MILF Peace Talks Breaking Apart, Fighting Continues In Southern Philippines

COTABATO CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / August 23, 2008) – Hope of resuming the peace talks between the Arroyo government and the Philippines' largest Muslim rebel group, Moro Islamic Liberation Front, remains dim as fierce fighting continued Saturday in Mindanao.

The Philippine military said at least 100 rebels were killed since early this week in the skirmishes in central Mindanao. But the MILF disputed the military report, saying, only 7 rebels died in the fighting.

“As far as the military is concerned, we have reports to prove that more than rebels were killed in the fighting,” Lt. Col. Julieto Ando, a spokesman for the Army’s 6th Infantry Division, told the Mindanao Examiner.

“It trash, that’s military propaganda and only seven of our members were killed, but we can say that dozens of government soldiers perished in the fighting,” Eid Kabalu, a senior rebel leader, said by phone from his base in Mindanao.

He said fighting between rebel and military forces were raging in the towns of Datu Saudi Ampatuan and Datu Piang, all in Maguindanao province.

Ando said three soldiers were killed and 23 more wounded in the battles since Monday. He said there is an ongoing military offensive aimed at capturing two notorious MILF commanders Ameril Kato and Abdurahman Macapaar.

“We have done our best to embrace peace, but the MILF started the hostilities by pillaging villages and murdering innocent civilians in Mindanao. We are now implementing the full force of the law and we will arrest those responsible for the traitorous attacks against civilians,” Ando said.

The two rogue commanders led a series of attacks recently in the provinces that killed dozens of people, mostly civilians, but the MILF claimed most of those were militias fighting the rebels.

Former army chief Romeo Tolentino, now a senior member of the National Security Council, also criticized leftist human rights organizations and the Communist Party of the Philippines, including the National Democratic Front, which had previously accused soldiers of human rights violations in Mindanao.

“All these groups, which have been so noisy in the past about human rights issues suddenly, are silent about the atrocities committed by the MILF rebels.

This clearly shows that these organizations are also terrorists which have no respect for human lives, security and welfare of the people,” he said.

The Amnesty International also accused the MILF of human rights violations.
“MILF units that targeted villages have engaged in serious violations of international law and should be held to account,” said Sam Zarifi, Amnesty International’s Asia-Pacific Director.

Over 160,000 people were displaced by the fighting that broke out this week in North Cotabato, Lanao del Norte, Sarangani and Sultan Kudarat. The number of war refugees is increasing as the exodus of civilians continues in Maguindanao and other neighboring areas.

Because of the hostilities, some politicians had urged villagers to arm and defend themselves from rebel attacks. Armed militias were also deployed to guard their communities against further atrocities.

Zarifi said the deployment civilian militias can set off a chain of reprisals.

“Experience from around the world shows that the deployment of civilian militias can set off a chain of reprisals and only increases the danger facing civilians.”

“All sides to this conflict should step back from the brink and demonstrate their commitment to avoid harming civilians. The MILF must control its forces, and the Philippine government should take responsibility for the security of all peoples in the Philippines, regardless of religion or ethnicity,” he said.

The rebels launched attacks after the aborted signing of the Muslim homeland deal between the MILF and Manila. The accord would have granted Muslims their own separate state in more than 700 villages across Mindanao, but it also sparked a series of protests from mostly Christian politicians and residents opposed to the inclusion of their areas to the so-called Bangsamoro Juridical Entity.

The Supreme Court stopped the signing of the memorandum of agreement on the ancestral domain after some lawmakers and politicians filed separate petitions asking the government to bare the rest of the deal with the MILF.

Manila also demanded the MILF to peacefully surrender Kato and Macapaar.

But the secluded chieftain of the MILF, Murad Ebrahim, said they will not surrender the two rogue commanders and warned that an all-war is inevitable if the peace talks with Manila fail.

“We cannot subject our members to the laws of the government,” Murad said, insisting that the MILF is a revolutionary organization.

Murad said government forces have indiscriminately attacked Muslim areas while pursuing the groups of Kato and Macapaar. Both MILF leaders and dozens of their followers had been charged in court in connection with the attacks in Mindanao.

Mohagher Iqbal, the chief MILF peace negotiator, also said that war could break out in Mindanao if fighting does not stop. “This is grim scenario and I don’t even want to think about it, but if the peace talks collapse then there will be war again in Mindanao,” he said in a separate phone interview.

Iqbal blamed hawkish faction in the Arroyo government and Christian politicians opposed to the Muslim homeland to the fighting in Mindanao. “The voice of reason is dwarfed by the voice of hatred and prejudice. The peace talks are slowly breaking apart and if this continues, may God help us all,” he said.

Iqbal said the MILF will not any more negotiate the Muslim homeland deal with the Manila. “The ancestral domain agreement is a done deal because we have already initialed the accord during our meeting in Malaysia last month,” he said.

Malaysia, a member of the influential Organization of Islamic Conference, is brokering the peace talks between the Philippines and the MILF. But Kuala Lumpur already withdrew most of its truce observers deployed in Mindanao after accusing Manila of stalling the peace talks. (Mindanao Examiner)