Philippines asks rebels to memorialize war horrors

Moro rebels while inside their camp in remote village of Mamasapano town in Maguindanao Abaya. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines – Philippine government negotiators on Tuesday said they have proposed to the country’s largest Muslim rebel group that the horrors of the bloody insurgency be memorialized with monuments to help future generations avoid the pitfalls that have sparked fighting.

Presidential adviser Teresita Deles said the plan also includes updating history books with details of the decades-old Muslim rebellion in the country’s south.  The changes, she said, will come after a peace accord is completed.

Manila and the 11,000-strong Moro Islamic Liberation Front remain optimistic a peace pact can be reached despite key differences in Malaysian-brokered negotiations.

Government negotiator Marvic Leonen said monuments can be erected in sites of massacres and major battles.