Allow the people to breathe and live with peace.
Since August 2008, more than 700,000 persons, mostly children and women have been displaced from their homes and robbed of the equal opportunity to live humanely and with dignity, able to productively take part in their own communities.
They are not members of any armed groups. They are plain civilians who have been at the receiving end of attacks from both rebel groups and the military troops. They are also branded as reserve enemy force of government troops.
Everyday, they face the risk of being made as the targets of war.
Daily, they face the threat of losing the chance to rebuild their lives.
Until the move of the Government of the Republic of the Philippines (GRP) and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) peace panels to reconvene and reach consensus points on the protection of non combatants in armed conflict.
The public remains hopeful that the government’s Suspension of Military Operations (SOMO) and the Suspension of Military Action (SOMA) of the MILF will pave the way for both sides to resume dialogue and reach an agreement for the peaceful resolution of the conflict of Mindanao.
We believe that Senate Resolution 1281 which seeks to suspend peace negotiations with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front may again lead to the recurrence of armed conflict and further place the civilians in danger. It may worsen the magnitude of the situation.
We believe that instead of justifying continued hostilities, the Basilan incident should prod everyone to recommit to peaceful resolution of the conflict in Mindanao.
We urge government and appeal to Senator Rodolfo Biazon, the proponent of the bill to:
1. Open the space of dialogue and consensus building that will lead to the peaceful resolution of the age old conflict in Mindanao.
2. Encourage the GRP and MILF to sit down and complete the preparation for the resumption of the talks.
3. Provide the mechanism to uphold the primacy of dialogue as well as the protection of civilians amidst the threat of recurring conflict and
4. Deal with the issue on the Abu Sayaff’s alleged acts of terrorism separately. Lumping ASG and the MILF on the grounds of kinship and tribe will not do well for peace in Mindanao.
5. Pull out the embedded US troops and the AFP forces from the immediate area to provide safe space for the civilians.
6. Re-activate the ceasefire mechanism to ensure the safe return of civilians to their homes and start normalcy in their lives.
We also challenge the military troops and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front to respect the human rights of civilians and be mindful of their protection.
It is in their name that you profess to serve and defend. It is in the framework of public interest and human rights that should compel you to recognize their rights.
We call on the Senate not to adopt the proposed Senate Resolution 1281. We demand for the immediate resumption of the peace talks.
Mindanao PeaceWeavers
Monday, August 31, 2009
Initial recommendation from Konsult Mindanaw FGDs: resume peace talks
DAVAO CITY (MindaNews/31 August) – “There is a very strong clamor for the continuation of the peace talks (between the Philippine government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front) but ignorance of the issues is prevalent. Very strong demand for ‘sincerity’ of both camps, but more specially of the Government.”
That is among the initial recommendations from the focus group discussions (FGDs) conducted by Konsult Mindanaw, the group commissioned by the Bishops-Ulama Forum to do a Multi-sectoral and Cross-regional Community Consultation on the Mindanao Peace Process.
The initial recommendations are from the “Preliminary Output based on Pre-Deadline Regional Reports of Caraga, Northern Mindanao, Central Mindanao, Davao Region, Socksargen, and special FGDs in Visayas and Luzon (290 FGDs).”
Tasked to conduct a “Mindanao-wide and multisectoral consultation to generate ideas and commitment on pushing peace forward,” Konsult Mindanaw! held 300 FGDs in Mindanao, Cebu, Bacolod, Manila, Baguio and Palawan between April and August this year.
Led by project team leader, Fr. Albert Alejo, SJ, Konsult Mindanaw! asked four questions in the FGDs: “What is your vision of peace? What are your recommendations on the peace talks between the GRP and the MILF? What can you recommend on the broader peace process? What can you personally contribute – or even sacrifice – for peace in Mindanao?”
On the recommendations to the GRP-MILF peace talks, Konsult Mindanaw! reported the “very strong clamor” for the talks continuation, as stated in the first paragraph.
As to content of the talks, FGD participants cited the following: “respect for the right to self determination of the Moros as well as the IPs, while recognizing also the legitimate concerns of the Kristiyanos; clarify ancestral domain; address the cause of the conflict; learn all the lessons from the GRP-MNLF agreement; okay if talks involves changing the Constitution, if really necessary.”
On the peace panels, participants recommended that members “should come from Mindanao and are seen to be ‘really able to sympathize with the Mindanao situation;’ if possible, should come from affected communities;” should include women and Lumad; Lumad representation should be stronger; panel members should have clear mandate, not just to be abandoned later by the higher officials; panel members must engage in continuous consultations.”
On the process of the talks: the participants said the biggest issue is “SINCERITY, more than techniques in negotiation. Should not be very secretive; some opine that if possible, talks should be done in Mindanao.”
On People’s Participation, FGD participants “were just very happy to have been consulted.”
“Peace Talks should have a built-in mechanism for people’s participation. Even if in many occasions, there are no new substantive contribution, their ownership of the process is extremely important,” the Konsult Mindanaw report said.
On Communications Program, the FGD participants said the peace talks “must a develop an effective and sincere communication program” both vertical and horizontal.
“Vertical communication involves the panels sharing updates on issues and options to the people, and that the people have a proper venue and channel by which they can convey their opinions to the peace panels. Horizontal communication involves the exchange between and among regions and sectors; people want to talk with other groups across ethnic lines and regional boundaries,” the report said.
On “Coordination, Mandate, and Support Mechanism,” FGD participants “notice the lack of coordination among the different government agencies. Peace panels may tend to agree on an approach, but the military may have a different direction, the Legislature may complain that lawmen are not informed, and later Executive may abandon the whole process. OPAPP (Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process), according to one group discussion must be reviewed in terms of mandate, support, professional development, and job security.”
On “Other stakeholders, some think that the issue of the CPP-NPA-NDF (Communist Party of the Philippines-New Peoples Army-National Democratic Front) must also be synchronized with the handling of Bangsamoro struggle, especially for those who are in Northern and Eastern Mindanao.”
“The ARMM (Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao) also feels that they are hardly being engaged in the discussions; this needs serious attention,” the report said.
“MNLF (Moro National Liberation Front) voices seem to say they are not in favor of the MILF talks,” the report added.
Konsult Mindanaw! also reported that “Ilongos from the Visayas also feel they must communicate with their Ilongo relatives in Mindanao as contribution to peace.”
FGD participants said children and children’s rights advocates “must also be heard.”
On the broader peace process, the FGD participants recommended the following: “Intensify peace education; deal with children in trauma; healing of wounds; forgiveness; support for host communities; sports for peace; peace parks; change curriculum; livelihood opportunities; arts for peace; interreligious and intra-faith dialogues; investments in conflict areas; create dialogue clubs, not just debating teams in schools; scholarships.”
On personal contribution or sacrifice for peace, the participants cited the following: “Daily prayer for peace and cultivate inner peace; improve the quality of my thought; understand why some are fighting; try to change my bias; compose songs for peace; invest my money in war torn areas; learn language or another tribe; volunteer in relief delivery; deepen my religious knowledge.”
On the vision of peace, FGD participants cited at least six aspects: security, political, economic, cultural, personal, and spiritual, and defined them as follows:
“Security: absence of war, ‘walang patayan,’ absence of fear; assist bakwits;
“Political: there is good governance; no corruption; no illegal practices; respect for rights to land, ancestral domain; Muslims and Lumads occupy their own homeland; good leadership;
“Economic: abundance of food and harvest; opportunities for gainful employment; no environmental degradation; no structural violence
“Cultural: there is harmony and understanding among different tribes; no discrimination;
“Personal: peace starts from the heart of the individual; and then family and community;
“Spiritual: grounded in faith in God; deeper understanding of one’s religion, and if possible understanding of other people’s religion.”
Fr. Albert Alejo told MindaNews Konsult Mindanaw! will have an analysis workshop on September 6 to 11 and will meet with the government peace panel on September 11.
Alejo had earlier said that Konsult Mindanaw! “does not claim to be the official, most exhaustive, most objective and most definitive” consultation on the matter of peace in Mindanao and welcomes other sectors who may want to conduct consultations on the matter among specific sectors only, like women, social scientists, etc…”
“In the end, let’s compare notes” he said.
Alejo said there is in fact a group now, tentatively called “Caucus of Consultation Initiatives” which have met twice to compare notes on their respective consultations on the issue of peace in Mindanao.
Alejo said the Caucus has around 10 member-organizations, among them the Initiatives for International Dialogue, Mindanao Peoples’ Caucus, Alternative Forum for Research in Mindanao.|
The government and MILF peace panels had met in Kuala Lumpur on July 28 and 29 where they announced the year-long impasse had been broken and preparations were being made for the resumption of the peace talks. The panels were supposed to have met again on August 10 in Kuala Lumpur but this was reset to August 21 in deference to the death of the former President, Corazon Cojuangco Aquino.
The August 21 meeting did not push through. Ramadan, the Islamic month of fasting, began August 22 and will end September 22.
In the history of the GRP-MILF talks, peace negotiations are not scheduled during the period of Ramadan or Christmas. (Carolyn O. Arguillas/MindaNews)
Source: http://www.mindanews.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=6903&Itemid=50
That is among the initial recommendations from the focus group discussions (FGDs) conducted by Konsult Mindanaw, the group commissioned by the Bishops-Ulama Forum to do a Multi-sectoral and Cross-regional Community Consultation on the Mindanao Peace Process.
The initial recommendations are from the “Preliminary Output based on Pre-Deadline Regional Reports of Caraga, Northern Mindanao, Central Mindanao, Davao Region, Socksargen, and special FGDs in Visayas and Luzon (290 FGDs).”
Tasked to conduct a “Mindanao-wide and multisectoral consultation to generate ideas and commitment on pushing peace forward,” Konsult Mindanaw! held 300 FGDs in Mindanao, Cebu, Bacolod, Manila, Baguio and Palawan between April and August this year.
Led by project team leader, Fr. Albert Alejo, SJ, Konsult Mindanaw! asked four questions in the FGDs: “What is your vision of peace? What are your recommendations on the peace talks between the GRP and the MILF? What can you recommend on the broader peace process? What can you personally contribute – or even sacrifice – for peace in Mindanao?”
On the recommendations to the GRP-MILF peace talks, Konsult Mindanaw! reported the “very strong clamor” for the talks continuation, as stated in the first paragraph.
As to content of the talks, FGD participants cited the following: “respect for the right to self determination of the Moros as well as the IPs, while recognizing also the legitimate concerns of the Kristiyanos; clarify ancestral domain; address the cause of the conflict; learn all the lessons from the GRP-MNLF agreement; okay if talks involves changing the Constitution, if really necessary.”
On the peace panels, participants recommended that members “should come from Mindanao and are seen to be ‘really able to sympathize with the Mindanao situation;’ if possible, should come from affected communities;” should include women and Lumad; Lumad representation should be stronger; panel members should have clear mandate, not just to be abandoned later by the higher officials; panel members must engage in continuous consultations.”
On the process of the talks: the participants said the biggest issue is “SINCERITY, more than techniques in negotiation. Should not be very secretive; some opine that if possible, talks should be done in Mindanao.”
On People’s Participation, FGD participants “were just very happy to have been consulted.”
“Peace Talks should have a built-in mechanism for people’s participation. Even if in many occasions, there are no new substantive contribution, their ownership of the process is extremely important,” the Konsult Mindanaw report said.
On Communications Program, the FGD participants said the peace talks “must a develop an effective and sincere communication program” both vertical and horizontal.
“Vertical communication involves the panels sharing updates on issues and options to the people, and that the people have a proper venue and channel by which they can convey their opinions to the peace panels. Horizontal communication involves the exchange between and among regions and sectors; people want to talk with other groups across ethnic lines and regional boundaries,” the report said.
On “Coordination, Mandate, and Support Mechanism,” FGD participants “notice the lack of coordination among the different government agencies. Peace panels may tend to agree on an approach, but the military may have a different direction, the Legislature may complain that lawmen are not informed, and later Executive may abandon the whole process. OPAPP (Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process), according to one group discussion must be reviewed in terms of mandate, support, professional development, and job security.”
On “Other stakeholders, some think that the issue of the CPP-NPA-NDF (Communist Party of the Philippines-New Peoples Army-National Democratic Front) must also be synchronized with the handling of Bangsamoro struggle, especially for those who are in Northern and Eastern Mindanao.”
