No development without peace: New ARMM chief
No development without peace: New ARMM chief
Agence France-Presse, Manila
New Philippine Muslim leader Parouk Hussin told his rebellious
brethren on Tuesday there could be no development without peace
and called for them to lay down their arms and help build the
impoverished south.
The medical doctor and former separatist guerrilla leader was
sworn in as the new governor of the Muslim self-rule area by
President Gloria Arroyo here on Tuesday as sporadic clashes in
the region over the past two days left four gunmen dead.
Hussin will be chief executive for the next three years of the
Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM), a patchwork of five
mainly Muslim provinces which was the minority's reward for
ending a 24-year rebellion in 1996.
He replaces his former Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF)
comrade Nur Misuari, who was arrested in Malaysia last month
after mounting a bloody revolt in a last-ditch bid to remain in
power.
"The biggest challenge is peace and order because we cannot
(implement) development unless we address the deterioration of
peace and order," he told reporters, citing kidnappings by armed
Moro gangs in the area which include the Abu Sayyaf and the
Pentagon.
Filipino and U.S. military officials say the Abu Sayyaf --
which holds two Americans and a Filipino hostage in the island of
Basilan -- has links with Osama bin Laden, the prime suspect for
the Sept. 11 attacks in the United States.
The Pentagon rogue Moro separatists hold an Italian Roman
Catholic priest.
"(The Abu Sayyaf problem) is being addressed by the military.
Of course, the military is just one solution. We will also
address the socio-economic aspect of the problem," Hussin said.
"The Pentagon is another criminal group. It has to be dealt
with by the appropriate agencies," Hussin added.
Arroyo has said she plans to pour development aid into the
region and hopes to convince the private sector to follow suit.
The new governor said he had received congratulatory messages
from the 57-member Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC),
the broker of the 1996 peace pact.
Asked if he considered Misuari and his armed followers as a
threat to the ARMM, Hussin said: "To me there is no challenge
from Misuari. There has never been any quarrel or split (between)
us. It just so happens that some brothers, like brother Misuari,
are not happy to leave their position."
He said the ARMM government would hold talks "not only with
the renegade MNLF, but other radical forces in the area."
Four suspected Misuari followers were slain in the past two
days, including one lynched by angry villagers, as troops stepped
up their hunt for remnants of the armed group, officials said on
Tuesday.
Villagers in Limpapa district near the southern city of
Zamboanga tipped off soldiers to the presence of a group of
gunmen on Tuesday, triggering clashes that left three rebels
dead, Army Col. Alexander Yano said.
The body of a fourth man was recovered by police in Pasonanca
district. Witnesses said he was set upon by knife-wielding
villagers out for revenge.
More than 200 Misuari followers last week took over a
government complex in Zamboanga, triggering clashes with the
military that left scores dead and wounded.
They later seized about 113 civilians but freed them in
exchange for safe passage out of the city.
Nearly 2,000 soldiers have been sent to surround the gunmen in
the village of Panubigan, but officials said negotiations were
underway to persuade them to surrender their firearms.