Asian youth leaders call for peace in south

The four-day Asian Religious Youth Leaders Summit in Davao City concluded Friday with strong calls for peace, justice and development, and the resolution of the conflict in Mindanao between government forces and Moro rebels.

Youth leaders said, "We, the religious youth leaders in Asia, strongly appeal to pursue the Mindanao peace process, with honor and dignity, and call for an immediate cessation of hostilities in Mindanao."

They also called for the return of all stakeholders to the negotiation table and to the path of peace, adding that the many years of painstaking efforts and progress between the government and various stakeholders should not been overlooked and abandoned.

They believe that the resumption of the peace negotiations between all parties at stake is imperative in truly attaining a just and lasting peace in Mindanao.

"We, bearing witness to the extreme conditions of the people of Mindanao, urge the government of the Philippines to intensify its efforts to care for the more than a half a million internally displaced persons (IDPs) as a humanitarian crisis looms in front of us."

They also urged the United Nations to review the situation and take relevant actions as the number of IDPs continues to grow and called on the security forces to respect international norms pertaining to existing evacuation centers and to allow free access to aid for the people in Mindanao.

"We, seeing the people in Mindanao, who are suffering as a result of the conflict and as a result of decades of neglect, call for justice for the marginalized Mindanao, which is lacking good education, jobs for youth, and are living in poverty. Without justice there can be no peace."

At least 90 Asian youth leaders from different faith-based and grassroots-based organizations in Asia made the statements during the four-day meeting at the Brokenshire Resort and Convention Center in Davao City on Thursday.

Participants to the summit came from New York - USA, Japan, South Korea, Singapore, Pakistan, India, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, Bangladesh, Australia, Nepal, and Philippines representing different faith traditions - Islam, Christians, Buddhist, Hindu, Jain, Shinto, Sikh, Zoroastrian and the indigenous.

They also vowed to find ways to be able to present the three documents during the forthcoming Asian Summit in Thailand on November this year.

Three historic documents were approved during the summit such as (1) Urgent Appeal for Mindanao (2) Statement of the Asian Youth Religious Leaders Summit and (3) Local, National, Asian and Global Action Plan.

The documents will be presented to President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo by the participants in Manila this week.

US launches airport, water projects in SuluUS Ambassador Kristie A. Kenney (2nd from right) and Sulu Governor Abdusakur Tan (3rd from left) lead the groundbreaking for the Jolo runway improvement project. The airport project, a partnership among the Department of Transportation and Communications, Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines, Sulu provincial government and USAID's Growth with Equity in Mindanao (GEM) Program, will replace and widen the asphalt runway, and extend it from 1,200 meters to 1,845 meters, to ensure safer airport operations and higher-capacity air linkages between Sulu and the rest of the country. Joining them for the ceremony on October 14 were (l-r): USAID Mission Director Jon Lindborg, Vice Governor Lady Ann Sahidula, Governor Abdusakur Tan, and Undersecretary Nabil Tan of the Office of the Presidential Advisor on the Peace Process.

The United States government has started implementing another projects in coordination with the Provincial Government of Sulu to improve the Jolo town airport's runway and provide potable running water to the people.

No less than, US Ambassador to the Philippines Kristie A. Kenney and Sulu Provincial Governor Abdusakur Tan led the launching of the projects in Jolo airport on Tuesday, with top military officials.

The runway improvement project will replace and widen the existing asphalt runway and extend it from 1,200 meters to 1,845 meters to help ensure safer airport operations and higher-capacity air linkages.

"This will improve development and give the citizens of Jolo a chance to be connected to the rest of the Philippines," said Ambassador Kenney. "More importantly, it will give the rest of the country and the world a chance to discover Jolo."

Total air passenger traffic to Jolo grew 30 percent in 2006-2007, making it difficult at times to get seats on existing flight routes, while cargo movement more than quadrupled, according to data from the Air Transportation Office.

In addition, the water project will upgrade the current pumping system by constructing a 200-cubic meter concrete reservoir, installing transmission pipelines totaling 2.5 km, and replacing distribution pipelines and defective meters.

The project will enable the Jolo Mainland Water District to provide potable running water to approximately 70,000 residents of Jolo and adjacent barangays in Indanan and Patikul.

"This will answer a basic need of our people," said Governor Tan at the groundbreaking ceremony.

The airport improvement project is being completed in partnership with the Department of Transportation and Communications, Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines, the provincial government and USAID's Growth with Equity in Mindanao (GEM) Program.

The water project, meanwhile, will be undertaken through the joint efforts of Sulu's provincial government, Local Water Utilities Administration, Jolo Mainland Water District, and the GEM Program.

"America is proud to be among the many partners in this project," Kenney said, thanking all agencies involved.

The US Ambassador also visited the Mohammad Tulawie Central School, a beneficiary of USAID education and workforce preparation assistance.

She also met with 90 high school students from various locations in Jolo who are participating in a U.S. Embassy funded two-year English Access Microscholarship program, at the American Corner at the Notre Dame de Jolo University. Press Release

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Non arrival of a batch of 400 deportees from Sabah cast doubts on migrant group

Some of the deportees from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia who arrived in Zamboanga City on Saturday.

The non-arrival of Filipino deportees from Malaysia to Zamboanga City on Saturday has cast doubts on a women’s and migrant groups’ fact-finding mission.

Migrante chairperson Connie Regalado said about 400 deportees from Sabah were scheduled to arrive in Zamboanga City, but for unknown reason this was canceled.

The group, which is looking into the plight of deportees from Sabah, was supposed to conduct an actual investigation with the deportees in the pier.

“We expected for their (deportees) arrival aboard Weesam fastcraft but there were conflicting statements of the RP-Malaysia inter-agencies committee officials,” said Regalado.

“It seems to me they are (inter-agencies committee officials) trying to mislead us so we can’t talk with the deportees,” she added.

With this, Regalado said the government has exposed further its insufficiency in terms of giving assistance or support to Sabah deportees.

“What happened on the supposed arrival of deportees It cast serious doubts on us that they directly transport the people to Bongao or other places,” she added.

The port of Zamboanga City serves as the transit point for deportees since Malaysian government began its crackdown in 2000.

