Muslim separatists hail peace deal with RP govt

Muslim separatists hail peace deal with RP govt

MANILA (AFP): Muslim separatist rebels on Saturday hailed a
landmark ceasefire signed with the Philippines government, saying
it would kick-start desperately needed economic development in
the war-ravaged south.

The accord, signed in Libya late Friday, would strengthen "the
peace process," said Eid Kabalu, the spokesman for the Moro
Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) which has been waging a 23-year
armed rebellion seeking an independent Islamic state.

Kabalu said the deal, signed in the Libyan capital of Tripoli,
would lead to the "introduction of economic development in
Mindanao," the impoverished Muslim southern third of
predominantly Roman Catholic Philippines.

However Kabalu said the MILF had not given up its demand for
independence, stressing that no "political issues were tackled
during the talks."

The deal was brokered over two days under the supervision of
Seif al-Islam, who heads a Libyan charity foundation.

It will allow hundreds of thousands of families displaced by
the rebellion to return to their homes without fear of getting
caught in crossfire.

President Gloria Arroyo's spokesman, Rigoberto Tiglao, said
the ceasefire could be a prelude to a final political solution on
the Muslim separatist problem.

The 12,500-strong MILF is the country's main Muslim separatist
group. It splintered from the larger Moro National Liberation
Front (MNLF) in 1978, and was left out of a 1996 peace accord
between Manila and the MNLF.

A smaller group, the Abu Sayyaf, is holding more than two
dozen US and Filipino hostages in southern Basilan province.

In a related development, the media reported on Saturday that
the Abu Sayaff had executed two Filipino hostages on the
outskirts of the Basilan island capital, Isabela, and left a
mocking note for troops hunting them.

Two other headless bodies were also found near the town of
Tuburan on the island's north coast, where the guerrillas said
they executed American hostage Guillermo Sobero.

The remains near Tuburan were not immediately identified but
police said they were also Filipinos.

The bodies dumped in a forested area near Isabela though were
identified as Primitivo Falcasantos and Crisanto Suelo, who were
among the 26 Filipino and US hostages held by the Abu Sayyaf.

"We recovered this morning the bodies believed to be those of
Falcasantos and Suelo," Senior Inspector Jerry Bayabos of the
Basilan police said.

He said the rebels late Friday evening also fired a mortar
shell at Isabela which landed on a riverbed, causing panic but no
damage.

It was believed the explosion was the signal that they had
executed the hostages, he said.

President Gloria Arroyo, through her spokesman Rigoberto
Tiglao, condemned the killing as part of the Abu Sayyaf's "terror
tactics."

"We're sad that the military has confirmed that Primitivo
Falcasantos and Crisanto Suelo have been positive identified.
This goes to show how brutal and beastly the Abu Sayyaf are,"
Tiglao told reporters.

As speculation grew in Basilan that more hostages were about
to be released, families of the dead men said they believed they
were executed because they could not meet ransom demands.

A note written in blood on the shirt of one of the bodies
said: "Commander Robot is in Basilan and will chop off heads."

Commander Robot is the alias of Abu Sayyaf leader Ghalib
Andang who officials said had distanced himself from the latest
kidnappings and had offered to surrender if given a fair trial.

Andang, believed to be based with another Abu Sayyaf unit on
nearby Jolo island, masterminded a similar hostage crisis last
year involving dozens of foreign and local hostages later
ransomed off for millions of dollars.

Falcasantos's sister, Norma Baguio, told AFP she suspected her
brother was sacrificed because he had no money. She said the
private security guard had not been paid for seven months by his
employers and could not meet a ransom demand.

"Why did they kill them? Is is because we're just poor and
can't give ransom?" a weeping Baguio said.

She said the family had received no help from her brother's
employer, nor from the national or local governments.

"It seems the government is neglecting our plight," Baguio
said

There has been no engagement between troops and the rebels
since last week, raising speculation the lull was intentional to
allow families of hostages to negotiate a deal despite Manila's
strict "no-ransom policy."