Criminal liabilities of Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF)
members who are set to be investigated vis-à-vis their involvement in the
Mamasapano incident should not be used against the on-going peace talks.
“It should be separate, really, because the peace process is
proceeding on its own track. It really should be a separate discussion,” Deputy
Presidential Spokesperson Abigail Valte said Saturday.
The Department of Justice (DOJ) earlier said most of the 90
people allegedly involved in the death of 44 members of the police’s Special
Action Force (SAF), in what the government said was a “misencounter” while the
latter were on a mission to arrest wanted terrorists in Mamasapano, Maguindanao
on Jan. 25, 2015, were MILF members.
The others were members of the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom
Fighters (BIFF) and armed civilians.
The SAF operation was targeted to arrest wanted terrorists
Malaysian Zulkifli Bin Hir, alias Marwan, who was killed during the said
operation; and Filipino Ahmad Akmad Batabol Usman, alias Basit Usman.
Amidst the DOJ’s initial findings and the plan to put these
people under preliminary investigation, MILF vice chairman Gadzali Jaafar said
they would not surrender their members since they only acted on self-defense.
Valte said there were right places where to present this
reasoning and noted that “the DOJ is only doing its job of initiating
prosecution against persons who may be guilty of some criminal acts under our
law.”
”So let’s allow this process to move forward,” she said.
Relatively, Valte said the Palace was not open to the idea
that the MILF was using the peace process to save their members from criminal
charges.
”We do not see it that way,” she said admitting that the
proposed Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL), which is now being deliberated in
Congress, are facing challenges just like the peace process.
Valte said the government “remain optimistic that the
discussion remains on the table and that it will be given attention by our
legislators.”
”So hopefully, the discussions will push forward on the
BBL,” she added.
http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=&sid=&nid=&rid=754148
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