North Cotabato opposes new homeland deal between Manila and MILF rebels

Government soldiers stop Muslim civilians at an army checkpoint in Maguindanao province in the southern Philippines. (Mindanao Examiner Photo / Mark Navales)

COTABATO CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / Aug. 1, 2009) – An influential southern Philippine politician on Saturday vowed to oppose any deal between Manila and Muslim rebels that would dismember the province of North Cotabato.

North Cotabato deputy governor Emmanuel Pinol said the Supreme Court ruled that the consensus points reached by the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front in the memorandum of agreement on ancestral domain violated the Constitution.

“Did the government peace panel take notice of the fear, the rift, the division and the violence that the proposed memorandum of agreement on ancestral domain brought upon the people of the country, especially among us living in the Southern Philippines?, Pinol asked.

The peace talks between Manila and the MILF collapsed in August last year after the High Court’s decision. It also triggered deadly rebel attacks in the provinces of North Cotabato, Sarangani, Lanao and Maguindanao.

North Cotabato is one of several provinces which are included in the proposed expanded Muslim autonomous region that would also include some parts of Zamboanga Peninsula and Palawan.

President Gloria Arroyo halted all military offensives against the MILF to pave the way for the early revival of the stalled peace talks. The MILF also ordered its forces to stop attacks against government and military targets in the restive region.

Government peace negotiators and the MILF also agreed on Wednesday on four issues before the resumption of the talks. In a joint statement, government negotiators headed by Rafael Seguis and the MILF peace panel led by Mohagher Iqbal have agreed to sustain the cease-fire agreement.

The also acknowledged that the memorandum of agreement on ancestral domain as unsigned and yet initialed document, and committed to reframe the consensus points with the end in view of moving towards the comprehensive compact to bring about a negotiated political settlement.

Both sides would also work for a framework agreement on the establishment of a mechanism on the protection of non-combatants in armed conflict and another framework agreement on the establishment of International Contact Group which would be composed of states and non-state organizations to accompany and mobilize international support for the peace process.

Pinol said the memorandum of agreement on ancestral domain in its entirety is a document that virtually creates an “associative” government that is equivalent to a new State minus the word “sovereignty.”

He said the people of his province after a series of public consultations declared the following: “We desire for true and lasting peace, one that is a product of a consensus among all stakeholders in Mindanao – Muslims, Christians and the Tribes; one that addresses the roots of the problem – poverty, lack of education, deprivation, injustice and massive and unabated corruption in government; one that manifests and reflects the common desire of the people rather than a piece of paper called the “Peace Agreement.”

“We demand total disarmament and the enforcement of the law in dealing with armed groups; we oppose any expansion of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao or its equivalent political instrumentality that would include our province; we oppose the idea of creating a virtual independent “associative” state.

Pinol said he has consulted with his legal experts and would ask the Supreme Court to cite the government peace panel in contempt for ignoring its decision declaring the memorandum of agreement on ancestral domain unconstitutional.

The politician was one of those who questioned the legality of the ancestral homeland deal before the Supreme Court.

The MILF previously said it would only resume the peace talks if Arroyo honors the Muslim ancestral domain deal that negotiators initially signed in July last year in Kuala Lumpur. The accord would have granted some four million Muslims their own homeland in more than 700 villages across Mindanao. (Mindanao Examiner)

Philippine troops search for MILF raiders

MAGUINDANAO, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / May 03, 2009) – Philippine security forces were tracking down Moro Islamic Liberation Front rebels who attacked a banana plantation Sunday and killed one civilian in Mindanao Island.

It said four more civilians were wounded in the attack at around 6 a.m. at the plantation owned by North Cotabato Vice Governor Emmanuel Pinol in the village of Maybola in Tulunan town.

The rebels burned some 30 houses owned by villagers and also took two buffaloes and three horses.

The military said some 150 rebels were involved in the attack. Soldiers and pro-government militias engaged the attackers in a three-hour firefight until the rebel retreated, said Lt. Col. Jonathan Ponce, a regional army spokesman.

“The attack against the civilians is part of the MILF’s grand design to create chaos and sow terror in central Mindanao,” he said. “There is an ongoing operation to track down the attackers.”

The MILF earlier government troops of burning houses of civilians and indiscriminate artillery attacks in Mindanao where military offensives entered its second week.

Troops were pursuing rebels blamed for the spate of bombings and indiscriminate attacks on civilian and military targets in Maguindanao and North Cotabato provinces.

Peace talks between the MILF and the Arroyo government collapsed last year after the failed signing of the Muslim homeland deal.

Eid Kabalu, a senior MILF leader, said security forces targeted Muslim communities and that attacks were continuing. “Government soldiers were attacking civilian areas and the Muslims have been targets of these attacks. The soldiers burned houses of civilians and shelled Muslim communities in Maguindanao,” he said.

The MILF said dozens of houses were torched by army soldiers in the province and that the government offensives have displaced thousands of people.

Security spokesmen said the offensives targeted MILF leaders Abdurahman Macapaar, Ameril Kato and Sulayman Panglian, who led simultaneous raids in Mindanao last year.

