By Cielito M. Reganit
MANILA, (PNA) – The Philippine government (GPH) panel in the ongoing peace talks Thursday condemned the rise in violent activities perpetuated by the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters, as well as other violent rebel groups in Southern Mindanao, and branded them as “spoilers” of the peace process.
GPH panel chairperson Miriam Coronel-Ferrer said they are alarmed with the tactics employed by the BIFF who are trying to spoil the peace talks through heightened violent activities.
“The BIFF attacks show a total disregard to human life and a willful desire to block the progress towards achieving a peaceful resolution to the armed conflicts in Mindanao,” Ferrer said during a public forum on the progress of the ongoing peace negotiations with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front held at the University of the Philippines in Diliman, Quezon City.
According to the GPH panel secretariat, the BIFF was involved in at least 50 violent incidents in Mindanao that included shootings, explosions and firefights in the provinces of Maguindanao, North Cotabato and Basilan.
The panel said that some of the incidents in Basilan allegedly even involved members of the Abu Sayyaf Group.
“These acts showed that the BIFF and their cohorts had no qualms to use violence against civilians in order to achieve their political objectives,” Ferrer said.
Besides the BIFF and the ASG, the GPH panel likewise condemned the Moro National Liberation Front faction led by Nur Misuari for the 20-day siege in Zamboanga City.
The siege resulted in the deaths of more than a hundred MNLF-Misuari fighters, 23 government forces and nine civilians.
In the course of the Zamboanga siege, as many as 10,000 structures, homes, and buildings were razed in the city and caused the displacement of more than 100,000 persons.
“However, despite the violence instigated by the spoilers of the peace process, the government and the MILF are creating the conditions to bring about lasting peace in Mindanao,” Ferrer said.
Ferrer said the two panels are working exhaustively to address the remaining issues in the Annexes on Power Sharing and Normalization.
The GPH and the MILF signed on October 15, 2012 the Framework Agreement on the Bangsamoro.
This was followed by the Annex on Transitional Modalities and Arrangements on February 27, 2013 and the Annex on Revenue Generation and Wealth Sharing last July 13 this year.
Ferrer said they have already made a lot of progress on the annex on power sharing and are hopeful and optimistic that the last two annexes would be finished by the end of the year.
“The road we face would not be easy as there are still many challenges to face. But both panels are trying their very best to address all issues and we believe that we will have a comprehensive agreement under the term of President Benigno S. Aquino III,” Ferrer said.