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| Southeast Asia |
| Philippine "peace camp" mobilizing against action |
| 2003-03-15 |
| In Cagayan de Oro City, the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines in Mindanao has joined antiwar groups in calling on President Gloria Arroyo to immediately renew a cease-fire agreement with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) to pave the way for the resumption of the suspended peace talks. MILF kills people, often by the dozen, and wants to gnaw off a rich part of the Philippines for its own little Islamic paradise. And these For nearly four hours on Saturday, Catholic priests, Protestant ministers and representatives of various groups talked about the prospects of peace in Mindanao over radio station dxCL in Cagayan de Oro. Islamic preachers, a Muslim womenâs group and academics also had a dialogue with leaders of the MILF, and the communist National Democratic Front, represented by NDF-Mindanao spokesman Jorge Madlos alias Ka Oris. Rebel leaders spoke through their cellular phones. The multisectoral group pleaded to the Arroyo administration and the defense establishment to soften their stance and schedule the resumption of peace negotiations with the rebel groups to end the decades-old Mindanao conflict. "Yes. You should back off and let them resume building a power base. That way, a year or two down the road, you won't be able to dislodge them. Give them everything they want now, so you don't have to give it to them later." From Kidapawan City, Bishop Romulo Valles read a pastoral letter for all Catholic churches in Mindanao. The letter said Church leaders were disturbed because the clashes between government troops and separatist rebels in Central Mindanao have already displaced hundreds if not thousands of families. âWe call on both parties in the armed conflict to immediately cease all forms of offensive, counteroffensive and other military actions [because of their adverse] effects on the economy and [because] of [the] displacement of civilians and noncombatants,â said Bishop Valles. Catholic leaders called for a cease-fire agreement between the government and the milf and for both parties to respect and follow it. Previous cease-fire agreements were reportedly violated by both protagonists. "Oh, yezzz. No difference between the two. The gummint has no right to preserve national integrity or to put down rebellion and subversion..." Sheikh Jaafar Ali, a Muslim leader, said future peace negotiations should be held in Mindanao or possibly in Pikit. An academic and Muslim womenâs right advocate, Cabaybay Abbubakar, said the continuing offensives and counteroffensives have taken their toll on the local economy. Badly hit, she said, are local agriculture sectors. âWeâre afraid that with more troops coming, the entire island of Mindanao will become a war zone,â said Abbubakar. Mostly affected, she said, are innocent Filipino Muslims. Of course, the turbans are always hardest hit. Nobody suffers like they do... Bishop Honesto Pacana of Malaybalay City in Bukidnon said the government, the MILF and the NDF should keep communication lines open. âThis is the only way for us to start having peace,â said Pacana. You mean, other than killing all the MILF and NDF gunnies... But he could not hide his disappointment over the military offensives, which got the Arroyo administrationâs go-ahead. Opposition leaders have faulted Defense Secretary Angelo Reyes for allegedly discarding the peace process by giving the military the green light. MILF leader al-Hadj Murad, who was reportedly in Malaysia, said his group was willing to sit with government negotiators in search of a political settlement. âBut instead of resolving the root cause of the problem, the government is using all means to suppress the struggle of the Bangsamoro people. Even at the negotiating table, some of the demands were not fully implemented,â said Murad. "Yes. We need a considerable portion of the Philippines for our own if we're going to be able to live in peace and prosperity. And a considerable portion of Malaysia and Indonesia, too. And probably Singapore... And maybe a little bit of Mexico... Oh, and don't forget Tahiti. We definitely need that..." I hate to say this, because it sounds so French, but the more of this sort of thing I read, the more anti-clerical I become. Apparently, any statement, by any bishop, anywhere, is going to contain the same drool. |
| Posted by:Fred Pruitt |
| #2 Of course, the turbans are always hardest hit. Nobody suffers like they do... And if you doubt it, we'll blow your children's school bus up, dirty infidels........ |
| Posted by: grillmaster Celissa 2003-03-15 14:52:13 |
| #1 That's because catholic church is dead and rotting since the beginning of the 20th century, even if it is still numerically the proeminent christian faction. It has become a master of appeasement (remember the siege of Nativity ?), even if it means apologizing for the crusades, the cathars, the inquisition, the evangelization, etc, etc, ad nauseam. And nobody care anyway. Pope John Paul II was very firm and courageous vs communism, but he failed to reform (a "Vatican III" would be much needed), and his sponsor, the ultra-conservative Opus Dei, is blind and deaf to the atheist/agnostic state of the western catholic world. |
| Posted by: Anonymous 2003-03-15 11:44:45 |