Peace groups to discuss peace building efforts on May 10-11 in Zamboanga
text DARWIN T. WEE

Peace advocates from the provinces of Tawi-Tawi, Sulu, Basilan and Zamboanga City will converge here this week for a conference to discuss issues and concerns relative to the peace-building efforts of different private sector civic groups and stakeholders on May 10 to 11 at the Marcian Garden Orchid Hotel.

According to Fr. Angel Calvo, president of Peace Advocates Zamboanga (PAZ) and the lead convenor of the Interreligious Solidarity Movement for Peace (IRMSP), the conference aims to strengthen the peace programs and advocacy of the different peace groups in the three provinces Tawi-Tawi, Sulu, Basilan and this city.

"The meeting intends to address the concerns of peace in our respective areas and for us to see how we can best help each other to consolidate our efforts as peace workers in Mindanao," he said in a statement.

He said the conference is the second consultative meeting in as many years. The first one came last year, wherein participants who attended the first conference consolidated themselves to realize what is now the Zambasulta Coalition of Peace Advocates (ZACOPA).

Fr. Calvo said the coalition was established to address several levels of conflictwithin the three areas by sharing vital information to the coalitions and dialogues.

ZACOPA also serves as the regional segment of the Mindanao Peaceweavers coalition."This activity brings together the members of the ZACOPA, with the hope that their interactions will give rise to fresh perspectives on the structures and mechanism of peace building," Fr. Calvo said.

"The holding of this activity shall allow a renewal of solidarity among partners, facilitate exchanges of information and experiences and provide opportunities to determine organizational prospects through re-visioning and action in view of the new developments that have emerged within a yard after the establishment of the ZACOPA," he added.

The confab will also serve as the venue wherein the network of peace advocates of the three areas will reassess and consolidate all their peace effort vis-à-vis recent developments in the local scene.

ZACOPA's rationale and background report said, among the topic expected to be discussed during the confab are the resurgence of violence in the province of Sulu during the first quarter of this year and the issue of American soldiers' deployment there; the assassination Luis Biel, mayor of Isabela City in Basilan province; the mining issue, and the implications of the proposed Bangsamoro Juridical Entity which is being considered in the ongoing peace talks between the Philippine government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front.

Fr. Calvo said Zamboanga Coalition of Peace Advocates and being thisyear's official host for the confab has invited two experts to provide accurate insights - Atty. Zainuddin Malang, chair of the Moro Lawyer's League, who will talk on the "Violence and Terrorism: legislative action and other responses and their implications for Peace in Mindanao"; and, Mary Ann Arnado, deputy director of the Initiatives for International Dialogue, who will touch on the critical issue of "the GRP-MILF Peace Talks: Prospects for Peace amidst Cha-Cha and the Overall peace Process." (PAZ)