International team’s work pleases Malaysian defense chief

COTABATO CITY — Malaysian Defense Chief Mohd Anwar assessed as "satisfactory and comprehensive" the performance of the international monitoring team helping enforce the ceasefire between the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) in Southern Mindanao.

The monitoring team, led by Malaysian Gen. Pahlawan Soheimi and composed of soldiers from Malaysia and Brunei and civilian representatives from Libya, has also been helping defuse security problems in areas covered by the ceasefire through low-level dialogues between government and MILF negotiators.

An admiral in the Malaysian Navy, Anwar, accompanied by his staff, met with members of the monitoring team here the other day and lauded them for their discipline and professionalism.

"We are thankful to both sides and the people in Mindanao for accepting and recognizing the (monitoring team) and for reciprocating its effort in helping build peace in areas covered by the ceasefire," Anwar told The STAR.

Part of Anwar’s mission here was to encourage his compatriots in the team to continue monitoring the ceasefire, which, he said, has been gaining headway.

Anwar appealed to the government and MILF peace panels to maintain the momentum of their peace talks.

"We in Malaysia are willing to work with the Philippine government and the MILF with one mission statement: peaceful solutions to the security problems in Mindanao," he said.

Malaysia, which is hosting the formal talks between the government and the MILF, is a member of the Organization of Islamic Conference, a bloc of 54 Muslim states, including Arab petroleum-exporting countries.

"One proof that the (monitoring team) is making good in its mission is the fact that the MILF and the Philippine government listen to its suggestions on how to peacefully address the security problems in areas covered by the ceasefire," Anwar said.

Anwar, who arrived at Maguindanao’s Awang airport on board a C-130 plane of the Malaysian Air Force, also brought relief supplies for Maguindanao villagers displaced by the recent military offensive against the Abu Sayyaf.