Mindanao-wide peace rallies continue; Iligan interfaith caravan-rally assails Balikatan, “anti-Mindanawon” remarks, priest slay

ILIGAN CITY— A convoy of 50 vehicles from Marawi City and some 10,000 people gathered at the city plaza here early this week as the series of the Mindanao-wide peace rallies organized by civil society groups continues. Aside from pressing the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) to resume their stalled peace talks, demonstrators attacked the Balikatan exercises, slaying of Catholic priest Jesus Reynaldo Roda, and early remarks by Interior Secretary Ronaldo Puno and Armed Forces Vice Chief Lt. Gen. Antonio Romero as “anti-Mindanawons.”

The vehicles were decorated with red flags, written on them “Allahu Akbar!”, Arabic for “Good is Great,” and black banners saying “No to Balikatan in the Bangsamoro homeland!” and “vehemently condemning the horrible death of Fr. Roda.”

American troops will arrive in Cagayan de Oro City, Lanao del Sur and Lanao del Norte starting Feb. 18 as part of the RP-US “Balanced Piston” Balikatan exercises, military officials said. They will also be deployed in Western and North Eastern Mindanao, including Sulu.

Talks between the government and the MILF hit a snag last December over disagreements on the coverage of ancestral domain and subjecting it to constitutional process. Secretary Jesus Dureza, the presidential adviser on the peace process, assessed the impasse as “among the most serious to stall the rocky talks, a big hump” upon which the GRP has no “magic formula” while “looking for a way out”.

The MILF negotiating panel refused to meet its government counterpart during the 15th exploratory talks last December 15-17 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia because the government draft of a proposed memorandum of agreement on ancestral domain supposedly did not contain certain consensus points earlier agreed by the two parties.

The government negotiating panel recently inserted a provision which states that the implementation of the agreement will have to follow “constitutional process.” The setting up of a Bangsamoro Juridical Entity (BJE) was agreed upon by government and MILF negotiators during exploratory talks in Kuala Lumpur last year.

Secretary Ronaldo Puno Puno was quoted saying, government should not give in to the MILF’s demand for a BJE without a plebiscite, while Romero stated a condition that peace talks will not continue without MILF’s disarmament.

Fr. Jesus Reynaldo A. Roda, OMI, director of the Notre Dame of Tabawan for a decade, was brutally killed last Jan. 15 by armed men who barged into the chapel as he was praying. The priest resisted a kidnap attempt by still unidentified armed men.

“This interfaith peace caravan-rally intends to prevent possible conflict and to show to the parties that the Bangsamoro is in solidarity with the Christians and the Lumads” said Lacs Dalidig of the Islamic Movement for Electoral Reform and Good Governance (IMERGG) and Muslim Multi-sectoral Movement for Peace and Development (MMMPD).

“If this acts are not enough to catch the attention of the government, the Interfaith CSOs (civil society organizations) will organize the walk for peace from Marawi City to Malacanang Palace to show to the government that we are indeed very serious in our fervor to attain just and lasting peace in Mindanao,” Dalidig added.

“We are one with the Bangsamoro in the call for lasting peace. After all only those who declared war win; we are all victims,” said Fr. Chito Sugano of the Marawi Catholic church. “The Bangsamoro homeland, our bread and butter are happily utilized as battlegrounds, leaving its inhabitants with dime of hope.”

Atty. Ibrahim Canama of the Federated Royal Sultanate of the Philippines said in the sultanates of Mindanao appeal to the MILF “to return to the negotiating table” and for the government “to be sincere in dealing with the Peace processes, from the course of the negotiation to the implementation of the agreements to be signed.”

“Our people cannot afford to live in fear,” Canama said.

“The Balikatan exercises increases rather than prevent the escalation of conflict,” said Adonna Ontillas of the Lanao Disaster Management Organization.

“If you want war, declare at your own risk! Do not involve the people in Mindanao!” shouted the participants during the rally, in reference to both the Balikatan exercises and the statements of Puno and Romero.
 
“How many more lives do we need to sacrifice? The consensus points were gained at the expense of the lives of the countless Bangsamoro who died fighting for it,” said Abulkhair Alibasa, an academe youth representative.

The demonstrators assailed Puno “the same enemy of peace who has also pushed the Estrada administration into all-out-war 2000.”

Caricatures of Puno holding M-16 and Bush were carried by the demonstrators.

”President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, an Iliganon, give us the justice we long for! We have suffered enough!” said Bai Lilang Macarampat, a women representative from Lanao Del Sur, as she stressed that Mrs. Arroyo’s maternal parents are from Iligan.
 
“We strongly condemn war, displacements and the long hardship of the Bangsamoro!” shouted Ma. Jittel Saquilabon, the executive director of the Tri-People’s Forum.

“Give the Bangsamoro their right to self-determination! We do not want to lose our parents because of war!” said Cha Lavandero of Duyog Kabataan.
 
“What does Puno know regarding Mindanao? We, the Mindanawons are to determine our own future,” Lavandero added.

“The Bangsamoro have suffered for 469 years, so give us back the justice that was taken from us!” shouted Mohammad Tamano of the Iligan League of Students.

Tamano said that the “Bangsamoro have suffered from the invasion of Spain in 1521 that lasted for 377 years, the American colonization of 40 years, and the Philippine colonialism of 52 years already.”

The first, second and third legs of the rally were held in Cotabato, Marawi and General Santos cities, respectively.

Either a peace rally or forum will be held in Zamboanga City and Sulu within the month, organizers said. “But mass actions will be held in Basilan on February 3 and Zamboanga-Sibugay on February 7.”


Norodin M. Makalay
http://nmakalay.blogspot.com
 

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