Manila's military chief expects to be freed Sunday
Source: Reuters
(Recasts with possible Sunday release) By Carmel Crimmins MANILA, Feb 3 (Reuters) - Manila's military chief says he expects Muslim separatists to release him, a senior government official and more than 20 soldiers from their camp on a remote southern island on Sunday. Asked by reporters via mobile phone text message on Saturday if he would be allowed to return to the capital, Brigadier-General Ben Dolorfino said: "Yes, another night." Habier Malik, a commander with the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF), has refused to let Dolorfino and Ramon Santos, the head of the government's truce panel, leave the camp, near Panamao town on Jolo island, 600 miles (950 km) south of Manila, since Friday. Dolorfino, a Muslim convert, and Santos had flown in for talks about a shaky 1996 peace agreement with the MNLF. Malik had told local television he had merely extended "an invitation" to officials to stay longer to discuss problems with the peace deal, which most Muslims argue has not been properly implemented by the largely Catholic government in Manila. Dolorfino said Malik was waiting for written confirmation that a meeting on the 1996 agreement would take place in Saudi Arabia between the government, the MNLF and the Muslim world's largest grouping, the Organisation of the Islamic Conference (OIC). "It appears that Malik would agree on proposed March 14 date. He just wants a black and white copy," Dolorfino told reporters. Dolorfino, a former deputy commander of the Philippines' southern forces, earlier denied that the MNLF was seeking the release of their jailed founder Nur Misuari to attend the proposed meeting in Jeddah. "They understand this is part of the judicial system, so it was not mentioned." DISILLUSIONMENT The Philippines is a largely Catholic country but has a sizeable Muslim minority in the south, where a decades-old conflict between Islamic separatists and government troops has killed over 120,000 people. The MNLF is the oldest of four Muslim rebel groups in the Philippines. Disillusionment with the implementation of the 1996 peace deal has encouraged some members to defect to other groups such as the Abu Sayyaf and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front. The 57-member OIC, which helped broker peace between Manila and the MNLF, had originally scheduled a meeting last year and then later this month on how to salvage the agreement. It was not clear why a new date in March had been proposed. The OIC has said it would like Misuari to attend the meeting. The former university professor was jailed in 2002 for rebellion after a breakdown in relations with the government. Recently, Manila has shown more leniency towards Misuari, still a highly influential figure in the south, moving him last year to a villa in Manila. The capital was put on heightened alert on Saturday due to the situation on Jolo. Dolorfino, the highest-ranked Muslim in the armed forces, is also well-respected on Jolo, where he helped forge a ceasefire in 2005 between the MNLF and government troops. He regularly visits the poor island, where 7,000 troops, backed by U.S. advisers and equipment, have scored recent victories against the Abu Sayyaf and its regional ally Jemaah Islamiah. (Additional reporting by Manny Mogato)
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