Attached herewith the Manifesto and some pictures of the Rally yesterday (October 02, 2008, Shawwal 02, 1429) asking the U.N. and O.I.C. to Mediate and intervene in the Muslim Mindanao long-aged conflict. The rally was started in the Plaza Bangolo of Islamic City of Marawi (Philippines) and at around 10 o’clock in the morning, at the height of hot-sunny-day, the rallysts walked and completed the said rally at the 103rd Brigade of the Philippine Armed Forces at Kampo Ranaw, Marawi City.
The Rally was organized by the Multi-Sectoral Civil populace of Lanao del Sur.

MANIFESTO

CALLING ON THE UNITED NATIONS (UN) AND THE ORGANIZATION OF ISLAMIC CONFERENCE (OIC) TO INTERVENE AND MEDIATE TO END THE WAR IN MINDANAO AND INTERCEDE FOR THE JUST RESOLUTION OF THE BANGSAMORO STRUGGLE FOR THE RIGHT TO SELF-DETERMINATION

When, at the dawn of the high-tech, ultra civilized 21st century, the Bangsamoro finds itself still bereft of its inherent rights and freedoms as a distinct sovereign nation, stolen as they were, under cover of “civilizing” democracy by successive colonizers;

When, after many decades of so-called peace negotiations, the Bangsamoro people wakes up to the harsh truth of the abominable situation of sustained betrayal, manipulation, lying, cheating, and killing by the Government of the Republic of the Philippines;

When, today, the Bangsamoro is subjected to another cruel war by a government that abdicated democratic government, declaring the Bangsamoro as its subjects for protection yet waging atrocious war against it, this time, right after the exposure of its base insincerity in consummating the previously agreed upon and approved Memorandum of Agreement on ancestral domain (MOA-AD), executed by and between the government of the republic of the Philippines and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF);

When, today, the Bangsamoro cannot find any redeeming justification for the non-existence of genocidal intent in the acts of the government of the republic of the Philippines in 1) taking side with the notorious Ilonggo land grabbers association (Ilaga) and other land usurpers, all of whom have amassed wealth in Bangsamoro territories without consent nor participation of the Bangsamoro, and some of whom also wrested control of local governance and would own the whole of Bangsamoro homeland by systematically dispossessing the Bangsamoro, and 2) unleashing disproportionately massive military forces with heavy land and air artillery for pursuing two commanders of the MILF yet indiscriminately bombing and destroying communities and villages and deliberately sowing fear and terror to the populace resulting to the displacement of thousands and thousands of innocent civilians;

When, today, the acts of the Government of the Republic of the Philippines include the incomparably contemptible authorization and distribution of 13,000 arms to civilians, many recipients of whom are

Ilaga adherents who desire above all to drive out the Moro people from their territories thereby exposing all pretensions to equal protection of its peoples by the GRP, as well as the scheme to instigate a genocidal civil war reminiscent of the dictator Marcos policy, to broad daylight;

When, today, despite the valiant resistance of Bangsamoro freedom fighters against an overwhelming war machinery and military operations of a colonial government and despite the perseverance of the great majority of the Bangsamoro to sustain and advance the struggle, the Bangsamoro civil society believes that the only remaining hope for immediate and just resolution of the conflict is in the existence of international organizations and entities sworn to maintain world peace and security by safeguarding human rights and peoples’ rights and the promotion of conflict resolution through principled, just and peaceful means;

And when, today, we, the Bangsamoro multi-sectoral members of the civil populace of Lanao resolve to adhere to the hope and trust that these humanitarian organizations, appraised of a gross crime against humanity in our region of the world will come to the aid of the victims of this unjust war, the peace-loving Bangsamoro and Filipino civil populace, alike;

With solemn prayers that this appeal finds its niche in the hearts and minds of all peace-loving citizens and organizations of the humane world, we therefore call on the United Nations and the Organization of Islamic Conference to jointly intervene in this Mindanao conflict, to mediate for the cessation of the war and to institute the just resolution of the grievous injustices to the Bangsamoro and their right to self-determination;

We call on the United Nations to investigate and determine the true cause and extent of the war and if the principles and purposes for which the UN exists still operates, to disregard the GRP assertion of the war as an internal affair or that the current imposition of war on the Bangsamoro is legitimate and instead afford protection of all peace-loving Bangsamoro and Filipino civil populace from the scourge of unjust war and especially to uphold and protect the Bangsamoro right to self-determination as guaranteed under UN declaration and international laws.

Issued this 2nd day of October, 2008 during the multi-sectoral Bangsamoro civil populace rally for peace at the Plaza Cabili, Islamic City of Marawi.