Thousands of Filipinos who have illegally worked in Sabah, Kuala Lumpur, Sandakan and other states in Malaysia were arrested and incarcerated.

But they are being deported every week from Sabah to Zamboanga City.

The first two fact-finding mission of Migrante held in 2002 and in 2005 found out that deportees suffered inhumane treatment while inside jam-packed detention centers.

Worst is that Filipinos deported to Philippines remained homeless and lacked livelihood support from the government.

Also women became victims of sexual harassment and sex trafficking and there were a high number of migrants’ children born without documents.

Migrant group urged the government to welcome non-government organizations to help the plight of deportees if it’s really committed addressing the plight of migrant workers.

“They’re the one saying that NGO’s are their partners but in this case they are hiding us the truth about the deportees from Sabah,” Regalado said.

Regalado said the government’s uncooperative stance with the fact-finding mission only showed that it’s not concerned with the plight of Filipino workers in Sabah.

Despite this, she vowed to pursue the fact-finding mission to give justice and relief to deportees who have been neglected by the government.

“We are united and determined to pressure the government to take appropriate action on the cases of deportees from Sabah,” she concluded. (HG)

Migrante: RP-Malaysia migrant working group only on papers, not working

Migrante International chairperson Connie Bragas-Regalado (center), Gabriela Party-List Rep. Luzviminda Ilagan (right) and Arleen Alonzo of the Association for the Rights of Children in Southeast Asia (ARCSEA) hold a press conference with local reporters in Zamboanga City.

The working group created bilaterally by the Philippines and Malaysian governments regarding the migration problems between the two countries is only on papers and it's not really working, women and migrant groups said here on Saturday.

In a press conference, Migrante International chairperson Connie Bragas-Regalado said officials of this inter-agency committee do not have coordination whatsoever with Malaysian government.

"Iyong itinayong RP-Malaysia working group on migrants failed to address the human rights violation committed against deportees in Sabah. Naglilista lang sila (inter-agency committee officials) ng dumarating na deportees," Regalado said.

She said they're only functioning based on what their agencies can do without coordinating them with the government that is supposed to be their partner, adding that representatives from the agencies involved in the said committee didn't even mention on how the RP-Malaysia working group is working.

The migrant leader also said member agencies of the inter-agency committee themselves are not coordinating their actions regarding the deportation of thousands of undocumented migrant Filipino workers in Sabah, Malaysia.

Citing the Department of Labor and Employment, which heads the committee, she said it's only concerned on how the deported undocumented Filipinos can go back to work in Sabah and the same goes with the DFA, whose job is to process working visas so that deportees can go back to Sabah.

"The government is putting band aid solutions to long standing problems regarding the issue. The problem is that Filipinos keep coming back to Sabah because they can't find jobs in the Philippines. They also seek refuge because of the historic and ongoing war in Mindanao," she said.

Regalado also scored the so called livelihood projects of government agencies for the deportees.

Migrante together with Grabriela Party-List Rep. Luzviminda Ilagan, Engender Rights Inc. Executive Director Atty. Clara Rita Padilla and Arleen Alonzo of the Association for the Rights of Children in Southeast Asia (ARCSEA) is conducting a fact-finding on Sabah deportees in the city.

The fact-finding mission arrived here on Friday and conducted an ocular inspection of the Center for Displaced persons for deporteesin Barangay Mampang, this city that is run by the Department of Social Work and Development.

In its initial findings, the group found out that most of the deportees still staying at the center are from Mindanao and that cases of deaths, suicide and violations of human rights were left unrecorded especially if this occurred during detention in Malaysia.

For her part, Gabriela Rep.Ilagan expressed her support to file charges before the UN if the evidence gathered proves neglect on the part of the national government to protect the rights and welfare of deportees.

She said the national government up to now, has yet to present any concrete system to address the problem on why the deportees continue to go back to Malaysia to work. (HG)

Anti-war coalition groups score LOVFA's findings that no US bases in Mindanao

A broad anti-war coalition uniting over sixty organizations around the country on Friday scored the LOVFA's pronouncement that the stay of American forces in the country is legal and that there are no US bases in the South.

"This is clearly a case of feigned ignorance at best or a deliberate cover-up at worst," said Mitzi Chan, one of the Stop the War Coalition-Philippines' spokespersons, in a press statement issued to this reporter via internet mail.

"The LOVFA members are either blinded by their ideological preference for US basing or by the Philippine military's dependence on US military aid, genuinely ignorant of the ways by which the forms of US basing have been transformed in recent years, or are deliberately attempting to cover-up the US bases in order to perpetuate their stay," Chan added.

"Senator Biazon could not be unaware that the US military has been transforming the form that US military bases take. They may no longer look like Subic and Clark, they may not fly American flags – but they are still US bases in essence and purpose regardless of the nomenclature that pro-US politicians prefer," Chan argued.

According to Chan, "What the US has in Zamboanga City – in the form of the JSOTFP's headquarters inside Camp Navarro – is exactly the kind of bases that the framers of the 1987 Constitution had in mind when they decided to ban the presence of foreign bases in the country."

Chan dismissed Biazon's statement that "American facilities are administrative in nature and not combat in nature" as particularly "lame."

Assailing Adan's efforts to sell US presence to the public, Chan said, "The VFA commissioner has an impossible job: On the one hand, he is mandated to go after Americans who commit any wrongdoing in the country. On the other hand, it also appears to be his task to tell the public that the Americans can't possibly do anything wrong."

Stop the War Coalition challenged other Senators and Congressmen to stand up for peace and for the constitution by seeing for themselves how it is violated by visiting the US facilities in the South.

It also supports calls for an independent investigation, saying the LOVFA's pronouncements at this stage indicate how compromised its conclusions may be, given that Biazon was one of the main proponents of the VFA. Press Release

RP Congress probe finds no US military basing, permanent stay in Mindanao

Senator Rodolfo Biazon, co-chairman of the Legislative Oversight Committee on Visiting Forces Agreement, asks an American military officer during an ocular inspection of the US facilities in Edwin Andrews Air Base in Zamboanga City.

