Estrada to MILF: Stop dreaming of independent Islamic republic

Stop dreaming of an "independent Islamic republic."

President Estrada gave this advice to the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) yesterday as he warned the separatist group again to forge peace with the government by June or face an all-out military offensive.

Government and MILF panels wound up their two days of formal talks yesterday in Maguindanao, adopting a nine-point agenda for subsequent negotiations.

Mr. Estrada reiterated in his radio show Ipa-Bombo mo kay Pangulo that the peace talks with the MILF have to end by June and if this ultimatum is unmet, "Marahil po ang susunod na mangyayari ay uupakan na natin sila (Perhaps the next move is we'll hit them hard)."

Mr. Estrada is optimistic that the MILF leadership has realized the determination of his government to put an end to the Muslim insurgency, citing the resumption of talks, often marred by skirmishes between state and rebel forces, as a good indication.

Despite the President's stance, Ghazali Jaafar, MILF vice chairman for political affairs, said they remain firm in their bid for a separate Islamic state.

"It has always been our aspiration that we will be left on our own to live our lives the way we should as Bangsamoro people," he said.

Jaafar said the MILF is "only an instrument" in articulating this demand of the Bangsamoro people.

MILF chieftain Hashim Salamat earlier said the MILF was willing to wind up the talks by June but insisted that the outcome should be premised on the plight of Muslims in the South, including its rival, the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF).

"We cannot come out with a half-baked settlement that would only aim to address the superficial dimensions of the problem," Salamat said.

During the two-day formal talks, which were nearly suspended with the MILF's boycott threat, both sides ratified all agreements reached since 1997 and signed a joint statement that the nine-point agenda will be discussed further in their next meeting.

Among the issues in the agenda are the resolution of the Bangsamoro problem, human rights, land reform and the plight of landless Muslims, poverty in Muslim areas, and corruption of the moral fiber of Muslim society.

"It's good that we now have something to thresh out in the next round of talks," said Jaafar.

Both sides launched the peace talks last October after more than two years of "exploratory" discussions.

The 15,000-member MILF is the last major insurgency in Mindanao. It was left out of a peace agreement the government and the MNLF signed in 1996. - With John Unson, Edith Regalado and Roel Pareño