MNLF Rebels Free Jolo Hostages

Hostages arrival in Zamboanga City

Dolorfino

Cedo, Santos
Dureza, Cedo, Santos, Dolorfino

Philippine troops guard the airport in Jolo island. While a military chopper flies a reconnaissance mission over the island where Moro National Liberation Front rebels seized senior Philippine defense officials and soldiers on Friday and freed two days later after a successful negotiations. The separatist rebel group signed a peace agreement with Manila in September 1996, but many disgruntled rebels accused the Arroyo government of reneging on the peace deal and threatened to wage war. (Mindanao Examiner Photo)

ZAMBOANGA CITY (Mindanao Examiner / 04 Feb) – Philippine Muslim rebels freed Sunday a defense official and a marine general along with soldiers they seized after a peace meeting on the troubled island of Jolo, about 950 km south of the country.

Moro National Liberation Front rebels under Habier Malik and Khaid Ajibun have held since Friday Major General Mohamad Dolorfino, of the Philippine Marines; Colonels Davy Ramon and Cipriano Bayan, of the Philippine Army; Defense Under Secretary Ramon Santos and 21 soldiers and staff of Presidential peace adviser, Jesus Dureza.

“General Dolorfino, Under Secretary Santos and all members of the Office of the Presidential Assistant and their security team have boarded two helicopters. In other word, they are already out of the MNLF camp on their way here. They will fly back to Manila,” said Brigadier General Juancho Sabban, commander of the 3rd Marine Brigade in Jolo island.

Dolorfino’s group was freed shortly before 4 p.m.

Sabban said the incident did not affect the government’s anti-terror campaign on the island. “This has no effects on our operation,” he said.

Dolorfino’s group was seized after reports of a scheduled tripartite meeting between the MNLF, the Organization of Islamic Conference and the Philippines on Feb. 6-8 in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia had been shelved off by the Arroyo government.

Philippine military officials denied that the general’s group was held hostage.

Dolorfino said rebels prevented them to leave Jolo island until the issue on the holding of the tripartite meeting has been resolved. “We were asked to stay in Jolo until such time the issue of the holding of the tripartite meeting is resolved,” he said.

“Actually, we were asked to stay (in the camp) so that the government could be pressured to push through (with the tripartite meeting),” he told radio station dxBB on Sunday.

The rebels, who signed a peace agreement with Manila in September 1996, have previously accused the Arroyo government of failing to comply with the accord.

Manila has agreed to proceed with the OIC-led conference next month. The OIC, which brokered the peace talks, organized the tripartite meeting to discuss the full implementation of the agreement.

The gunmen earlier demanded Manila to free detained rebel chieftain Nur Misuari, who is facing rebellion charges in Manila, so he can lead the MNLF to the tripartite conference.

Dureza flew to Jolo Saturday and negotiated with the rebels to free Dolorfino’s group. He said Manila agreed to preliminary meetings that will eventually lead to the holding of tripartite conference. Dureza said Dolorfino’s group was treated well.

Misuari signed a peace deal with Manila that ended more than 20 years of bloody fighting in the southern Philippines. After the peace agreement was signed, Misuari became the governor of autonomous region.

Despite the agreement, many former guerrillas were disgruntled with the peace deal, saying, the Arroyo government failed to comply with some of its provisions and uplift their standards of living. They accused Manila of failing to develop the war-torn areas in the south, which remain in mired in poverty, heavily militarized and dependent financially on the government.

And in November 2001, on the eve of the elections in the Muslim autonomous region, Misuari also accused the government of reneging on the peace agreement, and launched a new rebellion in Jolo island and Zamboanga City, where more than 100 people were killed.

Misuari then escaped by boat to Malaysia, but had been arrested and deported to the Philippines.

The OIC also wanted Misuari freed from jail to head the MNLF delegation to Saudi Arabia for the tripartite meeting. OIC representatives, led by Egyptian Sayed El-Masry, who is adviser to OIC Secretary General Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu, visited Jolo island in May last year.

Masry said the Philippines and MNLF leaders must sit together and discuss the problems affecting the implementation of the peace accord. He said the tripartite meeting is important to finally settle the problems. (Mindanao Examiner)