MANILA (Mindanao Examiner / Oct. 14, 2012) – The Philippines cancelled a scheduled press briefing Saturday evening of Organization of Islamic Cooperation Secretary General Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu in Manila.
The Department of Foreign Affairs- Public Information Services Unit earlier told journalists that the: “The press briefing of OIC Secretary General Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu scheduled at 6:45 p.m. today will be at Manila A Function Room of Makati Shangri-la Hotel.”
But hours later, it said: “The OIC Secretary General cancelled his press briefing scheduled at 6:45 p.m. today, October 14.”
Filipino officials did not say why the press briefing was cancelled ahead of Manila’s signing of the peace pact on Monday with the country’s largest Muslim rebel group Moro Islamic Liberation Front.
Manila and the MILF also agreed to the creation of the new Bangsamoro autonomous region which shall replace the existing five-province Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao.
The OIC has officially recognized the larger Moro National Liberation Front which is opposed to the new peace agreement by the Aquino government to the MILF, saying it violated the September 1996 peace agreement between the MNLF and the Philippine government.
Manila invited Ihsanoglu along with Malaysian Prime Minister Dato’ Sri Mohd Najib bin Tun Abdul Razak to witness the signing of the historic peace deal.
Malaysia, an influential member of the OIC which is brokering the peace talks, played a key role in the negotiations between the Philippines and the MILF which is fighting for self-determination in the southern region of Mindanao.
This is the first visit of Najib to the Philippines since he assumed office in 2009. He will be accompanied by his spouse, Datin Paduka Seri Rosmah Mansor, and the Malaysian ministers of foreign affairs, defense and international trade and industry.
Formal diplomatic relations have been nurtured through the years ever since a Philippine legation was established in Kuala Lumpur in 1959. But the Philippines’ claim to the eastern Malaysian state of Sabah remains an irritant between the two countries. The Sultanate of Sulu originally obtained Sabah from Brunei as a gift for helping put down a rebellion on Borneo Island.
The Sultanate of Sulu was a Muslim state that ruled over much of the islands off the Sulu Sea. It stretches from a part of the island of Mindanao in the east, to North Borneo, now known as Sabah, in the west and south, and to Palawan, in the north. The Sultanate of Sulu was founded in 1457 and is believed to exist as a sovereign nation for at least 442 years. (Mindanao Examiner)
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