Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao executive secretary Abdulraof Macacua, concurrent chief of staff of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front-Bangsamoro Islamic Armed Forces. (Photo courtesy of BPI-BARMM)
COTABATO CITY – The Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao has condemned Saturday’s killing of nine Moro individuals in Kabacan, North Cotabato, and announced that it will conduct a parallel investigation on the incident.
In an official statement on Sunday, the BARMM leadership stated that such senseless violent acts have no place in a progressive society, especially at a time when people are in the grip of a pandemic.
"Although the unfortunate incident happened outside of our area of jurisdiction, all of the victims identified were Bangsamoros," the statement said.
BARMM said it will conduct a separate investigation on the incident to give justice to the victims.
"The BARMM would like to inform the provincial government of North Cotabato and the municipal government of Kabacan that we are ready to cooperate to get into the bottom of this ruthless killing," it said.
Meanwhile, the Moro Islamic Liberation Front's (MILF) Bangsamoro Islamic Armed Forces (BIAF) also denounced the killing, describing it as tragic.
In a separate statement, BARMM executive secretary Abdulraof Macacua, concurrent BIAF chief of staff, said the BIAF is mourning and condemning the massacre of defenseless Muslims using high-powered firearms in broad daylight.
"This again reminds us of the dark period in our not so recent past, when the Bangsamoro people were besieged and beleaguered in their very own ancestral homeland,” Macacua said.
Despite this, he said they will continuously abide by the peace process under the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro.
Macacua said the BIAF will ask the National Bureau of Investigation to conduct a thorough and impartial investigation on the tragic incident and bring the perpetrators to justice.
"BIAF is also hoping that the pursuit operation, if any, of the Philippine National Police will yield some positive result that can contribute to the speedy and just resolution of the case," he said.
At least 8,000 members of the BIAF were decommissioned in 2019 under the MILF-led BARMM region.
The decommissioning figure is targeted to reach a total of 12,000 for this year. (PNA)
