4 BARMM governors ask Palace to hasten decommissioning of MILF

From MindaNews (Feb 24, 2023): 4 BARMM governors ask Palace to hasten decommissioning of MILF (By FERDINANDH B. CABRERA)

Secretary Carlito Galvez Jr. (right), Philippine Presidential Adviser on Peace, Reconcialiation and Unity inspects weapons from the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) that were decommissioned during the launch of the second phase of the decommissioning process of MILF weapons and combatants in Simuay, Sultan Kudarat on 7 September 2019. MindaNews photo by MANMAN DEJETO

COTABATO CITY (MindaNews / 24 February)— Four provincial governors of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) sent on Thursday to President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. an “urgent appeal” for the immediate decommissioning of Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) forces and postponement of the barangay elections until the decommissioning is fully implemented.

The appeal, signed by Governors Mariam Sangki-Mangudadatu of Maguindanao del Sur, Abdusakur Tan of Sulu, Hadjiman Hataman-Salliman of Basilan and Yshmael Sali of Tawi-Tawi, also called for a “swift investigation and prosecution of the perpetrators” of the ambush on Lanao del Sur Gov. Mamintal Adiong Jr. and other violent incidents in BARMM.

The governors’ appeal linked the “climate of lawlessness” in the region, including the ambush on Adiong in Maguing, Lanao del Sur to the presence of MILF base commands.

“In these areas, LGUs (local government units), PNP (Philippine National Police) and the AFP (Armed Forces of the Philippines) are severely restrained from enforcing law and order by the ‘peace process mechanisms’ that bar entry of law enforcement agencies in the so-called ‘MILF territories’,” the appeal said.

It cited the incident on Feb. 7 where 39 Special Forces soldiers were held overnight by the MILF in Maguing, “on the pretext that their movement and operations were not coordinated with the MILF.”

The four governors also called for the postponement of the barangay elections scheduled on Oct. 30 this year until the decommissioning is completed.

The decommissioning of the MILF forces is provided for in the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro (CAB) specifically in the Annex on Normalization.

Its implementation is guided by a roadmap, which says that the MILF shall undergo a graduated and gradual decommissioning in four phases by percentage: ceremonial in Phase 1, 30% in Phase 2, 35% in Phase 3, and remaining MILF forces in Phase 4.

“We are seriously concerned that law enforcement in the BARMM will continue to be handicapped leading to the barangay elections on October 30, 2023 unless effective decommissioning of MILF combatants and firearms is completed.

“The CAB provides for the completion of the decommissioning process by the May 2022 elections. Yet, to date, 15,300 MILF combatants are still to be decommissioned. Of the total 40,000 MILF combatants for decommissioning, only 4,625 firearms are decommissioned. The decommissioning process, which began in 2015, has failed to dismantle even a single MILF base command and camp,” they said.

“The decommissioning of MILF forces is just one of the many aspects of the normalization. This process is agreed between the government of the Philippines and the MILF and must proceed in parallel and commensurate to the implementation of the other aspects of the agreement including the disbandment of private armed groups,” lawyer Naguib Sinarimbo, BARMM Minister of the Interior and Local Government, said.

“There has been no conclusive studies post-CAB on the correlation of violence and the existence of MILF base commands. Instead, there is conclusive evidence of a downtrend in violence since the signing of the CAB and the establishment of the BARMM. If you compare the peace and order condition in the region now as against the years 70s, 2000, 2003 or 2008, there’s tremendous change,” Sinarimbo, a member of the MILF technical working group during the peace talks with the government, said

“In the past elections, it was never the MILF that caused violence in elections. It has always been the goons of politicians,” he added. (Ferdinandh Cabrera/MindaNews, with a report from Bong S. Sarmiento)
https://www.mindanews.com/top-stories/2023/02/4-barmm-governors-ask-palace-to-hasten-decommissioning-of-milf/