Retain Bangsamoro law draft, MILF appeals

ZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines - The Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) appealed to lawmakers not to water down the proposed bill for the creation of the Bangsamoro region in Mindanao or commonly known as the Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL).

The MILF, currently the largest front locked in peace negotiation with the Philippine government, said it is crucial for the congress to retain the spirit of the BBL as embodied in the Framework Agreement on the Bangsamoro (FAB) and the four annexes – transitional modalities, wealth sharing, power sharing, and the normalization -- to fully address the Moros' clamor for a self-rule in Mindanao,

“It is Congress, as part of the entity called GPH (Government of the Philippines) that the MILF is talking to, now holds the key to solving the Moro question by way of making a good legislation, without watering down the contents of the FAB (Framework Agreement on the Bangsamoro) and the four Annexes signed by the parties,” the MILF said in a statement released over the weekend.

The proposed law is presently being drafted by the 15-member Bangsamoro Transition Commission (BTC), whose office was inaugurated on Saturday by Interior Secretary Manuel Roxas, and presidential peace adviser Teresita Deles, along with Mujiv Hataman, regional governor of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM).

“It is this good sense of Congress clearly exhibited in December 2012 when it endorsed President Aquino’s Executive Order No. 120 creating the Bangsamoro Transition Commission and the statesmanship of every congressman and senator to ensure the smooth passage of a good legislation that would finally put to rest the centuries of restlessness in Mindanao.

“It is their collective wisdom that we can bank on for the passage of this good legislation,” it added.

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The MILF said coming up with a new law that will regain the moros’ governance over its ancestral lands in Mindanao will be the real success of the more than 17-year negotiations that the government and the MILF have been engaging.

It said the southern peace process could not afford major disagreements that will lead to the failure of the peace agreement.

“Frankly, there is no way these negotiations can be done again; human endurance would not allow it, and more importantly, the engagement is now on the final stretch. It is only a matter of time, God willing, before the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro will be signed by the parties,” it said.

Sec. Roxas also on the weekend called political leaders to throw their support for the success of the peace agreement between the government and the MILF, and its subsequent key implementations, especially the passage of the basic law

Mohaquer Iqbal, the chairman of the transition commission, said they will ensure that the proposed bill will be in the congress in the next two months.

“There is no alternative at this point in time. We are not entertaining failure,” Iqbal said as they were determined and focused to finish the process.

Deles said they expect some quarters to question the content of the proposed law.

"Everyone will be looking at the Bangsamoro Basic Law for solutions. There will always be legal doubts and questions,” Deles said.

But she added that the agreements are well within the flexibilities of the constitution given to President Benigno Aquino III.

Deles also hoped those “spoilers...learn to trust on the process that is based from law and support of the people.

“The BBL is a document that will timely blend with our constitutional framework and guarantees the freedom, security, and prosperity of all Filipinos. Let the BBL become a hallmark and the best that could be achieved within the parameters of democratic governance as instituted in the constitution,” she added.

Source: philstar.com - Nation