The President met with MILF Chairman Al Haj Murad

President Aquino left the country without fanfare last Thursday and held a secret meeting with the leader of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) in Japan in a bid to hasten the peace process in Mindanao.

The President met with MILF Chairman Al Haj Murad Ibrahim for two hours in a Tokyo hotel and obtained commitment to forge a peace agreement within his term, the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process (OPAPP) announced Friday.

But Professor Marvic Leonen, government peace panel chairman, said President did not meet with Murad in Japan in his capacity as head of state but as Commander-in-Chief to show the Aquino administration’s sincerity in forging a peace agreement with the MILF within his term.

Leonen, in a press briefing in Malacañang, said that the President’s trip was “unofficial,” adding that the government of Japan did not send the usual courtesies intended for a head of state but provided security for Aquino.

Leonen said the meeting two started at 8:30 p.m. Thursday and lasted for two hours, with the President addressing Al Haj Murad Ibrahim as “chairman” and Murad addressing Aquino as “Your Excellency.”

It was the first time a Philippine President met with the MILF leader since the peace talks started more than a decade ago.

Leonen said there is a “universe of possibilities” that the meeting may be repeated. He, however, stressed that there are no plans yet for a second meeting.

“This is a bold step, thinking out of the box,” Leonen said.

Aquino, who skipped some of his private meetings in the Palace last Thursday for his flight to Japan, rushed back to Manila and resumed his public engagements Friday.

Leonen said the meeting was “cordial but consisted of a frank and candid exchange of their views about the frames of the continuing peace talks and some possible approaches that the parties can take to bring about a peaceful settlement.”

“Both agreed that the implementation of any agreement should happen within the current administration. Both agreed to fast-track the negotiations,” Leonen said in a statement.

While the OPAPP confirmed the meeting, Malacañang kept mum about the President’s clandestine meeting with the MILF leader in Tokyo. All of the President’s spokesmen refused to comment on the matter.

Among members of the President’s delegation to Japan were Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process Teresita Quintos-Deles, Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin, National Security Adviser Cesar Garcia, Budget and
Management Secretary Florencio Abad, Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima, Presidential Spokesperson Edwin Lacierda, and Leonen.

Accompanying Murad were some members of the MILF Central Committee, Peace Panel, and base commanders.

Leonen said it was the President who sought the meeting with Murad before the government was set to submit its agenda for the peace talks.

“The MILF viewed the offer as a grand gesture on the part of the government,” Leonen said.

It was unclear why the President kept under wraps his meeting with Murad or if he intends to make a similar gesture with the leader of the local communist group.

The President’s trip to Japan was not part of his official engagements last Thursday. His schedule consisted mostly of private meetings in the Palace, including a meeting with officials involved with the peace process in Mindanao.