Gov’t, MILF panels back in Malaysia to form Int’l Decommissioning Body

From the Daily Tribune (May 7): Gov’t, MILF panels back in Malaysia to form Int’l Decommissioning Body

Government chief negotiator Miriam Coronel-Ferrer said the government of the Philippines (GRP) and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) peace panels returned to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia following a discussion on the composition of the different bodies that will oversee and implement the normalization process.

Coronel-Ferrer said that the International Decommissioning Body (IDB) would take the lead in the gradual process of decommissioning of MILF forces and weapons.

The creation of the IDB was part on the Annex on Normalization, a part of the Comprehensive Agreement on Bangsamoro (CAB).

The IDB shall be composed of three foreign experts, including the chairperson, and four local experts jointly nominated by the parties. The parties would also invite three states to provide the foreign experts.

“The IDB would be the one to supervise, oversee and basically implement the decommissioning process,” Coronel-Ferrer said.

She said the procedure is for the MILF to submit a list of weapons and combatants, an inventory after which, the IDB will verify the list and work toward the programming of the decommissioning schedule as agreed upon in the Annex on Normalization.

“We really have to put up the body as soon as possible so that the job of verification of the inventory that would be submitted by the MILF will begin. And everything proceeds from there,” Coronel-Ferrer said.

The chief negotiator said that until they were able to verify the number of weapons, the kinds of weapons and also the combatants who and where they were located, they cannot actually begin the socio-economic programs.

“There will be no wholesale integration of the forces of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front into the Armed Forces of the Philippines nor the Philippine National Police (PNP) similar to the integration of the Moro National Liberation Front undertaken during the Ramos administration,” she said.

There is a provision for the setting up of the police force for the Bangsamoro, which will still be part of the PNP, and it will be significantly provided with resources to guarantee its professionalism and capability to take charge of peace and order concerns, Coronel-Ferrer added.

Based on the Annex on Normalization, the decommissioning of MILF forces should be parallel and commensurate to the implementation of all the agreements of the parties.

http://www.tribune.net.ph/nation/gov-t-milf-panels-back-in-malaysia-to-form-int-l-decommissioning-body