The Army’s 6^th Infantry Division denied the MILF’s accusations and said the rebel group was behind the string of attacks that killed many innocent civilians in the restive region. (Mindanao Examiner)

 

 

North Cotabato Vice Governor Finally Finishes Master's Degree In Rural Development

North Cotabato Emmanuel Pinol smiles as he graduated from the University of Southern Mindanao on Monday, April 02, 2009 in Kabacan town. (Mindanao Examiner Photo / Ferdinandh Cabrera)

NORTH COTABATO, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / Apr. 02, 2009) North Cotabato Vice Governor Emmanuel Pinol marched the isle of University of Southern Mindanao (USM) in Kabacan town together with hundreds of graduates with pride and honor on his quest to developing rural communities of North Cotabato with the expertise he gained.

Pinol, a former college drop-out, finished his Master's degree. Three years ago, he finished his Bachelor of Science in Rural Development through the Expanded Tertiary Equivalency and Accreditation Program of USM.

Pinol dissuaded the majority young poor of the province and even undergraduate politicians that age and poverty is not interference when you not stop dreaming.

“Its shouldn’t be the age and poverty be a hindrance to education, I have proven it. Our strategy of governance now is different too, leaders should not only be brave and mighty, they must be smart and strategic too”, Pinol said.

Members of his family and friends waited and congratulated him when he arrived at his office where he was applauded by employees and suppporters.

Pat, his elder brother, jested to him in their local hiligaynon dialect, “Te mayo kay indi gutok ang gin-suot mo nga sapatos” (Well its good the shoes you wore still fits at you). It sounded a joke, alright, but it was a reality in the provinces that made them reminisced their younger days -- eleven Pinol brothers -- shared the same pair of leather shoes used in graduations and other special events.

Pinol stressed that it is his true dream to uplift his province from poverty.

Rural development, he said, has given him insight as experienced political leader to approach development from a scientific point of view.

In his thesis entitled “Innovations in Local Governance, Impact on the Development of Rural Communities”, he collated the successful programs of the province that hooked up North Cotabato rom the quagmire of poverty before his administration as governor.

These include Plant-Now-Pay-Later Program, Study-Now-Pay-Later Program, Fly-Now-Pay-Later Program and Cotabato Health Insurance Program among others.

But this will not end this time, Pinol said he will enroll again and hopefully to finish his Doctorate degree in Rural and Economic Development.

He joshed saying a dream of his life. “I don’t want a simple tombstone in my grave when I die that just read as Emmmanuel Pinol, R.I.P; but what I want is Emmanuel Pinol, PHd, R.I.P." (Ferdinandh Cabrera)

MILF Rebels Pull Out From Occupied Mindanao Villages

Philippine military chief General Alexander Yano speaks to reporters on Friday, August 8, 2008 in Zamboanga City. Yano says Moro Islamic Liberation Front rebels have begun pulling out from villages they illegally occupied in North Cotabato province. (Mindanao Examiner Photo)

ZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / August 8, 2008) – Philippine Muslim rebels have began pulling out from areas they illegally occupied in North Cotabato province in Mindanao, officials said Friday.

But sporadic fighting has been reported in Aleosan and Midsayap towns, although there were no reports of casualties. The clashes, which began before sunrise, lasted for several hours.

Philippine authorities on Thursday gave a 24-hour ultimatum to the Moro Islamic Liberation Front to remove its forces after weeks of sporadic clashes forced tens of thousands of civilians to flee their homes.

“Most of the MILF elements have started to pull out since Thursday night and until today. We have the cease-fire committees on the grounds supervising the pullouts of rebels in the areas,” said Philippine military chief General Alexander Yano at a news conference in Zamboanga City.

Yano, accompanied by Lt. Gen. Nelson Allaga, the chief of the military’s Western Mindanao Command, also visited Zamboanga City Mayor Celso Lobregat.

Interior Secy. Ronaldo Puno said the rebels should vacate the towns or authorities would use force to drive them away.

North Cotabato Deputy Governor Emmanuel Pinol said rebels have been attacking government forces in the province and pillaged Christian villages. Rebels also torched dozens of houses.

Sporadic fighting were reported since last month in the towns of Aleosan, Midsayap, North Kabuntalan, Libungan and Pigkawayan, where rebels traded automatic and mortar fires with government militias and soldiers.

“We have to enforce the law to reclaim these areas that the rebels illegally occupied,” Yano said.

Lt. Col. Julieto Ando, spokesman for the Army's 6th Infantry Division, said about 800 rebels occupied at least 9 villages in the five towns the past weeks. “We are talking about 800 fully armed rebels here and they have begun pulling out from these areas,” he told the Mindanao Examiner.

He said rebels were slowly withdrawing and that security forces are monitoring the pull out of MILF forces. “There is progress. The rebels are withdrawing slowly,” he said.

Ando said the rebels are retreating in small groups and would probably continue until night time.

The MILF said members of the cease-fire committees and international truce observers are in Aleosan town to monitor the situation in North Cotabato.

“The cease-fire committees and members of the International Monitoring Team are now in the areas monitoring the situation. We need measures that will sustain the peace efforts on the ground,” Eid Kabalu, a senior MILF leader, said in a separate interview.

The military said the rebel attacks in the province were connected to the opposition of North Cotabato to its inclusion in the Muslim ancestral domain signed by Manila with the MILF, which is currently negotiating peace with the government.

Kabalu denied rebels illegally occupied the villages and said government militias had attacked them and that fighting in other areas was connected to land conflict and clan wars.

Many villagers have already armed themselves with machetes and old guns to defend themselves from rebel attacks.

The MILF is the country's largest Muslim rebel group fighting for a separate Islamic state in the troubled South. (Mindanao Examiner)