Misuari's infamous revolt

Nur Misuari could have been a hero, not only for the minority Muslim Moro but also the majority of Catholic Filipinos had he not staged an abortive armed rebellion against the Manila government last month.

A hero, because Misuari, as leader of the Moro National Liberation Front, was the one who clinched a peace deal in 1996 with the government, thereby winning the sympathy of member countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). The deal resulted in autonomous rule for Mindanao, with Misuari becoming governor of this southern province of the Philippines.

Misuari, however, made himself the villain of piece when he and his followers attacked a military post on Jolo island, on Nov. 19, leaving more than 150 people dead. After his failed revolt, he fled to neighboring Malaysia, but was arrested for illegally entering the country and is awaiting deportation.

It stands to reason that the Philippine armed forces contained the rebellion by pounding the rebels with helicopter gunships and bombers. Instead of giving up, the cowardly rebels took hundreds of civilian hostages at gunpoint, mostly women and children, as human shields while fleeing from government forces.

Although most of the hostages were released unharmed in exchange for the rebels' safe passage to their hideouts, this act of terrorism cannot be condoned. Misuari and his rebellious group should realize that, under whatever pretext, the world community will never regard hostage-taking of innocent civilians as justifiable.

Ironically, Misuari, who was quoted as saying that "democracy should be respected and the remaining issues (with the Manila government) should be implemented through peaceful means" during the signing of the 1996 peace accord, was the one who resorted to violence. All because he was bound to lose his gubernatorial seat after he had failed to uphold his promise of bringing development and prosperity to the people of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao.

If Misuari were truly a champion of democracy he would have accepted the nomination of a more capable governor of Mindanao to replace him and would, by no means instigate his followers to launch a bloody rebellion. In the Philippines, even the president of the country can only have a one-time term of six years.

Now that the rebellion has been quelled, ASEAN countries expect that the government of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo will, in a short time, resolve the problems prudently and prevent another armed uprising from recurring. Prolonged armed conflict could destabilize peace and economic growth in the region.

Indonesia, which played a key role in the 1996 peace agreement, but which is now quite busy containing sectarian and ethnic clashes at home, certainly wishes to see a quick return to peace in Zamboanga and other towns in Mindanao so that the people there can achieve progress and enjoy prosperity.