Muslim soldiers observe Ramadan in Mindanao
Basilan mayor’s van chased in Zambo, bodyguards disarmed
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President Aquino urged to bring home sick and stranded OFWs in Saudi
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Gunmen raid Zamboanga Sur village chieftain house
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Remember the Payatas Landslide
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Motorcycle gunmen strike anew, kill woman in Zambo
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SLOW DOWN SUPPORT TO MILF ‘Manila tells other countries, international organizations to slow down support to the Moro Islamic Liberation Front rebels’
MILF chieftain Murad Ebrahim and President Benigno Aquino during a meeting in Tokyo, Japan.
T
he P hilippines gest M usPhilippines hilippines’’ lar largest Muslim rrebel ebel gr oup M or o IIslamic slamic group Mor oro Liber ation F Liberation Frr ont has accused M anila of tr ying to Manila slo w do wn dev elopment suppor ts it slow down development supports is rreceiving eceiving fr om vvar ar ious inter nafrom arious international or ganizations and countr ies organizations countries back ing the peace pr ocess in backing process M indanao indanao.. Mohagher Iqbal, the MILF’s chief peace negotiator, has expressed grave concern over how the Aquino government is trying to exert influence in an effort to slow down international support to the rebel group which is currently negotiating peace with Manila. “We express our grave concern over the reported government's changing policy on our relations with development partners and the GPH instruction to these development partners to slow in their engagements with the MILF,” Iqbal said. He said there engagements are essential for the success not only of the conclusion of the peace talks, but more importantly of the implementation of the peace accord that both panels may sign. “Given the short period of the transitions for the MILF and the continuing delay in the completion and signing of a comprehensive peace agreement, it become even more urgent that the MILF receives technical assistance, capacity development, development planning and resource mobilization to
ARMM
insure that when it takes the reign of Tenkgu Dato AB Ghafar Tengku government it is able to deliver and Mohamed arrived in Manila last month meet the expectations of the to talk to key government officials and Bangsamoro MILF leaders to people. It is our hasten the peace firm conviction process. He said the that a strong MILF two peace panels is good for the declared its compeace-making in mitment to solve Mindanao, not oththe Moro problem. Mur ad letter to erwise,” Iqbal said. urad Restlessness A quino Iqbal said the He said MILF long delay in the rechieftain Murad sumption of the Ebrahim also wrote peace talks have a letter to President generated so much Benigno Aquino negative speculaand reiterated his tions and restlessunwavering comness among some mitment to resolve MILF members. “It the conflict peaceis not good to hear fully. But Murad these, but they were also informed all expressed loud Aquino of the growand clear. To many, ing frustration of the impression is the people and that there is an imsome members of passe of the peace the MILF as a result talks,” he said. Mohagher Iqbal, chief MILF peace negotiator of the delay of the The MILF has (Mindanao Examiner Photo) talks. earlier rejected a Iqbal said the government draft on wealth-sharing in President replied at Murad’s letter, but the proposed Muslim homeland, saying the content of the letter was not made it was not what the rebel group is expect- public. “The President responded posiing. tively to the letter. But I am so sorry I Iqbal said there was only a sigh of cannot disclose the content of the letter relief after the Malaysian facilitator because I don’t have the mandate to do
Southern Mindanao
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so. Our chairman did not allow that copies be made except one that is intended for the Facilitator for the record of the Malaysian Secretariat,” he said. He said the peace talks are now in the critical stage and warned that “there are many spoilers who are waiting in ambush.” “As a negotiator for more than ten years, I have learned a lot of hard lessons. My experience tells me that there is no easy part of any real life negotiation. For this reason, I know that the road ahead of the current peace talks is still full of humps and bumps. But this is no reason to cause the failure of these talks. Sincere and committed partners in peace process will always find creative formula to get through any differences. If they don’t find one, this means one of the parties or both of them change policy from solving the conflict to not solving it,” Iqbal said, “truth is that too much pressure is building against us, especially on government. The civil society organizations way back home has already sounded the clarion call that we wake up and finish the process.” He said a recent summit on the Bangsamoro peace talks held in Davao City called on the government and MILF to “sign the peace agreement now because time is running out.” The MILF is fighting for decades for self-determination in Mindanao. (Mindanao Examiner)
Zamboanga Peninsula