MILF warns of 'force' out to sabotage talks

A THIRD force is out to sabotage the peace talks between the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) to resolve the more than two-decade Moro rebellion in Mindanao.

MILF spokesman Eid Kabalu expressed his apprehension in an interview Tuesday with Sun.Star Zamboanga.

Kabalu vehemently denied that the MILF is coddling Indonesia-based Jemaah Islamiya (JI) terrorists, who are reportedly entering in stealth the backdoor to reach Central Mindanao, where they are training young Moro rebels to be suicide bombers.

"We believe there is a third force out to destroy the peace talks. This report is considered recycled. Pabalik-balik ito," Kabalu disclosed.

He said the place that they are referring where the training camp of the JIs is Mt. Kararao, near the boundary of Maguindanao and Lanao provinces.

A reliable source revealed to Sun.Star earlier that an international gathering of 12 nations that was recently held in an undisclosed country in the Asia-Pacific region exposed Central Mindanao as the seat of terrorism in Southeast Asia.

Kabalu however, conceded that the MILF is continuously looking into the persistent and disturbing report that the JI militant group is maintaining its training camp at Mt. Kararao.

"We are continuously investigating this report although we believe there is no such thing happening in our place," Kabalu said.

He said their last inspection of the place was conducted in December of last year and that group of media and non-government organizations (NGOs) accompanied them.

He said the trip was organized by the government-MILF peace panels to verify the said disturbing report.

"Everybody who accompanied us was convinced that they found no truth to the report," Kabalu revealed.

He said that they are again planning to make a similar inspection, together with the government, the International Monitoring Team (IMT) led by the Malaysian observers group, the media and the NGOs soon to finally settle the issue.

"We'll continue to investigate this report to finally convince our detractors that there is no truth to this," Kabalu assured.

He accused some quarters out to scuttle the peace talks so that Mindanao will remain a trouble-ridden region in this part of the country "to serve their own vested interest."

"Some quarters would like to see the peace talks collapse so that peace not will reign here in our place," Kabalu regretted.

The peace talks between the two negotiating peace panels is expected to resume this mid-November in Malaysia after the month-long Ramadan period ends.

The source who talked on of anonymity, disclosed that among the nations whose representatives attended the recent international meeting are USA, Japan, China, Australia, Thailand, Korea, Malaysia and the Philippines.

It said that the participants of the said important meeting where all were alarmed by the intelligence findings that Southern Philippines with Maguindanao in Central Mindanao is presently the main focus for terrorism in this part of the world.