EU role in Mindanao pure civilan operation — envoy By Michaela P. del Callar 05/25/2010

EU role in Mindanao pure civilan operation — envoy

By Michaela P. del Callar 05/25/2010 European Union’s top diplomat to the Philippines has clarified that the EU will not send troops to the Malaysian-led International Monitoring Team, which currently oversees the ongoing peace process in strife-torn Mindanao. In an interview, EU Ambassador Alistair MacDonald said the Union will only deploy civilian humanitarian experts to the team since its participation is limited to providing assistance in humanitarian, rehabilitation and development aspects of the IMT. “We will not be sending troops. We will not be providing uniformed personnel. It will be a civilian operation. We would have civilians initially probably a small number, perhaps two civilian experts in humanitarian needs,” MacDonald said. The IMT, which oversees the ceasefire agreement between government troops and Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) fighters, is composed of Malaysia, Brunei, Libya, Japan and Norway. It has also been credited for significantly reducing clashes between the military and the Muslim rebels in the country’s volatile Mindanao region. The EU accepted the invitation of the Philippine government and the MILF for them to be a member of the IMT last week. MacDonald said the EU accepted the invitation because it “attaches great importance to helping promote peace and development in Mindanao, and has long been active in providing both development and humanitarian assistance in the conflict-affected areas.”... MORE   Source:  The Daily Tribune URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/headlines/20100525hed6.html

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