ARMM reform advocate gets death threats

ONE OF THE convenors of Reform ARMM Now (RAN) has been receiving threats through mobile text messages from an anonymous sender, warning him of harm if he continued being vocal in support of President Aquino’s agenda to reform the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM).

Dr. Darwin Rasul III, president of Bangun! (Rise!) which is a founding member-organization under the RAN, told the Inquirer that the text messages contain warnings such as “You broke the tradition. Mag-iingat ka (Be careful).”

He said the threats started when he openly declared his support and his organization’s official endorsement of former Amin party-list Rep. Mujiv Hataman as ARMM officer in charge.

“It is my personal right to choose the leader who I believe can best serve the autonomous region,” Rasul said.

“I did not expect this threat to my life, but we in RAN anticipated resistance from those who resist change,” he said, adding that he suspects the threats come from hatchet men of traditional politicians fighting reforms in ARMM.

Rasul was an activist in the 1980s against the dictator Ferdinand Marcos.

“No one else can do this (the text messages) except those standing in the way of the President’s reform agenda for the troubled region,” he added.

In a letter he posted on the RAN Facebook page, Rasul revealed the threats against him.

“For the past couple of weeks now, I kept my peace. The threats seem serious. But I remain unperturbed,” he said.