Maranaos angry over ID system in Muslim communities

Marawi City – Thousands of angry Maranaos trooped to this city yesterday to protest the implementation of a compulsory identification cards for Muslims in Manila and the alleged claim of Catholic leaders that the madrasahs are being used by terrorists posing as preachers.

In a huge rally in Bangolo district, lawyer and former Lanao del Sur Governor Saidamen Pangarungan said: "Any identification card imposed for a select group is illegal and unconstitutional." Singling out the Muslims in Metro Manila, he stressed, is discriminatory.

Government authorities has cracked down on Muslim communities in Manila after it averted a possible "Madrid-type" terrorist attack recently. Several persons in a Muslim barangay in Manila were arrested for their alleged involvement in the alleged plot.

"We want to appease our people for this and we will take legal proceedings if President Arroyo will not take action," Pangarungan said.

One of the organizers of the rally, Lacs Dalidig, chairman of the Muslim Multi Sectoral Movement for Peace and Development, warned that if government authorities will not act on what they believe were illegal arrests, they will seek justice and retaliations might occur if it fails.

"We want the immediate release of all Muslims who were arrested without warrants of arrest and stop the implementation of the ID system for Muslim communities," Dalidig said. — Lino dela Cruz