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Manila: Former leaders of the Irish Republican Army (IRA) are due to visit the Philippines later this year to provide inputs on how to resolve the separatist conflict in the South.
British Ambassador to Manila Peter Beckingham said former IRA heads and leaders of the Loyalist movement in Ireland will be on hand to share background advise to government negotiators as well as those of the Southern Philippine-based secessionist group Moro Islamic Liberation Front (Milf).
"The visit of former IRA leaders and Loyalists is part of our modest contribution to help the Philippine government in dealing with the peace process in Mindanao in the form of background advise and reforms instituted to achieve peace in Ireland," said Beckingham in an interview in his residence in Forbes Park district in Makati City.
The IRA and the Loyalist group played key roles in ending more than three decades of secessionist violence in Ireland.
In the same breath, Beckingham however said the visit of the IRA leaders later this year is not aimed at giving the impression that Britain has a key role in seeking a peace agreement with the Milf.
High-level talks
He said the matter had been discussed by President Gloria Arroyo in her meeting in London with former British prime minister Tony Blair who raised the proposal late last year.
The IRA declared an indefinite ceasefire in 1997.
2005 the group announced that it would end its 30 years of armed campaign and decommissioned all its arms in September that year.
The British envoy meanwhile expressed optimism that there will be a signing of the peace agreement between the Philippine government and the Milf within the year. The two parties have agreed to sign the draft agreement on the provision of the ancestral domain during the ongoing peace negotiations being hosted by the Malaysian government in Kuala Lumpur
Beckingham also said Britain and the rest of the EU members will continue to provide support for the peace process in Mindanao through economic development assistance.
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