MANILA, Philippines The government on Wednesday remained steadfast on its demand for the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) to turn over two of its field commanders blamed for the recent atrocities in central Mindanao.
In a telephone interview with reporters, Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro said the best thing for the MILF leadership is to surrender these people" so that the government can prosecute them.
"Now whether or not they surrender these people, we are in the process of apprehending them and we will not stop whether or not they do that, law enforcement operations against these people will not stop," Teodoro said.
Teodoro was referring to Commander Ameril Umbra Kato, head of the 105th Base Command; and Abdurahman Macapaar alias Commander Bravo, chief of the 102nd Base Command.
On Tuesday night, the government raised a P5-million reward each for any information leading to their arrest.
Earlier in the day, the MILF said it would be surrendering both Bravo and Kato, insisting that the two would be dealt with only within their organization.
Katos group was blamed for illegally occupying villages in North Cotabato. He was reportedly wounded following an ambush by unidentified armed men in Shariff Kabunsuan Tuesday afternoon.
On the other hand, Bravos unit is deemed responsible for Mondays attacks in Lanao del Norte and Sarangani provinces which left over 30 people dead, including an Army officer.
Police have already filed a number of criminal complaints against Kato and his men while charges are still being prepared against Bravo.
Teodoro noted that since the MILF seems to be caught between trying to save face and pursuing the peace negotiations, "the best thing to do for them is to surrender these people so we can prosecute them."
He stressed that there is no justification to the attacks which he said "could qualify as terrorist acts."
"(The attacks) could qualify as terrorist act. However, as we stated earlier, the use of the Human Security Act is a different legal proceeding and a separate legal proceeding in itself."
"Right now, we are busy collating evidence for common criminal crimes and we dont want to divert attention by special procedures under the Human Security Act in order to make a case out of terrorism, (maybe) after, perhaps," Teodoro said. - GMANews.TV