Feuding MILF, MNLF factions displace North Cotabato villagers

NORTH COTABATO, Philippines — Clashes between rival Moro rebel groups have affected hundreds of villagers in Matalam town in North Cotabato.

 

The gunfights between the groups of Manial of the Moro National Liberation Front and Manzur of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front that erupted on Sunday has waned, but tension remained high in Barangay Marbel in Matalam, scene of the showdown that has displaced villagers.

 

The provincial peace and order council, chaired by North Cotabato Gov. Emmylou Taliño-Mendoza, has sent emissaries to convince the two commanders to disengage and move their groups away from populated areas while efforts to resolve the conflict are still underway.

Manial and Manzur are locked in squabbles for control of strategic swaths of arable lands in Barangay Marbel and nearby farming areas.

 

Local officials said the animosity between them worsened with the recent murder of Manial's younger sibling by Manzur's followers.

 

"The rido (feud) between them was made more intense by that incident," Chief Inspector Sunny Leoncito of the Matalam municipal police said Monday.

 

He said the running firefights between the two groups have forced dozens of villagers to evacuate to a covered court in the barangay center for fear of getting trapped in the crossfire.

 

Leoncito said Manial and Manzur lost two men each in the encounters.

 

The feuding MNLF and MILF factions are armed with assault rifles and 40-mm grenade launchers.

 

Chief Inspector Aldrin Gonzales, information officer of the Regional Police Office-12, said Monday that officials are now initiating backchannel overtures to defuse the hostile situation in Barangay Marbel.

 

Gonzales said the PRO-12 has also called on the joint ceasefire committee of the government and the MILF to help address the problem.

 

The MNLF signed a final truce with Malacañang on September 2, 1996, crafted by founding chairman Nur Misuari and President Fidel Ramos.

 

The MILF, on the other hand, signed the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro in 2014. It has yet to be implemented through passage of the Bangsamoro Basic Law, which will create a new autonomous region with more powers but that will remain a part of the Republic of the Philippines.

 

The government and the MILF also have a ceasefire accord that obliges both sides to cooperate in maintaining law and order in conflict flashpoint areas.