MILF fears negotiators' safety

ZAMBOANGA CITY -- The Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) has expressed fears that their officials sitting with the government at the negotiating table might be arrested in the absence of immunity guarantees.

Ustadz shariff Julabbi, MILF chairman for Western Mindanao and Palawan areas, said the immunity guarantee which was adopted in the first round of formal talks remained under study by higher government officials.

Julabbi said that the GRP panel led by Defense Undersecretary Orlando Soriano has given assurances that the MILF delegates would be given identification cards that will recognize them.

"Soriano told us that they can provide us IDs, but the immunity guarantee we are seeking will be submitted to President Estrada or Defense Secretary Orlando Mercado for approval," Julabbi said. "There is no security for us."

The MILF have asked the GRP peace panel to give the immunity guarantee to at least 60 MILF officials who are participating the peace process.

Meanwhile, the GRP-MILF technical committee is scheduled to sit down next week to cluster the nine-point agenda that was submitted during the formal talks held in Da'Wah Islamic Center in Sultan Kudarat, Maguindanao last Jan. 20.

Julabbi said the technical committee of both sides decided to reduce the talking points as there are issues which just duplicate the others, such as ancestral domain and agrarian reform.

He said the meeting, which was scheduled on Feb. 7 to 8 would determine how the issues would be clustered into talking points.

The nine-point agenda up for clustering includes: respect on the human rights, strengthen the ceasefire accord; the completion of the acknowledgment of MILF 46 camps; Moro ancestral claims of land; agrarian reform; compensation for the destruction of lives and properties in the anti-insurgency drive; discrimination of Muslim and economic inequities which had marginalized the country's Islamic minority.

After the clustering by the technical committee panel, the talking points will be submitted to both negotiating panels which will be tackled during the second round of formal talks on Feb. 21 to 22, according to Julabbi.

Cagayan de Oro and Davao cities have already been considered as venue for the formal process," Julabbi added.