My Daily Inquirer

The European Union will join an international team overseeing the ceasefire between the Philippine government and Muslim separatist rebels in the south, the local EU representative said Wednesday.

EU ambassador Alistair MacDonald said the bloc would be leading the "Humanitarian, Rehabilitation and Development Component" of the International Monitoring Team (IMT) at the request of both Manila and the rebels.

"The EU's decision to join the IMT is indeed good news for both the government of the Philippines and MILF panels which now endeavour to preserve the gains of the peace talks," chief government negotiator Rafael Seguis said.

It will also allow the EU to play a more direct role in the peace process between the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), said MacDonald.

He stressed that promoting peace was crucial to ending "the vicious cycle of conflict and poverty" that had afflicted the southern region of Mindanao for decades.

The EU will join Malaysia, Brunei, Libya, and Japan in monitoring the ceasefire between the government and the MILF in Mindanao.

It was not stated when EU personnel would be dispatched to the troubled region and how many would be sent.

The international monitors have been credited for significantly reducing clashes between the military and the Muslim rebels in the south.

The MILF, which boasts about 12,000 fighters, has been fighting to set up a separate state in Mindanao but signed a ceasefire with Manila in 2003 to open the door to peace talks.

Despite the ceasefire, fighting has broken out sporadically, the worst case occurring in August 2008 when MILF commanders attacked communities in central Mindanao, leaving over 300 civilians and combatants dead.

More than half a million people were displaced by the fighting and tens of thousands still remain in refugee camps even though both the government and the rebels have reopened peace talks.

The separatist rebellion on Mindanao has left more than 150,000 people dead since 1978.

Source: News