Sunday, May 4, 2014

Thousands join peace caravan, rally in GenSan in support of BBL passage

From the Philippine News Agency (May 4): Thousands join peace caravan, rally in GenSan in support of BBL passage

Calling it the key to lasting peace in Mindanao, thousands of Bangsamoro residents from this city and parts of South Cotabato, Sarangani and Sultan Kudarat provinces rallied for support on Sunday for the early passage of the proposed Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL).

Carrying streamers and placards, around 10,500 members of Bangsamoro civil society and community organizations gathered at the oval plaza here on Sunday morning to specifically call on the Senate and the House of Representatives to fast track deliberations on the BBL and ensure that it would be passed as scheduled before the end of the year.

“Congress pass the BBL for the sake of peace and development in Mindanao,” read one of the streamers during the rally, which is part of a Mindanao-wide mobilization organized by Bangsamoro civil society groups.

The gathering here was spearheaded by the Mindanao Alliance for Peace and the Consortium for Bangsamoro Civil Society (CBCS), which is an umbrella group of around 100 Bangsamoro civil society organizations.

Prior to the mobilization, which organizers also described as a prayer rally, around 200 vehicles staged a “peace caravan” from several key areas in South Cotabato, Sarangani and Sultan Kudarat provinces to this city.

Quraish Lancap, a lead member of the organizing secretariat, said the gathering was mainly aimed to highlight the sentiments and aspirations of Bangsamoro residents in the area regarding the BBL.

He said majority of them are fully supportive of the BBL and wants it immediately approved and implemented.

“Dapat maipasa ito ng buo, ng walang labis at walang kulang. Dapat walang mangyayaring dagdag-bawas (It should be passed in full and not anything more or less than what was proposed. There should be no padding and shaving of its provisions),” he told PNA at the sidelines of the mobilization.

Langcap, who is the project officer for conflict resolution of the CBCS, said House and Senate leaders should safeguard the provisions of the proposed BBL from possible alterations or modifications that would eventually destroy the “principles and true spirit” of the measure.

He said such scenario would only trigger major problems similar to what happened with the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF).

He was referring to the fallout between the government and the MNLF, especially with the faction led by its founder and chair Prof. Nur Misuari, despite signing a peace agreement in 1996.

“The BBL is a product of long and careful negotiations, and that should be considered when Congress starts its deliberations,” he said.

Ustadz Satar Alangan, a leader of the Bangsamoro religious sector here, said Senate and House members should consider the situation and the aspirations of the Bangsamoro people in their deliberations on the BBL.

“By that, they will see that the BBL represents what we really aspire for as a people,” he said.

“They will see that we are even ready to stake our own lives anew just to make sure that our children’s children will have a better future,” Alangan added.

For his part, former Akbayan partylist Rep. Mario Aguja expressed support to the full passage of the BBL, which he described as a “revolutionary measure.”

He said the BBL, which is mainly based on the provisions of the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro that was signed by the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front last March, “has no equal” when compared to past related measures and agreements.

“It answers a lot of our problems here in Mindanao like the present ARMM (Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao),” he said.

Among the BBL’s main provisions is the abolition of the ARMM and pave the way for the establishment of a new Bangsamoro entity in Mindanao.

“It will not only benefit the Moro people but us, Christian settlers, and the Lumads as well. So it’s important for us to ensure that it muster enough support from our Senate and House members all the way to its passage,” he added.

http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=2&sid=&nid=2&rid=640369

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