The GPH Negotiating Panel for talks with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) extends its heartfelt condolences to the family of the late Sultan Jamalul Kiram III who passed away on 20 October 2013. Inna lillahi wa inna ilayhi raji’un (Surely we belong to Allah and to Him we will all return.) We wish the family of the late Sultan strength in this time of sorrow.
The GPH Panel had the opportunity to meet with the late Sultan, his brothers Ismael and Agbimuddin and their wives in 2011 in a closed-door consultation on the GPH-MILF peace process. He and his family members have been helpful in our attempt to understand the role of traditional leaders in their communities and identify ways to strengthen their roles in building peace in the region.
The Sultan had proposed at that meeting the placement of an historical marker on the gravesite of the first Sultan Jamalul in Maimbung, Sulu. The GPH peace panel believed in the proposal then, and continues to support it now.
We see such memorialization as part of our shared goal of safekeeping the history and culture of the people of Sulu, and of our commitment, as per instructions of President Aquino, to ensure an inclusive peace process that gives recognition to the richness of our historical narratives as a nation.
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