MILF fighters turn over 75 firearms

By Ferdinandh B. Cabrera

President Benigno Aquino III and other officials witnessed the June 16 turnover of the 75 firearms and the decommissioning of 145 MILF members as mandated by the Annex on Normalization of the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro.

Dubbed as a “Ceremonial Turnover of Weapons and Decommissioning of the MILF Combatants,” the activity was held at the old capitol complex in the village of Simuay, Sultan Kudarat, Maguindanao.

The MILF combatants assembled as early as 6 a.m. Tuesday in Camp Darapanan that houses the MILF headquarters in Sultan Kudarat town. They were transported around 6:30 a.m. together with the weapons to the old capitol complex.

The decommissioning process commenced around 7 a.m. and included the registration of weapons and ammunition, the registration and verification of combatants, and the storage of weapons and ammunition.

President Benigno Aquino III was joined by Secretary Teresita Quintos-Deles of the Office of Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process, chief government negotiator Professor Miriam Coronel-Ferrer, MILF chair Al Haj Murad Ebrahim, and MILF peace panel chair Mohagher Iqbal.

The Independent Decommissioning Body (IDB) oversaw the ceremony. It was organized by the government with the support of the MILF and its international peace partners to ensure the integrity of the decommissioning process. It is headed by Haydar Berk, former ambassador of Turkey to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.