Friday, August 22, 2008 Militants protest vs homeland deal, Arroyo By Annabelle L. Ricalde
UNLIKE the previous peace accords, militant groups said the controversial Memorandum of Agreement on Ancestral Domain (MOA-AD) between the Moro rebels and the government runs roughshod with the constitution.
In a protest in Cagayan de Oro Thursday, leftist organizations denounced the Moro rebels' atrocities in Lanao del Norte, while accusing Malacañang of using the unsigned agreement to advance its own interest.
"We are calling for a genuine peace negotiation, not the kind of sham that we are witnessing in this MOA-AD," said Kristine Lim, Bayan Northern Mindanao Regional (Bayan-NMR) secretary general.
Lim said the Moro people are entitled to their own ancestral domain, but that it should be given within the ambit of the constitution.
By reversing its position on the MOA-AD, "which is illegal in the first place," Lim accused the Arroyo administration of giving the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF)"false hopes."
The government said it will not sign the ancestral domain agreement, after MILF forces staged simultaneous attacks in Mindanao Monday. The Supreme Court is expected to rule on the constitutionality of the deal.
Wildon Barros, regional spokesperson of the Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU), said the High Court is likely to declare the MOA-AD unconstitutional.
Unlike the MOA-AD, all peace agreements entered into by previous administrations had legal grounds.
Barros cited the Tripoli Agreement signed between the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) and the Marcos regime, which paved way for the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (Armm) during then President Cory Aquino's administration.
He also cited the Southern Philippines Council for Peace and Development (SPCPD), which was created during the presidency of Fidel Ramos.