The American facilities here are administrative in nature and not combat operational in nature. It is administrative in nature. These are our preliminary findings, Senator Rodolfo Biazon said Thursday.

Biazon, co-chairman of the Legislative Oversight Committee on the Visiting Forces Agreements, explained that all of these US government facilities constructed here are all inside the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) bases.

“So, as a former soldier, it is difficult for me to make a conclusion that the Americans have established their own military bases here,” said Biazon, who was a former AFP chief of staff during President Cory Aquino’s administration in 1991.

But he made clear that they would continue to evaluate their initial findings. “The sub-committee will provide a report to the mother committee and that will be discussed within that mother committee, subsequently.”

The fact-finding team was organized by the Senate and the House in respond to the allegations on the setting up of US military bases in Mindanao and the involvement of American troops in actual combat operations.

The team has inspected American facilities inside Edwin Andrews Air Base in Sta. Maria, Camp Arturo Enrile in Malagutay, the Western Mindanao Command in Upper Calarian district, and Naval Forces-Western Mindanao in Calarian.

Its initial findings contradict the members of Citizen’s Peace Watch’s findings from its fact-finding mission, which claimed to have seen with their own eyes and to have pictures of the US military structures inside camps in Zamboanga City.

The coalition group, formed by diverse non-governmental organizations (NGOs), Moro groups, political party-lists and leftists, to monitor what it fears as the growing and permanent US military presence in the Southern Philippines.

Meanwhile, Cebu (2nd District) Congressman Antonio Cuenco, who co-chairs the LOVFA in the House of Representatives, said they have not found any violations in so far the VFA agreement between the US and the Philippines is concerned.

“For example, the allegations that the US forces were engaged in espionage which is an act of war. We can’t find that as an act of war,” Cuenco told reporters at a press conference inside the Western Mindanao Command headquarters.

He said the US forces are providing Filipino soldiers with intelligence information regarding the activities of the Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) and the Abu Sayyaf, which has links to the Al Qaida militant group.

“Those are enemies of the Philippine Republic and we are happy to be able to get information from any source whatsoever so that we can attend our objective in demolishing these enemies of our state,” he added.

So far, according to him, they have not seen any veracity of the anti-US troops’ accusations against the Americans. “We are very careful of the facts (information) that we are getting from the fact-finding mission.”

For his part, Ret. Lt. Gen. Edilberto Adan, now defense undersecretary and executive director of the Presidential Commission on VFA, said they have not found any basis for the allegations in previous hearings.

“Is not factual. The reports are not substantiated, however we would be continuously getting observations, comments and reports so that we can have a factual and good assessments on this probe,” he said.

Biazon, meantime, vowed that he would personally make a move in Congress through democratic process to abrogate the VFA if there is a finding that indeed the Americans violated the provisions of the agreement.

“Six months only, we can abrogate the agreement unilaterally in case we are convinced that there is a violation of the agreement that is specified for in one of the penultimate articles in the VFA, but there’s no violation yet,” Cuenco supported Biazon’s statement.

Zamboanga City Congressman (2nd District) Erbie Fabian lauded the American troops in Mindanao, saying they are doing a great help for the region in terms of helping the Philippine military and humanitarian services.

“However, what I have been telling you earlier that their (US forces) stay here should be within the confines of the provisions of the VFA. No overstaying and no other violations,” Fabian reiterated.

But the Citizen’s Peace Watch considered the US military's so-called humanitarian projects as mere cover for military operations, saying that it do not benefit the local population.

The coalition group said US basing and intervention in the country is contributing to insecurity and leading to an escalation in conflict. It also demands the suspension of US military deployment to the Philippines, specifically the stationing of the JSOTF-P as well as the military exercises. (HG)

100 groups call for US troops’ withdrawal from Mindanao

Photo courtesy of Kawagib Moro Human Rights Organization.

As Congress investigates US military presence and actions in the Philippines, over one hundred organizations have come together to demand the “immediate withdrawal” of US military forces from Mindanao in the southern Philippines.

Saying that the US’ involvement in the war “can no longer be denied,” the groups said in a common statement that the US “further contributes to escalating and exacerbating the violence and insecurity in Mindanao, drawing parties towards all-out war, away from a just and peaceful resolution.”

Among the signatories were youth, students’, workers’, womens’, farmers’, artists’ and professional groups – including Christian and Muslim organizations. There were non-government organizations, human rights, relief and humanitarian groups, political parties, social movements, as well as networks and coalitions which bring together dozens of grassroots organizations coming from Mindanao but also beyond.

Disputing official explanations as untenable, the groups said: “In joining Filipino troops in their operations, providing them information, locating bombs, rescuing casualties, or giving technical assistance, the US military is clearly involved in actual combat in the Philippines. In stationing troops and equipment in various military facilities in the south, the US has established permanent basing in the country.”

To resolve the conflict in Mindanao, the groups call for an agreement “that would genuinely advance the Moro's and the indigenous people's right to self-determination -- as they themselves define it, free from others' imposition and intervention." Press Release

House okays proposed P9.7 billion ARMM budget

The sub-committee of the committee on appropriations of the House of Representattives approved Wednesday the budget proposal of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) for 2009.

The 9.7-Billion proposed budget is higher by at least 11% than the region’s FY-2008 budget. The allocation is expected to respond to the needs and demands for development in the area of autonomy.

The regional government placed emphasis on addressing priority areas such as health and basic education and infrastructure. However, the increase would barely make up for the urgent relief and rehabilitation needs of certain areas in the region.

The ongoing military pursuit against elements of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) has displaced thousands of civilians and damaged properties including social infrastructures in the provinces of Maguindanao and Shariff Kabunsuan.

ARMM Governor Datu Zaldy Uy Ampatuan has already provided 3-Million pesos drawn from his special purpose fund to extend aid to families affected by the war.

Almost 70% of the proposed budget would go personnel services, only 12% will be used for capital outlay and the rest for maintenance and other operating expenses.

Members of the sub-committee, which is chaired by Tawi-Tawi Congressman Nur Jaafar, unanimously approved and endorsed the FY2009 proposed ARMM budget.

