Mindanao Peace: Moro dream or government illusion? Peace in Mindanao is the most elusive dream for the Bangsamoro. They fought for it at Tran, Jolo, Biniruan, Basilan, Camp Tinibtiban; many were martyred at Camp Abubakkar and Boliok Peace Complex and elsewhere in the region; they negotiated for it at Tripoli and Jakarta, yet the peace that they longed for is elusive as ever. Now, they continue to hunt for it in the wilderness of the Liguasan Marsh and dense forest of the Iranon territory; they also continue negotiating for it but they remained deprived of such a valuable possession. The journey of the Bangsamoro towards peace had been very tedious, long and thorny. The long road to peace A lot of articles and commentaries were written in newspapers, tabloids and on websites on the signing of Framework Agreement on the Bangsamoro (FAB). At the aftermath of the inking of the peace pact, the feeling of joy, hope and enthusiasm among the Moro people for peace and development soared high. The same feelings were also true when the Tripoli Agreement was signed in 1976 at Libya but such expressions were short lived because then President Ferdinand Marcos never honored the “scrap of paper” his Chief Negotiator Carmelo Barbelo signed for the government. It was martial law era and during those dark days of Martial Law many Moro youth were driven underground. Marcos military linchpins forced them to be and so they cannot be found in their homes. When at home during military operations they were interrogated right inside their dwellings and oftentimes picked-up and brought to military outpost or camps. Therein, they were beaten, tortured and countless of them were eventually executed, dumped in unknown locations. They are the so called Moro desaperacidos, perhaps idem to the mass youth disappearances in Argentina from early 70’s to middle of 80’s. Knowing the plight that beset many of the young Moros, their brethren who joined the struggle at early age became fierce warriors thus fighting raged the whole of Mindanao; and the conflict caused unprecedented destructions in Mindanao. The Moros languished in penury as a result. The signing of FAB in October 2012 was lauded by many sectors including the international community that even Moro combatants had a sigh of relief. Then GPH Peace Panel Chair Atty. Marvic Leonen said, “It is the heart of peace that steals and inspires the heart of the most skillful warriors”. The Moro youth of today Today, it is different and the situation is sharply in contrast with Martial Law era. The Moro youth can go to their farms to till; go to school; attend gatherings ; go to mosque to pray; shop in malls; vend along streets’ side-walks or peddle on streets; participate in skills training; attend human capacity building; join rallies and others advocate for peace . Some are now active peace builders. The most significant developments that happened after FAB was signed were the launching of the Sajahatra Bangsamoro and the UN-World Bank Fastrac Programs. The Bangsamoro Transition Commission was also created by virtue of Executive Order # 120. Impasse on wealth-sharing annex The resolution on the three remaining annexes, wealth, power and normalization is not expected for the moment. The crucial issue at hand is how both panels can agree on wealth sharing which was already initialed at the level of the technical working group. Alleged “notes’ coming from the government side revealed that the GPH Peace Panel principals are not amenable to what had been signed. And they have their own formula which in our modest opinion is not acceptable to the Moro Front. Last June 14, 2013, MindaNews reported that an impasse on wealth-sharing annex stalls GPH-MILF talks. But GPH Peace Panel Chair Prof. Miriam Coronel-Ferrer quickly belied report that there is such a deadlock. According to a Mindanao Cross report dated June 8, 2013, “The GPH panel already clarified that talks have neither hit a snag nor in rough sailing, contrary to mounting public perceptions”. Some MILF leaders reacted on the contents of the “notes”. In published news article at the Luwaran dated June 12, 2013, an MILF Peace Panel member emphasized “it will hold on to the initialed document” and the MILF has no plan to abandon that document, saying “backtracking by any of the two parties is a serious drawback to the peace process”. “We are not renegotiating the initialed document,” he said. The document was initialed by former Secretary Senen Bacani and Prof. Abhoud Syed Lingga of the government and MILF peace panels, respectively last February 27. Three more initials were appearing in the document. With this development, Moro combatants who were once over-wrought by the signing of the FAB are becoming impatient on the snail-pace negotiation. The peace talks had been deferred twice and it was the government panel that sought its deferment. The call for the completion of the three remaining annexes by Mohagher Iqbal, MILF Peace Panel Chair remained unheeded. The completion and signing of the four annexes was supposedly done before the year end but only one was signed. It had been eight months since the FAB was signed but as of today the resumption of the negotiation is cloudy and uncertain. Msgr. Jose Colin Bagaforo, DD, Auxiliary Bishop of Cotabato, had appealed for the immediate resumption of the peace talks to allay apprehensions by local communities. The Moro dream for a peaceful Mindanao should be realized soonest possible time otherwise it will remain a “government illusion” as its sincerity is now under question by several sectors in Mindanao including those on the ground. Any further delay is disastrous to the long decades of finding a peaceful solution to the Mindanao question. The defining moments must come as there is an urgent need to break the impasse. As the saying goes, “it is better late than never”. The political gains achieved at the negotiation table and the economic gains attained by the government as a result of good governance should be considered. Peace in Mindanao is the only legacy that President Aquino can leave to the Moro people when he steps down by the end of his term in 2016. luwaran/ Author: Arland Abubakar Source: Luwaran Date Published: June 27, 2013
Posted on: Thu, 27 Jun 2013 12:19:27 +0000
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