Confusion prevails over Abdurrahman-Salamat dialog
Confusion prevails over Abdurrahman-Salamat dialog
MANILA (Agencies): There is still confusion on whether Indonesian President Abdurrahman Wahid will meet with Filipino insurgency leader Hashim Salamat.
Rebel officials said it would be held on Monday while Philippine officials say it is unlikely to happen at all due to security concerns.
The meeting, proposed to be held in the southern Philippine city of General Santos, is a bid to boost peace talks between government and separatist rebels.
It would take place after this weekend's Association of Southeast Asian Nations summit in Manila which Abdurrahman is set to attend.
Ghazali Jaafar, vice-chairman of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), said rebel leaders were "excited" about the meeting between the Indonesian president and MILF chairman Hashim Salamat.
"It is a meeting of two great Muslim leaders. A meeting of peace between fellow Muslims," he said.
"This is a very positive development in relation to the peace talks between the MILF and the Philippine government," he added.
"We expect the meeting to help both sides in their efforts to resolve the problems in Mindanao peacefully."
Jaafar said he expects Salamat to discuss the MILF's bid for independence, the ongoing formal talks with Manila and to explore possibilities of Indonesia mediating in the negotiations.
Indonesia, under the administration of former president Soeharto, played a crucial role in forging a peace agreement between the Philippine government and the larger Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) in September 1996.
The 15,000 strong MILF is the last insurgent group fighting for an independent Islamic state in the southern Philippines.
Although it has opened peace talks with the government, frequent battles still rage and there have been several in the past week.
Jaafar did not say where the meeting would take place, but officials of a Muslim autonomous area in the southern Philippines said the venue would be a large hotel in General Santos.
However, Philippine Foreign Secretary Domingo Siazon said Abdurrahman may not be able to attend given the worsening security situation in the southern Philippines.
"It's unlikely he'll go there, it's getting a bit hot," Siazon said, referring to recent clashes in Mindanao between government troops and MILF guerrillas.
Presidential Executive Secretary Ronaldo Zamora also said Abdurrahman may not be able to meet with Hashim.
"I am not too sure that this meeting will go ahead because President Wahid also has a very busy schedule," he said.
Philippine President Joseph Estrada has supported the visit, saying it will help government peace efforts.
On Wednesday, Estrada backed the Abdurrahman-Salamat dialog and described it as part of efforts to contain a breakout of separatist sentiment in the region.
"We are quite sure that President Wahid, like all leaders in ASEAN countries, would endeavor to protect the territorial integrity not only of their respective countries, but also their neighbors," said Presidential spokesman Jerry Barican.
"Any successful secession will spread like flu in the region and would lead to greater political and security destabilization in Southeast Asia," Barican added.
Jaafar stressed that the MILF would not abandon its demand for independence, noting, "It is the aspiration of the Bangsamoro (Muslim nation) people. We cannot compromise the demand of the Bangsamoro people for self-determination."