Truce proposed to secure dam

Truce proposed to secure dam

MANILA (AFP): The Philippine military said yesterday it hopes to sign a cease-fire agreement with Moslem guerrillas in the southern Philippines by Sunday to allow a Japan-funded irrigation dam project to resume.

Armed Forces chief Arturo Enrile told reporters the military has proposed to the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) a mutual pullout from the project site.

"We hope that on or before the 15th it could be done," Gen. Enrile said.

Months of clashes between the MILF and troops guarding the US$54 million project have forced South Korean contractors to abandon the site, and President Fidel Ramos to send army engineers to complete it.

The dam, funded by Tokyo's Overseas Economic Cooperation Fund, is opposed by the guerrillas, who say the mostly Moslem land owners have not been properly compensated.