Land conflict triggered MILF guerillas to occupy village

TACURONG CITY, Sultan Kudarat -- Due to a long standing land conflict, some guerillas belonging to the Moro Islamic Liberation Front occupied a village in Kalamansig, Sultan Kudarat earlier in the week.

But Akmad Usman Moro, also known as Boyet, a field commander of the MILF, agreed to pull out his 300 followers from Barangay Sangay on Thursday after a meeting with a mediation team organized by the Sultan Kudarat provincial government. As soon as the rebels had withdrawn, some 200 families displaced by the takeover immediately returned to the village.

During the mediation, Moro claimed that the land being occupied and tilled by Sangay residents belonged to their forefathers.

"It's all about land conflict. He (Moro) is claiming that the land is owned by their forefathers," Kalamansig Mayor Rolando Garcia said.

Garcia said the mediation team asked Moro's group to back up their claim by presenting the necessary documents. He also said the residents possessed titles to the lands.