BAUKO, Mountain Province– Presidential Peace Adviser Carlito Galvez, Jr. urged the concerned stakeholders and elders of feuding tribes to continue consultations and dialogues with each other to be able to find ways on how to agree on settling the long standing dispute for the realization of lasting peace in the region.
Galvez lauded the ongoing efforts of Gov. Bonifacio C. Lacwasan, Jr. and Kalinga Gov. JAMES Edduba for initiating the conduct of continuous dialogues among elders of the feuding tribes of Betwagan in Sadanga, Mountain province and Butbut in Tinglayan, Kalinga with the purpose of trying to make the tribes in settling their boundary dispute to be able to move on from there in the future.
The Secretary of the office of the Presidential Adviser on Peace, Reconciliation and Unity (OPAPRU) invited both the governors of Mountain province and Kalinga to a consultation for them to discuss future undertakings on how to convince the elders of the feuding tribes to settle the conflict that have caused the stagnation of growth and development in the said communities.
He assured that the OPAPRU will provide the appropriate support to Kalinga and mountain province to implement socio-economic development projects and interventions that will lead to the realization of rural development in the rural areas in the identified conflict areas around the region.
According to him, the conduct of continuous dialogues among local leaders that will be cascaded on the ground will help in allowing the members of the feuding tribes to reach an agreement to settle the long standing dispute because they have been made fully aware of the issues and concerns that need to be appropriately addressed.
Earlier, several dialogues initiated by concerned local governments involving elders of the feuding tribes had been conducted over the past several months but no concrete agreement was reached as each party insisted their respective positions on the boundary dispute that resulted to a stalemate during the said activities.
Some observers described the inability of the tribes to come to terms in settling the said dispute as a matter of pride of the two tribes because they refuse to adhere to earlier recommendations on how to settle the same for the sake of lasting peace not only in the said provinces but also in the entire region.
The Betwagan and Butbut tribal war had been existing for more than two decades that have resulted in the loss of some lives and damages to properties on both sides.
The said dispute is the only remaining inter-tribal conflict involving tribes from different provinces in the region that is being settled by concerned provincial officials and tribal elders to help bring back law and order in the countryside.
Peace advocates earlier proposed that there should be only one police detachment that will be established in the disputed areas to avoid conclusions from both sides on favoritism from the law enforcement agencies for siding with either of the involved tribes in the said conflict.