“We like to keep the pace of development we’ve introduced. The proposed budget is crucial in determining the kind and level of intervention that we can provide to address the pressing needs of the region,” Ampatuan said.(BPI-ARMM)

Misuari: War in Mindanao unnecesary, unfortunate

Prof. Nur Misuari, founder and chairman of the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF), in Zamboanga City.

Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) Chairman Nur Misuari expressed sadness yesterday to what is happening in some parts in the southern Philippines particularly in Central Mindanao, saying that the war is unnecessary and unfortunate.

"This war is unnecessary and unfortunate because we only expose our children, our women to this scourge of war and it seems nobody is benefiting from this war," Misuari said in an ambush interview at a mosque in Barangay (village) Sta. Barbara.

Misuari performed here the Jumu'ah (Friday) prayer. He arrived here Thursday to meet followers in Basilan as part of his peace caravan that he has been doing since he was temporarily freed from detention in connection with rebellion charges against him.

Although he understands the feelings of his brothers about the failure of the Memorandum of Agreement on Ancestral Domain (MOA-AD), the MNLF chieftain said he believes that the peaceful means is more effective than the martial means.

"We should not be carried away by our emotion. You know in diplomacy, in a peace talks, in a negotiation, you must always expect for the worse. So when you get the reversal of your faith like that and then you react the way they did, you only add, augment or exacerbate your own problem," he said.

Misuari was referring to the incidents in North Cotabato, Lanao de Norte and Lanao del Sur provinces that were triggered by the frustrations and outraged of Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) commanders Umbra Kato, Abdullah Macapaar and Sulayman Pangalian.

At this point in time, according to him, the best way now is for them to continue to search for peace through the peaceful means to avoid any calamitous repercussion on their children on their women and civilians as a whole.

'Why do we have to fight when every time it's our own innocent civilians are the victims of this war?" he asked, adding that unlike before when they were just starting they had to fight for their rights, freedom, even decolonization and independence of their homeland.

But after the MNLF reached the peace agreement with the government in Sept. 6, 1996 when war-like means would no longer be necessary, Misuari said therefore they must not accept any provocation whatsoever.

"That's what I told our brothers in MNLF don't accept provocation, don't provoke and don't also play into the hands of those provocators who want to destroy the smooth transition from the present crisis situation into peaceful one," he continued.

The MNLF chairman furthered that in the case of the MNLF, the members have been so steadfast in following his advice to continue to uphold their peaceful way of achieving peace in Mindanao, hoping that there would be no more obstacles in the way of peace so that they can restore back their freedom.

Misuari's latest visit to Zamboanga was the second and the 4th leg of his peace journey, a sequel of his visit to Davao City, Central Mindanao, Lanao del Norte and Basilan. He intends to visit Zamboanga del Norte, Tawi-Tawi, Siasi, and Sulu in the next few days. HG

Moro rebels website embarks survey on most hated Filipino politicians

The website of the Moro rebels in the southern Philippines will embark an on line poll with the question, "Who is the most hated Filipino leader?" to determine the sentiments or viewpoints of the Bangsamoro people.

In a report posted on Luwaran.com, the Moro Islamic Liberation Front's official website, said the survey was conceived after the failed signing of the Memorandum on Agreement on Ancestral Domain (MOA-AD) in Malaysia on August 5, 2008.

The report said the failed signing between the Philippine government and the MILF peace panels infuriated Bangsamoro people and sent some Moro rebel commanders to hit military targets without sanctions from their superiors.

According to an insider of the Moro rebel website, who requested anonymity, the survey will be very objective, saying only Luwaran.com readers have the opportunity to vote on the issue.

"However, only Moro readers are urged to participate and vote," he said, without elaborating. "In a way the Arroyo administration will benefit from this online survey in many ways."

The name of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo is number one in the list, followed by former Pres. Joseph Estrada, Exec. Sec. Eduardo Ermita, DILG Sec. Ronaldo Puno, National Security Sec. Norberto Gonzales, and Malacañang spokesman Jesus Dureza.

Seventh in the list is Senator Mar Roxas, followed by Senator Franklin Drilon, Makati Rep. Teodoro Locsin, North Cotabato Gov. Jesus Sacdalan, North Cotabato Vice Gov. Emmanuel Pińol, and Zamboanga City Mayor Celso Lobregat.

The Luwaran.com reported that ousted President Estrada repeatedly criticized at the MILF with threat of "all-out war" even if he was already out of the office.

It said that entry no. 14 is Atty. Adel Tamano, a Moro who caught the ire of many Moros especially from his province of Lanao del Sur, for parroting the anti-Moro lines of Roxas and Drilon.

Kapihan de Zamboanga
By Hader Glang

A petition statement against President Arroyo

Philippine Council for Islam and Democracy (PCID) Lead Convenor Amina Rasul e-mailed me a petition statement of Former Senior Government Officials (FSGO) of which she is a member being the former presidential adviser and concurrent National Youth Commission ((NYC) chair.

FSGO is a group of previous senior officials who had served at Cabinet and Sub-Cabinet levels of the Government of the Republic of the Philippines under six presidential administrations over the past 40 years.

In their petition statement titled: “Moves For Extension Will Not Die: Filipino Citizens Should Prepare Fro Action,” FSGO members expressed alarmed over the current political developments.

They noted that in spite of various protestations by political leaders from the administration and the opposition, the talk of a brazen attempt to extend the term of Mrs. Arroyo simply will not die.

The following are further excerpts from a petition statement of the FSGO members against President Arroyo:

“Charter change to be initiated in Congress through a constituent assembly has seemingly been stopped in its tracks by the vocal opposition of many members of the Senate, whose two-thirds approval would logically seem necessary to convene a constituent assembly.

Yet the House of Representatives, through the Speaker, and the Chairman of the Committee on Constitutional Amendments, has announced that it will be holding "public consultations" to elicit public opinion on charter change, whether for federalism, shift to a parliamentary system or such other excuse/justification as may later dawn on the proponents.

Some legislators have been vocal in pushing their interpretation that "the Constitution requires only a two thirds vote of its members to propose amendments to the Constitution," an interpretation that would make the Senators' votes almost irrelevant in the process.

