COTABATO CITY, Philippines – Governor Mujiv Hataman of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao on Monday sent a solidarity message to all the victims of the January 25 bloody encounter in Mamasapano, Maguindanao, and urged all ARMM employees to continue supporting the peace process with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front.
“We sympathize with the families of all the victims of the unfortunate incident in Mamasapano,” Hataman said during the flag ceremony at the ARMM executive building here Monday.
Hataman stressed that the fatal clash, that claimed the lives of 44 Special Action Force men, a dozen MILF fighters and several civilians, should not hinder the government’s quest for peace.
“There is no other option but peace, let us help in attaining peace, let us help put a stop to violence,” Hataman said.
“Let us not stop supporting the peace process because of the Mamasapano incident. Let’s help preserve the gains of the Mindanao peace process. It is better for all of us that the Mindanao issue is resolved through diplomatic and politically accepted means and not through violence,” he added.
He said those calling for an all-out war because of the Mamasapano incident were from Luzon and Visayas who have not experienced the cruelty of war.
“We must do something to prevent the escalation of this unfortunate incident,” Hataman said.
Hataman and all ARMM employees wore black t-shirts with markings “Truth, Justice and Peace.”
Philippine flags around the ARMM compound were flown at half-mast.
Hataman said the regional government has set aside P25,000 each for the families of slain civilians and P10,000 for the wounded villagers.
“At this point, we have to know who really were responsible in the Mamasapano blunder that killed not only SAF and MILF members, but innocent civilians, as well,” Hataman told reporters in a press conference after the flag ceremony.
“We should stop fanning aggrieved parties to retaliate, but instead work to salvage the pieces as ‘lessons learned” to bring back normalcy as we attend to the victims and displaced civilians brought about by the Jan. 25 carnage in Maguindanao. We have had enough of these atrocities, and we want this to end through sober thoughts, patience and understanding. Thus, we want an impartial investigation to pinpoint the culprits and not tackle the issue wholesale,” he said.
The ARMM Humanitarian Emergency Action Response Team (HEART) reported that it has assisted 1,324 displaced families (6,620 persons) from six villages adjoining Barangay Tukanalipao in Mamasapano, site of the 12-hour firefight between SAF and combined forces of MILF and its breakaway group, Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters.