{"id":267100,"date":"2020-08-31T02:30:31","date_gmt":"2020-08-31T06:30:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/?p=267100"},"modified":"2020-08-31T02:30:31","modified_gmt":"2020-08-31T06:30:31","slug":"fighting-best-option-for-now-to-achieve-peace-in-mindanao-prrd","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/2020\/08\/31\/fighting-best-option-for-now-to-achieve-peace-in-mindanao-prrd\/","title":{"rendered":"Fighting best option for now to achieve peace in Mindanao: PRRD"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a>
President Rodrigo Roa Duterte leads the candle-lighting and the offering of flowers at the blast site at Barangay Walled City in Jolo, Sulu on August 30, 2020. ACE MORANDANTE\/PRESIDENTIAL PHOTO<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

MANILA<\/strong>\u00a0\u2013 President Rodrigo Duterte admitted that addressing the long-running conflict in Mindanao remains an \u201cimpossible dream\u201d, saying that fighting seemed to be the best option to pave the way for peace for now.<\/p>\n

In a taped speech aired Monday, Duterte appeared before government troops to honor their comrades who have died in the twin blasts which rocked Jolo, Sulu last week, urging them to \u201cthink about peace\u201d even as they continue fighting against terrorists.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf we cannot really agree, then we fight and we fight hard\u00a0hanggang magkaubusan na<\/em>\u00a0(we finish everyone off). Maybe by that time,\u00a0kung ubos na ang lahat, wala ng giyera<\/em>\u00a0(when no one is left, there won\u2019t be war),\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

In the meantime, Duterte said the best option they had was to fight.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut if in the God\u2019s time, maybe \u2013\u00a0kailan \u2018yon<\/em>\u00a0(when is that)? \u2013 we will have a time to talk and to ponder about peace.\u201d<\/p>\n

He also vowed support for soldiers but at the same time admitted that it would be difficult to achieve lasting peace in Mindanao.<\/p>\n

\u201cMay dalawang taon pa ako, ewan ko kung ano ang magawa ko talaga.\u00a0<\/em>But you know when you are into fighting\u00a0may galit na \u2018yan. Mahirap ito aregluhin kasi lahat may sugat na sa puso<\/em>\u00a0(I have two years left, I don\u2019t know what I can really do. But you know when you’re into fighting there\u2019s really anger. It will be difficult to resolve because there\u2019s bitterness in their hearts),” he said.<\/p>\n

Duterte said it would \u201ctake more than a generation\u201d to solve the decades-long insurgency in Mindanao and expressed hope that future leaders would be able to achieve.<\/p>\n

\u201cI hope that anyone of my children would become a politician\u00a0maski barangay<\/em>\u00a0captain\u00a0lang<\/em>\u00a0(even if he is just a barangay captain) that he\u2019d be able also to do something about this problem of the Moro and the Christians,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Never be complacent<\/strong><\/p>\n

The twin bombings will only boost state forces\u2019 resolve to address terrorism in Mindanao, Duterte said.<\/p>\n

Duterte told government troops that the only way to honor the \u201cultimate sacrifice\u201d of their fallen comrades is to continue their fight against terrorism.<\/p>\n

He said troops should \u201cnever be complacent” when it comes to terrorism, even amid the prevailing coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe recent bombings that took the lives of several civilians including those of your fellow soldiers will only further strengthen our resolve to crush the lawless elements behind this cowardly act,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Duterte also noted that the safety and security of the nation should always remain uniformed personnel\u2019s top priority.<\/p>\n

\u201cRight now, our entire nation is dealing with the global health crisis yet enemies of the state will still find the energy to perpetuate the acts of violence and terrorism. Now more than ever our nation needs our Armed Forces to ensure that these terrorists will never succeed in their pointless goals,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

He recognized that the ongoing health crisis has made soldiers\u2019 responsibilities \u201cmore complicated\u201d, but also noted that their \u201cselflessness\u201d to serve the country and people remain strong.<\/p>\n

\u201cBecause of this, I am humbled by your commitment, inspired by your patriotism and grateful for a continued support,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

He also vowed to support the Armed Forces in addressing terrorism in Jolo, Sulu.<\/p>\n

\u201cBilang isang Pilipino ibibigay ko sa inyo ang lahat ng suporta na kailangan ninyo para matupad ang inyong misyon dito sa<\/em>\u00a0Jolo (As a Filipino, I will give all the support you need to complete your mission here in Jolo). I commit myself to work with you my dear troops to ensure that these terrorists will have no future in this country,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

He also lamented how Mindanao\u2019s progress has been hindered by the threat of insurgency and extremism.<\/p>\n

\u201cKung wala lang ho sana itong<\/em>\u00a0seed of hatred\u00a0na nakalagay sa isip<\/em>\u00a0from generation to generation\u00a0sana ngayon maganda na ang buhay para sa lahat<\/em>\u00a0(If this seed of hatred did not carry on from generation to generation, perhaps life would be better for everyone),\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

On Sunday afternoon, Duterte visited the blast site in Jolo, Sulu, and offered flowers in honor of the slain soldiers.<\/p>\n

He was also pictured kneeling and kissing the ground of the blast site to honor the soldiers, police officers, and others whose lives were \u201csnuffed out\u201d by the twin blasts.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

MANILA\u00a0\u2013 President Rodrigo Duterte admitted that addressing the long-running conflict in Mindanao remains an \u201cimpossible dream\u201d, saying that fighting seemed …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":33,"featured_media":267102,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1145,16,95,1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-267100","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-headline","category-news","category-news-ph","category-uncategorized","mauthors-azer-parrocha","mauthors-philippine-news-agency"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/267100","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/33"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=267100"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/267100\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":267104,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/267100\/revisions\/267104"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/267102"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=267100"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=267100"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=267100"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}