The current administration has swung violently on the matter of the conflict in Mindanao from rushing to sign the MOA on Ancestral Domain with the MILF to the abrupt cancellation of the peace talks, the dissolution of the peace panel and the attempt of Mrs. Arroyo to disown knowledge of the agreement; and now a relentless armed confrontation that is seemingly designed to goad the MILF and other groups into a combative reaction or a series of violent actions.

The inevitable armed confrontations and deaths that will follow could be a ready-made platform to suspend the writ of habeas corpus or, heaven forbid, even the declaration of Martial Law. The Constitution requires only a vote of a majority of the members of Congress, voting jointly, to approve and extend Martial Law.

We declare our commitment to a just and sustainable peace in Mindanao. We will initiate and support all possible actions that will bring about an inclusive process to begin with ceasefire and return to the peace table.

We declare our united opposition (1) to any moves that exploit the Mindanao situation to extend Mrs. Arroyo's stay in power, (2) to any attempt to amend the Constitution before 2010, (3) to any attempt to change the Constitution through a Constituent Assembly, and (4) to any step towards declaring Martial Law.

We call on all Filipinos to be vigilant, to inform themselves, to organize with like-minded fellow citizens, and to prepare to show our leaders and officials the true power of our democracy.

US forces' promise aid for Zambo airport unfulfilled, says air transportation chief

Philippines (left) and United States of America flags.

Promises are meant to be broken. This seemed to be true when the local head of Air Transportation Office (ATO) here complained Thursday that the US forces have not fulfilled their promise to help improve the facilities at the Zamboanga City International Airport.

"They promised everything, but up to this point in time not a single nail was given," ATO chief for Western Mindanao Celso Bayabos told members of the City Council. He did not elaborate further.

Bayabos was invited by the City Council to find out the extent of damage of the runway at the international airport, which the local ATO chief has been complaining that needs an immediate and major repair.

The US Embassy spokesperson in Manila, Rebecca Thompson, has been insisting that the "US forces are here at the invitation of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) under the Visiting Forces Agreement.

But Bayabos said he was puzzled because US forces were expanding the structure they had built inside the airport within the Edwin Andrews Air Base (EAAB), though he said the expansion had the permission from the central office.

According to Bayabos, his office submitted a letter to the head of US forces here to do something about it, but instead of initiating actions like moving it (away), they even added some structures making it bigger now.

Meanwhile, local legislators here, during Thursday's regular session, questioned Bayabos why he is still allows huge US aircraft, such as C-17 military plane, to land despite the problem.

In response, Bayabos said they have issued advisories to all pilots to exercise extreme caution while landing in the international airport due to the presence of holes or craters in the runway.

Since 2002, US government have been deploying special forces to Zamboanga with a mission of training Filipino soldiers in fighting terrorists and implementing humanitarian projects on Sulu and Basilan.

American military aircraft have been using the city's international airport to transport personnel and equipment into the airport in support of the US mission to assist, train and advise Philippine military in its fight against the Abu Sayyaf and other domestic terrorist organizations.

There had also been frequent trips of huge US military aircraft, four times bigger than a C-130 cargo plane, using the Zamboanga international airport, aside from smaller military planes and helicopters.

Coalition of 23 groups call for a suspension of US military deployment to Mindanao

The military base of the US Joint Special Operations Task Force - Philippines (JSOTF-P) inside Camp Navarro in Zamboanga City. Caption/Photo Release From Citizens' Peace Watch

Pending the conclusion of a fair and thorough probe by lawmakers surrounding the US military deployments to Mindanao, a broad coalition of NGOs, social movements, and political parties from the country on Tuesday called for its suspension.

In a press release, the Citizens' Peace Watch, a group formed to monitor what it fears as the growing and permanent US military presence in the South, reiterated its recommendations from a fact-finding mission.

Members of the mission who conducted in Zamboanga City and Sulu last February claimed to have seen with their own eyes – and to haver pictures of – the US' military structures inside Camp Navarro in Zamboanga City.

The members of the Citizens' Peace Watch are Akbayan! Party-list, Alyansa ng Kabataan sa Mindanao para sa Kapayapaan, Anak Mindanao Party List, Balay Rehabilitation Center, Bangsamoro Women's Foundation, Citizen's Coalition for Human Rights, Focus on the Global South, KaisaKa, Kilusan para sa Pambansang Demokrasya, Lanao Alliance of Human Rights Advocates, Mindanao Peoples Caucus, Mindanao Peoples Peace Movement, Mindanao Tri-People Women Forum, Moro Human Rights Center, Muslim Women's Organization, Peace Women Partners, Peacebuilders Community, Pinay Kilos, Resource Center for People's Development, STOP the War Coalition Philippines, Sumpay Mindanao, Task Force Detainees of the Philippines, Tulong Lupah Sug, Inc..

"The information coming out today about the US military presence in the south confirm what we have been saying all along for many months now," said Corazon Fabros, one of the group's spokespersons.

"It is high time to look into them because the government's excuse is becoming more and more ludicrous while the situation is getting more and more dangerous," she added.

The group stressed the following findings from its fact-finding mission:

* that the US has established military basing in the Philippines;

* that the US is involved in actual combat operations in the country;

* that the US military has, in complicity with the Philippine military, committed human rights violations in the Philippines;

* that the US is conducting operations outside the control of the Philippine government and military;

* that the US military's so-called humanitarian projects are mere cover for military operations;

* that do not benefit the local population;

* US basing and intervention in the country is contributing to insecurity and leading to an escalation in conflict.

The coalition said in light of the constitutional violations and actual danger to lives and human rights, the Citizens' Peace Watch challenges elected representatives to take the initiative to demand and conduct Congressional and Senate inquiries into the issue.

It also demands the suspension of US military deployment to the Philippines, specifically the stationing of the Joint Special Operations Task Force-Philippines as well as the military exercises, pending fair and independent review of and investigations on their presence and intervention.

GRP peace panel dissolution draws mixed reactions

Various leaders voiced mixed reactions Wednesday to the dissolution of the government’s peace panel. While the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) said it is normal, others said the era of peace talks is over.

MindaNews website reported quoting Guiamel Alim, executive director of the Consortium for Bangsamoro Civil Society, saying that they made the panel pay for government’s weaknesses and insincerity.

