3,000 flee from MNLF, MILF standoff in North Cotabato village
By Edwin Fernandez
Close to 3,000 individuals from three adjoining villages here have fled their homes as rival Moro rebel groups continue war posturing despite localized truce.
Close to 3,000 individuals from three adjoining villages here have fled their homes as rival Moro rebel groups continue war posturing despite localized truce.
Police and Army personnel are now standing in between warring Moro rebel groups in a remote village here while top level efforts to address misunderstanding are underway.
Close to 100 families in Matalam, North Cotabato have fled to safer ground as rival Moro rebels clash Sunday night, police said Monday.
Maguindanao gubernatorial candidate Tucao Mastura of the United Nationalist Alliance (UNA) on Saturday slammed as another dirty political tactic reports that he is using his perceived ties with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) to advance his political bid.
The government will not admit it, but the country is in a state of belligerency where rebels control certain areas and the government leaves them alone.
The Moro Islamic Liberation Front on Saturday reiterated the “hands off” policy on the May midterm elections among its political and military leaders but its members would be allowed to vote.
Six suspected Abu Sayyaf bandits were killed while three government soldiers were wounded in two separate encounters in Tipo-Tipo, Basilan on Monday morning, the military said.
The Moro Islamic Liberation Front’s (MILF) chief peace negotiator said here “a lot” of politicians had been courting the rebel group to bolster their candidacies among the Moros.
A high ranking Moro Islamic Liberation Front official said “a lot” of politicians have been wooing the rebel group in a bid to bolster their respective candidacies among the Moros.
The Philippine government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front said they expect to conclude a peace accord as early as next month despite unresolved issues, including the delicate task of disarming the 11,000-strong guerrilla force.
The Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) has reminded its forces not to allow themselves to be used by politicians in any activity that would disrupt the much improved peace climate in Mindanao.
It’s now or never. The Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) wants the peace deal with the government sealed before the term of President Benigno Aquino III ends in 2016, saying that beyond that would jeopardize the chances of having lasting peace in Mindanao.
The Aquino administration and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) wish to conclude their peace deal as soon as possible despite the postponement of the scheduled talks in Kuala Lumpur on March 25.
