Bloody feud among Basilan MNLF, MILF groups settled

COTABATO CITY, Philippines — Two rival groups in Lamitan City forged a truce Friday, ending years of animosity that exacted fatalities on both sides.

The leaders of the two groups, Rajan Abdulrahman of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front and Mohammad Muddalan, a senior member of the Moro National Liberation Front, reconciled through the intercession of the Lamitan City local government unit and other peace advocacy groups in Basilan province.

Brig. John Guyguyon, director of the Police Regional Office-Bangsamoro Autonomous Region, told reporters here Saturday he is thankful to Lamitan City Mayor Roderick Furigay, the Lamitan City Police Station and the Basilan Provincial Police Office for cooperating in resolving the clan war amicably.

“This is a good development. We ought to help sustain the enforcement of the peace accord reached by both sides to keep the peace in the areas where they had encounters in the past,” Guyguyon said.

The groups of Abdulrahman and Muddallan, who is chairman of Barangay Parangbasak in Lamitan City, figured in deadly clashes in years past that had repeatedly displaced hundreds of innocent villagers.

Reports reaching the Bangsamoro regional government center here stated that the bloody gunfights between the two groups were sparked by deep-seated political differences and territorial disputes.

Furigay said credit for the settlement of the Abdulrahman-Mudalan conflict must also go to the Bangsamoro Ministry of Public Order and Safety, to the top leaders of the MILF and the MNLF in Basilan, to the international peacekeeping entity Nonviolent Peaceforce that supports the Mindanao peace process, and the Army’s 18th Infantry Battalion.

Bangsamoro Local Government Minister Naguib Sinarimbo, regional spokesperson, said Saturday their chief minister, Ahod Ebrahim, is thankful to the parties that helped reconcile the groups of Abdulrahman and Muddalan.