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Proposal to Develop Halal Food Industry in the Philippines
MANILA, Aug 15 (IslamOnline & News Agencies ) - Philippine President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo is taking steps to develop a local "halal" food industry, which would possibly export products to its Southeast Asian neighbors, a presidential palace statement said Wednesday.
Arroyo is preparing an order to create the Philippine Halal Certification and Regulatory Board, Agence France-Presse (AFP) reported the statement as saying.
The country's agriculture department is supporting plans to set up nine halal slaughterhouses in the coming months, at least two of which will be for the export industry, the statement said.
"Halal", for the purposes of food consumption, refers to meat from animals that is slaughtered under Islamic rules.
In order to secure its recognition in the area, the Philippine government will ensure that its halal meat is acceptable under the standards set by its mainly Islamic neighbors, the statement said.
Arroyo, who recently returned from a state visit to Malaysia, was quoted as saying that she considers Malaysia a model for the Philippines' prospective halal food industry, AFP reported.
The largely Christian Philippines has a Muslim minority, but does not have a halal-oriented industry.
In a plebiscite on August 13th, Arroyo urged voters to give Muslim self-rule a chance in the southern part of the country.
"Let us resolve to forge unity out of our diversity, to make ourselves complete and united despite differences in faith and culture," Arroyo said in a speech to local officials during a brief visit.
"Let us help turn the ARMM [Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao] plebiscite into a day of reconciliation and brotherhood for Philippine Muslims and Christians," she said.
The proposed expanded ARMM seeks to include 15 provinces and 14 cities covering about 68,000 square kilometers (27,200 square miles), an area the size of Ireland.
There are five million Filipino Muslims in the mainly Roman Catholic Southeast Asian archipelago of 76.5 million people.
The Muslims call Mindanao and nearby areas in the south their homeland, but waves of migration from other areas have left the Muslims as a minority in most of the provinces and cities involved in the plebiscite.
The plebiscite areas cover western Mindanao and the western island of Palawan.
A 30-year Islamic uprising has wracked most of these areas.
The government signed a peace agreement with the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) in 1996; and signed a truce last week with the breakaway Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF).
Peace negotiations are set to continue next month.
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