MNLF had planned to deploy hit squads (Part 2)

Column from the New Straits Times (Mar 28): MNLF had planned to deploy hit squads (Part 2)

FLAWED AUTONOMY DEAL: Then Philippine president Corazon Aquino's peace efforts were criticised for dealing with only MNLF chief Nur Misuari and ignoring other Muslim leaders, writes Dr Paridah Abd Samad

THEN Philippine president, Corazon Aquino, was criticised for allegedly breaking up the country by giving autonomy to the insurgent and minority groups of Muslims.

Alarmed by what they perceived to be the granting of unprecedented concessions by the government to the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) following the peace agreement reached in Jolo in September 1986 between Aquino and MNLF chief Nur Misuari, Christians opposing Mindanao's full autonomy under the MNLF, had organised their own liberation army.

Members of the so-called Christian Liberation Army were former paramilitary men and reservists, former members of the Civilian Home Defence Forces and Christian Ilagas, the civilian armed group that the military employed at the height of its punitive drive against the MNLF in central Mindanao in the 1970s.

The Philippine government had taken another step towards complying with a mandate of the Philippine Constitution as well as with the terms of the Tripoli Agreement in searching for peace in Mindanao by signing the bill establishing the Regional Consultative Commission (RCC) on March 11, 1988.

The organic act of the RCC was the basic structure in the government of the Muslim Mindanao autonomous region as mandated by the 1987 Constitution. After its enactment by the Philippine Congress, the organic act would be submitted for approval to a regional plebiscite.

The RCC would consist of fifty members "composed of representatives appointed by the president from a list of nominees from multi-sectoral bodies". Both Christian and Muslim communities would be equally represented in RCC.

The government offered Misuari and the MNLF a leadership position in a Provisional Autonomous Council and a strong hand in organising the RCC, but this was rejected.

On May 5, 1987, Misuari handed to the government the final MNLF demands that the president must within 48 hours (from May 9, 1987) issue an "executive order" declaring all of Mindanao, Sulu, Palawan, Tawi-Tawi and Basilan as an area of full autonomy.

The demand that the autonomous region should be created by an "executive order", and not by an act of the Philippine Congress, was rejected. Even though the government recognised the MNLF's demand for full autonomy, any concessions made must be within the limit set by the 1986 Constitution.

The rejection made MNLF's 200,000 armed fighters "restive". They boycotted the legislative election which was held in May 1987.

The military claimed that four major rebel groups in Mindanao held secret meetings in Lanao der Sur in a plot to join forces and launch simultaneous attacks on military camps in Mindanao to force the government to grant full autonomy to the entire island.

It was reported that in the unsuccessful autonomy peace talks, the MNLF planned to launch Muslim hit squads in major Philippine cities. They considered such action to be effective politically and required only a minimum of organisation and logistics in order to discredit the president.

The peace efforts were severely criticised for ignoring other Muslim leaders. They warned that a full-scale civil war might break out soon in Mindanao because the president insisted on holding peace talks only with Misuari.

The exclusion of the other Muslim factions by the president's brother-in-law, Agapito Aquino, who played a key role in dialogues and talks with Misuari, had caused many traditional Muslim leaders, long resentful of Misuari's influence, to take an oppositionist stance.

The government's failure in the bilateral negotiations with the MNLF, had made further negotiations with the Muslims grind to a halt. The Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) and the MNLF-Reformist groups, (both factions of the MNLF), warned the government that they would not be bound by any agreement signed by the government with the MNLF.

There were three major MNLF political factions, the largest of which was led by Misuari. The two others were Salamat Hashim's MILF and Dimasangkay Pundato's Reformist MNLF.

While Misuari's organisation had reportedly remained truer to the original Filipino Muslim movement for a completely independent Moro republic, Salamat and Pundato were said to have been willing to compromise with Manila on the basis of greater regional autonomy.

The genuine autonomy that the Muslims aspired came to a halt as the MNLF campaign for recognition as a member of the OIC was rejected at the 17th Foreign Ministers' Meeting of the OIC in Amman, Jordan in March 1988 on the grounds that MNLF was not a sovereign state.

Moreover, since both Christian and Muslim communities would be equally represented in the RCC, its organic act would be needed for enactment by the Philippine Congress and for approval in a regional plebiscite, hence the granting of a genuine autonomy to the Muslims was impossible.

Misuari justified the MNLF armed struggle on the non-implementation of the Tripoli Agreement, originally signed by Marcos and later included and accepted in the peace agreement signed by President Fidel Ramos who replaced Corazon Aquino in 1992.

This agreement established an autonomous region for Moros with Misuari as Governor of the Autonomous Region for Muslim Mindanao (ARMM).

He was removed from his office when Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo became president to replace Joseph Estrada in January 2001.

The Philippine government under Arroyo accused Misuari of leading some MNLF members to renew an armed struggle by raiding the army headquarters, several military detachments and police stations, which killed 160 people in Jolo on Nov 19, 2001.

Misuari launched his revolt after Arroyo decided to back an MNLF rival in an election to choose the next governor of ARMM. The government had deployed thousands of troops to Jolo to deter attempts by Misuari followers from disrupting the balloting.

Misuari was arrested in a remote island off Malaysia's Sabah state for "entering Malaysia illegally". It was believed in some quarters that he was en route to the Gulf.

Misuari may have been trying to set up an Abu Sayyaf cell in Malaysia since he has linked himself with the bandits.

The Philippine president praised Malaysia for the swift arrest of Misuari.

Later a Jolo court ordered Misuari to stand trial for rebellion in connection with the revolt. On April 2, 2008, former rebel leader and mayor of Cotabato City Muslimin Sema replaced Misuari as the leader of the MNLF.

http://www.nst.com.my/opinion/columnist/mnlf-had-planned-to-deploy-hit-squads-1.243137