“It also means the government is ready to run after the MILF. It also means the International Monitoring Team (IMT) should go home. Mechanism on the ground is dead. What a loss,” Alim said.

MILF chief peace negotiator Mohagher Iqbal said that the dissolution of the peace panel is “normal” in any negotiating process and that it is the government’s privilege to do so.

“Well, that is normal in any negotiation, you can change your panel as you wish and it is internal to the government and that is their privilege, they can do that anytime they want,” Iqbal said.

Amina Rasul, executive director of the Philippine Council for Islam and Democracy, expressed disappointment and alarm at the dissolution of the GRP peace panel, saying that it is a move that destabilizes an already unstable situation in Mindanao.

“I fear that the MILF will take this as the final evidence of the Arroyo administration’s insincerity in the peace process. The hawks seem to have won and a military option will be this government’s strategic response. Peace is lost. I pray that I am wrong,” she said.

Abhoud Syed Lingga, executive director of the Institute of Bangsamoro Studies, said government is “undoing what has been achieved in the 11 years of peace negotiations.”

Lawyer Mary Ann Arnado, secretary-general of the Mindanao Peoples’ Caucus, said “the issue here is not the composition of the peace panel. Whoever sits, they will surely fail if government itself has no clear position on how to resolve the Mindanao armed conflict.”

She said “the situation clearly demands a political settlement and the question is how ready are we to give way to viable political options and formula. change is inevitable — these politicians can only prolong the changes to protect their own interests — but they could never stop it.

Zamboanga City 1st District Rep. Maria Isabelle Climaco, in a report by ABS-CBN, said the dissolution of the government’s peace panel for the MILF is a welcome development.

Climaco said this kind of announcement would signal the start of a true peace process and negotiations with the people who are really affected in the areas, to really go down to the stakeholders.

“This would give us an opportunity to really get down to listening and consulting the people,” she said.

Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita formally announced Wednesday that the government would be forming a new government peace panel with the MILF.

He said the decision to dissolve the peace panel was arrived at during a national security cluster Cabinet meeting in Nueva Ecija on Tuesday.

The dissolution of the peace panel, headed by Ret. Gen. Rodolfo Rodolfo Garcia, was “effective immediately,” he said. “All mechanisms within the peace process are in place, the ceasefire agreement will be maintained.”

The new peace panel will pursue talks consistent with President Arroyo’s new peace policy where disarming, disbandment, and reintegration of armed rebel forces will be “front loaded” in the negotiations.

The new approach to the peace talks will be followed not just by the peace panel with the MILF but also the other government peace panels talking peace with Communist rebels and other armed groups.

President Arroyo has also ordered Presidential Peace Adviser Hermogenes Esperon Jr. to review all existing peace initiatives of the government, including the stalled talks with the Communist Party of the Philippines.

The decision to scrap the peace panel and to adopt a new peace strategy was made in response to the legal opinion of the Office of the Solicitor General and the issues raised by Supreme Court justices in the hearings on the MOA-AD.

Diverse women’s organizations and peace advocates in the Philippines send letter to United Nation Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on armed conflict between the government forces and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front rebels

Letter calls UN Secretary-General to bring the GRP and MILF back to the peace negotiation table as soon as possible. It also calls the UN to demand both parties to honour their obligation under Security Council Resolution 1325 which is to ensure women's equal and fair participation in peace processes and ensure the protection of women and children who are the most vulnerable in armed conflict

The women’s organizations and peace advocates issued the following letter to the UN Secretary-General about the armed conflict in Southern Philippines:

August 29, 2008

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon
UN Headquarters
New York, USA
Tel: 212 963 5012; Fax: 212 963 4879
Email: sgcentral@un.org

Subject: armed conflict in Southern Philippines

Dear Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon,

We would like to express utmost concern about the recent breakout of violence in Southern Philippines (parts of Mindanao island) following the issuance of a temporary restraining order against the signing of the Memorandum of Agreement on Ancestral Domain by the Philippine government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) on August 4, 2008.

Fifty (50) people, most of whom are civilians, have been killed and some 220,000 have been displaced by the recent attacks in Lanao and North Cotabato provinces.

While we believe that MILF units that targeted villages have engaged in serious violations of international law and should be held accountable, we are also seriously concerned about the formation of armed militia units with support from the Department of Interior and Local Government.

The setting up of armed groups will not protect civilians as some local government officials believe. Rather, it will lead to more chaos, insecurity and division among local communities. The protection of civilians is the responsibility of the State and its security sector such as the Armed Forces of the Philippines and the Philippine National Police.

We thank you for your statement of August 13th where you expressed concern about the unfolding humanitarian crisis and appealed for restraint, protection of all civilians as well as access for the provision of speedy humanitarian assistance to the affected population.

We now call on your office to bring the government of the Republic of the Philippines and MILF back to the peace negotiation table as soon as possible. We also call on you to demand both parties to honor their obligation under Security Council Resolution 1325 which is to ensure women's equal and fair participation in peace processes and ensure the protection of women and children who are the most vulnerable in armed conflict situations.

Yours sincerely,

Center for Peace Education, Miriam College
Katungod Han Samareña Foundation, Inc. (Rights of Samar Women)
Mindanao Commission on Women
Mindanao Peoples' Peace Movement
Mindanao Tri-People Women
Mindanao Young Women Leaders Forum
Mothers for Peace
Muslim Women Peace Advocates
Peace Education Network, Philippines
Philippine Action Network on Small Arms
Philippine Campaign against Cluster Munitions
Philippine Council for Islam and Democracy
Political Caucus of Women Leaders in Mindanao
Women's Crisis Center Manila

Individual signatories:
Abdulbasit R. Benito, Bangsamoro Center for Just Peace Inc., Philippines
Antoinette Brem, Switzerland
Barbara Lehner, Switzerland
Bianca Miglioretto, Switzerland
Chan lean heng, Science University of Malaysia
Dr. Jan Marie Fritz (USA)
Dr. Susana Salavador-Anayatin, Graduate Schools of Notre Dame University and Mindanao State
University, Philippines
Benedicto Q. Sánchez, Broad Initiatives for Negros Development, Philippines
Elvie Villarido-Manaytay, The Zamaboanga Sibugay Tribune, Philippines
Franciska Keller, Switzerland
Jane Prichard, Convenor Pacific Women's Watch, Inc, New Zealand
Katja Schurter, Switzerland
Lourdes Portus, University of the Philippines
Llili Bienz, Switzerland
Nathan Gilbert Quimpo, University of Tsukuba
Sebastian Becker, Germany

