Center for Muslims proposed

A group of Muslim leaders yesterday proposed the creation of a center that would assist Filipino Muslims and handle complaints of illegal arrests.

At the close of the three-day conference of Muslim leaders at the Dusit Hotel Nikko, the participants commited to create the Philippine Center for Moderate Muslims (PCMM).

The forum served as a springboard for the creation of a technical working group that would formalize the objectives of the organization. It was agreed that the group would convene next week and the PCMM would materialize within the year.

For decades, many Filipino Muslims have experienced discrimination and became targets of illegal drugs and anti-piracy raids. In the last few years, a number had been accused as terrorists.

But Commissioner Taha Basman, of the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (Unesco), said these misdeeds are only committed by 10 percent of the Muslim population in the country, while the remaining 90 percent are good and law abiding citizens.

With the PCMM, Filipino Muslim would be confident that they will not be singled out in these raids, Basman said.

The center would also be lining up projects to fight terrorism in the country.

"We would have close coordination with the government in identifying the so-called radicals so the government would not have cases of picking up the wrong persons," he added.

The PCMM also proposes to embark on a nationwide campaign to inculcate among Muslims the moderate teachings of Islam.

Basman assured critics that they would maintain their objectivity and be impartial in their decisions.