DAVAO CITY (Mindanao Examiner) – Philippine President Benigno Aquino remains committed to the peace talks with Muslim rebels in the southern island of Mindanao, his chief peace negotiator said.
Marvic Leonen said: “President Benigno Aquino is sincere about the peace talks and he has no other agenda except to bring a just and lasting solution to the armed conflict in Mindanao.”
Leonen made the statement during a meeting Friday with the business sector in Davao City. He praised business groups for its support to the peace process in Mindanao.
He was the guest speaker in a forum dubbed “Engaging Business in the Peace Process” spearheaded by the Mindanao Business Council and the Davao City Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Inc.
The event was also supported by The Asia Foundation and participated by key business organizations and private corporations from regions all over Mindanao, including the Muslim Business Forum, Inc. and the Mindanao Tourism Council.
Leonen said that the government is fully aware that many groups and voices besides the MILF are working towards the same aspirations for peace in southern Philippines.
“We are therefore vocal in saying that negotiations and all outputs should be inclusive and that all parties should be accommodated within that aspiration,” he said.
Peace talks between Manila and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front are set to resume on Monday in Malaysia, which is brokering the negotiations.
“We are cautiously optimistic that we will be able to bring about a peace agreement soon enough – hopefully within this year, but as government negotiator I can only promise our aspirations within the government panel,” Leonen said.
“We are all in this together; we believe that this is a national issue and not a local one, for the sooner we realize this peace, the better for our country,” he added.
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