Sultan Kudarat, Maguindanao-Four (4) members of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) were killed during a law enforcement operation in Barangay Ilian, Madamba, Lanao del Sur, on Thursday, April 4.
Luwaran was told that police failed to coordinate with the MILF despite knowing that the village is a recognized MILF controlled area.
Butch Malang, chair of the MILF panel in the Coordinating Committee on the Cessation of Hostilities (CCCH), said police did not inform his group about their operation at Barangay Ilian.
“There was no coordination with the CCCH and clearly this is a violation of the ceasefire agreement, Malang told the Inquirer in an interview. The clashes could have been prevented if there was coordination,” Malang added.
According to him, the village is an MILF-populated community, the Inquirer also said in its reeport.
The clashes occurred while a police team was serving warrants of arrest against several suspects in the murder of a village official.
Von Al Haq, spokesperson for the BIAF, said the government troops involved in the operation should have coordinated with the CCCH to prevent the clash.
As of this posting, the MILF had already filed a protest against the police for allegedly violating the ceasefire agreement signed between the GPH and the Moro Front.
Meanwhile, the Philippine Daily Inquirer said in its report yesterday that Presidential Peace Adviser Carlito Galvez Jr. described the incident as “an isolated case.”
Nevertheless, he appealed to government security forces to be prudent in conducting law enforcement operations in the new Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) to avoid jeopardizing the peace process in the South.