Excellencies, the representatives of the OIC Committee of the Eight and the General Secretariat;
His Excellency Sayed Kassem El-Masry, Adviser to the Secretary General;
Secretary Jesus Dureza;
Ambassador Adam Salem, His Excellency the Dean of the Diplomatic Corps;
Colleagues in Government;
Friends:

I am happy to welcome to the Philippines and to the Department of Foreign Affairs the representatives of the Organization of the Islamic Conference's Committee of the Eight and the OIC General Secretariat on their visit to the Philippines.

I thank each one of you. I thank the OIC, the members of the Committee of the Eight and Secretary General Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu for accepting our invitation to visit Mindanao.

Ten years ago, guided by our faith – and bolstered by our trust, confidence and respect for each other – we planted the seeds of peace and progress in the Southern Philippines.

With the abiding support of the OIC, the members of the Committee of the Eight, and our partners in the region, we signed in 1996 the historic peace agreement with the Moro National Liberation Front.

Since then, we have seen those seeds take root in the Southern Philippines and grow on fertile ground. With the continuing assistance and support of our vital and active partners such as the OIC, we are confident of seeing Mindanao fully transformed from a land of promise to a land of fulfillment.

Your visit to Mindanao is an important opportunity to see how far we have gone together in our journey towards peace and progress through the implementation of Phase 2 of the GRP-MNLF Peace Agreement.

And we are showing significant signs of progress towards that direction.

Hostilities between the GRP and the MNLF have ceased. The guns of war between both sides have been silenced. Peoples of different faiths are talking to each other and seeing eye to eye. And the clear and convincing sounds of community building fill the air.

The Philippine Government is committed to further consolidate the gains of our peacebuilding efforts.

Our two-pronged approach of peace and development for all of Mindanao's stakeholders rest firmly on the broadening of development and democratic spaces to include, among others: improved human security conditions; better environmental management and protection; and, wider support, participation and representation in governance.

The GRP and the MNLF are engaged deeply to achieve these ends. With closer coordination and cooperation between the signatories, the OIC and the Committee of the Eight, we look forward to making greater strides towards an even higher plane.

And beyond the implementation of Phase 2 of the GRP-MNLF Peace Agreement, we look forward too to the conclusion within the year of a peace accord with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF).

While this may be a distinct peace process, it nevertheless remains a vital component of our comprehensive and holistic approach towards strengthening peace and spurring and sustaining growth in the Southern Philippines.

My brothers and friends: Your visit to Mindanao provides renewed impetus to the momentum of peace and development in that region.

Together with the OIC and our partners in the community of nations, we will continue to do more for peace, for all Muslim Filipinos, and for all of Mindanao's stakeholders.

We have nurtured the seeds of peace and progress in the Southern Philippines. We have witnessed these seeds grow and bear fruit.

Our task at hand is to gather from these same fruits the seeds from which other trees of peace shall grow and flourish, in Mindanao and beyond.

By doing so, we secure the blessings of prosperity and growth for the peoples of the Southern Philippines, for ourselves, for the Islamic Ummah and for humanity in all its rich diversity.

I wish you a most productive visit and a pleasant stay in my country. Now, may I call on Secretary Jesus Dureza for his presentation.  END