Saturday, December 6, 2014

MILF: UNICEF, BDA, & Plan Int’l collaborate to support UN-MILF Action Plan implementation

Posted to the MILF Website (Dec 6): UNICEF, BDA, & Plan Int’l collaborate to support UN-MILF Action Plan implementation



The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), Bangsamoro Development Agency (BDA) and Plan International (Plan) collaborate for the implementation of the United Nations (UN)-Moro Islamic Liberation front (MILF) Action Plan, an undertaking aimed at addressing the issue on the use of child combatants in armed conflict.
  
Signed by UN-Philippines and MILF on July 30, 2009, the Action Plan seeks to delist the MILF from the annexes of UN Secretary General’s Report which name armed groups that recruit and use minors in armed conflict. It was in 2003 when the MILF was reported to the UN having minors among its troops.

The United Nations Convention on the Rights of Children and Monitoring (UNCRC) states that a child is any person below the age of 18. Recruiting and using minors in the armed conflict is also considered a grave violation of child’s rights.

Part of the plan implementation is the conduct of orientations for the Bangsamoro Islamic Armed Forces (BIAF) Front and Base Commanders including their troops.

In the orientations facilitated by UNICEF, BDA and Plan, the MILF forces learned the UN-MILF Action Plan, UNCRC, Child’s Rights, and Reporting Mechanism on Grave Child’s Rights Violations (GCRV). 

Other armed groups from the Philippines listed in the UNCG annex include the Abu Sayyaf Group, New People’s Army and the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighter.

In an orientation held at La Suerte Hall at Marawi City last month, Shree Nadarajah from UNICEF commended MILF for being the only revolutionary organization in the world which has signed an action plan with the United Nations.
Nadarajah is hopeful that the MILF will be removed from the list of armed groups using child soldiers before the establishment of the Bangsamoro government by 2016.

Serious in its commitment with the action plan, the Chairman of the MILF issued a general order directing BIAF Commanders not to admit minors and must remove from the roster any underage elements. The general order also stipulates corresponding sanction to those who will violate.

An MILF 5-Member Panel, dedicated to assist in the orientations, was created. The MILF also provides unimpeded access of UNICEF, BDA and Plan for the orientation which is still ongoing. The action plan targets to orient 31 Base Commands and 7 Front Commands all over Mindanao and the island provinces.

The UNICEF representatives enjoin the BIAF officers to heed to the action plan. The orientations likewise gain commitment of the forces.

The MILF represents the Bangsamoro people in the peace talks with the Philippine government. The Front has forged a comprehensive peace accord this year which seeks the establishment of Bangsamoro government with genuine autonomy by 2016.

Japan and Australia also hailed the MILF for being able to craft a roadmap for the development of the Bangsamoro communities-the Bangsamoro Development Plan (BDP).

http://www.luwaran.com/index.php/welcome/item/1390-unicef-bda-plan-int’l-collaborate-to-support-un-milf-action-plan-implementation

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