MILF seeks Pope Francis’ endorsement of Mindanao peace pact

Moro Islamic Liberation Front . INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

DAVAO CITY, Philippines – The Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) has said it plans to write a letter to Pope Francis asking him to say something in support of the peace process in Mindanao in the course of his visit to the country on Jan. 17, 2015.

“We are thinking about writing the Pope to ask him to say something about the need for peace,” said Mohagher Iqbal, chair of the MILF peace panel that signed a comprehensive peace deal with the Philippine government on March 27, 2014.

Iqbal said a statement of support for the peace agreement signed between the Philippine government and the MILF would be a morale booster for efforts to hopefully end over four decades of Moro conflict in Mindanao.

“I think that the letter will be addressed and will be delivered very soon to the Pope,” Iqbal said in an interview with reporters over the weekend.

Civil society groups and international donor agencies have greeted the signing of the peace agreement with great enthusiasm, as it could end the conflict that has claimed thousands of lives and displaced communities in Central Mindanao.

After the signing of the comprehensive peace agreement, the Bangsamoro Transition Commission, composed of the MILF and government representatives, came up with the draft Bangsamoro Basic Law, or the law that governs how the Bangsamoro political entity should be run, which has already been submitted to Congress for deliberation. Once Congress ratifies the document, the BBL will be submitted to a plebiscite to allow the people to decide whether to accept the proposed law or not.

Pope Francis will be in Leyte on Jan. 17, 2014, to visit survivors of the Super Typhoon “Yolanda,” a natural calamity, which ravaged huge parts of Central Visayas and claimed over 6,000 lives in November 2013.

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