by Abdullbasit R. Benito, Executive Director, BCJP
Saturday, 29 August 2009 18:08
Published in the MindaNews
29 August, 2009
The large scale displacement of people due to the resumption of the armed conflict between the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front in August 2008, has been reported by the Geneva based Internal Displaced Monitoring Center as the highest number of newly displaced people in the world and the most neglected (internal displacement situation) in 2008. Of the 700,000 IDPs more than 250,000 still remain displaced after a year of renewed hostilities. Situations of burned houses, meager belongings and farmlands destroyed, and many of their children no longer in school has created deep wounds and made the lives of the civilians miserable. Also, cases of human rights violations occurring everywhere have added to the worsening scenario. In effect, IDPs still spending their second Ramadan in evacuation centers in deplorable conditions with limited access to food and livelihoods make their observance of fasting most difficult.
The recent SOMO of the government and the MILF’s SOMA, have raised hopes for the IDP’s to safely retun to their villages and starts a new life.
However, with the Senate Resolution No. 1281 introduced by Senate Defense Committee chair Senator Rodolfo G. Biazon (if approved by the senate) these renewed hopes and the excitement of IDPs to return home will be in vain. And all the efforts of the civil society who worked long and hard for the resumption of the peace talks will all be trashed. The proposed Suspension of the Resumption of the Peace Talks with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), is counter productive to the on going peace efforts of both the government and the MILF including the efforts of the peace advocates that gained tremendous support from several peace groups in the country and abroad.
The alleged treachery shown by the MILF, which led to the death of 23 soldiers in an encounter in Basilan province on August 12, 2009 as bases of the Hon. Senator to suspend the peace talks, is an allegation that needs to be proven through an impartial investigation by an independent fact finding body. This problem will be addressed if the ceasefire mechanism that has been already emplaced in the ground will be activated.
History tells us that this conflict in Mindanao cannot be resolved through the use of force; in less than a year, the government spent almost 2 billion pesos in its recent military operations against the so called 3 rogue members of the MILF but the subjects of the manhunt are still at large.
With this, we challenge the good senator to demonstrate his alternative to peace talks should his proposal be adopted in the senate. Does he mean to go to war? And cause more destruction of lives and property? More hungry mouths to feed and more children deprived of education and a normal life? If that is so, then the good senator will be isolated as the world denounces violence as a solution to any conflict particularly the political and sovereignty based problem, such as the Bangsamoro problem in Mindanao, Sulu and Palawan.
Abdulbasit R. Benito
Executive Director
Bangsamoro Center for Justpeace in the Phil's. Inc.
B C J P
Int. 003-c, Don S. Sero Street
Rosary Heights 4
Cotabato City
Philippines
Tel. N o. (064) 390 2726
Thursday, December 31, 2009
Peace talk in Mindanao
Urging the GRP to break the stand-off in the peace talks with the MILF
When the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) started talking peace with the Government of the Republic of the Philippines (GRP) on January 7, 1997, the former pushed for a single-point agendum for the peace negotiations that is “How to solve the ‘Bangsamoro Problem”.
And there was a “gentlemen’s agreement” by the negotiating parties that the MILF would not bring out the issue of independence in the talks and the government the issue of constitution, sovereignty and territorial integrity as part of confidence building measures.
It has been a public knowledge that the goal of the Bangsamoro struggle is to liberate themselves from the clutches of the oppressive and neo-colonial Philippine regime including foreign colonialism to ultimately regain full independence. The MILF never made it an agenda in its peace talks with the GRP to uphold the said “gentlemen’s agreement”.
Since 1997, the parties have already signed a number of peace agreements, joint communiqués and aide-memoirs, among others. In all those documents, one can nowhere find such words and phrases as independence, constitutional process or sovereignty and territorial integrity. There was, however, some reference on international human rights laws as well as international humanitarian laws.
However, during the 13th Exploratory Talks held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia last September 6-7, the peace panels did not come into an agreement on the strand of territory of the proposed Bangsamoro Juridical Entity due to the constitutional process invoked by the government.
Learning from the MNLF experiences, the MILF rejected said offer asserting “it does not want to repeat the failure of the GRP-MNLF Final Peace Agreement (FPA) of September 2, 1996”. Until now the government is yet to deliver its commitment on the said Agreement.
On the other hand, the government stands firm in its position that the existing Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) cannot be expanded unless it goes through a constitutional process. That, its hands are tied to the constitution in any agreement it must enter to with the instruments.
With this situation, we firmly believe that in resolving the Bangsamoro issue, the GRP and the MILF must exert all efforts to be creative and resourceful. The government, on one hand, must give preference to Human Security as the over-all arching goal rather than the state security and refrain from invoking the constitution as the final process in reaching out agreement and peace. The human beings are far greater in value than the state and than the constitution. People’s integrity is more important than territories. The MILF on the other hand can hold in abeyance some of the territories outside of the 613 barangays and the ARMM offered by the government in transitional status to give itself ample time to show the viability of a Moro-led society. In other words, we would like to see the peace process continue beyond the signing of any political settlement.
There is the only way and the right way. The old way and the new way of negotiating employed by the government is not working. Getting out of the constitutional box and exploring a more creative and human security-based means is the right way out.
War is always a threat to human security. There are no winners but only losers.
We, therefore, urge the Government of the Republic of the Philippines to have a strong political will to resolve the impending impasse’ and to be more flexible in its position to the current peace talks.
Signatories:
(SGD) Dr. Pendatun Pangadil
(SGD)Sammy Maulana
Bangsamoro Coalition for Peace Bangsamoro Civil Society for Peace
(BCP) (BCSP)
Prof. Taha Usop (SGD)
Bobby Benito
Bangsamoro Center for Justpeace
(BCJP)
(SGD) Alibai Benito
Bangsamoro Women for Peace
When the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) started talking peace with the Government of the Republic of the Philippines (GRP) on January 7, 1997, the former pushed for a single-point agendum for the peace negotiations that is “How to solve the ‘Bangsamoro Problem”.
And there was a “gentlemen’s agreement” by the negotiating parties that the MILF would not bring out the issue of independence in the talks and the government the issue of constitution, sovereignty and territorial integrity as part of confidence building measures.
It has been a public knowledge that the goal of the Bangsamoro struggle is to liberate themselves from the clutches of the oppressive and neo-colonial Philippine regime including foreign colonialism to ultimately regain full independence. The MILF never made it an agenda in its peace talks with the GRP to uphold the said “gentlemen’s agreement”.
