200 Pinoys in Sabah, some armed, urged to leave peacefully — DFA

The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said the Malaysian government has urged some 200 Filipinos, some of whom were reportedly armed, to leave Lahad Datu village in the eastern Malaysian state of Sabah peacefully. In a news release on Friday, the DFA said the Malaysian government is negotiating with these Filipinos who have identified themselves as the "royal army" of the Sultanate of Sulu in Mindanao. The news about the negotiations was relayed by Malaysian Foreign Minister Anifah Aman to Philippine Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert F. del Rosario on Friday morning. Malaysian officials earlier suspected the intruders to be members of a Moro rebel group, but Philippine officials said they were unarmed Filipinos who had been promised land. The drama on Borneo island has threatened to stir tension between the Southeast Asian neighbors whose ties have been periodically frayed by security and migration problems caused by a porous sea border. Not sanctioned by PHL govt The DFA said the chiefs-of-staff of both countries have clarified that the "activity of this Filipino group was not sanctioned by the Philippine government." Del Rosario sought the assurance of the Malaysian authorities "to ensure that the rights of those Filipinos, who are permanent residents in Sabah and who may be among the group, are respected," the DFA said. The agency likewise urged the Filipinos involved in the standoff in Sabah "to return to their homes and families." "Philippine military and police authorities are exchanging information and closely consulting with their Malaysian counterparts in efforts towards an immediate resolution to this incident," the DFA said. It added that patrol teams have been increased and security measures have been put in place in waters off Tawi-Tawi and adjoining islands. Malaysia pays a token amount to the Sultanate of Sulu each year for the "rental" of Sabah state - an arrangement that stretches back to British colonial times. Illegal Muslim immigrants According to a report from Reuters news agency on Thursday, the number of illegal Muslim immigrants from Mindanao has surged in recent decades. This has triggered social tensions between the Muslims and the indigenous Christian inhabitants in Sabah, the report noted. In 2000, a group of militants from the southern Philippines kidnapped 21 tourists from the Sabah diving resort of Sipadan. In 1985, 11 people were killed when gunmen believed to be from Mindanao entered Lahad Datu in Sabah, shooting at random before robbing the local branch of Standard Chartered Bank. - VVP, GMA News