Datuan M. Magon, UNYPAD Deputy Secretary - General of the United Youth for Peace and Development, Inc. (UNYPAD) attended the Global Partnership for the Prevention of Armed Conflict (GPPAC) Expanded Steering Group Meeting held at CS Patani Hotel, Pattani South Thailand on October 22-25, 2015 participated by leading Civil Society Organizations (CSO’s) from different parts of Southeast Asia.
Also
in attendance are representatives from the global secretariat, other GPPAC
regions in North Asia South Asia.
First day
of the activity was held at the prince of Songkhla University
During
country security updates, Dats Magon highlighted issue of radicalism among
Bangsamoro youth as the major threat if the Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL) will not
be passed.
“This will
happen because Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) will lose moral ascendancy
to convince the Bangsamoro people to support their tract of peace because the
government cannot be trusted,” Magon said.
“Radicals
could capitalize frustrations of many youth to recruit more members... they
could prove to MILF and its supporters that their position of never engaging in
negotiation is correct because Philippine government will never implement any
agreement they will sign... and the only way to attain peace in Mindanao is
through violence”, he opined.
On the
positive note, Magon emphasized that BBL is the key to a genuine peace in the
Bangsamoro as well as gradual shift of human security paradigm in the Bangsamoro
homeland from counter-insurgency to a community-centered policing as
exemplified by the current community security engagement which UNYPAD is
piloting in barangay Layog in Pagalungan, Maguindanao as pilot community under
the project named ‘Building Peace in Mindanao through Public Participation in
Governance’ in partnership with the Conciliation Resources (C-R), a
London-based International Non-government Organization (INGO) currently setting
as member of the International Contact Group (ICG) in the GPH-MILF peace
process.
Magon also
serves as UNYPAD’s project officer in this project.
“Our
piloting is an eye opener to everyone how would community-security
relationships will look like in the future Bangsamoro”, Magon said.
On October
22, a meeting with Royal Thai Armies at their camp in Pattani province was
conducted as part of the field exposure. Participants briefed the men in
uniform regarding the background, activities and composition of the GPPAC as
well as their efforts in helping promote peaceful resolutions to armed
conflicts within the globe.
Magon also
shared UNYPAD’s experiences in working with security sector.
“Our
earlier relationship was not good in the earlier part of engagement because we
were subject of many threats. Many of us were arrested, some were jailed, our
vice president for internal Affairs Ustadz Badrudin Abas was even gunned down
in front of a military and police camps in Cotabato City Mindanao
conflict”, he revealed.
GPPAC is a
network of CSO’s engaging in the field of conflict prevention and peace
building around the world which was initiated through extensive consultations
in 2003-2004, and officially launched as part of a global conference in 2005 at
the UN headquarters in New York
Among its five main thematic priority areas are: prevention action, dialogue and mediation, peace education, human security and Gender.
At present,
GPACC has 15 regional secretariat and one of which is Southeast
Asia . Magon’s participation was made upon the recommendation of
the Mindanao Peace Weavers (MPW) through the suggestion of the Initiative for
International Dialogue (IID) who at present is the region’s secretariat.
http://www.luwaran.com/index.php/new/item/642-unypad-officer-attend-gppac-extended-steering-group-meeting-in-thailand
Over the years, UNYPAD has demonstrated that it has extremely close ties with the MILF. UNYPAD activities are routinely covered in posts to the MILF Website. Some observers have characterized the group as an MILF front.
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