Mindanao bishops pray for peace

MANILA, Philippines – Mindanao bishops are praying for peace even as four of their priests and a seminarian were reported as among those abducted by Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) rebels but later escaped last Monday in Kolambugan, Lanao del Norte.

Marbel, South Cotabato Bishop Dinualdo Gutierrez, speaking in a media forum yesterday, said that people should hope for peace in the whole region even if hostilities are ongoing in North Cotabato and Lanao del Norte.

“While violence elicits negativity, let us move forward,” said Bishop Gutierrez, whose diocese covers the Socsargen (South Cotabato, Sarangani and General Santos) provinces.

Gutierrez, who has been assigned to the Diocese of Marbel since 1981, said the violence has toned down as compared to previous incidents of hostilities in Mindanao.

The 69-year-old prelate believes that peace can be attained if everyone, from the highest official to the ordinary Filipino, would work toward attaining this goal.

When asked what was his message to President Arroyo, he said, “First, pray hard, second forget politics and continue flooding the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) with basic services, good governance and dialogue.”

Malacañang earlier asked the Bishops-Ulama Conference (BUC) to assist them in their peace efforts, but Gutierrez said they have been offering their services and assistance to the government for the past four years.

He said they are willing to act as advisers or consultants of the Chief Executive.

The Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) Permanent Council is also set to meet next month with the Mindanao situation and the efforts of the Arroyo government to revive Charter change would most likely be part of the discussions.

“Last month, a high government official told us in our meeting at the BUC that the MILF has lost the original paradigm which is the common good of the Muslims,” said Bishop Gutierrez.

This prompted the 75 members of the BUC to verify this information.

The BUC will hold its 35th general assembly on Nov. 18 to 21 in Jolo, Sulu, where they intend to discuss with leaders of the local Muslim community their intentions, needs, and desires.

They might not touch the issue on the MOA-AD since some of them might not have even heard of the memorandum.    – With Jess Diaz