The Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) has urged the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and the United Nations to intervene and initiate negotiations between Kuala Lumpur and the sultanate of Sulu.

The MNLF also said Manila must be excluded from the negotiations, The Philippine Star reported today.

Reiterating that his clan was the true owner of Sabah and Sarawak, MNLF chairperson Nur Misuari urged Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak to stop sending more troops to Sabah and to "tone down your voice".

NONE MNLF Islamic Command Council chairperson Habib Mujahab Hashim told The Philippine Star that his group could serve as mediator between the sultanate's armed group and the Malaysian forces, which OIC members such as Brunei or Indonesia could mediate in behalf of the OIC.

Habib also urged the UN, through its committee on human rights and the International Committee of the Red Cross, to send representatives to Sabah to see the measures being carried out by Malaysian forces against Filipinos.

Misuari, who arrived in Davao City on Saturday night, called on Najib not to persecute Filipino civilians in Sabah as it would trigger more violence.

Claiming that his grandnephew is a relative of Najib, Misuari said the Sabah conflict could be resolved in a "brotherly way... in the best interests of everybody".

Misuari: I did not instigate intrusion

While admitted that some of the people who went to Lahad Datu were his relatives and members of his group, Misuari repeated that he did not instigate the intrusion.

"How can that be? I was in Africa for more than a month with my wife and I have nothing to do with the move of the sultan," he said.

Sending "only 200" men to Sabah, he emphasised, "is not my style."

MNLF is a political organisation established by Misuari in 1969 to struggle against the Philippines government to achieve independence of the Bangsamoro Land or Mindanao Nation.

MNLF entered into an agreement with the Philippines government in 1976, accepting an offer of semi-autonomy for the region in dispute.

This led to the formation of a breakaway group in 1977, led by Hashim Salamat, which later came to be known as as the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF).

Last October, MILF and Manila has signed a Framework Agreement on the Bangsamoro, a preliminary peace agreement brokered by Kuala Lumpur to end decades of conflict between Manila and the Islamic separatist movements in Mindanao.

However MNLF, which was left out from the agreement, opposed it and openly supported the Sulu sultanate's intrusion into Sabah. Hence it was suspected that the real motive behind the intrusion was to derail the peace process .

Habib told The Philippine Inquirer that Sulu supporters attacked a police station in Semporna last Saturday night and freed more than a 100 Filipino Muslims who were arrested a day before.

The supporters also ambushed a convoy of Malaysian military trucks in Tawau, he claimed.

However, Malaysian police have yet to verify these claims.

Malaysian English daily theSun today quoted sources from the Philippines authorities as saying that intelligence reports showed the Sulu armed group had planned the encroachment at least four months earlier.

NONE "(Sulu sultan) Jamalul (Kiram, left ) held a meeting with his followers, members of the MNLF and remnants of the Abu Sayaf rebels in October last year and offered them land in Sabah if they fought along to capture the state.

“They have been entering Sabah undetected since before the standoff on Feb 12. Other large groups had also attempted to penetrate the Sabah coast since the standoff, but it was thwarted by the Philippines navy that have deployed seven ships to keep them away from Malaysian waters," said the source.

The sources also told theSun that last Friday's bloody clash that left 12 Filipino gunmen dead may have provoked sentiments among their followers who have settled along the coastal villages between Tawau and Lahad Datu.

"These gunmen from the Sulu Sultanate are made up mainly of four tribes, namely the Tausug, Majuindanao, Badjao and Samal. These tribes have great brotherhood among them and regardless of their nationalities, they will rise in show of loyalty to their ethnicity.

"It will be no surprise if these tribes living in Malaysia join forces to fight the cause of their South Philippines counterparts.

"In South Philippines, these tribes also make up the bulk of MNLF and Abu Sayaf rebels, joining forces in an alliance of convenience to fight common causes. They are hardcore rebels who have battle in their blood and do not give up easily. It is not unusual for them fight to their death.”

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