Since 1997, the parties have already signed a number of peace agreements, joint communiqués and aide-memoirs, among others. In all those documents, one can nowhere find such words and phrases as independence, constitutional process or sovereignty and territorial integrity. There was, however, some reference on international human rights laws as well as international humanitarian laws.
However, during the 13th Exploratory Talks held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia last September 6-7, the peace panels did not come into an agreement on the strand of territory of the proposed Bangsamoro Juridical Entity due to the constitutional process invoked by the government.
Learning from the MNLF experiences, the MILF rejected said offer asserting “it does not want to repeat the failure of the GRP-MNLF Final Peace Agreement (FPA) of September 2, 1996”. Until now the government is yet to deliver its commitment on the said Agreement.
On the other hand, the government stands firm in its position that the existing Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) cannot be expanded unless it goes through a constitutional process. That, its hands are tied to the constitution in any agreement it must enter to with the instruments.
With this situation, we firmly believe that in resolving the Bangsamoro issue, the GRP and the MILF must exert all efforts to be creative and resourceful. The government, on one hand, must give preference to Human Security as the over-all arching goal rather than the state security and refrain from invoking the constitution as the final process in reaching out agreement and peace. The human beings are far greater in value than the state and than the constitution. People’s integrity is more important than territories. The MILF on the other hand can hold in abeyance some of the territories outside of the 613 barangays and the ARMM offered by the government in transitional status to give itself ample time to show the viability of a Moro-led society. In other words, we would like to see the peace process continue beyond the signing of any political settlement.
There is the only way and the right way. The old way and the new way of negotiating employed by the government is not working. Getting out of the constitutional box and exploring a more creative and human security-based means is the right way out.
War is always a threat to human security. There are no winners but only losers.
We, therefore, urge the Government of the Republic of the Philippines to have a strong political will to resolve the impending impasse’ and to be more flexible in its position to the current peace talks.
Signatories:
(SGD) Dr. Pendatun Pangadil
(SGD)Sammy Maulana
Bangsamoro Coalition for Peace Bangsamoro Civil Society for Peace
(BCP) (BCSP)
Prof. Taha Usop (SGD)
Bobby Benito
Bangsamoro Center for Justpeace
(BCJP)
(SGD) Alibai Benito
Bangsamoro Women for Peace
People Power Act to Prevent Outbreak of War
By Norodin M. Makalay
(22-Jan-2008) - Thousands marched nationwide in different key cities to press the government of the Republic of the Philippines (GRP) and Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) to prevent another war that has claimed more than 100,000 lives already as both field army personnel and MILF are on full alert for any movements from opposing sides in conflict-affected areas in Central Mindanao.
In unprecedented moves uniting civilians, Church sector, MNLF and MILF sympathizers, the peace rallies were held since early this month in the cities of Manila, Cotabato, Marawi, General Santos and later in Iligan, as part of a series of events organized by a network of 164 non-government and people’s organizations of mostly Moros, to break the most serious impasse to stall the peace talks since negotiations started in 1997. Rallies are to be launched in Basilan, Pagadian, Zamboanga and Sulu these coming months.
More than 500 children coming from the different Islamic schools (madrasah) in Barangay Maharlika, Taguig wore green bands (color of Islam) and waved flags, calling for peace in Mindanao in Islamic New Year celebrations (Amoon Jadeed) last January 19.
In Marawi City, civilians filled the public plaza wearing red bands and raised flags with the word, Allahuakbar (Allah is Great).
Foreign observers from the OIC and donor community have also expressed concern in the instability in the peace process.
Foreign observers from the OIC and donor community have also expressed concern on the instability in the peace process.
Talks between the government and the MILF hit a snag last December over disagreements on the coverage of ancestral domain and subjecting it to constitutional process. Secretary Jesus Dureza, the presidential adviser on the peace process, assessed the impasse as “among the most serious to stall the rocky talks, a big hump” upon which the GRP has no “magic formula” while “looking for a way out”.
The MILF negotiating panel refused to meet its government counterpart during the 15th exploratory talks last December 15-17 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia because the GRP draft of a proposed memorandum of agreement on ancestral domain supposedly did not contain certain consensus points earlier agreed by the two parties.
The government negotiating panel recently inserted a provision which states that the implementation of the agreement will have to follow “constitutional process.” The setting up of a Bangsamoro Juridical Entity (BJE) was agreed upon by government and MILF negotiators during exploratory talks in Kuala Lumpur last year.
This was aggravated by statements from some of the president’s key officials threatening the MILF with sanctions. Secretary Ronaldo Puno Puno was quoted saying, government should not give in to the MILF’s demand for a Bangsamoro Juridical Entity (BJE) without a plebiscite. AFP Vice Chief Lt. Gen. Antonio Romero stated a condition that peace talks will not continue without MILF’s disarmament.
Negotiations since the all-out war in 2000 progressed because of mutual agreement that government should not refer to Constitution and the MILF would not demand independence.
The Mindanao Peoples Caucus (MPC) considers the Ancestral Domain agenda in the GRP-MILF peace talks as an “opportunity for Mindanawons to revisit our colonial past and correct the historical injustices committed against the indigenous and Bangsamoro peoples in Mindanao.”
“The peaceful lives of the Bangsamoro were shattered by the tremors brought about by the coming of the colonizers” said Sammy Maulana, Consortium of Bangsamoro Civil Society (CBCS) secretary-general. “We are not begging anything from the Government, we just want to regain our homeland and restore our inalienable rights to self determination, both as people and a nation”.
Cotabato City-based civil society leader Bobby Benito said there is no doubt that the failure of peace talks will lead to violence, chaos and war . . “But the people are tired of war. It is anti-people and violates the very core values of all religions and civil society: love, peace, nonviolence.”
General Santos-based Pastor Frank Bantilan said that the indigenous people of Mindanao have been distressed by the sudden impasse of the peace talks. “Muslims and Lumads (indigenous people) are more than brothers, we feel no different pain.”
“We, in the civil society are aware of the fact that majority of people in the grassroots desire for a meaningful result of the peace process, not only to put an end to the ravages of war, but to address the longstanding political problem in a non-violent way,” Benito said.
Marawi City-based Lacs Dalidig said, “The failure of peace agreements in the past can be attributed mainly to the non-participation of the Bangsamoro people, because non-participation means they do not own a peace agreement. As real stakeholders, their collective voice should be basis of authority and the last word in the solution of the problem.”
In September 1996, the Philippine government also signed a peace agreement with the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF), from which the MILF broke away in 1981.
