Esperon: Cha-cha needed to complete MILF peace accord

Tag : terminal ends

A shift to a federal form of government and an alliance between theMoro National Liberation Front (MNLF) and the Moro IslamicLiberation Front (MILF) may be needed to complete the peace processin Mindanao, the government's peace adviser said.
In a press conference Thursday, Hermogenes Esperon Jr., thepresidential adviser on the peace process, said the creation of astronger autonomous Muslim territory or Bangsamoro JuridicalEntity, which the MILF has been pushing for, will require a federalform of government.
However, a federal form of government is not allowed under the 1987Philippine Constitution. The charter provides for a unitaryrepublic, not a federal republic.
"It looks likes the Bangsamoro Juridical Entity will take the formof more advanced autonomous Muslim territory than the ARMM(Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao), and this could take theform of a federal state," Esperon said.
"A federal state is not allowed within the current framework. Andso because of that, the final agreement will not be executory untilwe have an enabling act [for a federal state]. This will come inthe form of an amendment to the Constitution," he said.
"If there is a need to accommodate or amend the Constitutionbecause of the provisions in the peace agreement [with the MILF],then we will go through that," Esperon added.
The retired armed forces chief said that in order to achieve afinal peace agreement, the government may push for amendmentsthrough a Constituent assembly or it may support Senator AquilinoPimentel's proposal to shift to a federal form of government.
Esperon said a proposal for charter change may form part of thefinal peace agreement, but the agreement will not take effectunless the 1987 Constitution is changed.
"The matter of charter change is something that could come out inthe final peace agreement. If it so included in the final peaceagreement, then it is not executory until such time that we amendthe Constitution," he said.
Unification
Esperon said some form of unification between the MNLF, whichsigned a peace agreement with the Ramos government in 1996, and theMILF, is also needed to complete the peace process. This is becausethe MILF wants the inclusion of some ARMM areas, which the MNLF gotin the 1996 peace accord, in the Bangsamoro Juridical Entity.
"There is a need for a unity of purpose between the MILF and theMNLF so that the Bangsamoro Juridical Entity can serve the peoplethat are within the territory. What I'm saying is that there shouldbe some unification. We would also take steps contributory towardthat end," he said.
On Wednesday, the government and the MILF, the largest Muslimseparatist group, reached a deal to create an ancestral homelandfor three million Muslims in Mindanao after the Moro rebels agreedto remove the word "freedom" from the draft agreement.
Esperon said during the "back-channeling" negotiations, fourcontentious issues were finally resolved on June 23. These are:sharing in the income from mineral activities; organizations thatwill be created to make the Bangsamoro Juridical Entity efficientin governance; a clause for constitutional compliance; and,removing "freedom" from the draft.
The ancestral domain agreement, while crucial for the resumption offormal peace talks with the MILF, does not guarantee the end of anear 40-year conflict that has killed 120,000 people and displacedtwo million on the resource-rich southern island of Mindanao.
The Philippine government and the 11,000-member MILF have beentalking for more than a decade on how to give Muslims in the southa greater degree of self-rule, and it took the two sides nearlyfour years to reach this agreement on expanding the coverage of anexisting autonomous region for the minority group.
The panel will meet on July 24 to decide when the draft memorandumof agreement (MOA) will be signed. After the signing of the draftMOA, formal peace negotiations can start.
A plebiscite on expanding the ARMM will also be held six monthsafter the MOA is signed. The expanded ARMM is expected to include712 villages from Lanao del Norte, North Cotabato, Sultan Kudarat,Zamboanga Sibugay and Palawan.