The ceremonial turnover of the first batch of rebel firearms is postponed to 2015
Deliberations on the proposed law creating a new autonomous government in
Peace panels from
the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), which signed a final peace accord in March,
have created a team that will coordinate the transfer of responsibilities from
the present Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) to the Bangsamoro
Transition Authority (BTA).
The Coordination
Team for the Transition or CT4T is composed of 5 government representatives
from the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process and the
Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, and 5 MILF representatives.
The BTA will
serve as the interim government once the proposed Bangsamoro Basic Law is
ratified in Congress and through a plebiscite, and will remain in place until
the election of the first set of Bangsamoro officials in 2016.
It will serve as
a preview of how the proposed Bangsamoro government will function.
With the MILF
leading the BTA, this phase in the Mindanao
peace process will also give the former rebel group the chance to show their
capacity to govern as they prepare to enter the political arena.
The coordination
team is in charge of mapping out a plan on how the transition process will take
place. A major concern is what would happen to ARMM's 32,000 employees. (READ: ARMM's curtain call)
The government
hopes to ratify the basic law by March 2015 to give the transition authority at
least one year to be in power.
"We want the
Bangsamoro Transition Authority to be prepared once the law is ratified,"
said government peace panel chair Miriam Coronel-Ferrer.
"Rest
assured, nothing will be too abrupt. Everything will be gradual and phased in
the transition process," she added.
The proposed
Bangsamoro government is designed to have greater political and fiscal powers
than the current ARMM in a bid towards ending 4 decades of armed conflict in Mindanao that has killed over 100,000 people.
Delayed
decommissioning
With all these
parallel efforts happening simultaneously, Ferrer said the ceremonial turnover
of the first batch of rebel firearms, which was supposed to have been scheduled
for December, has been moved to 2015.
By the end of the
year, MILF combatants were expected to turn over 20 crew-served weapons and 55
high-powered firearms to the independent body tasked to oversee the
decommissioning process.
But Ferrer told
reporters this would have to be postponed to 2015 due to the lack of time.
Ferrer said the
panels have yet to constitute the Independent Decommissioning Body (IDB). Only
the 3 foreign experts who will compose the group have been appointed so far.
The panels still have to name 4 local experts. (READ: MILF rebels start arms
decommissioning process)
Under the peace
pact, the MILF will turn over their firearms to a third-party group, not the
Philippine army or the government. The IDB is tasked to conduct an inventory of
MILF arms and troops, as well as give recommendations on what to do with the
decommissioned firearms.
A total of 30% of
MILF firearms will be decommissioned once the Bangsamoro Basic Law is ratified,
another 35% will be turned over when the Bangsamoro government and its police
force have been established, and the final 35% will be decommissioned once the
exit agreement signifying that all commitments have been fulfilled is signed.
Both sides have
not provided the total number of MILF troops and firearms.
Composition,
members
To establish the
Bangsamoro Transition Authority, the President will appoint 50 members, who
will exercise both legislative and executive powers.
The transition
body will have an interim cabinet with 10 offices on governance, social
services, development, education, public order and safety, indigenous peoples
affairs health, public works, local government and finance.
A total of P1
billion is set to be provided by the central government as initial funding.
While the chief
minister of the body will be from the MILF, it will not be exclusive to the
group. The proposed law also provides for the appointment of representatives
from non-Moro indigenous communities, women, settler communities and other
sectors.
Ferrer said there
is no fixed number as to how many seats will be allocated for the MILF and
various groups.
"We have to
be able to give leeway to the President in his power to appoint how many
members from various groups," Ferrer said.
It will be an
open field and there is nothing stopping current politicians from being
appointed, Ferrer said, but the final decision rests on the President.
The option to
choose who among their members will become the chief minister will be an
"internal process" for the MILF, Ferrer said.
The transition
government will be tasked to lay the groundwork for the Bangsamoro parliament.
Part of its mandate is to enact priority legislations such as its own
administrative code, revenue code and electoral code.
Meanwhile, the
Department of Agriculture is set to provide a program to assist farmers in 6
MILF camps in a bid to start their transformation into peaceful communities.
The ad-hoc
committee on the Bangsamoro Basic Law in the House of Representatives has
conducted at least 10 hearings not just in Congress but also in present ARMM
provinces. Hearings outside the proposed Bangsamoro area are being conducted
until December.
On Tuesday,
November 25, foreign diplomats involved in the Mindanao
peace process were invited as guests for the hearing but the session was closed
to the public after lawmakers decided to hold an executive session instead.
The committee
discussed the international community's role in the peace process, as well as
the experiences of countries such as Indonesia
and Egypt
http://www.rappler.com/nation/76082-preparations-bangsamoro-transition-authority
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