More than a decade after the signed pact, the MNLF and other critics have accused the Philippine government of lacking sincerity, honesty and political will in fully implementing the agreement and in working for attainment of peace in Mindanao.
Last June 2007, Silvestre Afable, the government chief negotiator in the talks with the MILF resigned, saying he did not enjoy the full confidence of President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. He was replaced by Rodolfo Garcia, a retired general and former Armed Forces vice chief of staff.
The armed struggle of the Muslims in the Philippines can be traced back in history.
Mindanao is the birthplace of Islam in the country. The Muslims in the islands were indigenous peoples converted to Islam by Arab merchants during the country’s pre-Hispanic history.
Muslims resisted Spanish colonization having established sultanates and trade zones.
The 1898 Treaty of Paris was the turning point where Mindanao was ceded by Spain to the United States said to be an “illegal annexation and exploitation without referendum, plebiscite or consent of the people (of Mindanao).”
Human rights groups say a number of Muslims in the country at present have suffered intensive discrimination, illegal arrests and other forms of human rights violations after having to migrate up North due to unemployment in the South because of having been alleged to have links to terrorist activities.
(22-Jan-2008) - Thousands marched nationwide in different key cities to press the government of the Republic of the Philippines (GRP) and Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) to prevent another war that has claimed more than 100,000 lives already as both field army personnel and MILF are on full alert for any movements from opposing sides in conflict-affected areas in Central Mindanao.
In unprecedented moves uniting civilians, Church sector, MNLF and MILF sympathizers, the peace rallies were held since early this month in the cities of Manila, Cotabato, Marawi, General Santos and later in Iligan, as part of a series of events organized by a network of 164 non-government and people’s organizations of mostly Moros, to break the most serious impasse to stall the peace talks since negotiations started in 1997. Rallies are to be launched in Basilan, Pagadian, Zamboanga and Sulu these coming months.
More than 500 children coming from the different Islamic schools (madrasah) in Barangay Maharlika, Taguig wore green bands (color of Islam) and waved flags, calling for peace in Mindanao in Islamic New Year celebrations (Amoon Jadeed) last January 19.
In Marawi City, civilians filled the public plaza wearing red bands and raised flags with the word, Allahuakbar (Allah is Great).
Foreign observers from the OIC and donor community have also expressed concern in the instability in the peace process.
Foreign observers from the OIC and donor community have also expressed concern on the instability in the peace process.
Talks between the government and the MILF hit a snag last December over disagreements on the coverage of ancestral domain and subjecting it to constitutional process. Secretary Jesus Dureza, the presidential adviser on the peace process, assessed the impasse as “among the most serious to stall the rocky talks, a big hump” upon which the GRP has no “magic formula” while “looking for a way out”.
The MILF negotiating panel refused to meet its government counterpart during the 15th exploratory talks last December 15-17 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia because the GRP draft of a proposed memorandum of agreement on ancestral domain supposedly did not contain certain consensus points earlier agreed by the two parties.
The government negotiating panel recently inserted a provision which states that the implementation of the agreement will have to follow “constitutional process.” The setting up of a Bangsamoro Juridical Entity (BJE) was agreed upon by government and MILF negotiators during exploratory talks in Kuala Lumpur last year.
This was aggravated by statements from some of the president’s key officials threatening the MILF with sanctions. Secretary Ronaldo Puno Puno was quoted saying, government should not give in to the MILF’s demand for a Bangsamoro Juridical Entity (BJE) without a plebiscite. AFP Vice Chief Lt. Gen. Antonio Romero stated a condition that peace talks will not continue without MILF’s disarmament.
Negotiations since the all-out war in 2000 progressed because of mutual agreement that government should not refer to Constitution and the MILF would not demand independence.
The Mindanao Peoples Caucus (MPC) considers the Ancestral Domain agenda in the GRP-MILF peace talks as an “opportunity for Mindanawons to revisit our colonial past and correct the historical injustices committed against the indigenous and Bangsamoro peoples in Mindanao.”
“The peaceful lives of the Bangsamoro were shattered by the tremors brought about by the coming of the colonizers” said Sammy Maulana, Consortium of Bangsamoro Civil Society (CBCS) secretary-general. “We are not begging anything from the Government, we just want to regain our homeland and restore our inalienable rights to self determination, both as people and a nation”.
Cotabato City-based civil society leader Bobby Benito said there is no doubt that the failure of peace talks will lead to violence, chaos and war . . “But the people are tired of war. It is anti-people and violates the very core values of all religions and civil society: love, peace, nonviolence.”
General Santos-based Pastor Frank Bantilan said that the indigenous people of Mindanao have been distressed by the sudden impasse of the peace talks. “Muslims and Lumads (indigenous people) are more than brothers, we feel no different pain.”
“We, in the civil society are aware of the fact that majority of people in the grassroots desire for a meaningful result of the peace process, not only to put an end to the ravages of war, but to address the longstanding political problem in a non-violent way,” Benito said.
Marawi City-based Lacs Dalidig said, “The failure of peace agreements in the past can be attributed mainly to the non-participation of the Bangsamoro people, because non-participation means they do not own a peace agreement. As real stakeholders, their collective voice should be basis of authority and the last word in the solution of the problem.”
In September 1996, the Philippine government also signed a peace agreement with the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF), from which the MILF broke away in 1981.
More than a decade after the signed pact, the MNLF and other critics have accused the Philippine government of lacking sincerity, honesty and political will in fully implementing the agreement and in working for attainment of peace in Mindanao.
Last June 2007, Silvestre Afable, the government chief negotiator in the talks with the MILF resigned, saying he did not enjoy the full confidence of President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. He was replaced by Rodolfo Garcia, a retired general and former Armed Forces vice chief of staff.
The armed struggle of the Muslims in the Philippines can be traced back in history.
Mindanao is the birthplace of Islam in the country. The Muslims in the islands were indigenous peoples converted to Islam by Arab merchants during the country’s pre-Hispanic history.
Muslims resisted Spanish colonization having established sultanates and trade zones.
The 1898 Treaty of Paris was the turning point where Mindanao was ceded by Spain to the United States said to be an “illegal annexation and exploitation without referendum, plebiscite or consent of the people (of Mindanao).”
Human rights groups say a number of Muslims in the country at present have suffered intensive discrimination, illegal arrests and other forms of human rights violations after having to migrate up North due to unemployment in the South because of having been alleged to have links to terrorist activities.
Kilos-protesta inilunsad sa Cotabato City laban sa pormal na pagsisimula ng Balikatan Exercise sa Central Mindanao.
