Students start campaign against Mindanao war; say Arroyo to blame for
the escalation of conflict

August 27, 2008
News Release

Student groups led by the League of Filipino Students (LFS) today
kicked-off campus campaigns against the escalation of the war conflict
in Mindanao, the blame for which, they placed at the Arroyo
government.

According to the LFS, the massive information campaign, which they
will launch in major campuses all over the country, aims to “expose
the US-Arroyo regime’s blood-stained hands” in relation to the current
conflict and to educate the youth and students regarding the
“prospects of genuine peace in Mindanao.”

“As the government and the military forces barrage the people with
anti-MILF war propaganda, we must remember how all these came about
and must look into the main issues at hand. The conflict was
instigated and masterminded by Arroyo and her gang of warmongerers by
dangling a MOA, which, while containing some provisions granting the
Bangsamoro right to self-determination, was set-up and was calculated
to fail,” said Vencer Crisostomo, LFS national chairperson.

Crisostomo said that it is the Arroyo government which should
primarily be made liable for the deaths of more than 50 civilains and
the displacement of around 400,000 people.

“Arroyo toyed with an extremely sensitive and volatile peace process
for her own selfish ends. She opportunistically used the talks as
pretext for term extension and charter change, as well as to deflect
the issues of economic hardships and rising prices being blamed at her
refusal to lift the VAT. Now, her government, with right-wing generals
at the helm, is stoking the conflict further with its recent
pronouncements,” said Crisostomo.

He explained that while the rogue MILF soldiers and commanders should
be held responsible for their acts, this should be done by the
mechanisms agreed upon by both sides in the peace talks, and not by
conducting military offensives.

“The government, surely, is aware of these mechanisms. And they know
very well that the MILF leadership will not surrender their
commanders. However, it is using the so-called pursuit operations as
false pretext to push for more military offensives,” he said.

The LFS called on the government and the military to halt its
offensives in Mindanao, and show sincerity in efforts to resume the
peace process.

“The problem is that, the government, to begin with, has never been
sincere in talking peace. It is only interested in using the talks for
deception and for the surrender of the other side, which is not a very
good framework if it genuinely wants to address the roots of the armed
conflict,” said Crisostomo.

Student groups are planning to hold big mass actions and gatherings
against “Arroyo’s War and Cha-cha” and called for a Nationwide March
on Sept 12, 2008. #

Reference: Vencer Crisostomo, 09228262606