BANGSAMORO NEWS UPDATES

ZAMBOANGA CITY –
Relief workers in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) are on its way to Basilan today forrelief operations to families displaced by recent floods in Lamitan City
and armed hostilities in Basilan and Sulu.

Myrna Jo
Henry, speaking for ARMM’s Humanitarian Emergency Action Response Team (HEART),
said the relief providers are now on its way to Lamitan City to assist some 2,000 families
affected by floods due to flash floods.

COTABATO CITY --In recognition of the multi-sectoral character of the Bangsamoro’s collective struggle for self-determination, a diverse lineup of guests has been invited to this year’s opening ceremony for the Bangsamoro Week of Peace to be held at the facade of the ORG Building on Monday, March 13. Our annual week ofpeacein the regionisa time for us to remember the sacrifices and victories we share as Bangsamoros, ARMM Regional Governor Mujiv Hataman said.The theme for this years Bangsamoro Week of Peace is Bangsamoroand Revisiting the Past, Continuing the Cause.

CAMP
DARAPANAN, Maguindanao --– They used to belong to separate sides of the
government peace process in Mindanao in late 2000. They used to trade barbs on air, raising
different stance on the peace process and the development of Mindanao.

But former
North Cotabato Gov. Emmanuel Pinol, now President Duterte’s secretary of agriculture,
stepped into the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) camp, not to continue
disagreements over peace issues but how to improve farmers’ lives, especially
among MILF families long neglected by the government.

UPI, Maguindanao - School children of Bongbong Elementary
School in far-flung Barangay Ganasi in Upi, Maguindanao wore smiles on their
faces as they each received a school kit and an essential care kit from the
Center for Advocacy Research and Education for Mindanao (CARE for Mindanao) on
Saturday.

MARAWI CITY --- Elected officials in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) on Thursday called un-Islamic the beheading of German nationalJuergen Gustav Kantnerby Abu Sayyaf terrorists. Nowhere in the Qur’an can one find a teaching espousing beheading of helpless captives regardless of races and religions, said ARMM Gov.

COTABATO CITY -- Flags inside the capitol here of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) are at half-mast in honor of a renowned Moro leader who died Tuesday night after serving the local communities for almost six decades.The erstwhile Maguindanao Rep.

On behalf of the Autonomous Regional Government, I offer my deepest condolences on the passing of a great statesman, public servant and lawmaker, the Hon. Simeon Ampatuan Datumanong. The whole Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao has lost a great leader. Hon. Simeon Datumanong embodied the high ideals of an honest politician, a patriot who believed in the Bangsamoro cause to which he devoted his life. He will forever stay in the hearts of the people of the ARMM in general and Maguindanao in particular as a deeply respected and loved leader.

PIGCAWAYAN, North Cotabato -- You gave us a tree and you taught us how to nurture
it to bear more fruits. This is how Lengan Bitali, president of Cabpangi
Integrated Farmers Association of Barangay Cabpangi, Pigcawayan, North Cotabato
described his feelings for the project they received from
Bangsamoro Development Agency (BDA) through the Bangsamoro Assistance for
Development and Community Empowerment (Bangsamoro ADVANCE) component of the
Mindanao Trust Fund Reconstruction and Development Program (MTFRDP).

DAVAO CITY (Feb25) --- Officials of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao want Malacañang and the Moro fronts to replace ARMM with a more empowered outfit before their terms end on June 30, 2019.Gov. Mujiv Hataman, now in his second term as ARMM’s chief executive, on Saturday said he had urged members of the expanded Bangsamoro Transition Commission (BTC), launched here Friday, to establish before the 2019 elections an entity to replace the present autonomous regional government.

DATU SALIBO, Maguindanao -- My wish is for my children to be able to finish school and that we would have rice to eat, says Lilang.Lilang, 35, lives in a small dilapidated shack raised three feet above the waters of the Liguasan Marsh in the Province of Maguindanao. We have been living here in the evacuation area for two years already. We had to leave our own home because government forces and the BIFF (Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters) often had armed encounters, Lilang explains.