Moro rebels not poised to resume talks

ZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines — The Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) said yesterday it is not inclined to resume negotiations with the government soon due to the state’s lack of political will to pursue basic elements of the peace process. Khaled Musa, deputy chairman of the MILF’s committee on information, said the aborted signing of the territorial deal confirmed lack of consensus among the three branches of the government and exposed the absence of political will on the part of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo in addressing Moro self-determination. "This is a ghost that stares us in the face and unless the government can show concrete evidence that this tragedy will not be repeated, the MILF has very little motivation to return to the negotiating table," he said. The two parties were nearing a breakthrough last year, but was scuttled after the Supreme Court favored in August a petition filed by Mindanao’s local politicians suspending the signing of the so-called Memorandum of Agreement on Ancestral Domain that would have paved the way for a final peace accord. The agreement would have been the last of three main points that government and Moro negotiators have been working hard to complete. It was also the most controversial since the scope of the agreement covers land claims, control over economic resources, and ultimately political power that will be granted to the proposed Bangsamoro Juridical Entity. Mr. Musa challenged the government to make the peace talks a national agenda and not just a part of the government’s "dribbling knowing that the negotiated peace settlement of the Moro problem and the armed conflict is not possible within 2010." The Arroyo administration ends its term on June 30, 2010. The MILF reacted to the President’s announcement to foreign dignitaries in Monday’s annual vin d’honneur at the Palace that the peace talks is her "personal commitment," and that she expects a final peace deal inked within her term. Mr. Musa said Mrs. Arroyo should show her sincerity and not just be a "lame duck" President in pursuing the peace process. "There will always be spoilers, dissidents, or oppositors but when there is leadership, sincerity and political will on the part of the highest leadership, these obstacles will be overcome and everyone will toe the line," he said. The government is trying to convince the MILF to resume the talks after the former created a new peace panel. The panel is headed by Foreign Affairs Undersecretary Rafael E. Seguis. Its members are Agrarian Reform Secretary Nasser Pangandaman, former General Santos City Mayor Adelbert Antonino; former Rep. Ronald Adamat and Iligan City-based lawyer and businessman Tomas Cabili, Jr. Negotiations with the MILF were stalled last year after the group’s renegade elements attacked portions of Lanao del Norte, North Cotabato and Sarangani in August, killing around 100 civilians including women and children. This, after the Supreme Court halted the signing of a Memorandum of Agreement on Ancestral Domain, which would have expanded what is now known as the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM). Under the deal, areas presently in Palawan, South Cotabato, Zamboanga City, Sultan Kudarat, North Cotabato, Lanao del Norte and Zamboanga del Sur would become part of ARMM. The Supreme Court declared the deal as unconstitutional in October but even before the ruling, the state had decided to cancel the deal citing the MILF leadership’s inability to prevent its personnel from doing illegal acts. — Darwin T. Wee, BusinessWorld