With endorsements from
AMARC Women's International Network
Asian Circle 1325
Boston Consortium on Gender, Security and Human Rights
Center for Women's Global Leadership
Central American Secretariat, Zurich, Switzerland
Comunica-ch, the Swiss Platform on the Information Society
Femlink Pacific
Hague Appeal for Peace
International Presentation Association Sisters of the Presentation (USA)
International Women's Tribune Centre
Isis International
JC International English School Nepal
Liberia Women Media Action Committee
Peace Boat US
Peace-communication.eu - Germany
Radio LoRa (Zurich, Switzerland)
Sri Lanka Women and Media Collective
Women Action for New Directions (USA)
Women for Justice in Africa (Kenya)
Women for Peace (Switzerland)

Cc:
· The president of the UN General Assembly
· Members of the UN Security Council; the Philippine mission to the UN; the following country missions to the UN: Australia, Brunei, Canada, Japan, Libya, Malaysia, Norway, Sweden, USA
· The Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs and the embassies of Australia, Brunei, Canada, Japan, Libya, Malaysia, Norway, Sweden, and USA in Manila
· World Bank - The World Bank and Civil Society; World Bank Philippines, Washington DC Office

FEATURE

Fast So We Can be Full
By Samira Gutoc

There's a bigger battle coming. And it's a warzone without fences. Inside the hearts of millions of Muslim adults and teenagers the world over, this coming Holy Month of Fast, when they have to fight hunger and temptation, starting September 1.

Amidst all the chaos and uncertainty that the country is experiencing, there is no stopping the observance of the Holy Month of Ramadhan. Thirty days of no food, water, sex twelve hours in the daytime is mind-boggling to some. But to Muslims, it is made more meaningful this year, because they experience the suffering of thousands of evacuees in the South, Muslims and Christians alike, who are running away from armed hostilities since the imposition of a TRO on a territorial deal between Moro rebels and the government.

Fasting is one of the five pillars in Islam (aside from prayer, charity, pilgrimage to Mecca and Declaring There is One God but Allah but Muhammad is His Messanger) observed during Ramadhan. Ramadhan is the ninth month in the Islamic Lunar year and is the month when the Holy Q’uran was revealed to the Prophet Muhammad and therefore is considered to be a period of spiritual glory. During this month, Muslims strive to be pure inside and out- in thoughts, words and in deeds- by fasting and conducting special rituals.

In the Philippines and even in other countries like Malaysia and Indonesia, Ramadhan is a time for merry-making and gift-giving. Just like in the Christmas season of the Christians, there are a lot of activities being conducted in light of the celebration. There are contests and festivities during the night (such that daytime is the time for fasting) which includes fireworks display and food feasts. At the end of the month, Muslims have to give charity to the poor.

Truly, Ramadhan is instrumental in forging peace between those who are in conflict. It provides a time to reflect upon our past and our present. It is the time when people from different walks of life - young, old, rich, poor, men and women - are gathered together in a moment of joy and happiness and spiritual realization. It is a time when understanding is given a chance to create trailblazers towards peace and prosperity.

This is a time to share cultures through art, music and drama. Performing groups can do shows and concerts for the public. One young Moro guy is performing tomorrow evening at the Music Museum to promote peace amidst the Southern crisis. Khomenei, a Maguindanao pop artist and look-alike of Rustom Padilla, is fast creating a niche as a performer in Muslim-majority circles, especially the young.

This Ramadhan, there can be cultural shows and exchanges that would showcase the colorful and exquisite art of dance and music of the Maranao, Maguindanao, Tausug, Yakan, Iranun and other Muslim cultural groups in the Philippines. Through this, we open the way to reminding the youth of today about their roots and their wonderful culture thereby countering strong Western pop influence. We make them appreciate the wonders and mystique of the Mindanao Muslim culture and we invite them to preserve this culture.

Moreover, concerts can be held to showcase Muslim-rooted artists like Bamboo and Jamer of Slapshock and all the local artists who are gaining ground in incorporating local Muslim dialects in modern music. Through this, we are creating inspiration for the youth, sending them a message that Muslims can be as great if not greater than the rest of the people in the world.

It is true that fasting is not the total solution to the problems that we face today. But it cannot be denied likewise that through sacrifice , we contribute to achieving our noble aspirations as part of a nation of believers in One Mighty God, by being governors of ourselves first. This one month of hunger eventually builds the path towards loving others , a society based on sharing, making a peace for a lifetime.

Government agencies gear up for possible escalation of conflict in Zamboanga

Four faces of conflict in southern Philippines. Some of the 270,000 residents in Central Mindanao that were displaced by armed conflict between government and MILF forces.

Amidst a volatile situation in Central Mindanao brought about by armed conflict between government troops and Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) rebels, the Regional Disaster Coordinating Council (RDCC) IX has mapped up preparation and response for the possible upsurge of evacuees in the region.

Top officials of RDCC in Region 9 met in the city yesterday with thirty-five heads of the different government line agencies who are members of the council for a regional cluster preparedness and response planning workshop.

Disaster coordinating council Director Adriano Fuego of Region 9 said the RDCC is preparing for the rise of internally displaced persons due to the situation in Cotabato and Lanao that might escalate in Zamboanga Peninsula.

"So we are preparing what are their (IDPs) needs and more or less we're assessing, determining their needs because we have scenario on the basis of population of three provinces," he told reporters in an interview.

In the event of massive evacuation, disaster or other large-scale emergency, Fuego added that the RDCC and its members will provide a coordinated, comprehensive response and mount a swift and effective action for IDPs.

Asked how high the possibility that the conflict in Central Mindanao will escalate in Western Mindanao, he replied: "When we plan, we based on a worse case scenario and then the worse scenario is it could really come to Region 9."

