ILIGAN CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / August 28, 2008) –Philippine soldiers pursuing Moro Islamic Liberation Front forces captured Thursday one of the rebel’s biggest camp in Mindanao as government offensive continue in the troubled region.
Officials said troops occupied Camp Bilal that straddles several towns in the hinterlands of Lanao del Norte, scene of fierce clashes between security and rebel forces.
But soldiers failed to capture two notorious rebel leaders - Ameril Kato and Abdurahman Macapaar – blamed for the series of attacks in Mindanao that killed nearly 200 people since last week.
More than 160,000 have been displaced by the fighting despite a cease-fire agreement between the two sides and the exodus of civilians still continue in many areas in Mindanao.
The influential Organization of the Islamic Conference on Wednesday appealed to Manila to halt military offensives in Mindanao. Professor Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu, the OIC Secretary General, expressed deep concern over the recent outbreak of hostilities that is threatening the seven-year old peace talks between Manila and the MILF.
Hundreds of MILF rebels under Kato and Macapaar launched a series of attacks after the aborted signing August 5 of the memorandum of agreement on the ancestral domain between by peace negotiators.
The Supreme Court temporarily stopped the signing of the deal after some mostly Christian lawmakers and politicians opposed to the deal filed separate petitions.
The accord would have granted Muslims their own homeland in more than 700 villages across Mindanao. But the controversial agreement sparked a series of protests from residents opposed to the inclusion of their areas to the ancestral domain that will make up the so-called Bangsamoro Juridical Entity.
Ihsanoglu condemned the rebel attacks against innocent civilians, calling it illegitimate acts conducted by wayward elements affiliated with the MILF, which refused to abide to repeated appeals by the group's leadership to maintain calm, peace and restraint in Mindanao.
Manila has demanded the MILF to surrender Kato and Macapaar and also offered P10 million rewards for their capture. The government also said it will suspend the signing of the ancestral domain agreement until the two rogue leaders are captured.
But Ihsanoglu expressed concern over the reports that the Arroyo government intends to freeze the memorandum agreement on the ancestral domain, which he said came about as a result of strenuous, long and sincere efforts by peace negotiators.
He said it is unfortunate to let undisciplined elements from the MILF determine the course of negotiations or halt the peace process.
"The Secretary General urged the parties to the conflict to rapidly return to the negotiating table and continue working together in the same positive spirit that led to the conclusion of the agreement."
"The parties need to preserve and build upon the accomplishments so far achieved in a bid to reach the just and durable peace desired by all," the OIC said in a statement.
Ihsanoglu praised Malaysia for playing a key role in the peace talks between the Philippines and the MILF.
Malaysia has been brokering the peace negotiations, but had already pulled out most of its truce observers deployed in Mindanao after accusing Manila of delaying the talks, although Kuala Lumpur extended the stay of a small team for the next three months to bring together the peace process.
Ihsanoglu said the OIC and other countries are supporting efforts to preserve peace and restore calm and stability in southern Philippines.
He stressed that the Manila and the MILF would work out a swift settlement to the current crisis that threatens to thwart the peace process and for both sides to refrain from giving extremist elements the opportunity to dictate their own agenda or determine the course of events in Mindanao. (With reports from Mark Navales and Merlyn Manos)
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