Gov't eyes accelerating normalization program of Moro Islamic Liberation Front combatants

From ABS-CBN (Aug 5, 2023): Gov't eyes accelerating normalization program of Moro Islamic Liberation Front combatants (By Job Manahan and Katrina Domingo)

Moro Islamic Liberation Front members secure Camp Darapanan in Sultan Kudarat, Maguindanao on the southern island of Mindanao. Ferdinandh Cabrera, AFP/file

MANILA (UPDATE) — The Philippine government is keen on following through and accelerating the normalization program of Moro Islamic Liberation Front combatants, officials have said, as their decommissioning process resumes.

The phase 3 of the decommissioning is expected to conclude on Aug. 10, a statement from the Office of the Presidential Adviser on Peace, Reconciliation and Unity (OPAPRU) read, and they expect 26,145 Moro Islamic Liberation Front combatants to have been decommissioned by next week.

This total is an aggregate of the decommissioned Moro Islamic Liberation Front members since 2015, the OPAPRU said in a text message to ABS-CBN News.

Decommissioning is part of the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro, and would help former combatants have a smooth integration in the mainstream society.

Peace adviser Carlito Galvez said it was important to focus on "accelerating the implementation" of the normalization program's several aspects.

This includes, Galvez said, aspects on socio-economic development, confidence-building, transitional justice, and reconciliation.

“As we know, peace is not just the absence of war or armed conflict. Most importantly, it is establishing – and sustaining – the conditions where long-lasting peace can firmly take root and flourish," he said.

"The key to achieving this vision is our collective efforts in moving forward the Normalization Program and ensuring that it will have a greater impact on the lives of our decommissioned combatants and their families,” he added.

In achieving these, joint peace mechanisms are "crucial," he said, such as the Philippine government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front peace implementing panels and an intergovernmental relations body to address some challenges that Bangsamoro and the national government face.

Combatants who completed the decommissioning so far received P100,000 each and a socio-economic package would be provided after that, OPAPRU Director Wendell Orbes said in a press briefing in Quezon City.

“Ito po (decommissioning process) ang isa sa pinaka importanteng proseso sa MILF para sila po ay magtransition to peaceful and productive civilian lives,” Orbes said.

“Ito po ay nagpapakita ng sincerity, firm commitment… trust and confidence between the Government of the Philippines and Bangsamoro to move forward with the Bangsamoro peace process,” he said.

The government hopes to complete the decommissioning of 40,000 former MILF combatants by 2025 in time for the mid-term elections, Orbes said.

“Ang pinaka pangarap natin dito ay positive peace, na ma-address yung root causes,” he said.

“Lahat po mabibigyan ng amnestiya kung ang mga krimen na kanilang ginawa ay nakasaad sa kanilang political beliefs,” he said.

Meanwhile, as of 2022, the government has also dismantled 15 private armies, and allowed 90 formers members of these armed groups to start anew.

“Karamihan sa kanila ay triggered by the socio economic conditions. Pumasok sa ganitong private armed group dahil sa socio economic reasons,” Orbes said, noting that most of these armed groups were from Maguindanao and North Cotabato.

“Marami sa kanila wala namang kaso,” he said.

Orbes declined to name the people or groups who kept these private armies, but noted that some of them are politicians.

GOV'T COMMITMENT

For his part, Special Assistant to the President Antonio Lagdameo said completing the decommissioning process shows the government and Moro Islamic Liberation Front's strong partnership to "pursue a singular mission of transforming the Bangsamoro."

In a Palace statement, Lagdameo stressed that the socio-economic aspect of the normalization program that Galvez mentioned "will remain a top priority."

“The national government also maintains its dedicated support and commitment to the other aspects of the Normalization Program such as socioeconomic development, security, transitional justice and reconciliation, and confidence-building measures including amnesty," Lagdameo said.

Lagdameo said 5,499 decommissioned combatants have supposedly received cash assistance, while the process of around 35,000 birth certificate applications are underway.

“Indeed, the task of implementing our deliverables is not an easy feat, but through our continued and unified efforts, we will be able to translate them into actual peace dividends that improve the quality of life of the Bangsamoro People," he said.

The Palace official hoped that the partnership with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front  would continue to be strengthened, saying they would work harder to complete the 4th phase of the normalization program.

“I urge, especially our partners in local government and other stakeholders, that we continue working together towards lasting unity, and build on the confidence and goodwill between us,” he said.

The Inter-Cabinet Cluster Mechanism on Normalization will meet again on Aug. 10, Lagdameo said, to revisit and tackle the commitments of partner agencies.

https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/08/05/23/govt-eyes-accelerating-normalization-program-of-milf-combatants