MILF bares attempts to postpone peace talks

MAGUINDANAO, Philippines – The chairman of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) peace negotiating panel disclosed on Wednesday attempts to postpone the talks with the Philippine government in Kuala Lumpur by tying it up with the crisis in Sabah.

Mohagher Iqbal warned against a postponement of the negotiation scheduled from March 25 to 27 in Kuala Lumpur, saying “unscrupulous” persons are behind the move to postpone the talks by associating it with the Sabah situation.

Iqbal called the crisis in Sabah a “non-issue.”

“We are receiving some ideas from unscrupulous persons who want to tie the negotiation with the Sabah standoff. I told them this is more important. The peace process is more important than what is happening now in Sabah,” Iqbal said.

Iqbal said both panels would talk on wealth and power sharing during the talks in Kuala Lumpur.

Iqbal made the statement during a meeting with Japanese Ambassador Toshinao Urabe, who visited the Bangsamoro Leadership and Management Institute (BLMI) Training Center that was constructed with funding assistance from Japan.

According to Iqbal, they did not raise the issue before the government panel about the attempts to postpone the talks.

He said the MILF has no plans to raise the Sabah issue during the negotiation in Kuala Lumpur.

“There is no need to postpone the talks,” Iqbal said. “I do not imagine that it is postponed. For us, all systems go.”

“It is a non-issue. We will not discuss that. What is important is the issue of postponement does not come from the MILF because for us, I said all systems go,” he added.

When asked what are expected to be achieved during the talks, Iqbal said substantive issues, including wealth sharing and power sharing, would be discussed.

“I’m very hopeful we will be able to wind up the discussion on the substantive issues, on the issue of wealth sharing and power sharing. I think we can manage to settle that. But the issue of normalization is a continuing agenda, I do not think we can finish that,” he said.

The MILF has a “no comment” official policy on the Sabah issue, which “is complicated,” Iqbal said.

“There are so many players. All kinds of interests are converging,” Iqbal said. “The official policy of the MILF is no comment. We do not comment on the Sabah issue. It is so sensitive. Whatever statements you make you are creating more problems.”

Maj. Gen. Dato Fadzil Bin Mokhtar, the head of the new Malaysian contingent to the International Monitoring Team (IMT) overseeing the ceasefire between the government and the MILF, also said the Sabah issue would not affect the peace process because it is a “separate” matter.

“Sabah is a separate matter and I do not think that affects the peace talks that are going on between the MILF and the government of the Philippines. I do not think it is going to affect the peace process,” Fadzil said.

“My concern is the peace process, (which) is independent,” he said.

He added that neither party in the peace negotiation has associated itself with the Sabah conflict.

The IMT’s main headquarters is in Cotabato City while its team sites are in the cities of Cotabato, General Santos, Iligan, Davao and Zamboanga.

The IMT-member countries are Malaysia, Brunei, Indonesia, Japan, Libya and Norway.

“We have complete trust in the government of the Philippines for providing us with security and we have full confidence in the ability of the government forces to protect us,” Fadzil said.

The IMT was established in 2004 to monitor the ongoing peace process between the government and the MILF. Their task is to observe the implementation of ceasefire agreement between both parties, conduct field verifications on reported violations and coordinate closely with the Joint GPH-MILF Coordinating Committee on the Cessation of Hostilities and the local monitoring teams.– With John Unson