According to Fuego, the reported sighting and presence of armed men in coastal villages of Zamboanga plus the persisting threats from other group (Abu Sayyaf) are indicators that the region is vulnerable to that kind of situation.

"We are more prone to human-made conflict than the natural disaster so it's hard to control and stop it," he said. "That's why we have the so-called cluster approach to response to it."

As of press time, the number of evacuees in Mindanao, particularly in North Cotabato, Lanao del Norte, and Maguindanao displaced by fighting between government and MILF forces has reportedly reached to more than 270,000.

MILF accuses AFP of imposing food blockade

The Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) rebels on Monday accused the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) of operating a food blockade and causing a man-made hunger and various diseases among thousands of evacuees in Central Mindanao.

Luwaran.com reported that tens of thousands of internally displaced persons continue to suffer for lack of food and medicines in the battle zones of Maguindanao and Sarangani as the AFP ordered a blockade of food and medicines since Sunday.

"People are hungry and children are suffering from various illnesses inside combat zones especially in Datu Saudi Ampatuan complex where fierce fighting has been taking place for days already," the MILF's official website said.

It said the AFP is using excessive military force including use of howitzers, OV-10 planes, helicopter gunships in an attempt to dislodge thousands of MILF mujahideens, who use telescopic single-shot .50 cal. rifle against soldiers.

Many of the government casualties died of shots in the forehead, even as one military helicopter was shot down and that the helicopter was burning above the fighting zone in Maasim and crashed few minutes later in the mountains near General Santos City.

Sources inside the war zones in Maguindanao and Sarangani said that even non-government organizations (NGOs) which were trying to bring food and medicines to thousands of families still inside war zones were not allowed by the military inside.

"There is a humanitarian crisis in Maguindanao now and people will die if no food and medicines reach these evacuees whose houses were either burnt or destroyed by indiscriminate shelling and bombings by military forces for days," the report also said.

"The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), the United Nations World Food Programme (UNWFP), and other international aid agencies must intervene now or people will die of hunger or by government bombs or bullets," it added.

The food blockade is being clamped by the military along the Mindanao River and the Cotabato-General Santos City Highway and all roads leading to the Datu Saudi Ampatuan Complex in Maguindanao and Palimbang-General Santos City in Maasim in Sarangani.

The military want the MILF mujahideens starved but it is hitting the civilians instead, according to Luwaran.com website.

Eid Kabalu, headf of the MILF's military civil affairs, in a text message, confirmed that a restriction on the entry of NGO, civic and even society groups into the areas affected by the conflict is being imposed by government forces. He did not give further details.

Meanwhile, government troops clashed with the MILF Lanao del Sur Sunday morning, leaving at least two soldiers and 16 rebels dead, the military said.

Army Major Eugene Batara, Western Mindanao Command spokesman, said operating troops of the 35th Infantry Battalion encountered about 40 fully armed MILF rebels at Barangay Nunungan, Poona Piago town.

Batara said troops cleared with artillery and air strikes the camp of rebels who occupied four layers of defensive position. He added the rebels are believed to be the advance guard of Kumander Bravo.

According to Batara, the AFP and PNP had restored normalcy and confidence of the populace along the main highways and the coastal towns of Lanao del Norte after the rebels withdrew from their position.

"Ferry boat services and land transport operations had been restored. Majority of the evacuees from Kauswagan, Kolambugan and other towns of LDN have returned to their villages," he said.

As confirmed by signal and human intelligence, Batara said troops overran the satellite camps of 102nd Base Command under Commander Bravo, including that of Kumander Ismail Desumalong aka Ultimax of the MILF's 7th Brigade, in Barangay Nunungan, Poona Piago and Matunggao towns inflicting several casualties on the rebels.

13 soldiers killed in Saranggani – MILF

The Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) said on Sunday it had killed thirteen soldiers who attacked in a volatile area in Saranggani Province.

Luwaran.com reported 13 soldiers died after they attacked the 107th Base Command – Bangsamoro Islamic Armed Forces (BIAF) at Barangay Pananag, Maasim town.

The Armed Force of the Philippines (AFP) casualty figure was taken from a source privy to where the dead soldiers were brought, the MILF's official website said.

According to the MILF source of information, an ambulance was used to transport the slain and wounded soldiers.

"The soldiers thought that they were brought or deployed in Mindanao purposely to help in maintaining secured, orderly, honest and peaceful ARMM elections," it said.

"This was the mission the young soldiers told their families that they left and not for any combat operation against the MILF forces."

The past days AFP had been hunting down some elements of the 105th Base Command in the Province, who allegedly attacked the military in Maasim last week, the MILF said.

"Instead of engaging the elements of the 105th Base Command, the military attacked the forces of the 107th Base Command manning the Post 1 of their Camp Khalid Bin Walid at Pananag," it said.

Kumander Umbra Kato, who has a P5 million bounty on his head for leading the attack in 15 villages in North Cotabato early this month, heads the 105th Base Command of the MILF.

The military, on the other hand, denied that 13 of their troops were killed in the attack, according to a military report reaching here.

The report quoted Armed Forces spokesman Lt. Col. Ernesto Torres as saying that four soldiers were wounded in the offensive.

The MILF said Saturday's firefight forced hundreds of civilians from the villages of Pananag, Lumasal, Kanolo and Nomoh, all of Maasim town, to flee their homes.

It said the residents sought assistance from Gov. Miguel Dominguez who was reported to have fueled the military cleansing operations against the MILF.

As this developed, the MILF asked the United Nations to intervene and stop an "impending humanitarian disaster."

It said non-government and humanitarian organizations such as the International Community of Red Cross, Non-Violence Peace Force, Consortium of Bangsamoro Civil Society, Bantay Ceasefire, United Bangsamoro Youth Organizations have made efforts to extricate the trapped civilians.

"This traumatic case is a serious infringement of human rights, International Humanitarian Law, Geneva Conventions Protocol II and can spur communal and ethnic conflicts between Muslims and Christians, a humanitarian crisis created by the state and government," the MILF said.

"A United Nations mandated intervention is sought to come in order to an impending humanitarian disaster," it added.