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Interview: Hashim Salamat, Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) Leader
by Kazi Mahmood
02/07/2001
Against a backdrop of noises from wild birds and animals, Ustaz Hashim Salamat, encamped at an undisclosed location in Mindanao's forests, spoke to IslamOnline on the importance of current peace negotiations underway with the Philippine government. A member of the Muslim ulama who studied at al-Ahzar University in Cairo, Egypt, Salamat spoke with extreme confidence, never expressing any weakness in moral conviction or commitment to the faith in the struggle against years of oppression suffered by Bangsamoro Muslims in the southern Philippines.
Hashim Salamat is the leader of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF); an activist Muslim group armed with sophisticated weapons and specializing in strategic guerilla warfare. It controlled a huge extent of land in Mindanao until 2000 when the defunct regime of former president Joseph Estrada launched a bloody all-out war against the Bangsamoro. The war was in violation of a peace treaty signed between the two groups in 1998, in which the Philippine government agreed not to attack the MILF in camps it occupied in Mindanao.
The current peace agreement, signed in Tripoli, gives hope that there will be a permanent solution to the war that has ravaged the lives of the Moro people, but has yet to deliver a victor. The MILF lost many of its camps, including the famous Camp Abubakar and Camp Omar bases, but the Philippine military could not completely eliminate the Islamic insurgency group.
IslamOnline's phone interview with Salamat centered on the living conditions of the people in the southern Philippines; the Abu Sayyaf; and other hot topics that have dominated headlines in the Philippines, and around the world, for the past six months. According to Salamat, independence remains an objective of the Moro people and the MILF will never abandon its pledge for an independent Islamic state in Mindanao.
IslamOnline: What is the next step now that a peace agreement has been signed between your movement and the Philippines Government in Tripoli, Libya?
Hashim Salamat: Well, our next discussion will cover the details of the important point that forms part of the agreement signed in Tripoli.
The most important points are the temporary ceasefire, the reparation of Bangsamoro properties, the rehabilitation of the war-damaged areas, development of areas to be identified by the MILF.
There are other points that would be tackled in the second round of talks that will concern the ancestral domain of the Bangsamoro people and the determination of the political and social status of the Moro people.
IOL: By status do you mean the independence of the Moroland or simply autonomy?
Salamat: You see, in the Tripoli agreement, it is written there that the Bangsamoro people will be able to decide on their political and social status. I think the Bangsamoro people will determine what is the most suitable to them, whether Independence, autonomy or status quo. I am very sure that the people will not accept any solution to the problem other than independence.
IOL: Do you think there should be a referendum in Mindanao and Sulu provinces to decide on the status of the Bangsamoro?
Salamat: We do not know yet. We are still in the process of negotiations with the Philippine government and they will come to realize that the only solution is to grant Independence and freedom to the Bangsamoro people. There is no need for a plebiscite or a referendum.
IOL: Has independence been discussed in Tripoli?
Salamat: Of course it has yet to be discussed. We are deliberately avoiding this issue because we are currently in negotiation with the Philippine regime on matters that can be acceptable to them.
All these issues that we are discussing are those that eventually will lead to independence of our homeland, Insha' Allah.
IOL: In which country will the future talks take place?
Salamat: Well I think the next round of talks will be in Kuala Lumpur. It is the same thing for Indonesia, after the talks in Kuala Lumpur the negotiations will be shifted to Indonesia. Both parties have agreed that the negotiations will be conducted according to the shifting venue system, and these countries will be where the talks will be held.
IOL: The Tripoli agreement says the occupied land by the army will be returned to the MILF. Is there any opposition from the armed forces to this?
Salamat: That is right. But, if there is any opposition from the army to return the land taken from us, then we cannot continue with the negotiations. We believe that it will be useless to negotiate with the Philippine government if what is agreed by the negotiating partners are opposed by the armed forces.
So far we have not seen or heard of any opposition by the armed forces on this issue. However, the position of the MILF is very clear. We are demanding for the return of the usurped freedom and independence of the Bangsamoro people. There is no compromise by the MILF. But, as far as the territory is concerned…it can still be negotiated.
IOL: How is the condition of living in the camps? Have the people been returning to these camps?
Salamat: The people do not want to return to the camps even though they were invited to do so by the administration in Manila. This is so because there is no security for them in the camps. The security is not guaranteed since there are still armed elements of the army in the region, near the camps and inside the camps.
As long as there are armed forces in the area, the people will not go there. They would not like to return because any time there could be renewed encounters between the warring factions and they could be caught in the crossfire.
The situation here in Mindanao is very, very difficult for the Muslims in general. Our people here have been oppressed for a very long time. This province has been totally neglected.
You see the emergence of the Abu Sayyaf group is caused by the oppression and the continuous usurpation of the powers within our homeland.
It is only now that the Philippine government has started to think on ways to develop the area, this only after the removal of former president Joseph Estrada.
IOL: The Estrada regime has done a lot of harm to the Bangsamoro people. How do you expect the Philippines to repair the damage done? Will there be any monetary compensation?
Salamat: As far as the Bangsamoro people are concerned, the Estrada administration was ironically speaking, the best administration. This is so because the all out war against our people united the Bangsamoro people.
