| US will not withdraw aid in Mindanao despite violence: envoy |
| source : abs-cbnnews.com |
| Tuesday, 19 August 2008 23:37 |
|
Ambassador Kristie Kenney said she remained hopeful the government and the separatist Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) would be able to return to the negotiating table and settle the 30-year-old dispute. "The important thing for all of the Philippines is to find the right framework for lasting peace in Mindanao," she told reporters a day after heavy clashes there left scores dead. "And I'm hopeful that that would be the focus and the violence that is currently destroying lives and property and taking away the prospect of peace and prosperity would go away," she said. She said the US and the Philippines were "friends for life" when asked if Washington would freeze assistance in the wake of the attacks. "We're not going to walk away just because there have been a few bad days," Kenney said. The Philippines has been designated a non-NATO military ally of Washington, and small numbers of US forces have been assisting local troops in southern Mindanao island against Al-Qaeda linked militants. The Philippines receives military assistance from the US government as Manila modernizes its armed forces, considered one of the weakest and the most ill-equipped in the region. The US Agency for International Development (USAID) meanwhile has injected a total of 292 million dollars into Mindanao from 1996 to 2006, officials have said. Further economic and military aid amounting to some 25 million dollars for the year is tied to the peace process between the MILF and the government. The MILF signed a ceasefire pact with Manila in 2003, but the peace talks are now in danger of collapsing after rebel forces laid siege to Christian towns on Monday, killing 38 people. Early this month the Supreme Court stopped the government from signing a deal that would have expanded a Muslim autonomous region to be controlled by the MILF. Disgruntled rebel commanders responded by carrying out the attacks. |
| Last Updated ( Tuesday, 19 August 2008 23:46 ) |
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Foreign Relations US will not withdraw aid in Mindanao despite violence: envoy
Foreign Relations US will not withdraw aid in Mindanao despite violence: envoy
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