the rebels tried in particular to recapture MILF chairman Salamat Hashim's two-story house that was overrun by the military when the Buliok complex fell.
On Monday, some 50 families from the village of Gli-gli and an undetermined number from the village of Bulod fled anew after government soldiers started to mass up in their villages. Evacuees who were thinking of returning to their villages in response to a government call are now having second thoughts.
Source: Philippines Daily Inquirer, 12 March 2003
SPLIT IN GOV’T BLAMED FOR MINDANAO WOES. "Division" in the government is responsible for the continuing violence in parts of Mindanao, according to a leading Catholic bishop.
"Who is calling the shots in Central Mindanao? President Macapagal-Arroyo? The military clique?" Archbishop Orlando Quevedo asked in an article he wrote for the CBCP Monitor, the fortnightly paper of the influential Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP). Quevedo, who is president of the CBCP, said the same discordant note apparently applied to the government's dealings with the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, which was reportedly left out of decisions in matters involving Mindanao.
In the Senate, Senator Aquilino Pimentel Jr. accused Defense Secretary Angelo Reyes of perpetrating the violence in Mindanao. Grilling Reyes who appeared before the Congressional Oversight Committee on the Visiting Forces Agreement, the senator from Mindanao said the defense chief should be blamed for the killing of 44 "lawless elements" and the evacuation of hundreds of civilians during the pursuit operations against alleged Pentagon gang members in the Buliok complex in Central Mindanao. "Their blood is on your hands," Pimentel told Reyes.
But Reyes insisted that he had not been interfering with tactical or ground operations since his role as defense secretary was limited to the strategic level. "Mr. Chairman, I don't need to wash my hands because they are clean," he replied to Pimentel. "They have no blood. I don't see anything," Reyes said tersely. The exchange of bitter words came after Pimentel questioned Reyes for not stopping the massing of troops in Buliok despite a call from Speaker Jose de Venecia to do so during a meeting in Malacanang on Feb. 3.
In that meeting, Pimentel said Reyes tried to scuttle the final draft of the peace agreement with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front by saying he would come out with his own guidelines on the matter. Reyes denied scuttling any efforts to promote peace and sign a peace agreement with the MILF, saying he would even facilitate its speedy implementation. He also could not recall whether De Venecia had called him on that day and asked him to stop the operations in Buliok. Pimentel, however, insisted that having so many people killed and hundreds evacuated was not a matter of small details.
Reyes said that Pimentel should view the Buliok incident within the context of events which started as pursuit operation against lawless elements and later became a continuing operation. He also said that he was in no position to order an attack. Another opposition leader, Sen. Edgardo Angara, charged that Reyes was "bringing the Mindanao war to Metro Manila doorsteps."
Source: Philippines Daily Inquirer, 12 March 2003
LET’S GIVE PEACE A CHANCE, MUSLIM EXECS URGE GOV’T. Government officials who profess the Islamic faith met in an unprecedented gathering at the Davao Insular Hotel Tuesday to discuss ways of restoring peace in Mindanao.
The Muslim governors, congressmen, mayors and other officials present raised many suggestions, but they had one clear message for the Macapagal administration: Resume the peace talks with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front by dropping the criminal charges filed against MILF leaders.
At the start of the meeting, Sultan Kudarat Gov. Pakung Mangudadatu said he hoped the unusual meeting would come up with a proposed resolution, which Congress can use as "a focal point to resolve the Mindanao conflict." Among the suggestions raised: a congressional hearing be conducted to help establish the causes of the violence, and an independent "investigative body" be formed to look into military actions against rebel groups.
Deputy Speaker for Mindanao Gerry Salapuddin supported the formation of the independent body even as he hinted that the hostilities were the handiwork of a so-called third force. He lambasted the military for its alleged bias after it immediately concluded that the MILF was behind the March 4 bombing outside the Davao International Airport which left 21 persons dead and more than a hundred wounded.
Source: Philippines Daily Inquirer, 12 March 2003 Inquirer, 03/12/2003
DUTERTE TO MILF: GIVE UP BOMBERS. Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte dared the Muslim separatist Moro Islamic Liberation Front on Sunday to prove it was not behind last week's bombing outside the Davao International Airport.
"Just surrender the bombers," Duterte urged MILF chair Salamat Hashim. Duterte's appeal came even as preparations for a meeting Monday of Muslim leaders in government kicked into high gear. President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, who appointed Duterte "crisis manager," also instructed Sultan Kudarat Gov. Pakung Mangudadatu to convene the meeting in Davao City's Grand Men Seng hotel. Duterte will host the day-long conference of congressmen, governors, mayors and other elected officials who embrace Islam as their religion.
The mayor said he was willing to apologize to all MILF officials if it could be proven that they had no hand in the bombing incident. But Duterte remained firm in ordering the arrest of Salamat, his vice chair for political affairs Ghazali Jaafar, military chief Ibrahim Murad, spokesperson Eid Kabalu and other rebel officials.
The President ordered the unusual meeting convened after Mangudadatu complained that the national government was trying to solve the current wave of violence in Mindanao without consulting Muslim leaders. Mangudadatu said the President agreed with his suggestion and asked the governor to take the lead in inviting elected Muslim officials to the gathering which will discuss how to restore order and help improve the economy.
MILF spokesperson Kabalu on Saturday said rebel leaders have gone into hiding, but denied the bombing attack was the work of the 12,500-strong guerrilla force. This would mean back-channel peace negotiations between government and the rebels ahead of formal negotiations would be affected, Kabalu said. But in Malacanang, Presidential Spokesperson Ignacio Bunye said the government was not closing the door on peace talks with the MILF even as authorities were looking for its leaders.