Inilunsad ang isang kilos protesta pasado alas-nueve kaninang umaga dito sa Cotabato City. Ito�y nilahukan ng iba�t-ibang progresibong grupo ng lungsod. Nagsimula ang march rally sa Cotabato State Polytechnic College hanggang Cotabato City Plaza kung saan nagtipon-tipon ang lahat. May kaugnayan ang kilos-protesta sa pormal na pagsisimula ng humanitarian mission bilang bahagi ng Balikatan Exercise 2008 dito sa bahagi ng Central Mindanao kabilang ang Pikit at Midsayap sa North Cotabato. Ayon kay Bobby Benito ng Bangsamoro Center for Justpeace, tutol sila sa hakbang ng American Government hinggil sa Balikatan Exercise,aniya pwedeng magpaabot ng tulong ang US Government sa pamamagitan ng ahensya kagaya ng US-AID at hindi ng mga sundalong amerikano dahil naniniwala silang ito�y posibleng magdulot ng mas kapahamakan sa mga Bangsamoro Land
Bombo Radyo Philippines Forum
Bombo Radyo Philippines Forum
Probe Media Foundation Children and Disaster- Radio Report
Children and Disaster: Philippine Media Response - is a fellowship for Filipino Broadcasters. In their opening workshop this October 25 to 27, groups created radio and TV reports on children and disaster issues.
This radio report is located in Road 10 or R 10, a squatter community in Navotas that is facing demolition. The report was created by Jeffrey Mendez of DXMS-Cotabato and Alejandro Saludo of DXKI-South Cotabao and Bobby Benito of Bitiala Kalilintad-Cotabato.
The program is conducted by Probe Media Foundation and supported by UNICEF.
This radio report is located in Road 10 or R 10, a squatter community in Navotas that is facing demolition. The report was created by Jeffrey Mendez of DXMS-Cotabato and Alejandro Saludo of DXKI-South Cotabao and Bobby Benito of Bitiala Kalilintad-Cotabato.
The program is conducted by Probe Media Foundation and supported by UNICEF.
Thousands call on UN to prevent massive war in Philippines
More than 100,000 people took to the streets of key cities in the Philippines to call the attention of the United Nations to prevent another massive war to take place in the country after the peace talks between the government and the country’s largest Muslim separatist rebel group have been derailed.
In unprecedented moves uniting civilians, Church sector, and rebel groups sympathizers, the peace rallies were held in the cities of Manila, Cotabato, Marawi, General Santos, and Iligan as part of a series of mass actions organized by a network of 164 civil society organizations of mostly Muslims, to break the most serious impasse to stall the peace talks between government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) since negotiations started in 1997. Rallies in other areas are now being prepared, organizers said.
Hundreds of children from different Islamic schools (madrasah) in Taguig, Manila wore green bands (color of Islam) and waved flags, calling for peace in Mindanao in Islamic New Year celebrations (Amun Jadeed) last January 19.
Thousands of people from different non-government and people’s organizations gathered in Cotabato city plaza and called on the attention of the international community to press the Philippine government and the MILF into resuming their talks and eventually signing a peace agreement.
In Iligan, a convoy of vehicles and thousands of demonstrators called upon President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo to immediately resolve the problem.
In Marawi, civilians wore red shirts and bands, and raised flags with the word, Allahu Akbar (Allah is Great), urging the government and MILF to resume their stalled peace talks.
In General Santos, people filled the public plaza and expressed dismay and fears over possible impacts of the stalemate.
Talks between the government of the predominantly Catholic country and the MILF hit a snag last December over disagreements on the coverage of ancestral domain and constitutional process, two highly controversial and critical subjects in the talks.
Secretary Jesus Dureza, the presidential adviser on the peace process, assessed the impasse as “among the most serious to stall the rocky talks, a big hump” upon which the GRP has no “magic formula” while “looking for a way out”.
The MILF negotiating panel refused to meet its government counterpart during the 15th exploratory talks last December 15 to 17 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia because the government draft of a proposed memorandum of agreement on ancestral domain supposedly did not contain certain consensus points earlier agreed by the two parties.
The government negotiating panel recently inserted a provision which states that the implementation of the agreement will have to follow “constitutional process.”
Situations have been aggravated by recent statements from some of President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo’s key officials threatening the MILF with sanctions.
Interior Secretary Ronaldo Puno Puno said government should not give in to the MILF’s demand for a “juridical entity” without a plebiscite, while AFP Vice Chief Lt. Gen. Antonio Romero stated that peace talks will not continue without MILF’s disarmament.
Since all-out war was declared by former President Joseph Ejercito Estrada in 2000, negotiations progressed because of mutual agreement that government should not refer to Constitution and the MILF would not demand independence.
The setting up of a Bangsamoro Juridical Entity (BJE) was agreed upon by government and MILF negotiators during exploratory talks in Kuala Lumpur last year.
Field army personnel and MILF are now on full alert for any movements from opposing sides in conflict-affected areas in the disputed island of Mindanao.
Foreign observers from the Organization of Islamic Conference (OIC) and donor community have expressed concern on the instability in the peace process.
More than 100,000 people have already died because of the decades-long armed conflicts in the country.
Civil society organizations called on the international community to help push the peace process forward and to exert pressures to the parties to honor and abide by whatever commitments they have made in the course of their negotiations.
“People aired their resentments against war, letting the world know that they hate war,” said Guiamel Alim, chair of the Consortium of Bangsamoro Civil Society (CBCS), the lead convener-organizer of the peace rallies.
“The jubilation was short-lived, dreams were shattered,” said Alim who noted that pronouncements of both parties in the past months were optimistic. “It made a lot of people frustrated but many still keep hoping.”
”President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, you are an Iliganon, give us the justice we long for! We have suffered enough!” said Bai Lilang Macarampat, a women representative from Lanao Del Sur, as she recollected that Mrs. Arroyo’s maternal parents are from Iligan.
The signing of the memorandum of agreement on ancestral domain that would have paved the way for a comprehensive peace agreement between the government and the MILF, said Bobby Benito of Bangsamoro Center for Just Peace in the Philippines. “It would have been a recompense for the 10-year long negotiation between the MILF and the GRP that commenced in July of 1997.”
Benito urged the government to pursue peace talks with the MILF by abiding with consensus points agreed upon by both parties.
“The current status of the peace process in Mindanao is fast changing and reshaping the future of the Mindanaoans especially the civil society that comprises the greater majority in the grassroots,” Benito said.
