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MILF Panel Chief Sees Peace Talks as ‘Best Way’ to Resolve Mindanao Strife, but Admits Issues are ‘Difficult’For Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) Negotiating Panel chairman Mohagher Iqbal, the peace negotiations between his group and the Government of the Republic of the Philippines (GRP) are the “most practical and most civilized way to resolve the conflict in Mindanao.” He admits, however, that the peace negotiations are a difficult road to tread considering that the issues at hand are very complicated and “very difficult to discuss.” BY ALEXANDER MARTIN REMOLLINO For Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) Negotiating Panel chairman Mohagher Iqbal, the peace negotiations between his group and the Government of the Republic of the Philippines (GRP) are the “most practical and most civilized way to resolve the conflict in Mindanao.” He admits, however, that the peace negotiations are a difficult road to tread considering that the issues at hand are very complicated and “very difficult to discuss.” One of the most contentious issues, which had repeatedly led to an impasse in the GRP-MILF peace negotiations, is the issue of territory. The MILF last year was proposing a Bangsamoro Juridical Entity that would be based on an ancestral domain claim of the Moros over Mindanao, Sulu, and Palawan. The GRP had insisted that areas to be covered by the Bangsamoro Juridical Entity other than the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) should be subject to a plebiscite. This repeatedly led to an impasse in the peace negotiations with the group. During the presidency of Diosdado Macapagal (1961-1965), Sabah, an island near Mindanao to which the Philippines has a historic claim, ended up in the hands of the Malaysian government. His successor Ferdinand Marcos later conceived a scheme, which involved the recruitment of between 28 and 64 Moro fighters to occupy Sabah. The reported summary execution of these recruits in 1968 by their superiors, which Moro historian Salah Jubair says was due to their refusal to follow orders, led to widespread outrage among Moros and eventually led to the formation of the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) that same year. The MNLF, which fought for an independent state in Muslim Mindanao, entered into a series of negotiations with the GRP beginning in the 1970s under the Marcos government. Conflicts on the issue of autonomy led to a breakdown of talks between the GRP and the MNLF in 1978, prompting a group led by Dr. Salamat Hashim to break away from the MNLF and form the MILF. Since then, the MILF has been fighting for an Islamic state in Mindanao. In 1996, the MNLF signed the Final Peace Agreement with the GRP, which created the ARMM as a concession to the group. That same year, the MILF began peace negotiations with the GRP. Last month, the GRP and the MILF reached an agreement on the scope of the Bangsamoro Juridical Entity, said Iqbal. With this, one of the biggest hurdles to a comprehensive agreement between the GRP and the MILF appears to have been overcome. But how optimistic is the MILF that peace would be achieved in the near future, especially considering the experience of the MNLF? Following are excerpts from Bulatlat’s interview with Iqbal: It came out in the news recently that the MILF announced it expects a peace agreement to be signed by August 2008. Is this accurate? The best thing to happen would be to sign an agreement by that time, but that is not our timeline. Because as far as the MILF is concerned, we still see the peace talks as a process... We do not really know when the comprehensive agreement is going to be signed. Our official line is that we are not setting any deadline for its signing, although the sooner, the better. But we have no illusions. A few years back, the main point of contention in the GRP-MILF peace talks was the issue of territory. At this point, how are the discussions on this issue? That’s right, as a matter of fact, (as late as) September 2006, the two parties failed to agree on the territory of the future Bangsamoro State or the Bangsamoro Juridical Entity, and it was only last Nov. 14-15 that we were able to break the impasse by agreeing to define the land and maritime areas (to be covered). Are there already specific areas that are being cited as part of the territory of the future Bangsamoro Juridical Entity? Yes, the two parties have agreed on specific areas that would form part of the Bangsamoro Juridical Entity, but I am not at liberty at this point in time to discuss details because there is a standing agreement between the two parties that these things are still confidential - in other words we cannot just release the details of this discussion. Presicely, that is correct. Otherwise there is no use talking to the government when what we (would) get is what the MNLF had already achieved. There are some sectors in Mindanao that have expressed some degree of pessimism regarding the prospects for the GRP-MILF peace talks, citing as their basis the fate of the Peace Agreement between the GRP and the MNLF. What is your observation on this? Well, as far as the MILF is concerned, we do not see the peace process as an easy undertaking. You know that there are still many humps and bumps along the way, and the two parties are hoping that we will be able to overcome all obstacles. The issues concerned are very substantive and very difficult to discuss. You said this would be an opportune time to sign a peace agreement with the GRP, before the “more radical” leaders take over. Yes, I gave that statement because the present policy of the MILF considers negotiation as the most practical and the most civilized way of resolving the conflict in Mindanao... With the leadership of the MILF right now, I think this is the right time for the Philippine government to strike a deal with the MILF or the Bangsamoro people. There are some ethnic groups like the Subanen of Zamboanga del Sur, that have expressed desire to be excluded from the future territory of the Bangsamoro Juridical Entity. What can you say about this? Well you know, one of the consensus points of the GRP and the MILF is to give the indigenous peoples free choice whether to include or exclude themselves in the Bangsamoro Juridical Entity. That is their choice, they are not being forced. But we have not reached the point where we could ask them whether or not they would like to join. If they are not joining, there is no problem with that. The MILF implements peace projects in certain areas right now, is that right? Yes, we formed a Bangsamoro Development Agency which functions as the development arm of the MILF. We implement development projects in conflict-affected areas. (These projects) are funded by the World Bank, JICA (Japan International Cooperation Agency), and other foreign donors. They are based on what the people identify as their needs - water systems, health services...many projects, like multi-purpose centers - small-scale projects, no big projects yet. Well the members of the MNLF are our brothers in Islam. Whatever the problems between the MILF and the MNLF, the policy is to resolve it among ourselves. As to the agreement between the GRP and the MNLF, the position of the MILF is very clear: let it be implemented in full. The MILF is willing to accommodate all unimplemented provisions of the 1996 Peace Agreement that are beneficial to the Bangsamoro people. What do you think are the prospects for a lasting peace in Mindanao, considering the experience of the MNLF? ( categories: )
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