GOING IN CIRCLES

MILF Chairman Al Haj Murad said the fighting in Mindanao could escalate into an all out war if both the military and the MILF will not stand down. He said the bounty put up on the heads of the MILF commanders only complicate the situation.

This is an overused phrase. They attack, they destroy, they leave and then say the bounties are unjustified. Also, everytime clashes occur, the Milf would always say that their troops were just defending their positions from intrusions of the military. However, the incidents in Lanao provinces proved once and for all if this statements were true or not. It is clear in that incidents who are the agressors and who are in the defensive positions. The MILF is lost for words how to justify the actions of their troops. Some say it was not sanctioned, then it say that it has to conduct further investigations. The conduct of the investigations is not so much to find the truth but rather to find alibis and justification for the barbaric atrocities committed by the MILF which styles itself as a disciplined and principled insurgent group.

There are suggestions to employ some Mindanao local officials to be included in the government peace panel. But this seems to be frowned upon by the MILF perhaps because these local leaders know better. The MILF prefer people from Manila to negotiate in behalf of the people of Mindanao because it knew that the former are ignorant of the realities on the ground and those will be able to commit agreements that is contrary to the interest of the people actually based in Mindanao. If the MILF is really sincere in entering a peace agreement then it should be open to the idea of having Mindanao leaders as negotiators.

Also, there must be a commitment from both sides where the talks are heading. If the MILF wants independence it should say so. That way, the government can relay its response clearly that the same is not possible and thus must settle for alternatives other than involving the dismemberment of the country. This should how it is done unlike the present situation where both the MILF and the government are treating the talks like a chess game, where one tries to outwit and entrap the other. Worse, the negotiations is shrouded in secrecy. The mortal sin of peace negotiations.

Lastly, the presence of extremists in the MILF who are more oriented to Al Qaeda and jemaah islamiyah. For sure, these factions could complicate the situations and would pose another problem should an agreement will be entered short of an independent fundamentalist Islamic state in Mindanao.

An all out war is an understatement. What I see is genocide, including rape, destruction and mayhem and we all know who will be at the receiving end. Just look at what happened in Kolambugan. And for sure not the Bangsamoro.