Friday, August 10, 2007 Religious, AFP leaders meet for peace summit By Ben O. Tesiorna
THE Bishop-Ulama Conference (BUC) members are meeting with civilian and military officials in a two-day peace summit, which started Thursday, at the Waterfront Insular Hotel.
Defense Acting Secretary Norberto Gonzales is attending the peace summit along with Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Chief of Staff Hermogenes Esperon, Eastern Mindanao Command Chief Rodolfo Obaniana, and Western Mindanao Command Chief Eugenio Cedo.
On the religious sector, Davao Archbishop Fernando Capalla is leading the BUC contingent.
In a statement, Obaniana said their presence in the peace summit "is the AFP's assurance that they are exploiting all avenues to ensure that peace and development in Mindanao will prevail."
The BUC was recently thrown into the middle of a controversy after some of their members reportedly gave a go signal for the military offensive in Basilan. BUC officials, however, quickly denied this report.
The peace summit came in the heels of the start of the military offensive in Basilan early this week.
The AFP is running after members of the Abu Sayyaf Group who were said to be responsible for the mutilation and death of 14 Marine soldiers in Basilan exactly a month ago.
