Peace talks between Philippine gov’t, MILF moved to September

OZAMIZ CITY, Philippines – The 31st exploratory meeting of the peace panels of government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF)scheduled for this week was moved to early September to allow government officials to join in rites marking the passing of Interior and Local Governments Secretary Jesse Robredo.

MILF chief negotiator Mohagher Iqbal said the postponement was requested by the government panel Saturday night.

After a successful round on August 7-11, the panels were scheduled to hold another meeting Aug. 27-30 in Kuala Lumpur. The parties earlier decided to hold two meetings in August in a bid to fast-track the negotiations as both were targeting the signing of a peace pact within this year.

During the previous round, the parties created two technical working groups (TWGs) to handle detailed discussions on the substantive agenda of power-sharing and wealth-sharing.

The TWGs convene parallel to the full-panel meeting. Consensus at the TWGs are subject to approval of the panels.

A statement from the rebel group said the postponed meeting was slated to tackle the issues on transition mechanism for the new political entity, power-sharing, wealth-sharing, normalization, and Bangsamoro basic law.

Iqbal said it would be up to the panels to decide in September whether to hold two meetings for that month to compensate for the postponed schedule.

Robredo, who died in a plane crash off Masbate on Aug. 18, is set to be buried Tuesday in his hometown Naga City in a state funeral.

To honor Robredo, President Aquino has declared days of national mourning beginning Aug. 21 until his burial.

The MILF also paid tribute to Robredo’s being “a strong supporter of the peaceful settlement of the Moro Question and the armed conflict in Mindanao.”

“The death of Robredo is not only a loss the family and relatives and to the Aquino administration but also to peace-making in Mindanao,” said Iqbal.