Benito said there is no doubt that the failure of peace talks will lead to violence, chaos and war. “But the people are tired of war. It is anti-people and violates the very core values of all religions and civil society: love, peace, nonviolence.”
“We, in the civil society are aware of the fact that majority of people in the grassroots desire for a meaningful result of the peace process, not only to put an end to the ravages of war, but to address the longstanding political problem in a non-violent way,” Benito said.
“The consequences of war in Mindanao have been very painful and costly. More than 150,000 people died and 100,000 were estimated to be injured. Millions were displaced from their homes and several hundred thousands, including more than 200,000 people who sought refuge in the Malaysian State of Sabah have not returned home,” said Abdullah Dalidig, of the Islamic Movement for Electoral Reform and Good Governance (IMERGG) and Muslim Multi-sectoral Movement for Peace and Development (MMMPD).
Demonstrators in Iligan assailed Puno as “the same enemy of peace who has also pushed the Estrada administration into all-out-war 2000.” Caricatures of Puno holding M-16 carried by the demonstrators.
“What does Puno know regarding Mindanao? We, the Mindanawons are to determine our own future,” said Cha Lavandero of youth leaders organization Duyog Kabataan.
“(The mass actions) intend to prevent possible conflict and to show to the parties that the Bangsamoro (Muslims) is in solidarity with the Christians and the Lumads” said Dalidig.
“If these acts are not enough to catch the attention of the government, the Interfaith CSOs (civil society organizations) will organize the walk for peace from Marawi City to Malacañang Palace to show to the government that we are indeed very serious in our fervor to attain just and lasting peace in Mindanao,” Dalidig added.
“We are one with the Bangsamoro in the call for lasting peace. After all only those who declared war win; we are all victims,” said Fr. Chito Sugano of the Marawi Catholic church. “The Bangsamoro homeland, our bread and butter are happily utilized as battlegrounds, leaving its inhabitants with dime of hope.”
Atty. Ibrahim Canama of the Federated Royal Sultanate of the Philippines said the sultanates of Mindanao appeal to the MILF “to return to the negotiating table” and for the government “to be sincere in dealing with the Peace processes, from the course of the negotiation to the implementation of the agreements to be signed.”
“Our people cannot afford to live in fear,” Canama said.
“How many more lives do we need to sacrifice? The consensus points were gained at the expense of the lives of the countless Bangsamoro who died fighting for it,” said Abulkhair Alibasa, an academe youth representative.
“We strongly condemn war, displacements and the long hardship of the Bangsamoro!” shouted Ma. Jittel Saquilabon, the executive director of the Tri-People’s Forum.
“Give the Bangsamoro their right to self-determination! We do not want to lose our parents because of war!” said Lavandero.
“The Bangsamoro have suffered for 469 years, so give us back the justice that was taken from us!” shouted Mohammad Tamano of the Iligan League of Students.
Tamano said that the “Bangsamoro have suffered from the invasion of Spain in 1521 that lasted for 377 years, the American colonization of 40 years, and the Philippine colonialism of 52 years already.”
General Santos-based Pastor Frank Bantilan said that the indigenous people of Mindanao have been distressed by the sudden impasse of the peace talks. “Muslims and Lumads (indigenous people) are more than brothers, we feel no different pain.”
Benito said the “civil society in Mindanao urgently appeal” for “swift and more carefully review the implementation of the GRP-MNLF 1996 peace accord so that gaps are identified, corrective measures are installed, and implementation scheme put into place;” “for the immediate resumption of the GRP-MILF peace talks and for the Government to honor its commitment to the consensus points;” and “for the GRP and the MILF to refrain from any unnecessary actions that may jeopardize the peace talks.”
“But the stance of the government in nonconforming to the agreed consensus points is a clear manifestation of its feebleness to bestow strong political will for the realization of the peace accord,” Benito argued.
The signing of the MOA on the ancestral domain issue “could have been the best Christmas gift for the Filipinos and a memorable reward for the Muslims in their celebration of Eid Al-Adha this year,” the civil society organizations (CSOs) that participated in the rallies said in a manifesto.
The CSOs also appealed to both parties to refrain from any unnecessary actions that may jeopardize the peace talks. “It would now be an acid test for CSOs to stay on guard to prevent violence from taking place and to bring back the parties into dialogue to discuss contentious issues,” said Alim.
They also raised questions of possibilities to find “a creative and acceptable means of pursuing the implementation of the consensus points without violating the constitution.”
“Veering away and watering down the consensus points and invoking the constitutional process as a means to pursue a political agreement is tantamount to a betrayal of a “gentlemen’s agreement” and lack of sincerity on the part of the government to find peace in Mindanao.”
“We, in the civil society are aware of the fact that majority of people in the grassroots desire for a meaningful result of the peace process, not only to put an end to the ravages of war, but to address the longstanding political problem in a non-violent way,” Benito said.
There is no doubt that the failure of peace talks will lead to violence, chaos and war, the CSOs stated. “But the people are tired of war. It is anti-people and violates the very core values of all religions and civil society: love, peace, nonviolence.”
In September 1996, the Philippine government also signed a peace agreement with another Muslim rebel group, the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF), from which the MILF broke away in 1981.
Benito noted that the issues confronting the implementation of the 1996 Final Peace Agreement between the government and the MNLF has further made the situation in Mindanao “fluid and volatile.”
More than a decade after the signed pact, the MNLF and other critics have relentlessly accused the Philippine government of lack of sincerity, honesty and political will in fully implementing the agreement and in working for attainment of peace in Mindanao.
Last June 2007, Silvestre Afable, the government chief negotiator in the talks with the MILF resigned, saying he did not enjoy the full confidence of President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. He was replaced by Rodolfo Garcia, a retired general and former Armed Forces vice chief of staff.
The armed struggle of the Muslims in the Philippines can be traced back in history. Mindanao is the birthplace of Islam in the country.
Bangsamoro (Moroland) refers to the homeland of the Moro, the indigenous peoples in Southern Philippines.
The term comes from the Malay word “bangsa,” meaning nation or people, and the Spanish word “moro,” from the older Spanish word “Moor,” the Reconquista-period term for Arabs or Muslims.
It may also refer to the Moro people, in general.
Bangsamoro covers the provinces of Basilan, Cotabato, Davao del Sur, Lanao del Norte, Lanao del Sur, Maguindanao, Palawan, Sarangani, South Cotabato, Sultan Kudarat, Sulu, Tawi-Tawi, Zamboanga del Sur, Zamboanga del Norte, and Zamboanga Sibugay; and the cities of Cotabato, General Santos, Iligan, Marawi, Pagadian, Puerto Princesa, and Zamboanga.
