Ampatuan followers, MILF members clash; 2 wounded

MANILA, Philippines - Two persons were wounded and several families were displaced after followers of the Ampatuan clan and members of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) clashed in Rajah Buayan, Maguindanao last Saturday, the military said. 

The encounter happened a week after a bloody clash in Mangudadatu town between MILF members and supporters of the Mangudadatu clan, which left 14 people dead.    

Col. Prudencio Asto, spokesman of the Army’s 6th Infantry Division, said the firefight between the groups of Sukarno Ampatuan and a certain Commander Flash began at around 12 noon in Barangay Sampao, Rajah Buayan town.  

Asto said two persons from the Ampatuan group were wounded, namely Sukarno Utto Ampatuan, 55, and his son Rohola Utto, 24, who were rushed to the Sultan Kudarat provincial hospital.

Asto said a land conflict might have triggered the clash, which lasted for about an hour. 

“The incident resulted in the evacuation of some families of the two warring parties… The number of evacuees or internally displaced persons is still undetermined,” he said in a text message.  

Asto said the families and relatives of Sukarno Ampatuan evacuated to the sub-villages of Barangay Sampao. On the other hand, relatives of Commander Flash, who is affiliated with the MILF’s 106th Base Command, fled to Baital village.  

Rajah Buayan Vice Mayor Jonathan Lumenda, along with troops from the Army’s mechanized company, intelligence personnel from the 45th Infantry Battalion, and local policemen, proceeded to the area to pacify the warring groups.

Fourteen people, including relatives of the Mangudadatu family, were killed last week after armed supporters of the clan and the MILF clashed in Barangay Tenok, Mangudadatu town.

The incident displaced more than 200 families residing in three towns.

The military said a rido or clan war triggered the hostilities but the MILF claimed the conflict stemmed from the decision of the Mangudadatus to build a road network in their territories without consulting the villagers.

The MILF said Moro communities are against the project, fearing that this may dislodge them from their lands.

Maguindanao Gov. Esmael Mangudadatu earlier said they were negotiating with the MILF to resolve the feud peacefully.

“We are now at the negotiating table. We are trying to reconcile with the MILF. We are now talking with the MILF leaders with regards to what happened,” he said in a recent interview.

He said the reconciliatory move seeks to prevent further clashes between the group of MILF leader Tauting Salendab and the Mangudadatu clan in the area.

The Mangudadatus are said to be the rivals of the Ampatuans, who were accused of plotting the murder of 56 people, including journalists and Mangudadatu clan members, on Nov. 23, 2009. – With Rose Tamayo-Tesoro