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By Angelo S. Samonte Reporter
The Philippine government will
seek another meeting with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF)
where it will present a second draft of the position it earlier
presented to the rebel group.
The peace talks were temporarily
halted in Malaysia over the weekend after the MILF found the
government’s proposal unacceptable. Mohagher Iqbal, chief MILF
peace negotiator, said the Philippine panel last month agreed on the
scope of the Muslim ancestral domain but reneged on the accord that
will constitute a separate homeland for about four million Muslims
and indigenous tribes in Mindanao.
“Let’s hope during holidays
between now and January 6, something can be crafted by the
Philippine panel. We suggest we finish drafting the government
position after getting the comments of National Security Council
members and the President [Gloria Arroyo] so that towards the end of
January we could see the second draft,” Executive Secretary
Eduardo Ermita said.
The government has enough time to
work on the final agreement, Ermita said.
“We have about seven months to
work on the final agreement. The Philippine position will be crafted
during the holidays and [we will] present it to the Cabinet in the
second week of January. Then it will be back channeled to the MILF
and ask it if talks could be scheduled in Kuala Lumpur in January or
early part of February,” he added.
Ermita admitted that the
Philippine draft needs some major revisions. But he said that the
Philippine negotiation team will also try to convince their MILF
counterparts that they are not above the Constitution and the law.
He added that the term of
reference of the Philippine team is still the Constitution and
existing 9054 Law, or the law establishing the Autonomous Region in
Muslim Mindanao.
“While negotiators have certain
degree of power to agree on some points they can’t just agree if
it’s over and above the Constitution and that’s what we want to
hammer on them. Let’s hope that we can move from the impasse until
we meet. Hopefully there would be an agreeable position between the
two panels,” Ermita said.
Ceasefire with communists to
continue
Meanwhile, the traditional
Christmas truce declared by the government with communist rebels
will continue until the first week of January despite the ambush of
soldiers over the weekend.
“The SOMO [suspension of
offensive military operations] continues from December 16 to January
6 notwithstanding the incident in Palawan,” he said.
The Palace declared a ceasefire
from December 16, 2007, to January 6, 2008, the longest in recent
years. But the Communist Party of the Philippines rejected the
government ceasefire offer and instead instructed its forces to step
up attacks against military and police targets.
But Ermita said that the function
of police and military personnel will continue even if the SOMO is
in place.
“There will be no offensive
action in a sense that no [Army or Marine] companies will seek them
[rebels] out. Since this is a unilateral decision of Armed Forces,
it will continue. But it is up to the soldiers to take precautionary
measures,” Ermita said.
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