Monday, August 28, 2006
Moro militants honor departing IMT body
THE Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) tendered a farewell ceremony for the departing members of the International Monitoring Team, which was replaced by new batch of forces.
Jun Mantawil, head of the MILF peace panel secretariat, said the foreign monitors were given recognition at the rebels' peace panel office in Sultan Kudarat, Maguindanao.
"We have to thank Allah for His blessings, and our Malaysian and Brunei brothers for helping us and also the peace process," he said.
Since the IMT arrival in Mindanao two years ago, officials from both sides acknowledged that the foreign truce monitors have been instrumental in keeping hostilities from flaring up between the military and the Moro rebels.
The holding of the ceasefire allowed both sides to continue efforts in coming up with a final peace agreement.
Peace talks, however, have been stalled by the contentious ancestral domain agenda, which includes issues on territory and governance.
Ghadzali Jaafar, MILF vice chairman for political affairs, said the presence of the foreign monitors in Mindanao boosted the peace process.
"The foreign truce team is doing a good job," said Jaafar, and he expects the replacement team to perform just the same.
The first batch of 20 international peace monitors from Malaysia, Brunei and Libya left August 19.
The new batch of the same number also arrived on the same day in Cotabato City.
The 60-man foreign monitoring team was first sent to Mindanao in October 2004 headed by Major Gen. Dato' Zulkifli Mohammad Bin Zin, who is now a division commander of the Malaysian Royal Armed Forces (RMAF) based in Malacca.
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(August 28, 2006 issue)
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