Source: Philippines Daily Inquirer, 10 March 2003
MILF Chairman condemns Davao bomb blast. In a press statement released early today, Chairman Salamat Hashim, Deputy Chairman Al Haj Murad Ebrahim and other members of the MILF Central Committee condemned the bomb blast at the Davao City International Airport on March 4 afternoon killing 21 persons and 146 others.
Hashim described the bomb blast as a "horrible and dastardly act" committed against innocent people and whose perpetrators are totally unmindful of the place where they carried out their evil act.
The blast occurred at 5:30 p.m. yesterday at a waiting shed where hundreds of people including foreigners were waiting for incoming passengers of a plane of the Philippine Airlines [PAL] set to land shortly before the explosion.
The press statement was signed by Al Haj Murad, who is concurrently the chief of staff of the MILF Bangsamoro Islamic Armed Forces [BIAF]. Murad is also MILF chief negotiator that talks peace with the Philippine government.
But the peace talks with the Philippine government has hit a snag and its early resumption very unlikely when the government ordered its armed forces to attack the MILF in the towns of Pikit and Pagalungan in North Cotabato and Maguindanao, respectively, last February 11. The MILF accused the government of insincerity and duplicity in talking peace with them.
Meanwhile, Mohagher Iqbal, MILF chief information officer, told reporters that the MILF is extending their fullest heartfelt sympathy and condolence to the families and relatives of the fallen victims of this criminal act. He described this crime as not only committed against the victims and their loved ones and the Filipino people, but also against humanity.
Source: luwaran.com , 5 March 2003
19 KILLED IN DAVAO BLASTS. A deadly bomb explosion ripped through a crowd outside Davao City's international airport late yesterday afternoon, killing at least 19 people including an American and wounding 114 others.
The US Embassy confirmed that among those wounded were three Americans. "What we know is that four Americans are injured," spokesman Ronald Post initially told Agence France Presse. One of the four was later confirmed killed. A bomb also exploded at a bus terminal in Davao yesterday, although police were unable to confirm if there were any casualties. In a separate incident yesterday, an explosion at a city health office in Tagum, about 30 kilometers north of Davao City, wounded two people, said military spokesman Col. Daniel Lucero. He gave no other details.
No one immediately claimed responsibility for the bomb attacks but sources in the intelligence community said it could be the handiwork of the al-Qaeda or its Asian counterpart Jemaah Islamiyah since plastic explosives were used. Quoting officials, ABS-CBN television said C-4 military plastic explosive was probably used in the airport attack.
Local civil defense chief Susan Madrid said the explosion occurred at 5:20 p.m. as scores of people waited for a plane to arrive. Other officials said dozens of passengers queued to get into the building to board two Manila-bound flights. Cotabato City Mayor Muslimin Sema, who was at the airport at the time of the blast, said the explosion was so powerful he felt the shockwave even though he was about 100 meters away from the blast.
In a telephone interview with dzMM radio, MILF spokesman Eid Kabalu denied his group was involved in the bomb attacks. "We want this investigated, if they need our participation, we are willing to find out who is behind this attack." Flights to and from Davao have been suspended.
Source: Philippine Star, 5 March 2003
'ZONES OF PEACE' LAUNCHED IN PIKIT. Fifteen barangays in the war-torn town of Pikit, North Cotabato were declared "zones of peace" by Malacanang yesterday to jump-start peace and development efforts in the area.
Presidential Spokesman Ignacio Bunye said various government agencies would implement the zones of peace with initial funding of P30.6 million. "After consultations, we, the government, in order to allow the civilians to return to their places or origin, the area in the Pikit and Liguasan marsh environs will be declared as zones of peace (so) our civilians and evacuees can start returning and start normalizing their lives," Presidential Assistant for Mindanao Affairs Jesus Dureza said. He said as many as 36,000 residents, comprising 6,000 families in the 15 barangays of Pikit, would benefit from the zones of peace. Dureza said the plan is for the residents to return home while the military and police continue to secure the area, but not in the immediate vicinity since locals will have their own monitoring teams to detect the presence of armed elements.
Armed Forces chief Gen. Narciso Santiago and Southern Command (Southcom) chief Lt. Gen. Narciso Abaya said the military and police would only be deployed in the perimeter of Pikit to prevent the return of Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) rebels and other armed elements. National Anti-Poverty Commission (NAPC) chairman Teresita Deles said the immediate rehabilitation of Pikit involved the provision of social services, emergency shelter assistance, and food support for returning evacuees.
The Christian community in Pikit, however, called for an extensive probe on the burning of 27 houses in a farming community in the town, two days after suspected MILF rebels torched 22 houses in Datu Paglas, Maguindanao. Pikit parish priest Roberto Layson said the incident compounded the tension in the area and could stifle efforts by religious organizations and local officials to work out the safe return of thousands of families displaced by the fighting. Layson said residents of Galigayanan, a farming community in Barangay Makabual in Pikit, said heavily armed men in fatigues torched down the houses in the area.
At the same time, Malacanang officially released copies of the 15-page proposed draft peace agreement of the government to the MILF. "The decision to end this conflict lies in the hands of the MILF command through simple adherence to joint accords earlier reached by the government," Bunye said. Fighting continued between the military and MILF leaving nine Muslim guerrillas killed in separate incidents, the military reported yesterday.
Source: Philippine Star, 5 March 2003