"In Mindanao, peace is at hand," Arroyo said in a message to the country's Muslim minority.

"We have a ceasefire that is working and one which both sides in the conflict assiduously strive to maintain," she said, referring to a ceasefire signed with the separatist Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) in 2002.

“Across the negotiating table, we must pursue a comprehensive and durable solution to the problems of Mindanao, a land of promise but whose promise had never been fulfilled. I shall strive to fulfill that promise,” the President said of the Muslim separatist insurgency that had been raging for three decades.

"Our dream for our Muslim brothers is for each and every one to attain their aspirations for peace and a better life. This shall be my government's

unflagging goal," Arroyo said, citing efforts to uplift Muslim communities, among the most underdeveloped in the country.

Arroyo also called on all Filipinos to learn from the Muslim practice of fasting and self-denial during the Ramadan, saying this would be an opportunity to observe austerity and self-sacrifice amid the widespread poverty and hunger stalking the country.

“I join the Muslim Filipino community in marking this month of sacrifice and self-denial. This is a timely event in an era of challenge, renewal, and reform,” she said.

She said the Muslim community’s quest for peace and better life are all enshrined in her 10-point agenda, which she hoped to fulfill in the next six years.

The Philippines and the nearly 12,000-strong MILF are due to resume formal peace talks in Malaysia after Ramadan. A team of Malaysian security experts is in Mindanao to monitor the ceasefire.

Sporadic clashes and allegations that rebel commanders are sheltering members of the Jemaah Islamiyah terror network have strained the peace process.