“The ARMM (Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao) also feels that they are hardly being engaged in the discussions; this needs serious attention,” the report said.
“MNLF (Moro National Liberation Front) voices seem to say they are not in favor of the MILF talks,” the report added.
Konsult Mindanaw! also reported that “Ilongos from the Visayas also feel they must communicate with their Ilongo relatives in Mindanao as contribution to peace.”
FGD participants said children and children’s rights advocates “must also be heard.”
On the broader peace process, the FGD participants recommended the following: “Intensify peace education; deal with children in trauma; healing of wounds; forgiveness; support for host communities; sports for peace; peace parks; change curriculum; livelihood opportunities; arts for peace; interreligious and intra-faith dialogues; investments in conflict areas; create dialogue clubs, not just debating teams in schools; scholarships.”
On personal contribution or sacrifice for peace, the participants cited the following: “Daily prayer for peace and cultivate inner peace; improve the quality of my thought; understand why some are fighting; try to change my bias; compose songs for peace; invest my money in war torn areas; learn language or another tribe; volunteer in relief delivery; deepen my religious knowledge.”
On the vision of peace, FGD participants cited at least six aspects: security, political, economic, cultural, personal, and spiritual, and defined them as follows:
“Security: absence of war, ‘walang patayan,’ absence of fear; assist bakwits;
“Political: there is good governance; no corruption; no illegal practices; respect for rights to land, ancestral domain; Muslims and Lumads occupy their own homeland; good leadership;
“Economic: abundance of food and harvest; opportunities for gainful employment; no environmental degradation; no structural violence
“Cultural: there is harmony and understanding among different tribes; no discrimination;
“Personal: peace starts from the heart of the individual; and then family and community;
“Spiritual: grounded in faith in God; deeper understanding of one’s religion, and if possible understanding of other people’s religion.”
Fr. Albert Alejo told MindaNews Konsult Mindanaw! will have an analysis workshop on September 6 to 11 and will meet with the government peace panel on September 11.
Alejo had earlier said that Konsult Mindanaw! “does not claim to be the official, most exhaustive, most objective and most definitive” consultation on the matter of peace in Mindanao and welcomes other sectors who may want to conduct consultations on the matter among specific sectors only, like women, social scientists, etc…”
“In the end, let’s compare notes” he said.
Alejo said there is in fact a group now, tentatively called “Caucus of Consultation Initiatives” which have met twice to compare notes on their respective consultations on the issue of peace in Mindanao.
Alejo said the Caucus has around 10 member-organizations, among them the Initiatives for International Dialogue, Mindanao Peoples’ Caucus, Alternative Forum for Research in Mindanao.|
The government and MILF peace panels had met in Kuala Lumpur on July 28 and 29 where they announced the year-long impasse had been broken and preparations were being made for the resumption of the peace talks. The panels were supposed to have met again on August 10 in Kuala Lumpur but this was reset to August 21 in deference to the death of the former President, Corazon Cojuangco Aquino.
The August 21 meeting did not push through. Ramadan, the Islamic month of fasting, began August 22 and will end September 22.
In the history of the GRP-MILF talks, peace negotiations are not scheduled during the period of Ramadan or Christmas. (Carolyn O. Arguillas/MindaNews)
Source: http://www.mindanews.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=6903&Itemid=50
Sunday, August 30, 2009
Pinol urges gov’t to stop double-talk, create multisectoral commission to review MOA-AD
ZAMBOANGA CITY (MindaNews/29 August) -- North Cotabato Vice Governor Emmanuel Pinol said government should not deceive or engage in double-talk but tell the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) “what it can and cannot give” as he also urged the creation of a multisectoral Mindanao Stakeholders' Commission (MSC) that will, using the controversial government-Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) Memorandum of Agreement on Ancestral Domain (MOA-AD) as the “base document,” review which provisions are “acceptable and doable and make a recommendation to the President.” These were two of several recommendations made by Pinol before the Senate Defense Committee hearing Friday at the Garden Orchid Hotel here, on Senate Resolution 1281 seeking suspension of the resumption of the peace talks until the four issues cited by Senate Defense Committee chair Rodolfo Biazon, are addressed.
The issues are control of the MILF over their men; changing Malaysia as facilitator; the May 6, 2002 Joint Communique which allows for coordination between the MILF and the military and police in so-called “MILF areas” and how civil society can influence the direction of the talks.
Pinol made two short-term recommendations, the first of which is the creation and convening of a Mindanao Stakeholders’ Commission that will be “composed of other stakeholders in Mindanao who were not consulted in the drafting of the MILF-GRP MOA-AD.”
In his Powerpoint presentation, Pinol said the MSC “should include the Indigenous People, Muslims who are not members of the MILF, specifically the MNLF, political leaders both Muslim and Christian, religious leaders, farmer leaders, business leaders, woman leaders and youth leaders. Using the GRP-MILF MOA -AD as the base document, they will review which provisions are acceptable and doable and make a recommendation to the President.”
In his oral presentation, however, Pinol added “specifically the MNLF (Moro National Liberation Front)” after “Muslims who are not members of the MILF.”
He also added “without necessarily including it in the formal documents” after “Using the GRP-MILF MOA-AD as the base document.” MindaNews sought Pinol to explain what he meant by his inserted phrase, but he could not be reached.
Reactions
Fr. Eliseo Mercado, Jr., convenor of Kusog Mindanaw and executive director of the Institute for Autonomy and Governance and who was also present during the public hearing, told MindaNews, “Executive Order 3 creates an advisory peace council to advise the panel… I believe that this will suffice when properly created.”
Grace Rebollos, president of the Western Mindanao State University and a member of the Peace Advocates Zamboanga, said, “there’s a need to be clear about its role, composition, extent of acess to information and decisions, assurance of its insulation from vested interests local and foreign, protocols for engagement, maybe not just advisory. To include oversight.”
Pinol last year led officials in the filing of a petition for a temporary restraining order (TRO) before the Supreme Court to stop the government peace panel from formally signing the MOA-AD that was initialed July 27, 2008.
The Supreme Court issued the TRO afternoon of August 4, eve of what was supposed to be the formal signing in Putrajaya, Malaysia last year.
The talks collapsed thereafter and the two panels managed to meet again only on July 28 and 29 this year. They issued a Joint Statement on July 29 to announce the year-long impasse had been broken and that they were preparing for the talks.
Pinol immediately warned he would have the government peace panel cited for contempt for allegedly “ignoring the Supreme Court decision declaring the MOA-AD unconstitutional.”
In a press statement dated July 31 but e-mailed August 1, Pinol said “the brazen act of the GRP Panel to include the MOA-AD in the Joint Statement will not go unquestioned.”
But coming back to Davao from meeting with a government peace panel member in Cebu on August 6, Pinol told MindaNews he had “softened” his stance on his plan to cite the government peace panel in contempt.
Twenty-two days later, in Zamboanga City, Pinol recommended the creation of the multisectoral MSC, a proposal he made last year at the height of the controversy over the MOA-AD but was not given enough attention.
Functions
A report dated August 6, 2008 of the NorthCot News Team posted on the website of the Sangguniang Panlalawigan of North Cotabato, said Pinol proposed the creation of the MSC aftger the Supreme Court issued the TRO. The main function of the commission, he said, “will be to study the MOA and recommend revisions to provisions which are deemed unfair and disadvantageous to people in the areas being considered for inclusion in a so-called Bangsamoro homeland under a Bangsamoro Juridical Entity.”
To recall, the BJE was supposed to have as its core the five-province, two-city Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) and six towns of Lanao del Norte that voted for inclusion in the ARMM and 735 villages “where a plebiscite will be conducted within 12 months after the signing of the MOA-AD.”
An additional list of 1,459 areas were to be treated as “special intervention areas” and still be “subject to further negotiations.” A plebiscite will be held in these areas “not earlier than 25 years from the signing of the Comprehensive Compact” if they want or do not want to be in the BJE.
Pinol said the August 12 encounter in Basilan where over 20 members of the Armed Forces were killed, drew varied reactions, including calls for the suspension of the talks with the MILF.
“The people of North Cotabato feel bad, too. One of the boys who was killed came from my hometown, M’lang. But setting our anger and emotions aside, it is our belief that the peace talks should go on,” he said.
Pinol, however, stressed that government “must be clear and straightforward with the MILF on what it can and cannot give.”
“For years now, the Philippine government has been committing deceit in talking to the MILF. They have engaged in double-speak and utilized ambiguous statements,” he said, adding that the MILF is also “not without fault. They exploit gestures of conciliation extended by government such as the SOMO and the ceasefire, to regroup, rearm and reposition.”
“Go Local”
Pinol recommended that peace negotiations “go local.”
“The panel must get out of the box of international standards and methodologies for conflict resolution and look at the Mindanao Conflict as a problem that cannot and should not be compared to the Northern Ireland or Darfur conflicts,” he said.
Pinol also said there should be “no generic solution for the Mindanao Conflict given the fact that problems have different complexions depending on the political, social and economic conditions of a specific area.”
He said the problem in Maguindanao is different from the problem in North Cotabato, alleging that the conflict in Maguindanao has “degenerated into a bloody clan war between a big and powerful political family backed by government forces and members of the MILF under Umbra Kato.”
Pinol said the MILF is “already a spent force” and yields influence only in the “Central Mindanao area.”
“The death of Hashim Salamat changed the complexion of the MILF from a religion-inspired rebel group with links to the Jemaah Islamiya and the Al Qaeda to an organization groping for a new identity,” he said.
Other recommendations
Pinol also recommended:
- a “complete overhaul of the GRP panel support staff,” claiming that the support staff now “are the same people behind the MOA-AD who think that the conflict should be solved in the context of the war of nations;”
- “the participation in the peace process of foreign facilitators whose motives are under question should be reviewed,” citing Malaysia, which he said has conflict of interest with the Philippines over Sabah and which now knows all the military encampments in Mindanao;
- Government “should take a different approach in finding a solution to the Mindanao problem. Negotiate, but don’t put all our eggs in one basket…(address) the basic problems of poverty, education and injustice;
- “Finding a solution to the conflict and forging peace in Mindanao should not be tied to the term of office of whoever holds power in Malacanang as this only leads to palliative and superficial answers to deep-seated problems which will only surface again and lead to another round of conflict in the future;
- “Learn from the lessons of the GRP-MNLF Agreement. Appeasement will not guarantee true and lasting peace. It may bring about a temporary cessation of hostilities but for as long as the root causes of the problem which include poverty, lack of education and deprivation are present, the problem will continue. The MNLF-GRP agreement focused so much on political reforms rather than socio-economic programs. Leadership training for the region’s political leaders was largely ignored giving way to a culture of political corruption where elected officials assume that their LGU’s IRA are the rewards of a victory in an election.”
On the medium-term, Pinol recommended “disarmament not only of the MILF but all groups to include private armies of political warlords” and on the long-term, through an act of Congress, a “Mindanao Land Conflict Settlement Commission” under the Office of the President that would “address the grievances of the Mindanao Muslims and also of Christian settlers on alleged forcible dispossession of their land during the conflict of the 1970s.”
“While the government is determined to work for a peaceful solution for the conflict in the southern Philippines, it must never allow the dismemberment of the Republic. It must not allow itself to be threatened by a rebel group into agreeing to its demands, or else the Peace Agreement that would be forged would be a product of coercion and terrorism,” he said.
Zamboanga City Mayor Celso Lobregat agreed with Pinol’s recommendation to have the talks localized and to get another country-facilitator, as he also recommended that should a plebiscite be done on the peace issue that was being discussed, even the ARMM member-provinces should be asked if they want to be in or out of the autonomous region.
Sulu Governor Sakur Tan sent a message that there is no MILF in his province. (Carolyn O. Arguillas/MindaNews)
Source: http://www.mindanews.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=6902&Itemid=190
The issues are control of the MILF over their men; changing Malaysia as facilitator; the May 6, 2002 Joint Communique which allows for coordination between the MILF and the military and police in so-called “MILF areas” and how civil society can influence the direction of the talks.
Pinol made two short-term recommendations, the first of which is the creation and convening of a Mindanao Stakeholders’ Commission that will be “composed of other stakeholders in Mindanao who were not consulted in the drafting of the MILF-GRP MOA-AD.”
