Gov't gives MILF rebels 24 hours to leave Cotabato villages
MANILA - The Philippines gave Muslim rebels 24 hours to pull out of nine Catholic farming villages they have occupied or face a combined military and police offensive, in a ratcheting up of tension in the volatile south.
"This is not a declaration of war," Ronaldo Puno, interior secretary, told a news conference on Thursday.
"The government will not allow these things to happen. We're giving them a deadline otherwise, they shall be forcibly removed from the area."
Manila's ultimatum against the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) risks a 2003 ceasefire and comes just days after hopes of a major breakthrough in peace negotiations were shattered by a Supreme Court move temporarily halting a deal on territory.
There have been sporadic clashes between MILF troops and armed community volunteers before and analysts do not expect the current tension to trigger an all-out war.
Neither side has the resources for an outright victory and after nearly 40 years of conflict with more than 120,000 deaths both sides are war-weary.
But the prospect of a territorial agreement, which would give wide political and economic rights to an eventual Muslim government in the south, prompted majority Catholics to accuse the government of abandoning them.
Stung by the criticism, the government has decided to take firm action against what it says was an attack by about 800 MILF rebels on nine villages in North Cotabato province last month.
Puno said the attack and occupation forced more than 6,500 people to abandon their homes and farms.
He said the rebels also torched nearly 100 houses, looted farms and stole cattle and other livestock. Their actions forced hundreds of Catholic farmers from nearby areas to arm themselves, Puno said.
"We can't allow lawlessness to come in under the guise of self-defence," Puno said, instructing the national police to move in three battalions of combat-trained officers to disarm the civilians and hold local officials accountable
"There is no deadline for the armed civilians because they're already violating the law."
But the MILF said the government was exaggerating the reported occupation, saying there was no widespread fighting in the province.
"We only know of one town where there was fighting last month, so we can't really say our forces had forcibly occupied several villages in 3-5 towns in North Cotabato," Eid Kabalu, the MILF's spokesman, said.
Kabalu said the two sides could resolve the problem peacefully.
Defence Secretary Gilberto Teodoro said four army battalions were on standby to help the police restore law and order and to allow displaced farmers to resume their normal lives.
"This is also a test also for the MILF to exercise good faith and responsibility," he said
Originally Posted by A_flyer
