Bayan Belittles Blair Role in Philippines Peace Process
“Bush’s partner in war no peace advocate”
The Bagong Alyansang Makabayan today slammed former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, saying that he was unfit for the role of adviser in the peace process with Moro rebels.
“Blair is a co-architect of the Iraq war, along with US president George W. Bush. Blair spread the lie that there were weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. He pushed for sending British troops to aid the unjust invasion and occupation of a sovereign state. What’s worse, to this day, he remains unrepentant for his role in the Iraq conflict,” said Bayan secretary general Renato M. Reyes, Jr.
“It is strange that the Arroyo government has made a big deal of getting Blair to join the peace process. Is it merely out of a desire for another photo op with a former head of state? ,” he asked.
Bayan said that having a foreign adviser is not key to the peace process in Mindanao.
“We don’t think Blair’s so-called ‘charm’ will be a key factor in bringing about peace in Mindanao. That would simply be underestimating the real cause of the conflict. Those engaged in the peace process, including the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, should approach this issue carefully,” Reyes said.
The umbrella group said that the main stumbling blocks to peace in Mindanao is the Arroyo government’s refusal to recognize the Moro people’s right to self-determination as well as the regime’s “penchant for using the Moro issue for its selfish political ends.”
Bayan cited the Memorandum of Agreement on Ancestral Domain which it said was “hi-jacked by the Arroyo regime for the goals of charter change.”
“So long as the peace process is held hostage by the political maneuverings of Malacanang, and so long as the root causes of the conflict remain, there can be no real peace. They can put in a hundred foreign advisers and the armed conflict will not go away,” Reyes said.
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