Other interpretations may include territories that use to form North Borneo including Sabah, Labuan and the islands of Sipadan and Ligitan in modern Malaysia.
Bangsamoro was originally home to sovereign sultanates of Mindanao (such as Maguindanao and Sulu), which resisted Spanish colonial rule.
But in 1898 Treaty of Paris, Spain ceded the Philippine archipelago to the United States, including the Bangsamoro. Later, the Philippine republic was formed.
There had been a request from the Bangsamoro to exclude their homeland in the formation of the Philippine republic and to remain it instead under American control. This was denied.
Bangsamoro groups assail inclusion of Mindanao in the formation of the Philippine republic during the post-American colonization period as “illegal annexation and exploitation without referendum, plebiscite or consent of the Moro people, thus, a blatant violation of their fundamental rights.”
Majority of the Bangsamoro people are Muslims. The Islamized Bangsamoro ethno-linguistic groups are indigenous peoples converted to Islam by Arab merchants during the country’s pre-Hispanic history.
Human rights groups say a number of Muslims in the country at present have suffered intensive discrimination, illegal arrests and other forms of human rights violations because of having been alleged to have link to terrorist activities.
“The failure of peace agreements in the past can be attributed mainly to the non-participation of the Bangsamoro people, because non-participation means they do not own a peace agreement. As real stakeholders, their collective voice should be basis of authority and the last word in the solution of the problem,” Dalidig said.
The Mindanao Peoples Caucus (MPC) considers the Ancestral Domain agenda in the GRP-MILF peace talks as an “opportunity for Mindanawons to revisit our colonial past and correct the historical injustices committed against the indigenous and Bangsamoro peoples in Mindanao.”
“The peaceful lives of the Bangsamoro were shattered by the tremors brought about by the coming of the colonizers” said Sammy Maulana, CBCS secretary-general. “We are not begging anything from the Government, we just want to regain our homeland and restore our inalienable rights to self determination, both as people and a nation”.
(January 25, 2008)
In unprecedented moves uniting civilians, Church sector, and rebel groups sympathizers, the peace rallies were held in the cities of Manila, Cotabato, Marawi, General Santos, and Iligan as part of a series of mass actions organized by a network of 164 civil society organizations of mostly Muslims, to break the most serious impasse to stall the peace talks between government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) since negotiations started in 1997. Rallies in other areas are now being prepared, organizers said.
Hundreds of children from different Islamic schools (madrasah) in Taguig, Manila wore green bands (color of Islam) and waved flags, calling for peace in Mindanao in Islamic New Year celebrations (Amun Jadeed) last January 19.
Thousands of people from different non-government and people’s organizations gathered in Cotabato city plaza and called on the attention of the international community to press the Philippine government and the MILF into resuming their talks and eventually signing a peace agreement.
In Iligan, a convoy of vehicles and thousands of demonstrators called upon President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo to immediately resolve the problem.
In Marawi, civilians wore red shirts and bands, and raised flags with the word, Allahu Akbar (Allah is Great), urging the government and MILF to resume their stalled peace talks.
In General Santos, people filled the public plaza and expressed dismay and fears over possible impacts of the stalemate.
Talks between the government of the predominantly Catholic country and the MILF hit a snag last December over disagreements on the coverage of ancestral domain and constitutional process, two highly controversial and critical subjects in the talks.
Secretary Jesus Dureza, the presidential adviser on the peace process, assessed the impasse as “among the most serious to stall the rocky talks, a big hump” upon which the GRP has no “magic formula” while “looking for a way out”.
The MILF negotiating panel refused to meet its government counterpart during the 15th exploratory talks last December 15 to 17 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia because the government draft of a proposed memorandum of agreement on ancestral domain supposedly did not contain certain consensus points earlier agreed by the two parties.
The government negotiating panel recently inserted a provision which states that the implementation of the agreement will have to follow “constitutional process.”
Situations have been aggravated by recent statements from some of President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo’s key officials threatening the MILF with sanctions.
Interior Secretary Ronaldo Puno Puno said government should not give in to the MILF’s demand for a “juridical entity” without a plebiscite, while AFP Vice Chief Lt. Gen. Antonio Romero stated that peace talks will not continue without MILF’s disarmament.
Since all-out war was declared by former President Joseph Ejercito Estrada in 2000, negotiations progressed because of mutual agreement that government should not refer to Constitution and the MILF would not demand independence.
The setting up of a Bangsamoro Juridical Entity (BJE) was agreed upon by government and MILF negotiators during exploratory talks in Kuala Lumpur last year.
Field army personnel and MILF are now on full alert for any movements from opposing sides in conflict-affected areas in the disputed island of Mindanao.
Foreign observers from the Organization of Islamic Conference (OIC) and donor community have expressed concern on the instability in the peace process.
More than 100,000 people have already died because of the decades-long armed conflicts in the country.
Civil society organizations called on the international community to help push the peace process forward and to exert pressures to the parties to honor and abide by whatever commitments they have made in the course of their negotiations.
“People aired their resentments against war, letting the world know that they hate war,” said Guiamel Alim, chair of the Consortium of Bangsamoro Civil Society (CBCS), the lead convener-organizer of the peace rallies.
“The jubilation was short-lived, dreams were shattered,” said Alim who noted that pronouncements of both parties in the past months were optimistic. “It made a lot of people frustrated but many still keep hoping.”
”President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, you are an Iliganon, give us the justice we long for! We have suffered enough!” said Bai Lilang Macarampat, a women representative from Lanao Del Sur, as she recollected that Mrs. Arroyo’s maternal parents are from Iligan.
The signing of the memorandum of agreement on ancestral domain that would have paved the way for a comprehensive peace agreement between the government and the MILF, said Bobby Benito of Bangsamoro Center for Just Peace in the Philippines. “It would have been a recompense for the 10-year long negotiation between the MILF and the GRP that commenced in July of 1997.”
Benito urged the government to pursue peace talks with the MILF by abiding with consensus points agreed upon by both parties.
“The current status of the peace process in Mindanao is fast changing and reshaping the future of the Mindanaoans especially the civil society that comprises the greater majority in the grassroots,” Benito said.
Benito said there is no doubt that the failure of peace talks will lead to violence, chaos and war. “But the people are tired of war. It is anti-people and violates the very core values of all religions and civil society: love, peace, nonviolence.”
“We, in the civil society are aware of the fact that majority of people in the grassroots desire for a meaningful result of the peace process, not only to put an end to the ravages of war, but to address the longstanding political problem in a non-violent way,” Benito said.
