Press Release
August 20, 2008

MINORITY SENATORS URGE GOVT TO RESTORE LAW AND ORDER IN CONFLICT AREAS IN MINDANAO

Members of the Senate bloc have urged the government to immediately restore law and order in conflict areas in Mindanao before taking a pro-active stand to degrade the military capability of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front.

In a joint statement, they said this approach should prevent further loss of lives of the innocent civilians, as well as government troops who are caught in the spiral of violence now engulfing many provinces in Mindanao.

The minority senators strongly condemned the violence being inflicted on the civilian population in North Cotabato, Lanao del Norte and other places in Mindanao.

"The MILF leadership, if they are serious about achieving peace in Mindanao, should discipline their ranks and not allow them to wreak havoc on the people of Mindanao," they said.

The statement was signed by Minority Leader Aquilino Pimentel, Jr. and Senators Benigno Aquino III, Rodolfo Biazon, Panfilo Lacson, Loren Legarda, M.A. Madrigal, Mar Roxas and Antonio Trillanes.

The minority bloc pledged support for the passage of a supplemental budget for the Armed Forces of the Philippines, subject to proper accounting, to beef up their intelligence capability and supply them with whatever may be needed to accomplish their mission.

They also called upon the central government to mobilize the Department of Social Welfare and Development, Department of Health, Department of Interior and Local Government and other civilian departments concerned to extend a helping hand to the people displaced by the conflict to avert a humanitarian crisis.

Tens of thousands of innocent civilians have fled from the scenes of conflict but have nowhere to go, the minority senators noted.

Likewise, they demanded that the Arroyo administration should not use the federalism proposal and the peace process as a pretext for Charter Change which only exacerbates the already volatile situation in Mindanao.

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