100 mount Mindanao peace caravan
By Julie M. Aurelio
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 19:22:00 11/22/2008
Filed Under: Mindanao peace process, Justice & Rights, Religion & Belief
MANILA, Philippines -- Some 100 Christians and Muslims belonging to different organizations are on a 10-day peace caravan to call for an end to the armed conflict in Mindanao.
Dubbed "Caravan for Peace and Solidarity," the motorcade rolled out of Baguio City Thursday and plans to be in Cotabato City by next Saturday.
The participants made a pit stop at the Quezon Memorial Circle in Quezon City Saturday to toll the peace bell and pray for an end to the hostilities pitting government troops against elements of the secessionist Moro Islamic Liberation Front.
"We support the call for humanitarian protection and assistance to Mindanaoans affected by the ongoing hostilities, particularly the women, children, and marginalized groups," said Joey Navarrete of the La Liga Policy Institute, one of the participants, in a statement.
"We decry the attempts of some sectors to further provoke the war in the region to feed their own interests," he added.
Sponsored by Duyog Mindanao, a non-government group, the caravan was organized by Mindanao Peace Weavers, Bangsamoro Peoples Solidarity for Peace, Anak Mindanao, Philippine Human Rights Information Center, and other groups.
Its completion on November 29 will coincide with the annual celebration of Mindanao Week for Peace in Cotabato City.
From Quezon City, the caravan will proceed to Bacolod City, Davao City, and on to Kauswagan, Lanao Del Norte, to check on residents displaced by the fighting there.
On Thursday, the caravan will be in Pikit, North Cotabato, whose residents were also gravely affected by the conflict.
Caravan participants will hold an interfaith meeting in Cotabato City on Friday and launch a public petition for peace in Mindanao.
The petition will be addressed to President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and MILF Chairman Al Haj Murad Ebrahim.
It will call on the MILF to rein in its renegade forces to show its commitment to the peace process.
"We appeal to the MILF leadership to initiate a just resolution of alleged violations by so-called rogue elements in your ranks," the petition reads.
The petition also urges the government and MILF peace panels to return to the negotiating table to resolve the Mindanao problem.
Talks were abruptly ended when the government failed to sign an agreement on an expanded homeland for the Moro people.
The caravan participants will also turn over to affected residents the relief goods they will collect during their 10-day road trip.
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