COTABATO CITY (MindaNews/20 February) — The Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) has filed a formal complaint before the ceasefire committee of the government and MILF peace panels for the death of one of its commanders Monday, February 17, in Barangay Madidis, Datu Paglas, Maguindanao.
MILF spokesperson Von Al Haq said they have informed their counterparts in the government panel that police operatives violated the truce by targeting Yusoph Kusain a.k.a. Commander TMX.
“There was no coordination. After all the target is not a notorious criminal, he is a bona fide member of MILF, a farmer in the said town. He is not what they think he is,” Al haq said.
But police regional director Supt. Noel Delos Reyes said the police operation was legitimate and did not violate any rules of engagement.
He said the police came to Kusain’s house to serve a warrant of arrest.
Kusain reportedly resisted using his M-16 rifle when members of the Maguindanao police, Special Action Force, Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission and Special Project Mindanao-Khalifa Islamiya came to arrest him.
Two policemen were wounded during the clash, and a still unconfirmed report said one of them had died.
Other reports alleged Kusain was involved in some bombings and extortion activities in the region.
Senior Supt. Rodelio Jocson, Maguindanao police director, said Kusain was charged with multiple murder and murder.
But Al Haq denied all of the accusations against Kusain, saying the slain suspect had a clean record in the organization and had no hand in any atrocity.
He insisted the operation violated the ceasefire agreement with government which requires that any operation against criminal elements in MILF areas shall be done through the Ad-Hoc Joint Action Group (AHJAG), a joint team.
He said the MILF was not informed of the operation and of the charges against Kusain.
The AHJAG operates “in tandem with their respective Coordinating Committees on the Cessation of Hostilities.”
De los Reyes said the operation took place in Kusain’s residence not in any MILF community.
The AHJAG’s term was supposed to end on Feb. 14 this year, but it was extended to Feb. 14, 2015.
The decision to reinstate AHJAG came on Feb. 26, a day after both peace panels signed the last of the four Annexes to the Framework Agreement on the Bangsamoro.
In another development, the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process (OPAPP) announced a new batch of peace monitors under the International Monitoring Team (IMT) will arrive next month.
In a statement, OPAPP said the IMT Mission 9 will replace the current group whose mandate will end on March 12, 2014.
The IMT is tasked to monitor the ceasefire, civilian protection component, rehabilitation and development, and socio-economic agreements between the government and the MILF. Its current term expires in March this year, but it was also extended until March 2015.
“Both parties also agreed to merge IMT sites 4 and 5. Site 4 in General Santos City covers the areas of Sultan Kudarat, South Cotabato, Sarangani and Davao del Sur, while Site 5 in Davao City operates across Davao del Norte, Davao Oriental and Compostela Valley,” OPAPP said.
“The GPH and MILF also agreed to reduce the number of IMT members to 36 monitors. There will be 14 monitors from Malaysia, nine each from Brunei and Indonesia, and two each from Japan and Norway,” it added. (Ferdinandh Cabrera, with a report from H. Marcos C. Mordeno/MindaNews)