In his Powerpoint presentation, Pinol said the MSC “should include the Indigenous People, Muslims who are not members of the MILF, specifically the MNLF, political leaders both Muslim and Christian, religious leaders, farmer leaders, business leaders, woman leaders and youth leaders. Using the GRP-MILF MOA -AD as the base document, they will review which provisions are acceptable and doable and make a recommendation to the President.”
In his oral presentation, however, Pinol added “specifically the MNLF (Moro National Liberation Front)” after “Muslims who are not members of the MILF.”
He also added “without necessarily including it in the formal documents” after “Using the GRP-MILF MOA-AD as the base document.” MindaNews sought Pinol to explain what he meant by his inserted phrase, but he could not be reached.
Reactions
Fr. Eliseo Mercado, Jr., convenor of Kusog Mindanaw and executive director of the Institute for Autonomy and Governance and who was also present during the public hearing, told MindaNews, “Executive Order 3 creates an advisory peace council to advise the panel… I believe that this will suffice when properly created.”
Grace Rebollos, president of the Western Mindanao State University and a member of the Peace Advocates Zamboanga, said, “there’s a need to be clear about its role, composition, extent of acess to information and decisions, assurance of its insulation from vested interests local and foreign, protocols for engagement, maybe not just advisory. To include oversight.”
Pinol last year led officials in the filing of a petition for a temporary restraining order (TRO) before the Supreme Court to stop the government peace panel from formally signing the MOA-AD that was initialed July 27, 2008.
The Supreme Court issued the TRO afternoon of August 4, eve of what was supposed to be the formal signing in Putrajaya, Malaysia last year.
The talks collapsed thereafter and the two panels managed to meet again only on July 28 and 29 this year. They issued a Joint Statement on July 29 to announce the year-long impasse had been broken and that they were preparing for the talks.
Pinol immediately warned he would have the government peace panel cited for contempt for allegedly “ignoring the Supreme Court decision declaring the MOA-AD unconstitutional.”
In a press statement dated July 31 but e-mailed August 1, Pinol said “the brazen act of the GRP Panel to include the MOA-AD in the Joint Statement will not go unquestioned.”
But coming back to Davao from meeting with a government peace panel member in Cebu on August 6, Pinol told MindaNews he had “softened” his stance on his plan to cite the government peace panel in contempt.
Twenty-two days later, in Zamboanga City, Pinol recommended the creation of the multisectoral MSC, a proposal he made last year at the height of the controversy over the MOA-AD but was not given enough attention.
Functions
A report dated August 6, 2008 of the NorthCot News Team posted on the website of the Sangguniang Panlalawigan of North Cotabato, said Pinol proposed the creation of the MSC aftger the Supreme Court issued the TRO. The main function of the commission, he said, “will be to study the MOA and recommend revisions to provisions which are deemed unfair and disadvantageous to people in the areas being considered for inclusion in a so-called Bangsamoro homeland under a Bangsamoro Juridical Entity.”
To recall, the BJE was supposed to have as its core the five-province, two-city Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) and six towns of Lanao del Norte that voted for inclusion in the ARMM and 735 villages “where a plebiscite will be conducted within 12 months after the signing of the MOA-AD.”
An additional list of 1,459 areas were to be treated as “special intervention areas” and still be “subject to further negotiations.” A plebiscite will be held in these areas “not earlier than 25 years from the signing of the Comprehensive Compact” if they want or do not want to be in the BJE.
Pinol said the August 12 encounter in Basilan where over 20 members of the Armed Forces were killed, drew varied reactions, including calls for the suspension of the talks with the MILF.
“The people of North Cotabato feel bad, too. One of the boys who was killed came from my hometown, M’lang. But setting our anger and emotions aside, it is our belief that the peace talks should go on,” he said.
Pinol, however, stressed that government “must be clear and straightforward with the MILF on what it can and cannot give.”
“For years now, the Philippine government has been committing deceit in talking to the MILF. They have engaged in double-speak and utilized ambiguous statements,” he said, adding that the MILF is also “not without fault. They exploit gestures of conciliation extended by government such as the SOMO and the ceasefire, to regroup, rearm and reposition.”
“Go Local”
Pinol recommended that peace negotiations “go local.”
“The panel must get out of the box of international standards and methodologies for conflict resolution and look at the Mindanao Conflict as a problem that cannot and should not be compared to the Northern Ireland or Darfur conflicts,” he said.
Pinol also said there should be “no generic solution for the Mindanao Conflict given the fact that problems have different complexions depending on the political, social and economic conditions of a specific area.”
He said the problem in Maguindanao is different from the problem in North Cotabato, alleging that the conflict in Maguindanao has “degenerated into a bloody clan war between a big and powerful political family backed by government forces and members of the MILF under Umbra Kato.”
Pinol said the MILF is “already a spent force” and yields influence only in the “Central Mindanao area.”
“The death of Hashim Salamat changed the complexion of the MILF from a religion-inspired rebel group with links to the Jemaah Islamiya and the Al Qaeda to an organization groping for a new identity,” he said.
Other recommendations
Pinol also recommended:
- a “complete overhaul of the GRP panel support staff,” claiming that the support staff now “are the same people behind the MOA-AD who think that the conflict should be solved in the context of the war of nations;”
- “the participation in the peace process of foreign facilitators whose motives are under question should be reviewed,” citing Malaysia, which he said has conflict of interest with the Philippines over Sabah and which now knows all the military encampments in Mindanao;
- Government “should take a different approach in finding a solution to the Mindanao problem. Negotiate, but don’t put all our eggs in one basket…(address) the basic problems of poverty, education and injustice;
- “Finding a solution to the conflict and forging peace in Mindanao should not be tied to the term of office of whoever holds power in Malacanang as this only leads to palliative and superficial answers to deep-seated problems which will only surface again and lead to another round of conflict in the future;
- “Learn from the lessons of the GRP-MNLF Agreement. Appeasement will not guarantee true and lasting peace. It may bring about a temporary cessation of hostilities but for as long as the root causes of the problem which include poverty, lack of education and deprivation are present, the problem will continue. The MNLF-GRP agreement focused so much on political reforms rather than socio-economic programs. Leadership training for the region’s political leaders was largely ignored giving way to a culture of political corruption where elected officials assume that their LGU’s IRA are the rewards of a victory in an election.”
On the medium-term, Pinol recommended “disarmament not only of the MILF but all groups to include private armies of political warlords” and on the long-term, through an act of Congress, a “Mindanao Land Conflict Settlement Commission” under the Office of the President that would “address the grievances of the Mindanao Muslims and also of Christian settlers on alleged forcible dispossession of their land during the conflict of the 1970s.”
“While the government is determined to work for a peaceful solution for the conflict in the southern Philippines, it must never allow the dismemberment of the Republic. It must not allow itself to be threatened by a rebel group into agreeing to its demands, or else the Peace Agreement that would be forged would be a product of coercion and terrorism,” he said.
Zamboanga City Mayor Celso Lobregat agreed with Pinol’s recommendation to have the talks localized and to get another country-facilitator, as he also recommended that should a plebiscite be done on the peace issue that was being discussed, even the ARMM member-provinces should be asked if they want to be in or out of the autonomous region.
Sulu Governor Sakur Tan sent a message that there is no MILF in his province. (Carolyn O. Arguillas/MindaNews)
Source: http://www.mindanews.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=6902&Itemid=190
“What IDPs?” Biazon asks
ZAMBOANGA CITY (MindaNews/30 August) – Father Eliseo “Jun” Mercado had to butt in, to explain who represents the Bangsamoro in the peace negotiations with the Philippine government, what Tracks 1, 2 and 3 of the Peace Process mean and that it was the Philippine government that invited Malaysia to be the talks facilitator but it was Vice Governor Emmanuel Pinol who quickly replied to Senate Defense Committee chair Rodolfo Biazon’s query, “anong IDPs’ (What IDPs?”) Pinol had been warning about a possible spillover of IDPs when Biazon interrupted, “anong IDPs?” to which Pinol immediately explained “it’s the lingo of the NGO, the internally displaced persons.”
The IDPs is the sector that will suffer the most while peace talks are in limbo.
Biazon had intended the public hearing to be a time to listen to stakeholders from the local government units and civil society groups but only a few civil society representatives managed to make it to the hearing due to short notice.
He repeatedly asked for representatives of the Bishops-Ulama Conference which has commissioned a research team to conduct focus group discussions on the peace processes.
Civil society representatives at the public hearing were one in urging the immediate resumption of the peace talks.
The government and Moro Islamic Liberation Front’s peace negotiations collapsed last year when a temporary restraining order was issued by the Supreme Court on August 4 preventing the government peace panel from formally signing the already initialed Memorandum of Agreement on Ancestral Domain (MOA-AD) the next day.
Since then, some 700,000 persons had fled their villages to avoid getting caught in the crossfire Although the number has dwindled since – from 90,000 to around 200,000 are still in the evacuation centers, many of them spending their second Ramadan, the Islamic month of fasting, there.
The IDPs took to the streets on July 23 demanding ceasefire so they can return home. Malacanang at 4 p.m. that day issued a suspension of military operations (SOMO) which the MILF reciprocated with a suspension of military actions on July 25. The two panels met on July 28 and 29 and issued a Joint Statement on July 29 announcing the impasse was over and that they were preparing for the resumption of the talks.
The August 10 supposed meeting was reset for August 21 but the meeting was again reset. Ramadan started August 22 and will end September 22, hence the next meeting will likely be after September 22.
Meanwhile, in Basilan on August 12, at least 20 government soldiers pursuing the Abu Sayyaf were reported killed in an ambush allegedly by the MILF in the area. The MILF said it was an act of self-defense, claiming government did not coordinate with them on the operations.
Grace Rebollos, president of the Western Mindanao State University and a convenor of Peace Advocates Zamboanga (PAZ) made a Powerpoint presentation on “reframing the GRP-Bangsamoro negotiations.”
Rebollos said they deliberately refered to the negotiations as “GRP-Bangsamoro” because of the ongoing review of the 1996 peace pact with the MNLF and the ongoing peace negotiations with the MILF.
Rebellos noted that revisiting the negotiations means looking for ways ”to find a peaceful settlement of the armed conflict with the MILF; to correct historical injustices; and to allow for more meaningful autonomy and governance of the Bangsamoro.”
The Mindanao PeaceWeavers in a statement read for it by Maria Julita Asis of the Initiatives for International Dialogue, said the suspension of the resumption of the peace talks “may again lead to the recurrence of armed conflict and further place the civilians in danger. It may worsen the magnitude of the situation.”
“We believe that instead of justifying continued hostilities, the Basilan incident should prod everyone to recommit to peaceful resolution of the conflict in Mindanao. We urge government and appeal to Senator Rodolfo Biazon, the proponent of the bill to open the space of dialogue and consensus building that will lead to the peaceful resolution of the age old conflict in Mindanao; encourage the GRP and MILF to sit down and complete the preparation for the resumption of the talks; provide the mechanism to uphold the primacy of dialogue as well as the protection of civilians amidst the threat of recurring conflict; deal with the issue on the Abu Sayaff’s alleged acts of terrorism separately. Lumping ASG and the MILF on the grounds of kinship and tribe will not do well for peace in Mindanao,” the MPW said.
The MPW also urged government to “Pull out the embedded US troops and the AFP forces from the immediate area to provide safe space for the civilians” and “re-activate the ceasefire mechanism to ensure the safe return of civilians to their homes and start normalcy in their lives.”
Each resource person was given ten minutes to present his/her piece. Pastor Reu Montecillo, chair of the Mindanao Peoples’ Caucus wasn’t able to complete reading his five-page paper. With a minute left, Biazon asked him to summarize the remaining points.
Montecillo said Senate Resolution 1281 “only bolsters the fact that this government clearly lacks a national peace policy as far as the armed conflict in Mindanao is concerned. That is why, for every provocation, every skirmish and for each bomb explosion, this government can easily revert from peace to war mode. It flip-flops from its policy of war and peace – sending mixed and confusing signals at the ground level. And defining this peace policy is incumbent upon the Senate who should set clear guidelines and parameters on the national direction and goals of the peace process itself.”
