MILF fighters complain of they see as ‘continued military operations’ by the Filipino Army

By Rexcel Sorza, IOL Correspondent

ILOILO CITY, Philippines, January 25 (IslamOnline.net) - The Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) announced it is ready to talk peace but would go back to the negotiating table with the Philippine government only after the agreements forged in an earlier meeting are complied with.

Lawyer Eid Kabalu, MILF spokesperson, told IslamOnline.net Sunday, January 25, they are demanding that the commitments forged in the exploratory talks held in September last year must be complied with for the formal peace talks to resume.

Kabalu said, “Compliance of the commitments made during exploratory talks would be the main issue to be discussed in the forthcoming exploratory talks.”

The Malaysian government, which is facilitating the peace negotiation, has announced that the new round of exploratory talks, which precedes the formal negotiation, would take place on the second week of February in Kuala Lumpur.

During the exploratory talks held last September 5 to 6, the MILF and Philippine government agreed, among other things, that government troops would be pulled out of Buliok Complex in Pagulangan, Maguindanao, a former MILF military camp, and from Pikit town in Cotabato. Another commitment agreed was the dropping of court cases filed against MILF leaders.

Kabalu said that next month’s exploratory talks announced by Malaysian Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi and President Gloria Arroyo would determine whether the compliance would warrant the resumption of the formal peace negotiation.

“As such, it would possibly schedule the resumption of the formal GRP [Government of the Republic of the Philippines]-MILF Peace Talks,” he said, adding the parties might also prepare an agenda for the resumption of the formal peace negotiations.

Vital Preliminary Talks

On Saturday, Malaysian Foreign Minister Syed Hamid Albar that the scheduled exploratory talks are crucial to determine whether lasting peace and stability in Muslim-majority Mindanao can be achieved.

"For us, the exploratory talks in the middle of February are crucial whether we can move in to achieve peace in southern Mindanao. The earlier the conflict is resolved, the better for the Philippines, the region and neighboring countries," he was quoted by the state-run Bernama news agency as saying.

"If the talks turn out to be successful, Malaysia will send a reconnaissance team, comprising officials from the Defense and Foreign Ministries as well as from the Prime Minister's Department, to Mindanao,” and "That will be the next step after the exploratory talks.”

Syed Hamid said Malaysia is optimistic that the talks would bring about positive results as both parties accepted the reality that the protracted conflict should be resolved immediately.

"I see the talks have a very good chance this time because both sides accepted the reality to resolve the conflict in the long-term. They must be in peace to bring development to the province," he said.

Continued Military Operations

Meanwhile, the MILF fighters bewail what they call as “continued military operations” in their areas under pretext of pursuing after kidnappers and lawless elements.

Any military action without proper coordination is a serious violation of the GRP-MILF Security Accord signed on August 7, 2001. A subsequent cease-fire truce was forged on July 19, 2003.

The MILF also say that the massing up of government soldiers in some towns in Maguindanao and Sultan Kudarat provinces reminds them of the attack on Buliok Complex during the Eid Al-Adha last year, which precipitated the violence in almost all parts of Mindanao that stalled the conduct of the formal GRP-MILF peace talks.

Talking points

The MILF also said that once it formally sits down with the Philippine government to end the decades-long revolution, meant to establish an independent Islamic state and to “reclaim the Filipino Muslims’ homeland” it would bring up the “Bangsamoro Problem,” which involves a variety of social, political, economic and cultural issues and concerns.

Included are ancestral domain, agrarian related issues, displaced and landless Bangsamoro, destruction of properties and war victims, social and cultural discrimination, corruption of the mind and moral fiber, human rights issues, economic inequities and widespread poverty, and exploitation of natural resources.