Congress backs draft pact with MILF

From Malaya (Dec 21): Congress backs draft pact with MILF

THE Senate on Wednesday night approved a resolution expressing support for the 2012 Framework Agreement on the Bangsamoro that government signed with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front last October. A similar resolution was passed by the House of Representatives yesterday. House Resolution No. 971 expresses the chamber’s “support of the 2012 Framework Agreement on the Bangsamoro with the MILF and its implementation, including the creation of the Bangsamoro Transition Commission.” The House resolution also acknowledged the work of the government and the MILF which “are both invested in problem solving with the view of establishing a just and working autonomy for the Bangsamoro people.”


Sen. Teofisto Guingona III, who introduced Resolution No. 922, said the framework agreement entered into by the government and the MILF is crucial in the attainment of peace and economic development in the region. All senators were later made co-authors of the resolution. “The signing of the agreement has inspired optimism and hope that a just framework for peace in the Muslim Mindanao region, through a partnership with the Bangsamoro, has been achieved,” Guingona said in his resolution.

The Senate resolution said the framework agreement calls for the creation of a new political entity called the Bangsamoro, and through the Bangsamoro Basic Law, will replace the Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao. Also according to the resolution, the framework provides for the empowerment of the Bangsamoro people by “creating the space for their meaningful participation in the process of enacting the Bangsamoro Islamic Law through the creation of the Transition Commission.”

President Aquino signed Monday Executive Order 210 which creates the Bangsamoro Transition Commission. Under the EO, the President will appoint 15 members to the commission from a list made by the government and the MILF.  Guingona said the administration’s objective to reconstruct conflict-affected areas and to expedite socio-development in the region will be realized by the empowerment of the Bangsamoro.

http://malaya.com.ph/index.php/news/nation/20581-congress-backs-draft-pact-with-milf