Montecillo announced that after the public hearing, he would be “leading the Bantay Ceasefire investigative mission in Basilan to conduct a thorough investigation on what had actually happened. The incident reminds us of the July 18, 2007 beheading of 14 marine soldiers which is like history repeating itself all too very soon.”
Montecillo noted that what happened in Basilan on August 12 only shows that “without a proper ceasefire mechanism in place and the presence of an international monitoring team (IMT) the fragile situation in conflict affected areas remains vulnerable to the uncontrolled and uncoordinated military actions.”
“As a grassroots based, tri-people focused peace organization, and a recognized observer in the GRP-MILF peace talks, the Mindanao Peoples Caucus urge both the Philippine government and the MILF to immediately re-establish the ceasefire mechanisms and reconstitute the International Monitoring Team (IMT) that shall have a guaranteed mandate to investigate and the authority to sanction both parties in cases of proven ceasefire violations,” Montecillo said. (Carolyn O. Arguillas/MindaNews)
Source: http://www.mindanews.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=6901&Itemid=190
The IDPs is the sector that will suffer the most while peace talks are in limbo.
Biazon had intended the public hearing to be a time to listen to stakeholders from the local government units and civil society groups but only a few civil society representatives managed to make it to the hearing due to short notice.
He repeatedly asked for representatives of the Bishops-Ulama Conference which has commissioned a research team to conduct focus group discussions on the peace processes.
Civil society representatives at the public hearing were one in urging the immediate resumption of the peace talks.
The government and Moro Islamic Liberation Front’s peace negotiations collapsed last year when a temporary restraining order was issued by the Supreme Court on August 4 preventing the government peace panel from formally signing the already initialed Memorandum of Agreement on Ancestral Domain (MOA-AD) the next day.
Since then, some 700,000 persons had fled their villages to avoid getting caught in the crossfire Although the number has dwindled since – from 90,000 to around 200,000 are still in the evacuation centers, many of them spending their second Ramadan, the Islamic month of fasting, there.
The IDPs took to the streets on July 23 demanding ceasefire so they can return home. Malacanang at 4 p.m. that day issued a suspension of military operations (SOMO) which the MILF reciprocated with a suspension of military actions on July 25. The two panels met on July 28 and 29 and issued a Joint Statement on July 29 announcing the impasse was over and that they were preparing for the resumption of the talks.
The August 10 supposed meeting was reset for August 21 but the meeting was again reset. Ramadan started August 22 and will end September 22, hence the next meeting will likely be after September 22.
Meanwhile, in Basilan on August 12, at least 20 government soldiers pursuing the Abu Sayyaf were reported killed in an ambush allegedly by the MILF in the area. The MILF said it was an act of self-defense, claiming government did not coordinate with them on the operations.
Grace Rebollos, president of the Western Mindanao State University and a convenor of Peace Advocates Zamboanga (PAZ) made a Powerpoint presentation on “reframing the GRP-Bangsamoro negotiations.”
Rebollos said they deliberately refered to the negotiations as “GRP-Bangsamoro” because of the ongoing review of the 1996 peace pact with the MNLF and the ongoing peace negotiations with the MILF.
Rebellos noted that revisiting the negotiations means looking for ways ”to find a peaceful settlement of the armed conflict with the MILF; to correct historical injustices; and to allow for more meaningful autonomy and governance of the Bangsamoro.”
The Mindanao PeaceWeavers in a statement read for it by Maria Julita Asis of the Initiatives for International Dialogue, said the suspension of the resumption of the peace talks “may again lead to the recurrence of armed conflict and further place the civilians in danger. It may worsen the magnitude of the situation.”
“We believe that instead of justifying continued hostilities, the Basilan incident should prod everyone to recommit to peaceful resolution of the conflict in Mindanao. We urge government and appeal to Senator Rodolfo Biazon, the proponent of the bill to open the space of dialogue and consensus building that will lead to the peaceful resolution of the age old conflict in Mindanao; encourage the GRP and MILF to sit down and complete the preparation for the resumption of the talks; provide the mechanism to uphold the primacy of dialogue as well as the protection of civilians amidst the threat of recurring conflict; deal with the issue on the Abu Sayaff’s alleged acts of terrorism separately. Lumping ASG and the MILF on the grounds of kinship and tribe will not do well for peace in Mindanao,” the MPW said.
The MPW also urged government to “Pull out the embedded US troops and the AFP forces from the immediate area to provide safe space for the civilians” and “re-activate the ceasefire mechanism to ensure the safe return of civilians to their homes and start normalcy in their lives.”
Each resource person was given ten minutes to present his/her piece. Pastor Reu Montecillo, chair of the Mindanao Peoples’ Caucus wasn’t able to complete reading his five-page paper. With a minute left, Biazon asked him to summarize the remaining points.
Montecillo said Senate Resolution 1281 “only bolsters the fact that this government clearly lacks a national peace policy as far as the armed conflict in Mindanao is concerned. That is why, for every provocation, every skirmish and for each bomb explosion, this government can easily revert from peace to war mode. It flip-flops from its policy of war and peace – sending mixed and confusing signals at the ground level. And defining this peace policy is incumbent upon the Senate who should set clear guidelines and parameters on the national direction and goals of the peace process itself.”
Montecillo announced that after the public hearing, he would be “leading the Bantay Ceasefire investigative mission in Basilan to conduct a thorough investigation on what had actually happened. The incident reminds us of the July 18, 2007 beheading of 14 marine soldiers which is like history repeating itself all too very soon.”
Montecillo noted that what happened in Basilan on August 12 only shows that “without a proper ceasefire mechanism in place and the presence of an international monitoring team (IMT) the fragile situation in conflict affected areas remains vulnerable to the uncontrolled and uncoordinated military actions.”
“As a grassroots based, tri-people focused peace organization, and a recognized observer in the GRP-MILF peace talks, the Mindanao Peoples Caucus urge both the Philippine government and the MILF to immediately re-establish the ceasefire mechanisms and reconstitute the International Monitoring Team (IMT) that shall have a guaranteed mandate to investigate and the authority to sanction both parties in cases of proven ceasefire violations,” Montecillo said. (Carolyn O. Arguillas/MindaNews)
Source: http://www.mindanews.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=6901&Itemid=190
Monday, August 24, 2009
Philippines: Displaced people at great risk despite ceasefire
Amnesty International / 25 August 2009
Philippines has one of highest numbers of displaced people in the world; new report reveals ongoing arrests, beatings and electro-shock torture
More than 200,000 civilians in central Mindanao are still vulnerable to human rights abuses despite the recent ceasefire between the Philippine army and the insurgent Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), warns Amnesty International in a new report published today.
The report, 'Shattered lives: Beyond the 2008 - 2009 Mindanao armed conflict', details the risks that hundreds of thousands of people face as they are forced to live in camps or makeshift shelters, sometimes surrounded by a heavy military presence.
Many of the displaced are still unable to return to their homes following the implementation of a ceasefire on 29 July 2009. During the conflict serious war crimes were committed including the shelling of an Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) camp and a bombing near a school. There are ongoing reports of human rights violations including arbitrary arrests, beatings and the use of electric shocks to torture.
The report, based on an Amnesty International mission to Mindanao and detailed field updates, highlights the desperate conditions of civilians living in crowded camps with limited access to food and livelihoods. It has been reported that in June this year the Philippines government discouraged aid agencies from giving large quantities of aid to displaced people in an effort to prevent it being diverted to the rebels or to traders. The report also provides information about human rights abuses by both the army and the MILF against villagers in Maguindanao province, central Mindanao.
In one such case, during January 2009 a large group of soldiers entered Ungap village, Sultan Kudarat Municipality and arrested 10 men there. The soldiers forced their way into houses, pointing their guns and destroying villagers' belongings. One villager told Amnesty International that the detained men, including her husband, were later given electric shocks; nine were released but her husband remains in detention. According to another family member, his interrogators questioned him over a 10 week period while administering electric shocks and beating him.
Many displaced people told Amnesty International that they were forced to risk their lives and return to their former homes to retrieve belongings and tend their crops in order to survive. Other testimonies provided details about arbitrary arrests and severe beatings of civilians at the hands of the Philippine army, the MILF, or local militias.
Donna Guest, Amnesty International's Asia Pacific Deputy Director said:
'Decades of conflict have inflicted scars on civilians, who continue to live in fear, not knowing what tomorrow holds.
'The vulnerability and uncertainty which civilians in central Mindanao face makes it imperative that the government and the MILF put human rights at the top of their agenda during future peace talks.
'The government of the Philippines is obliged under international law to ensure that displaced people are protected and have proper access to adequate food, water and medical assistance.'
Amnesty International also calls on both the Philippine authorities and the MILF to ensure the safety and well-being of all civilians. Where there are credible allegations of human rights abuses, the government should launch a swift and impartial investigation into the allegations and make the findings public. The MILF should cooperate with the government in facilitating such investigations.
The government should also implement, in cooperation with displaced people, a plan for the safe and voluntary return to their villages, including the provision of adequate food, housing and livelihoods upon resettlement.
Background
Conflict in Mindanao between the Philippine army and the MILF intensified in August 2008 after a temporary restraining order on the Memorandum of Agreement on Ancestral Domain (MOA-AD) was issued by the Supreme Court. The document had been designed to pave the way to peace, by expanding the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao. In October the Court ruled that the MOA-AD was unconstitutional. Fighting continued sporadically until a ceasefire agreement was reached in July 2009. Over 700,000 people in total were displaced during the year-long conflict.
In the early 1970s a full-scale armed conflict erupted between the Philippine government and the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF). In 1978 the MILF broke away from the MNLF, with which the government subsequently signed a peace agreement in 1996. Fighting broke out intermittently between the army and the MILF, as attempts at peace negotiations also continued. On 29 July 2009 in the Malaysian capital of Kuala Lumpur, the Philippine government and the MILF agreed to suspend military operations and work to establish a protection mechanism for civilians. Further talks between the two parties have yet to resume.
Read the full report: 'Shattered lives: Beyond the 2008-2009 Mindanao Armed Conflict' (PDF)
Source: http://www.amnesty.org.uk/news_details.asp?NewsID=18389
Philippines has one of highest numbers of displaced people in the world; new report reveals ongoing arrests, beatings and electro-shock torture
More than 200,000 civilians in central Mindanao are still vulnerable to human rights abuses despite the recent ceasefire between the Philippine army and the insurgent Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), warns Amnesty International in a new report published today.
The report, 'Shattered lives: Beyond the 2008 - 2009 Mindanao armed conflict', details the risks that hundreds of thousands of people face as they are forced to live in camps or makeshift shelters, sometimes surrounded by a heavy military presence.
Many of the displaced are still unable to return to their homes following the implementation of a ceasefire on 29 July 2009. During the conflict serious war crimes were committed including the shelling of an Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) camp and a bombing near a school. There are ongoing reports of human rights violations including arbitrary arrests, beatings and the use of electric shocks to torture.
The report, based on an Amnesty International mission to Mindanao and detailed field updates, highlights the desperate conditions of civilians living in crowded camps with limited access to food and livelihoods. It has been reported that in June this year the Philippines government discouraged aid agencies from giving large quantities of aid to displaced people in an effort to prevent it being diverted to the rebels or to traders. The report also provides information about human rights abuses by both the army and the MILF against villagers in Maguindanao province, central Mindanao.
In one such case, during January 2009 a large group of soldiers entered Ungap village, Sultan Kudarat Municipality and arrested 10 men there. The soldiers forced their way into houses, pointing their guns and destroying villagers' belongings. One villager told Amnesty International that the detained men, including her husband, were later given electric shocks; nine were released but her husband remains in detention. According to another family member, his interrogators questioned him over a 10 week period while administering electric shocks and beating him.
Many displaced people told Amnesty International that they were forced to risk their lives and return to their former homes to retrieve belongings and tend their crops in order to survive. Other testimonies provided details about arbitrary arrests and severe beatings of civilians at the hands of the Philippine army, the MILF, or local militias.
Donna Guest, Amnesty International's Asia Pacific Deputy Director said:
'Decades of conflict have inflicted scars on civilians, who continue to live in fear, not knowing what tomorrow holds.
'The vulnerability and uncertainty which civilians in central Mindanao face makes it imperative that the government and the MILF put human rights at the top of their agenda during future peace talks.
'The government of the Philippines is obliged under international law to ensure that displaced people are protected and have proper access to adequate food, water and medical assistance.'
