After a decades-long armed struggle in the Southern part of the Philippines \u2013 Mindanao \u2013 a law accepted by Muslim resistance groups such as Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) and some factions of the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) is now being put to a vote for ratification.
\nRepublic Act 11054, better known as Bangsamoro Organic Law (BOL) and dubbed by many as the answer to the solution to the conflict in Mindanao, is a product of peace talks between the Government and the MILF, that culminated in the signing of the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro in 2014. Part of the terms of the peace pact is that only those areas which ratify the law will become part of a stronger autonomous government that will be formed under the BOL.
\nMILF Chairman, Al Haj Murad Ebrahim, said, \u201cWe really believe that it is a step forward to attain lasting peace, progress, and at least to resolve the injustices committed against the Bangsamoro people.\u201d
\nMuslims have lived in the Philippines long before the establishment of the Philippine republic and have resisted foreign colonization since the coming of the Spaniards in the 16th century. The so-called Bangsamoro struggle has continued to oppose inclusion of their lands and communities in the Philippine republic, and has reached its peak with the formation of the MNLF in the 1960s.
\n\u201cBOL represents the aspirations of the Bangsamoro for their right to self-determination. It has provisions that address the needs of the Moro people. As separate people we need our identity acknowledged,\u201d Murad adds.
\nSection 1, Article II of RA 11054, states that \u201cthose who, at the advent of the Spanish colonization, were considered natives or original inhabitants of Mindanao and the Sulu archipelago and its adjacent islands, whether of mixed or of full blood, shall have the right to identify themselves, their spouses and descendants, as Bangsamoro.\u201d
\nChairman Murad also mentions that BOL would provide opportunities for the Bangsamoro people to utilize their own natural resources. \u201cIt is a fact that the region is rich in natural resources. However, the poverty incidence here remains high,\u201d he said. \u201cBOL addresses these concerns since there are specific provisions for this issue,\u201d he adds.
\nSection 8, Article XIII of RA 11054, allows the Bangsamoro Government \u201c\u2026the power, authority, and right to explore, develop, and utilize the natural resources, including surface and subsurface rights, inland waters, coastal waters, and renewable and nonrenewable resources in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region.\u201d
\nMeanwhile, President Rodrigo Duterte, in his speech during the Peace Assembly for the Ratification of the BOL, highlighted the reason why \u201call these things came about.\u201d
\n\u201cThis is a repercussion actually of that problem when we were divided as a nation, simply because foreign powers took over \u2013 Spain, for almost 400 years, and the Americans for 50 years,\u201d he said.
\n\u201cWe are trying really hard to figure out, craft a law,\u2026 amend the Constitution that can provide a fair and just governance for all,\u201d he added.
\nAcknowledging that the Moro people should take control of their ancestral domain, President Duterte said, \u201cNobody would like to takeover lands that is not theirs, his. And we understand that. And we would like you to have the control of your territories before the Spaniards came and before the Americans came.\u201d
\n\u201cYour approval of this law will not only serve as an expression of your desire to end more than half a century of armed struggle in the region. It will also serve as a testament to your determination to bring genuine peace and development in Muslim Mindanao through an autonomous government that truly represents and understands the needs of the people,\u201d President Duterte added.
\nAs it pushes through its final stretch on January 21 and February 6 this year \u2013 the dates for the plebiscite \u2013 the ball is in the hands of 2.8M Filipinos living in some parts of Mindanao who will vote to either ratify or reject the law.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
After a decades-long armed struggle in the Southern part of the Philippines \u2013 Mindanao \u2013 a law accepted by Muslim resistance groups such as Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) and some factions of the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) is now being put to a vote for ratification.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":9686,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[36],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9681","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-c102-muslim-minorities"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n