MILF told: Stop building up forces

CAMP SIONGCO, Maguindanao, Philippines – The military warned the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) yesterday to stop its buildup of forces in three Maguindanao towns.

Maj. Taharudin Ampatuan, spokesman of the Army’s 603rd Brigade, said local officials and religious leaders in Maguindanao’s Upi, South Upi and Datu Blah Sinsuat towns have asked for increased troop deployment in the areas to stave off a possible MILF offensive.

They said the growing presence of MILF fighters in the three towns has sparked tension in what used to be demilitarized zones.

“This aggressive MILF posturing has caused anxiety among the residents in those three towns,” Ampatuan said in an email statement.

The three towns are the only remaining areas in Maguindanao still undisturbed by MILF forces.

MILF fighters have been attacking farming communities since August to protest the botched signing of the Memorandum of Agreement on Ancestral Domain after it was declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court.

“We have sent the joint ceasefire committee a message that the recent posturing of the MILF in these three towns is uncalled for – a serious violation of the ceasefire agreement,” Ampatuan said.

The commander of the 603rd Brigade, Col. Ernesto Aradanas, said the military would never tolerate any hostile acts from the MILF in the three peaceful towns.

Aradanas said the villagers themselves have appealed to the MILF to refrain from mobilizing forces in the areas to prevent a violent encounter with the military or the local militias.

Meanwhile, the MILF is ruling out a resumption of the peace negotiations if the government insists on making the Constitution the framework of the talks.

Khaled Musa, deputy chairman of the MILF committee on information, was reacting to a statement from Avelino Razon, the new head of the Office of the Presidential Assistant on the Peace Process (OPAPP), that the government panel in the peace talks would seek direction from the Constitution.

Razon made the pronouncement before top officials of North Cotabato.

“No way will we agree to resume the talks with the Constitution as basis of discussion,” Musa said on the MILF’s website.

Musa said Razon’s message was too shallow and not in the interest of Muslims and indigenous people.

He also said the government has been deliberately misleading the people by floating dates for the resumption of the peace talks.

“All those were designed to soothe the suffering of the people and meant to tell the international donor communities that they can send in monetary assistance to rebuild the war-devastated communities in Mindanao,” Musa said.

Malacañang has announced that the peace talks would resume next month, following ground consultations with all the stakeholders in Mindanao. – With Jaime Laude