Amnesty International also calls on both the Philippine authorities and the MILF to ensure the safety and well-being of all civilians. Where there are credible allegations of human rights abuses, the government should launch a swift and impartial investigation into the allegations and make the findings public. The MILF should cooperate with the government in facilitating such investigations.
The government should also implement, in cooperation with displaced people, a plan for the safe and voluntary return to their villages, including the provision of adequate food, housing and livelihoods upon resettlement.
Background
Conflict in Mindanao between the Philippine army and the MILF intensified in August 2008 after a temporary restraining order on the Memorandum of Agreement on Ancestral Domain (MOA-AD) was issued by the Supreme Court. The document had been designed to pave the way to peace, by expanding the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao. In October the Court ruled that the MOA-AD was unconstitutional. Fighting continued sporadically until a ceasefire agreement was reached in July 2009. Over 700,000 people in total were displaced during the year-long conflict.
In the early 1970s a full-scale armed conflict erupted between the Philippine government and the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF). In 1978 the MILF broke away from the MNLF, with which the government subsequently signed a peace agreement in 1996. Fighting broke out intermittently between the army and the MILF, as attempts at peace negotiations also continued. On 29 July 2009 in the Malaysian capital of Kuala Lumpur, the Philippine government and the MILF agreed to suspend military operations and work to establish a protection mechanism for civilians. Further talks between the two parties have yet to resume.
Read the full report: 'Shattered lives: Beyond the 2008-2009 Mindanao Armed Conflict' (PDF)
Source: http://www.amnesty.org.uk/news_details.asp?NewsID=18389
Mindanao Peace Weavers: Uphold the Primacy of the Peace Process
We, the Mindanao Peace Weavers- a convergence of seven peace networks in Mindanao- challenges the Government of the Republic of the Philippines (GRP) and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) to recommit to previous ceasefire agreements and immediately reactivate the ceasefire mechanisms.
There is no other way but for the GRP and the MILF to come together and dialogue for the peaceful resolution of the conflict in Mindanao. This is the only way for both sides to be accountable to the protection of civilians who are caught in the cycle of war and impoverishment. War is waged in their name and it is in this same framework which demands that they come together and talk.
We thus demand for the GRP and MILF to uphold the primacy of the peace process, not merely through pronouncements and declaration of a Suspension of Military Operations (SOM0) and Suspension of Military Action (SOMA) but to immediately take action against mounting human rights violations against civilians in war torn areas in Mindanao.
It is imperative to immediately reactivate the Coordinating Committee on the Cessation of Hostilities (CCCH) and the Ad-Hoc Joint Action Group (AHJAG) to enable ground mechanisms for civilian protection.
There is no other path to peace but dialogue.
We laud and fully support the effort of both the GRP and MILF to sit down and complete the preparation for the resumption of the talks. We also commit to help out the parties concerned in the establishment of an International Contact Group (ICG) and National Contact Group (NCG) to accompany the peace talks. Together with other civil society partners and friends, we offer our allied networks in the island and the region to accompany this process.
We recommit to continue the effort to mobilize international and local support for the peace process in Mindanao.
There is nothing to lose in our effort to forge peace. We call on the public to lay aside their prejudices and biases, and instead find that common ground for peace to flourish. We challenge the media to become an instrument of peace rather than of division.
We believe that both the MILF and the GRP must strengthen their position and commitment for peace and to be on guard against being outflanked by “spoilers” who may also come from their own ranks or constituencies.
The common ground is the civilian community, in whose name war and peace have been waged for ages. By putting the interest of the common people in the center of development efforts, and within the framework of their human rights, we believe that the GRP and the MILF will be able to uphold the people’s protection. Yet it is not enough that the civilians are protected. They must fully participate in the peace building process. We renew our commitment to help make this so.
We welcome the commitment of the GRP and the MILF to acknowledge the Memorandum of Agreement on Ancestral Domain (MOA-AD), which is an expression of the Moro people’s assertion on their right to self determination.
We believe that the effort to reframe the consensus points can bring about a negotiated political settlement to the conflict.
However, we express alarm and grave concern over reports that civilians are now being armed, allegedly “to defend themselves”, and that such arming of civilians is hinged on a revived “doomsday scenario” that relates to the MOA-AD.
We ask the GRP to prevent the “militarization” of civilians which will only increase possible human rights violations in communities.
In the same breath, we beseech all concerned stakeholders, gatekeepers of peace, and the general public not to make hasty assumptions on the content of the resumed Peace Talks, which may lead to widespread civil disorder.
We also call on the AFP and the PNP to ensure that no incident of such kind would come about anywhere in Mindanao.
And as an act of goodwill from both the GRP and the MILF, we urge them to jointly ensure the safe return of the IDPs to their homes, brainstorm with them regarding their needs for a safe environment in which to observe the season of Ramadhan and jointly guarantee that nothing will disturb the communities in the observance of this Holy Season.
We also enjoin all to observe utmost sobriety and restraint, and to practice discernment. Let us all dialogue so that all perceived fears are assuaged and all possible misconceptions clarified.
Finally, we hurl this challenge to the GRP and the MILF to take the bolder step towards peace in Mindanao: Resume the peace talks!
(Mindanao Peaceweavers is a convergence of peace advocates in Mindanao. It is convened by seven (7) peace networks that coalesced in the spirit of cooperation, complementation and concerted action towards a common advocacy and peace platform. MPW is composed of: Agong Network, Consortium of Bangsamoro Civil Society, Inter-Religious Solidarity Movement, Mindanao Peace Advocates Conference, Mindanao Peoples Caucus, Mindanao Peoples Peace Movement and Mindanao Solidarity Network. MPW is run by the following NGOs who act as its secretariats: Initiatives for International Dialogue (IID), Catholic Relief Services, Saligan and Tacdrup.)
There is no other way but for the GRP and the MILF to come together and dialogue for the peaceful resolution of the conflict in Mindanao. This is the only way for both sides to be accountable to the protection of civilians who are caught in the cycle of war and impoverishment. War is waged in their name and it is in this same framework which demands that they come together and talk.
We thus demand for the GRP and MILF to uphold the primacy of the peace process, not merely through pronouncements and declaration of a Suspension of Military Operations (SOM0) and Suspension of Military Action (SOMA) but to immediately take action against mounting human rights violations against civilians in war torn areas in Mindanao.
It is imperative to immediately reactivate the Coordinating Committee on the Cessation of Hostilities (CCCH) and the Ad-Hoc Joint Action Group (AHJAG) to enable ground mechanisms for civilian protection.
There is no other path to peace but dialogue.
We laud and fully support the effort of both the GRP and MILF to sit down and complete the preparation for the resumption of the talks. We also commit to help out the parties concerned in the establishment of an International Contact Group (ICG) and National Contact Group (NCG) to accompany the peace talks. Together with other civil society partners and friends, we offer our allied networks in the island and the region to accompany this process.
We recommit to continue the effort to mobilize international and local support for the peace process in Mindanao.
There is nothing to lose in our effort to forge peace. We call on the public to lay aside their prejudices and biases, and instead find that common ground for peace to flourish. We challenge the media to become an instrument of peace rather than of division.
We believe that both the MILF and the GRP must strengthen their position and commitment for peace and to be on guard against being outflanked by “spoilers” who may also come from their own ranks or constituencies.
The common ground is the civilian community, in whose name war and peace have been waged for ages. By putting the interest of the common people in the center of development efforts, and within the framework of their human rights, we believe that the GRP and the MILF will be able to uphold the people’s protection. Yet it is not enough that the civilians are protected. They must fully participate in the peace building process. We renew our commitment to help make this so.
We welcome the commitment of the GRP and the MILF to acknowledge the Memorandum of Agreement on Ancestral Domain (MOA-AD), which is an expression of the Moro people’s assertion on their right to self determination.
We believe that the effort to reframe the consensus points can bring about a negotiated political settlement to the conflict.
However, we express alarm and grave concern over reports that civilians are now being armed, allegedly “to defend themselves”, and that such arming of civilians is hinged on a revived “doomsday scenario” that relates to the MOA-AD.
We ask the GRP to prevent the “militarization” of civilians which will only increase possible human rights violations in communities.
In the same breath, we beseech all concerned stakeholders, gatekeepers of peace, and the general public not to make hasty assumptions on the content of the resumed Peace Talks, which may lead to widespread civil disorder.
We also call on the AFP and the PNP to ensure that no incident of such kind would come about anywhere in Mindanao.
And as an act of goodwill from both the GRP and the MILF, we urge them to jointly ensure the safe return of the IDPs to their homes, brainstorm with them regarding their needs for a safe environment in which to observe the season of Ramadhan and jointly guarantee that nothing will disturb the communities in the observance of this Holy Season.
We also enjoin all to observe utmost sobriety and restraint, and to practice discernment. Let us all dialogue so that all perceived fears are assuaged and all possible misconceptions clarified.
Finally, we hurl this challenge to the GRP and the MILF to take the bolder step towards peace in Mindanao: Resume the peace talks!
(Mindanao Peaceweavers is a convergence of peace advocates in Mindanao. It is convened by seven (7) peace networks that coalesced in the spirit of cooperation, complementation and concerted action towards a common advocacy and peace platform. MPW is composed of: Agong Network, Consortium of Bangsamoro Civil Society, Inter-Religious Solidarity Movement, Mindanao Peace Advocates Conference, Mindanao Peoples Caucus, Mindanao Peoples Peace Movement and Mindanao Solidarity Network. MPW is run by the following NGOs who act as its secretariats: Initiatives for International Dialogue (IID), Catholic Relief Services, Saligan and Tacdrup.)
Monday, August 17, 2009
Policy Statement and Declarations of the Bangsamoro Congress on Self-Determination
In the Name of Allah, The Most Beneficent, The Most Merciful
Policy Statement and Declarations of the Bangsamoro
Congress on Self-Determination
August 15-16, 2009, Regency Inn, Davao City
We, the Bangsamoro people upholding the Immense Sovereignty of Allah over the Worlds and over all creations, do hereby adopt, collectively proclaim, and promulgate the following declarations in the pursuit of the Bangsamoro peoples’ right to self-determination and for establishing an Islamic system within the territory on which we assert our collective birthright claim, to wit:
1) That the Moro peoples’ right to self-determination shall be attained and achieved through the process of decolonization of the Bangsamoro Homeland as an indigenous nation independent in character, and whose existence and contemporary identity and destiny is upheld and defined under the UN Covenant on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples of April 1994;
2) That we shall explore, as we do, peaceful avenues in attaining and achieving the Moro right to self-determination, including support to the demand for the full implementation of the MNLF-GRP 1996 agreement and the ongoing peace process between the Government of the Philippines and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front , and propositions therein that provide for an “associative relation” of the Bangsamoro with the national government for a short- or medium-term time-frame of the BM aspiration;
3) That we shall support initiatives, moves and processes that seek to (bring together) the Moro fronts in solidarity towards the attainment of RSD;
4) That we seek resolution of the Muslim Mindanao conflict by addressing its root causes - injustice, poverty, underdevelopment, displacement and the illegal encroachment of the Bangsamoro territory, by returning to them lands unjustly taken from them through legitimized processes that were alien to them, such as land titling and the national enactment of colonization laws;
5) That through peaceful and legitimate means, the Bangsamoro people shall pursue retrieval of lands taken from their forebears with policies enforced upon them by the succession of colonial and neo-colonial administrations without undermining the legitimate rights of the present owners ;
6) Enhanced respect for other peoples in a diversity of Bangsamoro territory or governance and tolerance shall be the guiding principles in the relationship of Moros with other peoples. The first Muslim administration best exudes respect and tolerance in the Magna Carta of the Prophet Muhammad (saw) on the Rights of non-Muslims in a Muslim government, particularly the St. Catherine Monastery of Mt. Sinai, an enclave of the Roman Empire in the 7th Century;
7) That the Bangsamoro people shall have access to all social services necessary to establish a productive, self-reliant and righteous ummah;
8) That the Bangsamoro shall exercise control over its territories, including the realm of decision-making on the utilization, preservation and protection of its natural resources through ways formulated to collectively benefit the Moros of the present and future generations;
9) That the Bangsamoro people are developing and shall establish their own system of education for children and youth, as well as alternative learning system for adults;
10) That Human Security does not solely apply on the problem of terrorism, but more importantly for every human being to be safe, and be secured in their domicile as well as their rights protected, including free movement and speech (without violating the Qur’an prohibition of slander);
11) That the rights of women shall be defended and protected and their representation in governance and other forums and sectors of society shall be upheld and promoted. In the same manner that cases of violations against their rights shall be documented and prosecuted;
12) That the Bangsamoro people shall promote and establish an Islam-inspired finance and economic system of usury-free, partnership (profit-loss sharing) scheme on public transactions, particularly those pertaining to market and banking businesses and in the management and utilization of the Bangsamoro resources;
13) That the Moro cultural heritage, the tradition and the rich history of the Bangsamoro people shall be maintained, preserved and promoted and shall be taught in schools attended by Moros and non-Moros, and,
14) The rights of children and youth shall be upheld and protected equally at all time among Moro and non-Moro people in the Bangsamoro Homeland. The Prophet Muhammad (saw) recognized and promoted their potentials not only in sports but also in community affairs when he introduced the concept of foster-parenting among the children of poor and rich families in the Dark Age of Arabia.
