The British Embassy in Manila bared its continuing support to Muslim scholars, stressing their importance in attaining peace and development in conflict-torn Mindanao.

"We strongly believe that the Muslim community here will have a strong unified voice which can help play an increasingly important role in the country in chasing peace and development,"British Ambassador to the Philippines Stephen Lillie said.

Islam is the fastest growing religion in the United Kingdom.

"The right to vote, to elect leaders, is the fundamental pillar of democracy. I believe ulama can play an important role in fostering honest elections so you can encourage Muslim voters to exercise their democratic right for the good of the country," he added.

About 500 Muslim religious scholars are currently holding an assembly in Davao City at the joint summits of the 3rd National Ulama Conference of the Philippines (NUCP) and the Regional Conference of Aleemat and Women Leaders. The joint conference started last January 24 and will end Friday.

Ulamas are male Islamic scholars while female Islamic scholars are called aleemat.

The joint conference provides a venue to build stronger ties between the various Muslim affiliations to consolidate their efforts to develop Muslim communities. It focuses on the key issues of human rights, electoral reforms, peace and peace education and interfaith dialogue.

The summit is expected to strengthen the network of Muslim religious leaders in the Philippines and enhance the global perspective of the local religious leaders on the various initiatives and successes of Muslim organizations at peace-building efforts from around the world.

The British Embassy supports the "Empowering the Ulama" project during the joint conference.

The UK actively supports peace and development in Mindanao and is one of the three members of the International Contact group (ICG) for the peace process between the Philippine government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF).

Other assistance given by the British government includes the P18-million funding for the Islamic Leadership Development Program (ILDP), with the curriculum developed by the Asian Institute of Management (AIM).