ARMM body says 228 'rido' settled in past 12 months

From InterAksyon (Apr 16): ARMM body says 228 'rido' settled in past 12 months

The Regional Reconciliation and Unification Commission of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao said it has helped settle 228 clan wars, or “rido,” in the past 12 months, officials said Wednesday.

Norodin Manalao, RRUC-ARMM executive director, said 125 of the settled feuds, or more than half of the total, happened in Maguindanao, with a number of these clan wars that had been going on for the past 20 years. Lanao del Sur accounted for 69 rido.

The feuds, which Manalao, are “one of the reasons why economic development of a particular area in ARMM has been snail-paced," are invariably settled through the intervention of religious leaders and community elders.

He said among the triggers for rido are divisive local political, land disputes and territorial misunderstandings.

The "proliferation and use of prohibited drugs was also prominent as the cause of family feud," he added.

Manalao acknowledged that some members of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front have been among the protagonists in clan wars in Maguindanao, Lanao del Sur, Basilan, Sulu and Tawi-Tawi.

"But the MILF as an organization was not involved,” he stressed. “In fact the MILF has a mechanism (for) effectively resolving clan wars."

http://www.interaksyon.com/article/84938/armm-body-says-228-rido-settled-in-past-12-months