We assert our quest for just peace and humane society for the Bangsamoro peoples and their future generation!
Reaffirm the struggle of the Bangsamoro for self-determination, decolonization and political freedom and economic prosperity!
Adopted from consensus reached during the two-day Bangsamoro Congress on self-determination, and promulgated by 92 leaders of Bangsamoro Civil Society Organizations this 25th Day of Sa’aban 1428 HC, corresponding to 15th day of August 2009 in Davao City.
Policy Statement and Declarations of the Bangsamoro
Congress on Self-Determination
August 15-16, 2009, Regency Inn, Davao City
We, the Bangsamoro people upholding the Immense Sovereignty of Allah over the Worlds and over all creations, do hereby adopt, collectively proclaim, and promulgate the following declarations in the pursuit of the Bangsamoro peoples’ right to self-determination and for establishing an Islamic system within the territory on which we assert our collective birthright claim, to wit:
1) That the Moro peoples’ right to self-determination shall be attained and achieved through the process of decolonization of the Bangsamoro Homeland as an indigenous nation independent in character, and whose existence and contemporary identity and destiny is upheld and defined under the UN Covenant on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples of April 1994;
2) That we shall explore, as we do, peaceful avenues in attaining and achieving the Moro right to self-determination, including support to the demand for the full implementation of the MNLF-GRP 1996 agreement and the ongoing peace process between the Government of the Philippines and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front , and propositions therein that provide for an “associative relation” of the Bangsamoro with the national government for a short- or medium-term time-frame of the BM aspiration;
3) That we shall support initiatives, moves and processes that seek to (bring together) the Moro fronts in solidarity towards the attainment of RSD;
4) That we seek resolution of the Muslim Mindanao conflict by addressing its root causes - injustice, poverty, underdevelopment, displacement and the illegal encroachment of the Bangsamoro territory, by returning to them lands unjustly taken from them through legitimized processes that were alien to them, such as land titling and the national enactment of colonization laws;
5) That through peaceful and legitimate means, the Bangsamoro people shall pursue retrieval of lands taken from their forebears with policies enforced upon them by the succession of colonial and neo-colonial administrations without undermining the legitimate rights of the present owners ;
6) Enhanced respect for other peoples in a diversity of Bangsamoro territory or governance and tolerance shall be the guiding principles in the relationship of Moros with other peoples. The first Muslim administration best exudes respect and tolerance in the Magna Carta of the Prophet Muhammad (saw) on the Rights of non-Muslims in a Muslim government, particularly the St. Catherine Monastery of Mt. Sinai, an enclave of the Roman Empire in the 7th Century;
7) That the Bangsamoro people shall have access to all social services necessary to establish a productive, self-reliant and righteous ummah;
8) That the Bangsamoro shall exercise control over its territories, including the realm of decision-making on the utilization, preservation and protection of its natural resources through ways formulated to collectively benefit the Moros of the present and future generations;
9) That the Bangsamoro people are developing and shall establish their own system of education for children and youth, as well as alternative learning system for adults;
10) That Human Security does not solely apply on the problem of terrorism, but more importantly for every human being to be safe, and be secured in their domicile as well as their rights protected, including free movement and speech (without violating the Qur’an prohibition of slander);
11) That the rights of women shall be defended and protected and their representation in governance and other forums and sectors of society shall be upheld and promoted. In the same manner that cases of violations against their rights shall be documented and prosecuted;
12) That the Bangsamoro people shall promote and establish an Islam-inspired finance and economic system of usury-free, partnership (profit-loss sharing) scheme on public transactions, particularly those pertaining to market and banking businesses and in the management and utilization of the Bangsamoro resources;
13) That the Moro cultural heritage, the tradition and the rich history of the Bangsamoro people shall be maintained, preserved and promoted and shall be taught in schools attended by Moros and non-Moros, and,
14) The rights of children and youth shall be upheld and protected equally at all time among Moro and non-Moro people in the Bangsamoro Homeland. The Prophet Muhammad (saw) recognized and promoted their potentials not only in sports but also in community affairs when he introduced the concept of foster-parenting among the children of poor and rich families in the Dark Age of Arabia.
We assert our quest for just peace and humane society for the Bangsamoro peoples and their future generation!
Reaffirm the struggle of the Bangsamoro for self-determination, decolonization and political freedom and economic prosperity!
Adopted from consensus reached during the two-day Bangsamoro Congress on self-determination, and promulgated by 92 leaders of Bangsamoro Civil Society Organizations this 25th Day of Sa’aban 1428 HC, corresponding to 15th day of August 2009 in Davao City.
Sunday, August 9, 2009
Pinol says he won’t file contempt charges vs Gov't panel
DAVAO CITY (MindaNews/08 August) – North Cotabato Vice Governor Emmanuel Pinol says he will no longer have the government peace panel cited for contempt for allegedly “ignoring the Supreme Court decision declaring the MOA-AD (Memorandum of Agreement on Ancestral Domain) unconstitutional,” saying the panel has clarified the matter with him in a three-hour meeting in Cebu on Wednesday.
“I have softened my stance on that,” Pinol said, but added he would still ask his lawyers if they could pose a legal inquiry on the “acknowledgment” of the MOA-AD by the government and MILF peace panels.
He told MindaNews that government panel member Tomas Cabili met with him and Iligan mayor Lawrence Lluch Cruz in Cebu on Wednesday, where he proposed a “localized” peace process.
“The situation in North Cotabato is different from Maguindanao or Lanao del Sur,” he said.
Pinol said that while negotiations will still be conducted by the government peace panel, proposed solutions should be on a province-for-province basis. “We should base it on the situation on the ground,” he said.
Government peace panel chair Rafael Seguis said they would also listen to the other voices of North Cotabato.
The government and MILF in a Joint Statement signed in Kuala Lumpur on July 29 agreed during their two-day “special meeting” on four issues that would help “pave the way for the early resumption of the stalled peace negotiations,” among them the “acknowledgement of MOA-AD as an unsigned and yet initialed document, and commitment by both parties to reframe the consensus points with the end in view of moving towards the comprehensive compact to bring about a negotiated political settlement.”
Peace Process Undersecretary Camilo Montesa, also government peace panel spokesperson, told MindaNews acknowledgement “means what it says.”
“It is a document that is unsigned yet initialed and that Parties will move on to negotiating the comprehensive compact. It describes a fact and a resolve by the Parties to move forward,” he said.
By a vote of 8-7, the Supreme Court on October 14, 2008 ruled the MOA-AD “unconstitutional” but noted that “surely, the present MOA-AD can be renegotiated or another one will be drawn up to carry out the Ancestral Domain aspect of the Tripoli Agreement of 2001, in another or in any form, which could contain similar or significantly dissimilar provisions compared to the original.”
“Clearly, the Supreme Court allows ‘acknowledgement’ as it has clearly done so. But of course Vice Gov. Pinol can go to the Supreme Court and seek a confirmation of his ignorance,” said Montesa.
Lawyer Mary Ann Arnado, secretary-general of the Mindanao Peoples Caucus, told MindaNews, “what is his problem? Why is he preventing the Moro people from ending the war and reclaiming their ancestral domain? With or without the MOA, the ancestral domain is a legitimate grievance that any right-thinking leader should recognize. He better read the Supreme Court decision first before he makes such a move. The Supreme Court said that the present MOA-AD can be renegotiated or another drawn up that could contain similar or significantly dissimilar provisions compared to the original.”
“It is high time for him to transcend his blatantly ostentatious economic interests for the sake of peace, “ she said.
A preess statement on August 5 signed by 41 organizations and four individuals said “Pinol’s threat only reveals his own incorrigible stand to oppose whatever efforts to resume the talks and resolve the armed conflict in Mindanao through peaceful means. And to claim that the people of Cotabato are behind him in this stance is a clear misrepresentation of the real sentiments of the people. We can only say that the real sentiments of the people of Cotabato will come out quite clearly and strongly when they cast their votes in 2010. And we call on all peace-loving people of Cotabato and Mindanao to never ever allow this type of leader to continue to stay in public office.”
The MOA-AD was the third and last agreement out of the three-agenda items in the talks -- security, relief and rehabilitation, and ancestral domain – prior to the negotiation on the political settlement.
In a press statement dated July 31, Pinol said “the brazen act of the GRP Panel to include the MOA-AD in the Joint Statement will not go unquestioned.”
Pinol claimed that he “and the People of North Cotabato, who have long been searching for true and lasting peace, take note of the accomplishments of the new peace panel negotiating with the MILF and consider its efforts as a genuine gesture to attain peace in Mindanao. But at the same time, we raise serious concerns and express extreme disappointment over the reference to and inclusion of the MOA-AD in the Joint Statement and the expressed ‘commitment by both parties to reframe the consensus points with the end in view of moving towards the comprehensive compact to bring about a negotiated political settlement.’”
Pinol last year spearheaded the filing of a petition for temporary restraining order to stop the government from signing the MOA-AD. The Supreme Court issued the TRO on August 4, the eve of the formal signing of the MOA-AD in Putrajaya, Malaysia.
North Cotabato Governor Jesus Sacdalan dismissed Pinol’s statement as "Grandstanding lang yan para mapansin. (He’s just grandstanding to catch attention)... Tama na. (Enough). Let's move on. Give peace a chance.”
Sacdalan was Pinol’s vice governor until 2007. Pinol served as governor of North Cotabato for three terms from 1998 to 2007. (Carolyn O. Arguillas/MindaNews)
Source: http://www.mindanews.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=6811&Itemid=190
“I have softened my stance on that,” Pinol said, but added he would still ask his lawyers if they could pose a legal inquiry on the “acknowledgment” of the MOA-AD by the government and MILF peace panels.
He told MindaNews that government panel member Tomas Cabili met with him and Iligan mayor Lawrence Lluch Cruz in Cebu on Wednesday, where he proposed a “localized” peace process.
“The situation in North Cotabato is different from Maguindanao or Lanao del Sur,” he said.
Pinol said that while negotiations will still be conducted by the government peace panel, proposed solutions should be on a province-for-province basis. “We should base it on the situation on the ground,” he said.
Government peace panel chair Rafael Seguis said they would also listen to the other voices of North Cotabato.
The government and MILF in a Joint Statement signed in Kuala Lumpur on July 29 agreed during their two-day “special meeting” on four issues that would help “pave the way for the early resumption of the stalled peace negotiations,” among them the “acknowledgement of MOA-AD as an unsigned and yet initialed document, and commitment by both parties to reframe the consensus points with the end in view of moving towards the comprehensive compact to bring about a negotiated political settlement.”
Peace Process Undersecretary Camilo Montesa, also government peace panel spokesperson, told MindaNews acknowledgement “means what it says.”
“It is a document that is unsigned yet initialed and that Parties will move on to negotiating the comprehensive compact. It describes a fact and a resolve by the Parties to move forward,” he said.
By a vote of 8-7, the Supreme Court on October 14, 2008 ruled the MOA-AD “unconstitutional” but noted that “surely, the present MOA-AD can be renegotiated or another one will be drawn up to carry out the Ancestral Domain aspect of the Tripoli Agreement of 2001, in another or in any form, which could contain similar or significantly dissimilar provisions compared to the original.”