Before that, the people were divided and many of the Muslims did not realize that we were facing serious political and ideological problems. Many of them were not concerned with these problems. However, after the launch of the war, they rallied in unison.
The negativity of the Estrada regime at the end of the day contributed largely to this unity we see today and made the Bangsamoro people even more determined to fight for their rights.
Another benefit we found from the oppressive means used against us is that the hardship paved the way for the Moro people to be stronger Muslims in their faith and practice. Islam is very strong here.
However, I understand that the Philippine government cannot afford to compensate the damage done by the all out war. But, I believe the Muslim countries, members of the Organization Of Islamic Conference (OIC), who are assisting in the negotiations, have promised to give financial help to the Philippine government to repair the damaged properties.
Countries like Malaysia, Indonesia, Libya and even Brunei have promised to do so and this assistance will be used to compensate the damages done to the people's properties.
IOL: Do you foresee any conflict of interest between the MILF and the MNLF after the war is over?
Salamat: We are now inviting everybody to forget MILF and MNLF and to stick to our nationality as Bangsamoro. We tell the people that the MILF and other groups are just organizations.
The MILF, for example, is an organization fighting for the independence of the Moroland. Once peace is reached this can be forgotten and we all should go back to our original identity.
IOL: Historically speaking the Moro land was part of the Islamic ring that covers a large extent of land from Thailand to the Philippines, with Malaysia and Indonesia in the middle. Do you think this area can regain its dynamism with the peace process engaged?
Salamat: It is true that in the past there was this huge empire and I believe strongly that this area can regain its economic and political strength.
As you mentioned these countries, it is interesting to note that Muslims forms a large majority in the area. If am not mistaken, there are over 300 million people in this belt from Thailand to the Philippines and the majority of them are Muslims.
Muslims do not realize at times that they are the majority in the area, which could become an area of growth.
IOL: You invited the Muslims to invest in Mindanao after peace is secured there. What are the areas where you would like to see solid investments?
Salamat: First of all, I would like to see that there is real peace here. Peace can always be broken if it is not secured on strong bases.
This area is very rich in natural resources and we have large fertile lands, forests reserves, marshes and lakes. As a matter of fact, it has recently been discovered that the area is rich in oil.
This is confirmed and some research indicated that the area, in particular the Muslim area, is the "basin" of the oil in South East Asia. If this oil in Moroland is extracted, it is possible that it may minimize the oil production of countries like Brunei and Malaysia altogether.
IOL: About the Abu Sayyaf. Do you think there should be a negotiated solution to this problem?
Salamat: There will be no negotiated solutions to this problem of the Abu Sayyaf that exists thanks to the years of oppression in Mindanao.
Yet, I guarantee you that once peace is signed here, there will be no more Abu Sayyaf. As long as the region and the Bangsamoro people are still under the control of the Philippines government, and oppression continues, we should expect more Abu Sayyaf style of groups to come to existence.
Once there is independence and the problem is solved, there will be no more Abu Sayyaf. Once there is a settlement to the problems with the Philippines government, we will be able to control the Sulu and Basilan regions. And, I believe the Abu Sayyaf followers will surely join us in the development process of the region.
IOL: If the Philippine government were to start another war against the MILF, would your movement be ready to meet the challenge?
Salamat: I think we are stronger now. We are even stronger than last year. We are ready to take up arms again if the Philippine government decides to do so.
We have acquired more sophisticated arms. We have trained more people and as a matter of fact, you knew about the Bangsamoro consultative assembly attended by more than 2 million people.
It is not easy to gather 2 million people in one place. And they vowed to arm themselves if there is going to be a resumption of hostilities. They have decided that if the Philippine government ignores their demands, they will fight.
Whatever propaganda the Philippine government is intent to use, the Muslims and the MILF will remain united. They know that the leadership of the MILF is very strong. They also know that the Abu Sayyaf for example, will definitely join us once there is independence.
I can repeat that the Bangsamoro people are firmly united. If they are not united and do not follow the MILF how can we gather 2 million people. It is impossible to do so if you do not have support.
I can tell you that many of these people came to this consultative assembly by foot, from remote areas and sometimes traveling 300 or 400 kilometers with only the aim to be there. That is the sign of unity of the people.
IOL: What do you think of President Arroyo? Do peace negotiations depend a lot on her too?
Salamat: She is a good lady. But of course she is facing so much trouble and political problems. People with different ideas surround her. She is in a very difficult situation overall.
IOL: Do you have any contacts with Aceh and Pattani liberation fighters?
Salamat: Yes. we do have contact with them. In the case of Aceh, brother Abdurrahman Wahid (Indonesian President) has urged us to contact the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) to tell them to stop fighting.
We told President Wahid that if his country is ready to give them what they want then there should be no problem. We can easily convince them. As a matter of fact, I have send a message to the leader of the GAM advising him to stop the hostilities and negotiate if they fell Indonesia is ready to give them what they want.
IOL: They want independence right?
Salamat: Yes they want independence. However, Aceh and Bangsamoro are different. We advise them not to think only of Aceh, but to think of Indonesia. I feel that it is not going to be good to have independence in Aceh and have a great Muslim society there while the rest of Indonesia will be plunged in chaos like it is now?
What is important is that the Indonesian government has guaranteed to give them their freedom to practice Islam and be autonomous and the GAM will be thinking on this line.
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