InterAksyon.com photograph by Eric Apolonio
The chief government negotiator to peace talks with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front admitted on Monday that "there continue to be significant points of differences" between the parties over the draft Bangsamoro Basic Law.
At the same time, Miriam Coronel-Ferrer, in a statement posted on the web site of the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process Statement of GPH chief negotiator Professor Miriam Coronel-Ferrer on the status of the draft Bangsamoro Basic Law, said the government remained firm that the BBL should be able to “withstand political and legal scrutiny and be acceptable to various stakeholders, and the nation as a whole.”
Last month, following a "surprise meeting" between President Aquino and MILF chairman Haj Murad Ebrahim in Japan, the MILF's chief negotiator, Mohagher Iqbal, complained that a team created under the Office of the President to review the draft law submitted by the Bangsamoro Transition Commission had "heavily diluted the original proposal coming from the BTC."
Iqbal also chairs the BTC.
An editorial on the MILF web site, Luwaran, blasted the review as being obsessed with legalities, and reiterated the MILF position that "the current Constitution would require an amendment to finally put to rest the conflict in Mindanao," even as it urged Aquino to "personally attend" to the snag.
Following this, Ferrer assured that the government was "not throwing in the towel" on the peace process and, earlier this month, the two panels met for four days in Kuala Lumpur, achieving only "modest progress."
Ferrer’s latest statement made clear that the government is not budging from its position that the BBL "will pass through regular legislation in Congress and therefore must fall within the parameters of the Constitution."
"We have been trying to stretch these parameters to accommodate the ideas that have been put in the BBL, in addition to what have been put in the signed documents. But it is very clear we cannot overstep the boundaries of the Constitution," she said.
"We will not and cannot move forward in the roadmap towards the establishment of the Bangsamoro unless we hurdle this crucial stage," she stressed.
This, she said, was "the basis for the comments made as part of the review process by the Office of the President."
While the BTC "has been given the mandate to recommend changes in the Constitution all those ideas that could not be accommodated now under this Constitution," she said, "the BBL must necessarily be constitutional."
Ferrer also stressed that the draft BBL retains the "key features that will distinguish the ARMM (Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao) from the Bangsamoro," among these: the parliamentary form of government; an autonomous government that will enjoy high fiscal autonomy; and "a transition arrangement where the MILF’s brand of leadership will be tested."
"All of us want the BBL draft to be submitted to Congress as soon as possible. But we cannot substitute haste with prudence," Coronel said. "Whatever delay we are experiencing now is intended to avoid further difficulties after the bill is submitted to Congress."
The draft BBL was originally scheduled to be submitted by Malacanang to Congress before the legislature adjourned last month but the review delayed this.
The delays have raised concerns the BBL may not be passed in time for a referendum on the creation of the Bangsamoro to be held simultaneous with the 2016 elections.
"We understand the apprehensions of people who have long fought the government and now entering a new stage where they can actually participate in the government," Ferrer said.
"But what we want is a mutually acceptable draft as the two panels have agreed to accomplish. We ask the MILF to reflect on how we can arrive at this," she added.
http://www.interaksyon.com/article/91673/oppaps-ferrer-significant-differences-remain-over-bangsamoro-draft
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.