“The consequences of war in Mindanao have been very painful and costly. More than 150,000 people died and 100,000 were estimated to be injured. Millions were displaced from their homes and several hundred thousands, including more than 200,000 people who sought refuge in the Malaysian State of Sabah have not returned home,” said Abdullah Dalidig, of the Islamic Movement for Electoral Reform and Good Governance (IMERGG) and Muslim Multi-sectoral Movement for Peace and Development (MMMPD).
Demonstrators in Iligan assailed Puno as “the same enemy of peace who has also pushed the Estrada administration into all-out-war 2000.” Caricatures of Puno holding M-16 carried by the demonstrators.
“What does Puno know regarding Mindanao? We, the Mindanawons are to determine our own future,” said Cha Lavandero of youth leaders organization Duyog Kabataan.
“(The mass actions) intend to prevent possible conflict and to show to the parties that the Bangsamoro (Muslims) is in solidarity with the Christians and the Lumads” said Dalidig.
“If these acts are not enough to catch the attention of the government, the Interfaith CSOs (civil society organizations) will organize the walk for peace from Marawi City to Malacañang Palace to show to the government that we are indeed very serious in our fervor to attain just and lasting peace in Mindanao,” Dalidig added.
“We are one with the Bangsamoro in the call for lasting peace. After all only those who declared war win; we are all victims,” said Fr. Chito Sugano of the Marawi Catholic church. “The Bangsamoro homeland, our bread and butter are happily utilized as battlegrounds, leaving its inhabitants with dime of hope.”
Atty. Ibrahim Canama of the Federated Royal Sultanate of the Philippines said the sultanates of Mindanao appeal to the MILF “to return to the negotiating table” and for the government “to be sincere in dealing with the Peace processes, from the course of the negotiation to the implementation of the agreements to be signed.”
“Our people cannot afford to live in fear,” Canama said.
“How many more lives do we need to sacrifice? The consensus points were gained at the expense of the lives of the countless Bangsamoro who died fighting for it,” said Abulkhair Alibasa, an academe youth representative.
“We strongly condemn war, displacements and the long hardship of the Bangsamoro!” shouted Ma. Jittel Saquilabon, the executive director of the Tri-People’s Forum.
“Give the Bangsamoro their right to self-determination! We do not want to lose our parents because of war!” said Lavandero.
“The Bangsamoro have suffered for 469 years, so give us back the justice that was taken from us!” shouted Mohammad Tamano of the Iligan League of Students.
Tamano said that the “Bangsamoro have suffered from the invasion of Spain in 1521 that lasted for 377 years, the American colonization of 40 years, and the Philippine colonialism of 52 years already.”
General Santos-based Pastor Frank Bantilan said that the indigenous people of Mindanao have been distressed by the sudden impasse of the peace talks. “Muslims and Lumads (indigenous people) are more than brothers, we feel no different pain.”
Benito said the “civil society in Mindanao urgently appeal” for “swift and more carefully review the implementation of the GRP-MNLF 1996 peace accord so that gaps are identified, corrective measures are installed, and implementation scheme put into place;” “for the immediate resumption of the GRP-MILF peace talks and for the Government to honor its commitment to the consensus points;” and “for the GRP and the MILF to refrain from any unnecessary actions that may jeopardize the peace talks.”
“But the stance of the government in nonconforming to the agreed consensus points is a clear manifestation of its feebleness to bestow strong political will for the realization of the peace accord,” Benito argued.
The signing of the MOA on the ancestral domain issue “could have been the best Christmas gift for the Filipinos and a memorable reward for the Muslims in their celebration of Eid Al-Adha this year,” the civil society organizations (CSOs) that participated in the rallies said in a manifesto.
The CSOs also appealed to both parties to refrain from any unnecessary actions that may jeopardize the peace talks. “It would now be an acid test for CSOs to stay on guard to prevent violence from taking place and to bring back the parties into dialogue to discuss contentious issues,” said Alim.
They also raised questions of possibilities to find “a creative and acceptable means of pursuing the implementation of the consensus points without violating the constitution.”
“Veering away and watering down the consensus points and invoking the constitutional process as a means to pursue a political agreement is tantamount to a betrayal of a “gentlemen’s agreement” and lack of sincerity on the part of the government to find peace in Mindanao.”
“We, in the civil society are aware of the fact that majority of people in the grassroots desire for a meaningful result of the peace process, not only to put an end to the ravages of war, but to address the longstanding political problem in a non-violent way,” Benito said.
There is no doubt that the failure of peace talks will lead to violence, chaos and war, the CSOs stated. “But the people are tired of war. It is anti-people and violates the very core values of all religions and civil society: love, peace, nonviolence.”
In September 1996, the Philippine government also signed a peace agreement with another Muslim rebel group, the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF), from which the MILF broke away in 1981.
Benito noted that the issues confronting the implementation of the 1996 Final Peace Agreement between the government and the MNLF has further made the situation in Mindanao “fluid and volatile.”
More than a decade after the signed pact, the MNLF and other critics have relentlessly accused the Philippine government of lack of sincerity, honesty and political will in fully implementing the agreement and in working for attainment of peace in Mindanao.
Last June 2007, Silvestre Afable, the government chief negotiator in the talks with the MILF resigned, saying he did not enjoy the full confidence of President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. He was replaced by Rodolfo Garcia, a retired general and former Armed Forces vice chief of staff.
The armed struggle of the Muslims in the Philippines can be traced back in history. Mindanao is the birthplace of Islam in the country.
Bangsamoro (Moroland) refers to the homeland of the Moro, the indigenous peoples in Southern Philippines.
The term comes from the Malay word “bangsa,” meaning nation or people, and the Spanish word “moro,” from the older Spanish word “Moor,” the Reconquista-period term for Arabs or Muslims.
It may also refer to the Moro people, in general.
Bangsamoro covers the provinces of Basilan, Cotabato, Davao del Sur, Lanao del Norte, Lanao del Sur, Maguindanao, Palawan, Sarangani, South Cotabato, Sultan Kudarat, Sulu, Tawi-Tawi, Zamboanga del Sur, Zamboanga del Norte, and Zamboanga Sibugay; and the cities of Cotabato, General Santos, Iligan, Marawi, Pagadian, Puerto Princesa, and Zamboanga.
Other interpretations may include territories that use to form North Borneo including Sabah, Labuan and the islands of Sipadan and Ligitan in modern Malaysia.
