MILF consultations on peace process start

The Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) has started conducting consultations on the peace process in Mindanao to update its followers regarding the possible resumption of peace negotiations with the government. MILF political committees under political affairs chairman Ghazali Jaafar started the consultations August 1 and will last until August 12. “The purpose of this meeting is to provide updates on the recent developments on the peace processes between the government and MILF, particularly on the four issues reached by the government and MILF during the special meeting of the two parties’ peace negotiating panels in Malaysia last July 28-29, 2009," the MILF said on its Web site. It added these peace gatherings are coordinated with the government and MILF Coordinating Committees on the Cessation of Hostilities (CCCH) for the necessary security arrangements. According to the MILF, the gatherings stemmed from the declaration of suspension of military offensives (SOMO) by the government and the suspension of military actions (SOMA) by the group. “The MILF leadership make(s) consultation to its members and Mass Base for every sensitive decision in which the people were affected," the MILF said. Negotiators for both sides late last month re-established contact in Kuala Lumpur, which is mediating the talks, in hopes to end the year-long impasse in the peace talks. A joint statement was signed at the conclusion of the two-day meeting, affirming the commitment to sustain the suspension of military operations that both parties declared last week. Negotiations between the government and the MILF, the largest secessionist organization in the country, collapsed August last year after both sides failed to sign the Memorandum of Agreement on Ancestral Domain (MOA-AD). The MOA-AD, which the Supreme Court ruled as unconstitutional, sought the expansion of coverage of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) under the Bangsamoro Juridical Entity, which is empowered to set up its own courts, security, trade, education, elections as well as the right to explore and develop natural resources in its territory. The non-signing of the agreement had prompted three MILF commanders and their men to launch a series of deadly attacks on mostly Christian communities in Central Mindanao. The government has filed criminal charges against MILF leaders Abdullah “Bravo" Macapaar, Alim Ali Pangalian and Ameril Umbra Kato, who were blamed for the bloodshed.- GMANews.TV