“Clearly, the Supreme Court allows ‘acknowledgement’ as it has clearly done so. But of course Vice Gov. Pinol can go to the Supreme Court and seek a confirmation of his ignorance,” said Montesa.
Lawyer Mary Ann Arnado, secretary-general of the Mindanao Peoples Caucus, told MindaNews, “what is his problem? Why is he preventing the Moro people from ending the war and reclaiming their ancestral domain? With or without the MOA, the ancestral domain is a legitimate grievance that any right-thinking leader should recognize. He better read the Supreme Court decision first before he makes such a move. The Supreme Court said that the present MOA-AD can be renegotiated or another drawn up that could contain similar or significantly dissimilar provisions compared to the original.”
“It is high time for him to transcend his blatantly ostentatious economic interests for the sake of peace, “ she said.
A preess statement on August 5 signed by 41 organizations and four individuals said “Pinol’s threat only reveals his own incorrigible stand to oppose whatever efforts to resume the talks and resolve the armed conflict in Mindanao through peaceful means. And to claim that the people of Cotabato are behind him in this stance is a clear misrepresentation of the real sentiments of the people. We can only say that the real sentiments of the people of Cotabato will come out quite clearly and strongly when they cast their votes in 2010. And we call on all peace-loving people of Cotabato and Mindanao to never ever allow this type of leader to continue to stay in public office.”
The MOA-AD was the third and last agreement out of the three-agenda items in the talks -- security, relief and rehabilitation, and ancestral domain – prior to the negotiation on the political settlement.
In a press statement dated July 31, Pinol said “the brazen act of the GRP Panel to include the MOA-AD in the Joint Statement will not go unquestioned.”
Pinol claimed that he “and the People of North Cotabato, who have long been searching for true and lasting peace, take note of the accomplishments of the new peace panel negotiating with the MILF and consider its efforts as a genuine gesture to attain peace in Mindanao. But at the same time, we raise serious concerns and express extreme disappointment over the reference to and inclusion of the MOA-AD in the Joint Statement and the expressed ‘commitment by both parties to reframe the consensus points with the end in view of moving towards the comprehensive compact to bring about a negotiated political settlement.’”
Pinol last year spearheaded the filing of a petition for temporary restraining order to stop the government from signing the MOA-AD. The Supreme Court issued the TRO on August 4, the eve of the formal signing of the MOA-AD in Putrajaya, Malaysia.
North Cotabato Governor Jesus Sacdalan dismissed Pinol’s statement as "Grandstanding lang yan para mapansin. (He’s just grandstanding to catch attention)... Tama na. (Enough). Let's move on. Give peace a chance.”
Sacdalan was Pinol’s vice governor until 2007. Pinol served as governor of North Cotabato for three terms from 1998 to 2007. (Carolyn O. Arguillas/MindaNews)
Source: http://www.mindanews.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=6811&Itemid=190
Tuesday, August 4, 2009
This time, VGov Pinol wants GRP peace panel cited for contempt
DAVAO CITY (MindaNews/04 August) – North Cotabato Vice Governor Emmanuel Pinol wants the government peace panel negotiating with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) cited for contempt for allegedly “ignoring the Supreme Court decision declaring the MOA-AD (Memorandum of Agreement on Ancestral Domain) unconstitutional.”
The government and MILF in a Joint Statement signed in Kuala Lumpur on July 29 agreed during their two-day “special meeting” on four issues that would help “pave the way for the early resumption of the stalled peace negotiations,” among them the “acknowledgement of MOA-AD as an unsigned and yet initialed document, and commitment by both parties to reframe the consensus points with the end in view of moving towards the comprehensive compact to bring about a negotiated political settlement.”
In a press statement dated July 31 and e-mailed August 1, the day former President Corazon Aquino died, Pinol said “the brazen act of the GRP Panel to include the MOA-AD in the Joint Statement will not go unquestioned.”
Governor Jesus Sacdalan, however, laughed off Pinol's statement. "Grandstanding lang yan para mapansin. (He’s just grandstanding to catch attention)... Tama na. (Enough). Let's move on. Give peace a chance,” he said.
Pinol claimed that he “and the People of North Cotabato, who have long been searching for true and lasting peace, take note of the accomplishments of the new peace panel negotiating with the MILF and consider its efforts as a genuine gesture to attain peace in Mindanao. But at the same time, we raise serious concerns and express extreme disappointment over the reference to and inclusion of the MOA-AD in the Joint Statement and the expressed ‘commitment by both parties to reframe the consensus points with the end in view of moving towards the comprehensive compact to bring about a negotiated political settlement.’”
Pinol last year spearheaded the filing of a petition for temporary restraining order to stop the government from signing the MOA-AD. The Supreme Court issued the TRO on August 4, the eve of the formal signing of the MOA-AD in Putrajaya, Malaysia.
“Is not the inclusion of and reference to the MOA-AD in the Joint Statement a mockery of the decision of the High Court of the Land and tantamount to Contempt?” asked Pinol.
“Did the GRP Panel take notice of the fear, the rift, the division and the violence that the proposed MOA-AD brought upon the people of the country, especially among us living in the Southern Philippines?” he asked.
Pinol said the MOA-AD “in its entirety is a document that virtually creates an ‘associative’ government that is equivalent to a new State minus the word ‘sovereignty.’ It talks of an expanded territory in addition to the original Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) and will cover the Province of North Cotabato as well as almost all parts of the Zamboanga Peninsula and parts of Palawan Island.”
“When the Joint Statement expressed the commitment ‘to reframe the consensus points’ in the MOA-AD which was thrashed by the Supreme Court, does that mean retaining the spirit and intent of the original document, which is an expanded territory to be managed by the MILF and simply rewording it?” asked Pinol.
Peace Process Undersecretary Camilo Montesa, also government peace panel spokesperson, told MindaNews on July 29 that the acknowledgement of the MOA-AD as an unsigned and yet initialed document “means what it says.”
“It is a document that is unsigned yet initialed and that Parties will move on to negotiating the comprehensive compact. It describes a fact and a resolve by the Parties to move forward,” he said.
By a vote of 8-7, the Supreme Court on October 14, 2008 ruled the MOA-AD “unconstitutional” but noted that “surely, the present MOA-AD can be renegotiated or another one will be drawn up to carry out the Ancestral Domain aspect of the Tripoli Agreement of 2001, in another or in any form, which could contain similar or significantly dissimilar provisions compared to the original.”
The MOA-AD was the third and last agreement out of the three-agenda items in the talks -- security, relief and rehabilitation, and ancestral domain – prior to the negotiation on the political settlement.
Montesa said Pinol should ask his “legal experts to read and explain the SC decision… to him. I can understand his ignorance. But the SC decision states in part that the 'MOA-AD is a significant part of a series of agreements necessary to carry out the GRP-MILF Agreement on Peace signed by the Government and the MILF in June 2001. Hence the present MOA-AD can be renegotiated or another drawn up that should contain similar or significantly dissimilar provisions compared to the original."
“Clearly, the Supreme Court allows ‘acknowledgement’ as it has clearly done so. But of course Vice Gov. Pinol can go to the Supreme Court and seek a confirmation of his ignorance. And furthermore, what is ‘reframe the consensus points with the end in view of moving towards the comprehensive compact to bring about a negotiated political settlement’ but a restatement of the Supreme Court’s directive for the panels to draw up something “that could contain similar or significantly dissimilar provisions compared to the original,” said Montesa.
Lawyer Mary Ann Arnado, secretary-general of the Mindanao Peoples Caucus, told MindaNews, “what is his problem? Why is he preventing the Moro people from ending the war and reclaiming their ancestral domain? With or without the MOA, the ancestral domain is a legitimate grievance that any right-thinking leader should recognize. He better read the Supreme Court decision first before he makes such a move. The Supreme Court said that the present MOA-AD can be renegotiated or another drawn up that could contain similar or significantly dissimilar provisions compared to the original.”
“It is high time for him to transcend his blatantly ostentatious economic interests for the sake of peace, “ she said. (The MPC and other civil society organizations also issued a media statement ).
Government peace panel chair Rafel Seguis said “I believe it is his right to file such action but before he does that, I hope we would be able to talk so he could be clarified. I am right now in Damascus but I will request for meeting with him as soon as I get back to Manila.”
Pinol’s executive assistant, Carlos Bautista, told MindaNews Tuesday that Pinol has not filed the contempt charges as of August 4. Bautista said Pinol “has a meeting with the peace panel in Cebu tomorrow.” (Carolyn O. Arguillas/MindaNews)
The government and MILF in a Joint Statement signed in Kuala Lumpur on July 29 agreed during their two-day “special meeting” on four issues that would help “pave the way for the early resumption of the stalled peace negotiations,” among them the “acknowledgement of MOA-AD as an unsigned and yet initialed document, and commitment by both parties to reframe the consensus points with the end in view of moving towards the comprehensive compact to bring about a negotiated political settlement.”
In a press statement dated July 31 and e-mailed August 1, the day former President Corazon Aquino died, Pinol said “the brazen act of the GRP Panel to include the MOA-AD in the Joint Statement will not go unquestioned.”
Governor Jesus Sacdalan, however, laughed off Pinol's statement. "Grandstanding lang yan para mapansin. (He’s just grandstanding to catch attention)... Tama na. (Enough). Let's move on. Give peace a chance,” he said.
Pinol claimed that he “and the People of North Cotabato, who have long been searching for true and lasting peace, take note of the accomplishments of the new peace panel negotiating with the MILF and consider its efforts as a genuine gesture to attain peace in Mindanao. But at the same time, we raise serious concerns and express extreme disappointment over the reference to and inclusion of the MOA-AD in the Joint Statement and the expressed ‘commitment by both parties to reframe the consensus points with the end in view of moving towards the comprehensive compact to bring about a negotiated political settlement.’”
Pinol last year spearheaded the filing of a petition for temporary restraining order to stop the government from signing the MOA-AD. The Supreme Court issued the TRO on August 4, the eve of the formal signing of the MOA-AD in Putrajaya, Malaysia.
“Is not the inclusion of and reference to the MOA-AD in the Joint Statement a mockery of the decision of the High Court of the Land and tantamount to Contempt?” asked Pinol.
“Did the GRP Panel take notice of the fear, the rift, the division and the violence that the proposed MOA-AD brought upon the people of the country, especially among us living in the Southern Philippines?” he asked.
Pinol said the MOA-AD “in its entirety is a document that virtually creates an ‘associative’ government that is equivalent to a new State minus the word ‘sovereignty.’ It talks of an expanded territory in addition to the original Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) and will cover the Province of North Cotabato as well as almost all parts of the Zamboanga Peninsula and parts of Palawan Island.”
“When the Joint Statement expressed the commitment ‘to reframe the consensus points’ in the MOA-AD which was thrashed by the Supreme Court, does that mean retaining the spirit and intent of the original document, which is an expanded territory to be managed by the MILF and simply rewording it?” asked Pinol.
Peace Process Undersecretary Camilo Montesa, also government peace panel spokesperson, told MindaNews on July 29 that the acknowledgement of the MOA-AD as an unsigned and yet initialed document “means what it says.”
“It is a document that is unsigned yet initialed and that Parties will move on to negotiating the comprehensive compact. It describes a fact and a resolve by the Parties to move forward,” he said.
By a vote of 8-7, the Supreme Court on October 14, 2008 ruled the MOA-AD “unconstitutional” but noted that “surely, the present MOA-AD can be renegotiated or another one will be drawn up to carry out the Ancestral Domain aspect of the Tripoli Agreement of 2001, in another or in any form, which could contain similar or significantly dissimilar provisions compared to the original.”
The MOA-AD was the third and last agreement out of the three-agenda items in the talks -- security, relief and rehabilitation, and ancestral domain – prior to the negotiation on the political settlement.
Montesa said Pinol should ask his “legal experts to read and explain the SC decision… to him. I can understand his ignorance. But the SC decision states in part that the 'MOA-AD is a significant part of a series of agreements necessary to carry out the GRP-MILF Agreement on Peace signed by the Government and the MILF in June 2001. Hence the present MOA-AD can be renegotiated or another drawn up that should contain similar or significantly dissimilar provisions compared to the original."
