4 feuding families in Cotabato sign peace pact

COTABATO CITY, Philippines—At least four feuding families agreed to bury the hatchet when they signed a peace covenant here on Thursday that the authorities hailed as timely in light of the approaching elections in May.

“The event would, in any way, help the peaceful and orderly conduct of the coming political exercise in the city,” said Superintendent Noel Kinazo, Cotabato’s deputy police chief.

Kinazo said concerted efforts of the city government and law enforcement agencies brought the warring Mantorino, Sequiño, Dunlao and Ayunan families, all of Barangay Kalanganan,  to the peace pact-signing rite at the office of the Association of Barangay Captains.

Without the payment of any “blood money,” a traditional Moro way of settling of animosities, the families concerned swore and signed a document amicably settling personal differences, said Abdila Lim, the ABC president.

Councilor Abdullah Andang, a Kalanganan resident and vice mayoral bet in the coming elections, said he took it upon himself to convince these families to come to terms and bring  harmony back to the community.

Kinazo said the direct involvement of the Department of Interior and Local Government in resolving long-standing disputes  and vendetta killings  “is worth supporting.”

Earlier, the Barangay Justice Service System, a flagship project of the Gerry Roxas Foundation that trained volunteers to be peace mediators, lauded the provincial government of Maguindanao, to which this city belongs, for having resolving a large number of “rido” (feuds) from 2009 to 2012 by trained 500 “barangay justice” advocates from 102 villages.

Lawyer Macmod Mending Jr., interior and local government secretary for the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, who spearheaded the updating last week of active barangay justice advocates, explained that the group is apolitical and would come into the picture of reconciliation  when feuding parties agree to a dialogue.