Bangsamoro was originally home to sovereign sultanates of Mindanao (such as Maguindanao and Sulu), which resisted Spanish colonial rule.
But in 1898 Treaty of Paris, Spain ceded the Philippine archipelago to the United States, including the Bangsamoro. Later, the Philippine republic was formed.
There had been a request from the Bangsamoro to exclude their homeland in the formation of the Philippine republic and to remain it instead under American control. This was denied.
Bangsamoro groups assail inclusion of Mindanao in the formation of the Philippine republic during the post-American colonization period as “illegal annexation and exploitation without referendum, plebiscite or consent of the Moro people, thus, a blatant violation of their fundamental rights.”
Majority of the Bangsamoro people are Muslims. The Islamized Bangsamoro ethno-linguistic groups are indigenous peoples converted to Islam by Arab merchants during the country’s pre-Hispanic history.
Human rights groups say a number of Muslims in the country at present have suffered intensive discrimination, illegal arrests and other forms of human rights violations because of having been alleged to have link to terrorist activities.
“The failure of peace agreements in the past can be attributed mainly to the non-participation of the Bangsamoro people, because non-participation means they do not own a peace agreement. As real stakeholders, their collective voice should be basis of authority and the last word in the solution of the problem,” Dalidig said.
The Mindanao Peoples Caucus (MPC) considers the Ancestral Domain agenda in the GRP-MILF peace talks as an “opportunity for Mindanawons to revisit our colonial past and correct the historical injustices committed against the indigenous and Bangsamoro peoples in Mindanao.”
“The peaceful lives of the Bangsamoro were shattered by the tremors brought about by the coming of the colonizers” said Sammy Maulana, CBCS secretary-general. “We are not begging anything from the Government, we just want to regain our homeland and restore our inalienable rights to self determination, both as people and a nation”.
(January 25, 2008)
Bangsamoros hold rallies in many parts of Mindanao to demand immediate resumption of GRP-MILF peace talks
Jun 29, '08 6:57 AM
for everyone
source: http://zamboangasouthwall.blogspot.com/
Thousands of Bangsamoros held simultaneous rallies in various parts of Mindanao on Saturday and called for immediate resumption of peace talks between the Philippine government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front.
Dubbed as "Mass Rally for Peace," they called the government to respect and sign with sincerity the previously agreed consensus points on ancestral domain and to cancel the August 11 Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao elections.
The rallyists led by the Mindanao Alliance for Peace (MAP) flocked in the main plazas of the cities of Cotabato, Tacurong, General Santos, Isabela, Basilan, Pagadian, and the municipalities of Jolo, Sulu, and Pikit in North Cotabato.
They criticized Zamboanga City Mayor Celso Lobregat for rejecting their application for a permit to hold a peace rally in the city.
Zamboanga was a former Muslim province and part of the Sultanate of Sulu and North Borneo, but many of its original inhabitants were forced out by Christian settlers.
The rallyists also said government troops prevented about a thousand colleagues on board six trucks from going to General Santos City from North Cotabato.
Bobby Benito, MAP spokesman, said they also urged to maintain and sustain the ceasefire as a vehicle leading to ink the long awaited final and meaningful agreement between the MILF and the Philippine government.
During the rally in Cotabato City that was attended by representatives from the MNLF, indigenous peoples, and Bangsamoro women group, the alliance issued a manifesto calling the GRP and the MILF to immediately resume the peace negotiations.
The manifesto calls on both parties to honor the consensus points on ancestral domain that they have already agreed upon. They see the immediate resumption of the peace talks as the only way to stop the war that may break out once again.
Peace talks between the Philippine government and the MILF were stalled since last year over the issue of the ancestral domain, which the moro rebels have been demanding from the Arroyo regime.
The alliance for peace further calls on the government to defer the election in the ARMM, describing the upcoming regional polls in the autonomous region as a hindrance in the GRP-MILF peace talks.
"Clearly holding the ARMM elections is a sign that the government is not sincere it its peace negotiations with the MILF. We will all be the victims when war erupts," the group said.
"We call on every Bangsamoro people and on every peace-loving individual for that matter to unite with us and let our voices be heard and we want peace now for we have been suffering the war for so long."
"Finally, we support, respect and uphold the legitimate struggle of the Bangsamor people for freedom and the right to self determination," the group concluded.
for everyone
source: http://zamboangasouthwall.blogspot.com/
Thousands of Bangsamoros held simultaneous rallies in various parts of Mindanao on Saturday and called for immediate resumption of peace talks between the Philippine government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front.
Dubbed as "Mass Rally for Peace," they called the government to respect and sign with sincerity the previously agreed consensus points on ancestral domain and to cancel the August 11 Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao elections.
The rallyists led by the Mindanao Alliance for Peace (MAP) flocked in the main plazas of the cities of Cotabato, Tacurong, General Santos, Isabela, Basilan, Pagadian, and the municipalities of Jolo, Sulu, and Pikit in North Cotabato.
They criticized Zamboanga City Mayor Celso Lobregat for rejecting their application for a permit to hold a peace rally in the city.
Zamboanga was a former Muslim province and part of the Sultanate of Sulu and North Borneo, but many of its original inhabitants were forced out by Christian settlers.
The rallyists also said government troops prevented about a thousand colleagues on board six trucks from going to General Santos City from North Cotabato.
Bobby Benito, MAP spokesman, said they also urged to maintain and sustain the ceasefire as a vehicle leading to ink the long awaited final and meaningful agreement between the MILF and the Philippine government.
During the rally in Cotabato City that was attended by representatives from the MNLF, indigenous peoples, and Bangsamoro women group, the alliance issued a manifesto calling the GRP and the MILF to immediately resume the peace negotiations.
The manifesto calls on both parties to honor the consensus points on ancestral domain that they have already agreed upon. They see the immediate resumption of the peace talks as the only way to stop the war that may break out once again.
Peace talks between the Philippine government and the MILF were stalled since last year over the issue of the ancestral domain, which the moro rebels have been demanding from the Arroyo regime.
The alliance for peace further calls on the government to defer the election in the ARMM, describing the upcoming regional polls in the autonomous region as a hindrance in the GRP-MILF peace talks.
"Clearly holding the ARMM elections is a sign that the government is not sincere it its peace negotiations with the MILF. We will all be the victims when war erupts," the group said.
"We call on every Bangsamoro people and on every peace-loving individual for that matter to unite with us and let our voices be heard and we want peace now for we have been suffering the war for so long."
"Finally, we support, respect and uphold the legitimate struggle of the Bangsamor people for freedom and the right to self determination," the group concluded.
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