Peace in Mindanao

Last week members of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front took over Talayan town in Maguindanao and cut off traffic on the Cotabato-Isulan Highway. The military eventually retook the town and the highway, but not before clashes with the MILF left at least 13 people dead and dozens wounded. About 20,000 civilians had to flee their homes while the fighting raged. Thousands of refugees deve-loped respiratory diseases in the crowded evacuation centers.

In Mindanao the losers are always the civilians. Well-armed rebels and bandits hold the people in the grip of terror. Ransom kidnapping is a major industry. Last year alone, 112 people were reported kidnapped in Mindanao, with 96 being freed after the payment of ransom. Three of the victims were murdered, five managed to escape while two were rescued.

The government had hoped that a settlement with the Moro National Liberation Front in 1996 would finally bring peace to the Muslim areas of Mindanao. New rebel groups, however, sprout in the South as soon as old ones get neutralized. The MILF, which broke away from the MNLF, has blocked government efforts, including those by the former MNLF leadership, to develop Mindanao. And so Muslim rebels cite government neglect of the island as a reason for secession, but at the same time do their best to block Mindanao's development. As a result, the island has some of the poorest provinces in the Philippines.

Such is life in Mindanao. But it doesn't always have to be that way. Today the government and the MILF will revive peace negotiations that were stalled last year. The clashes last week can be viewed as an effort to improve bargaining positions as both sides attempt to forge an agreement within six months -- the deadline set by President Estrada for a peace pact. For the sake of Mindanao, both sides must do their best. In the Information Age, the children of Mindanao -- including the children of MILF rebels -- have a lot of catching up to do. This can only be possible, if there's peace.