Details

The Philippine Council for Islam and Democracy (PCID) conducted a Roundtable Discussion on "The Prospects for Peace in Mindanao Amidst the Global War on Terror" on December 27, 2004 at the Sulo Hotel, Quezon City. The roundtable was intended to: (1) generate an assessment of the current situation in Mindanao from the point of view of Muslims and, (2) elicit our analysis and recommendations on the policies on terrorism and its likely effect on the peace process.

The PCID is a non-partisan, non-governmental organization dedicated to the study of Islamic and democratic political thought and the search for peaceful solution to the conflict affecting the Muslim communities of Mindanao. The PCID has successfully organized a series of fora on issues relevant to democratization in the Muslim communities of Mindanao, with the support of the Konrad Adenauer Foundation.

40 Muslim leaders representing government, private sector, civil society, academe and the religious sector participated including former Senator Santanina T. Rasul; Congressman Gerry Salapuddin, Deputy Speaker of the Philippine House of Representatives; ARMM Senior Superintendent Ikbala, head of the ARMM Regional Security Force; Dr. Abas Candao, Chair of the Bangsamoro Development Authority; Dr. Camar Umpa, President of the Mindanao State University;

Congressman Gerry Salapuddin, warned about the dangers of confusing “freedom fighters” with terrorists, especially since there is no clearcut definition of what terrorism is. While he opined that the US policies on terrorism can easily be construed as anti-Muslim, he also focused on the blame Muslim leaders should shoulder. “They have failed to deliver, to serve their people. Some of them are supported by the US, thus the US also gets the ire of their people”. Congressman Salapuddin urged the PCID and the Muslim leaders present to “awaken to the realities of the war” and to formulate policy recommendations which can be addressed to the US government through their Embassy as well as to the Philippine Government.

The participants provided frank and insightful assessments of both the war on terrorism as well as its impact on the peace process. Recommendations on more effective ways of combating terrorism were discussed. The participants were unanimous in their assessment that military approaches alone will prove to be counterproductive. Some of the recommendations include:

·Increase the capacity of the ARMM government to deliver public services.

·PCID should strengthen its activities to create a vocal network which will provide progressive leaders and so-called moderate Muslims with resources and opportunities to engage policy makers and provide alternatives to extremist movements.

·Support Muslim civil society, with a focus on the women sector, to become a partner in peace and development work, participate in the political process and engage in democratization processes.

·Strengthen the educational system, especially the madaris or Islamic schools, to provide marketable skills for the youth.