“Clearly, the Supreme Court allows ‘acknowledgement’ as it has clearly done so. But of course Vice Gov. Pinol can go to the Supreme Court and seek a confirmation of his ignorance. And furthermore, what is ‘reframe the consensus points with the end in view of moving towards the comprehensive compact to bring about a negotiated political settlement’ but a restatement of the Supreme Court’s directive for the panels to draw up something “that could contain similar or significantly dissimilar provisions compared to the original,” said Montesa.
Lawyer Mary Ann Arnado, secretary-general of the Mindanao Peoples Caucus, told MindaNews, “what is his problem? Why is he preventing the Moro people from ending the war and reclaiming their ancestral domain? With or without the MOA, the ancestral domain is a legitimate grievance that any right-thinking leader should recognize. He better read the Supreme Court decision first before he makes such a move. The Supreme Court said that the present MOA-AD can be renegotiated or another drawn up that could contain similar or significantly dissimilar provisions compared to the original.”
“It is high time for him to transcend his blatantly ostentatious economic interests for the sake of peace, “ she said. (The MPC and other civil society organizations also issued a media statement ).
Government peace panel chair Rafel Seguis said “I believe it is his right to file such action but before he does that, I hope we would be able to talk so he could be clarified. I am right now in Damascus but I will request for meeting with him as soon as I get back to Manila.”
Pinol’s executive assistant, Carlos Bautista, told MindaNews Tuesday that Pinol has not filed the contempt charges as of August 4. Bautista said Pinol “has a meeting with the peace panel in Cebu tomorrow.” (Carolyn O. Arguillas/MindaNews)
Temporary Restraining Order (TRO): Never Again!
Media Statement
August 4, 2009
Temporary Restraining Order (TRO): Never Again!
We, the undersigned representatives of civil society organizations and peace advocates in Mindanao, hereby express our grave concern over the recent remarks of Cotabato Vice Governor Emmanuel Piñol who threatens to cite the Government Peace Panel in contempt of the Supreme Court for its July 29 Joint Statement which mentioned in part the “acknowledgment of MOA-AD as an unsigned and yet initialed document, and commitment by both parties to reframe the consensus points with the end in view of moving towards the comprehensive compact to bring about a negotiated political settlement".
Pinol’s threat only reveals his own incorrigible stand to oppose whatever efforts to resume the talks and resolve the armed conflict in Mindanao through peaceful means. And to claim that the people of Cotabato are behind him in this stance is a clear misrepresentation of the real sentiments of the people. We can only say that the real sentiments of the people of Cotabato will come out quite clearly and strongly when they cast their votes in 2010. And we call on all peace-loving people of Cotabato and Mindanao to never ever allow this type of leader to continue to stay in public office.
No less than the Supreme Court said its October 14, 2008 decision that the "MOA-AD is a significant part of a series of agreements necessary to carry out the GRP-MILF Tripoli Agreement on Peace signed by the government and the MILF back in June 2001. Hence, the present MOA-AD can be renegotiated or another one drawn up that could contain similar or significantly dissimilar provisions compared to the original". Said decision has never suggested that the peace panels could not talk about Ancestral Domain anymore. How can one ever restrain the peace panels from talking about the root causes of the armed conflict -- the displacement and marginalization of the Moro and Indigenous Peoples from their own ancestral domain due to colonization and resettlement program that favored the settlers from Visayas and Luzon.
This is aggravated by the insatiable greed of the elite who up to now continues to encroach upon whatever is left of the traditional territories of the indigenous and bangsamoro peoples. One need only look at the vast tracts of banana and oil palm plantations in Central Mindanao to question how did this few big families manage to acquire thousands upon thousands hectares .
No less than Governor Jesus Sacdalan stressed during the State of the Bakwit Address (SOBA) last July 23, 2009 in Cotabato City that 99 percent of his constituents are supportive of the peace process. Would that mean the remaining one percent represents Pinol?
At the core the Mindanao problem is the highly skewed distribution of ownership and control over land – brought about since the early 1900s by a series of state-directed land development policies that effectively “minoritized” and impoverished the original indigenous communities, including the Bangsamoro. Landgrabbing and illegal encroachment are the primary drivers of the conflict in Mindanao that resulted to deprivation, disenfranchisement, injustice, and poverty.
We therefore pose these questions to Vice Governor Piñol: if you truly desire true and lasting peace, why question then the lawful demands of the Bangsamoro to legally claim what is theirs through the MOA-AD? Does Vice Governor Piñol even concern himself with the fears, the rift, the divisions and the violence that his Temporary Restraining Order against the MOA-AD are bringing upon the people of the country, especially among us living in the Southern Philippines?
Political maneuvers over land control in the guise of beliefs in national patrimony work against the fundamental solution to the Mindanao conflict. Let us prevent any attempt to destroy the gains of the peace process especially now that the doors to peace of the GRP and MILF are reopened. The peace panels are on their way to rebuilding a new and credible peace and don’t deserve being sabotaged by the brazen and irresponsible remarks of politicians who mean to economically and politically gain from conflicts and violence.(30)
SIGNED:
1. Mindanao Peoples Caucus
2. United Youth for Peace and Development
3. Mindanao Migrants Center for Empowering Actions
4. Mindanao ComStrat and Policy Alternatives
5. Bangsamoro Youth Assembly
6. Bangsamoro Youth Leaders Forum
7. AnakTribu
8. Bukidnon Indigenous Youth of the Seven Tribes
9. Mindanao Peace Partners
10. Sir Patricio P. Diaz, Mindanews Columnist, Journalist
11. Al-Ihsan Foundation
12. Bangsamoro Center for Justpeace
13. Kadtuntaya Foundation, Inc.
14. Consortium of Bangsamoro Civil Society
15. Moro Women Cultural and Development Center
16. Cotabato Center for Peace and Development Initiative
17. Moro Law Center
18. Consortium of Bangsamoro Civil Society --Kutawato Regional Management Committee
19. IQRAA
20. The Nation of Freedom
21. Young Ranao
22. Youth for Knowledge-based Society
23. Free the Bangsamoro Movement
24. Southpil Agr-Industrial Corporation
25. Learned Kagad Muslim Foundation, Inc.
26. Organization of Teduray and Lambangian Conference
27. MNLF Arakan Cooperative
28. Mahad Cooperative, Pikit
29. Suara Kalilintad
30. Alliance of Progressive Labor
31. BARRIOS, Incorporated
32. Federation of Matigsalug and Manobo Council of Tribal Leaders
33. Mindanao Farmers Development Center
34. Bill Martin, Akbayan-Davao
35. Daguiwaas Clan
36. Apo Agbibilin Community, Incorporated
37. Panicupan Farmers Multipurpose Cooperative
38. Children and Youth Communication Task Force
39. Panicupan Multi-Purpose Cooperative
40. Sheilfa Alojamiento, Writer
41. Bangsamoro Successor's Generation Network
42. MARADECA
43. Organization of Teduray and Lambangian Conference
44. Assembly of Moro Entrepreneurs
45. Jan Frances Lozano
August 4, 2009
Temporary Restraining Order (TRO): Never Again!
We, the undersigned representatives of civil society organizations and peace advocates in Mindanao, hereby express our grave concern over the recent remarks of Cotabato Vice Governor Emmanuel Piñol who threatens to cite the Government Peace Panel in contempt of the Supreme Court for its July 29 Joint Statement which mentioned in part the “acknowledgment of MOA-AD as an unsigned and yet initialed document, and commitment by both parties to reframe the consensus points with the end in view of moving towards the comprehensive compact to bring about a negotiated political settlement".
Pinol’s threat only reveals his own incorrigible stand to oppose whatever efforts to resume the talks and resolve the armed conflict in Mindanao through peaceful means. And to claim that the people of Cotabato are behind him in this stance is a clear misrepresentation of the real sentiments of the people. We can only say that the real sentiments of the people of Cotabato will come out quite clearly and strongly when they cast their votes in 2010. And we call on all peace-loving people of Cotabato and Mindanao to never ever allow this type of leader to continue to stay in public office.
No less than the Supreme Court said its October 14, 2008 decision that the "MOA-AD is a significant part of a series of agreements necessary to carry out the GRP-MILF Tripoli Agreement on Peace signed by the government and the MILF back in June 2001. Hence, the present MOA-AD can be renegotiated or another one drawn up that could contain similar or significantly dissimilar provisions compared to the original". Said decision has never suggested that the peace panels could not talk about Ancestral Domain anymore. How can one ever restrain the peace panels from talking about the root causes of the armed conflict -- the displacement and marginalization of the Moro and Indigenous Peoples from their own ancestral domain due to colonization and resettlement program that favored the settlers from Visayas and Luzon.
This is aggravated by the insatiable greed of the elite who up to now continues to encroach upon whatever is left of the traditional territories of the indigenous and bangsamoro peoples. One need only look at the vast tracts of banana and oil palm plantations in Central Mindanao to question how did this few big families manage to acquire thousands upon thousands hectares .
No less than Governor Jesus Sacdalan stressed during the State of the Bakwit Address (SOBA) last July 23, 2009 in Cotabato City that 99 percent of his constituents are supportive of the peace process. Would that mean the remaining one percent represents Pinol?
At the core the Mindanao problem is the highly skewed distribution of ownership and control over land – brought about since the early 1900s by a series of state-directed land development policies that effectively “minoritized” and impoverished the original indigenous communities, including the Bangsamoro. Landgrabbing and illegal encroachment are the primary drivers of the conflict in Mindanao that resulted to deprivation, disenfranchisement, injustice, and poverty.
We therefore pose these questions to Vice Governor Piñol: if you truly desire true and lasting peace, why question then the lawful demands of the Bangsamoro to legally claim what is theirs through the MOA-AD? Does Vice Governor Piñol even concern himself with the fears, the rift, the divisions and the violence that his Temporary Restraining Order against the MOA-AD are bringing upon the people of the country, especially among us living in the Southern Philippines?
Political maneuvers over land control in the guise of beliefs in national patrimony work against the fundamental solution to the Mindanao conflict. Let us prevent any attempt to destroy the gains of the peace process especially now that the doors to peace of the GRP and MILF are reopened. The peace panels are on their way to rebuilding a new and credible peace and don’t deserve being sabotaged by the brazen and irresponsible remarks of politicians who mean to economically and politically gain from conflicts and violence.(30)
SIGNED:
1. Mindanao Peoples Caucus
2. United Youth for Peace and Development
3. Mindanao Migrants Center for Empowering Actions
4. Mindanao ComStrat and Policy Alternatives
5. Bangsamoro Youth Assembly
6. Bangsamoro Youth Leaders Forum
7. AnakTribu
8. Bukidnon Indigenous Youth of the Seven Tribes
9. Mindanao Peace Partners
10. Sir Patricio P. Diaz, Mindanews Columnist, Journalist
11. Al-Ihsan Foundation
12. Bangsamoro Center for Justpeace
13. Kadtuntaya Foundation, Inc.
14. Consortium of Bangsamoro Civil Society
15. Moro Women Cultural and Development Center
16. Cotabato Center for Peace and Development Initiative
17. Moro Law Center
18. Consortium of Bangsamoro Civil Society --Kutawato Regional Management Committee
19. IQRAA
20. The Nation of Freedom
21. Young Ranao
22. Youth for Knowledge-based Society
23. Free the Bangsamoro Movement
24. Southpil Agr-Industrial Corporation
25. Learned Kagad Muslim Foundation, Inc.
26. Organization of Teduray and Lambangian Conference
27. MNLF Arakan Cooperative
28. Mahad Cooperative, Pikit
29. Suara Kalilintad
30. Alliance of Progressive Labor
31. BARRIOS, Incorporated
32. Federation of Matigsalug and Manobo Council of Tribal Leaders
33. Mindanao Farmers Development Center
34. Bill Martin, Akbayan-Davao
35. Daguiwaas Clan
36. Apo Agbibilin Community, Incorporated
37. Panicupan Farmers Multipurpose Cooperative
38. Children and Youth Communication Task Force
39. Panicupan Multi-Purpose Cooperative
40. Sheilfa Alojamiento, Writer
41. Bangsamoro Successor's Generation Network
42. MARADECA
43. Organization of Teduray and Lambangian Conference
44. Assembly of Moro Entrepreneurs
45. Jan Frances Lozano
Saturday, August 1, 2009
STATEMENT: DIALOGUE IS THE WAY: RECONVENE, RESUME PEACE TALKS NOW
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