MAGUINDANAO (Mindanao Examiner / Oct. 27, 2012) –The secluded leader of the Philippines’ largest Muslim rebel group Murad Ebrahim praised the Muslim homeland deal they signed with Manila, but says the path to peace in the restive southern region still has a long way to go.
Peace negotiators from both sides signed the Framework Agreement that would pave the way for the creation of the Bangsamoro autonomous region which would replace the existing five-province Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao.
“Please be reminded that the task ahead is bigger and more complex and complicated and translating this agreement into reality on the ground. And the success of this agreement hinges on its implementation and the ultimate realization of what it envisions.”
“It goes without saying that there is still a long process to go through. The negotiations are far from over as both MILF and Philippine peace panels are yet to sit down again in Kuala Lumpur in mind-November to work in the details of the Framework Agreement on the unresolved issues in power-sharing, wealth-sharing, intergovernmental relations, and normalization,” Ebrahim, who spoke to reporters at a rebel base in Mindanao on Saturday, said.
He said while the engagement is no longer adversarial and has taken on the form of a close partnership between the MILF and the government, they still have to ascertain that the letter and spirit of the Bangsamoro accord will govern the outcome of this partnership effort that would resolve once and for all the Bangsamoro Question.
“The signing of the Framework Agreement is a great leap forward in our concerted effort to address and resolve the Bangsamoro Question on the negotiating table. No doubt the framework agreement is a veritable compass in mapping the normalization of the totality of the relationships between the Philippine State and the Bangsamoro people,” Ebrahim said.
“It confers the upon the Bangsamoro people the recognition of their identity by the Philippine State and the international community, restores to them the core of their national homeland, and affords them the right to rule over themselves with the least interference from the central authority.”
But the rival Moro National Liberation Front headed by Nur Misuari strongly criticized the accord, saying it violated the September 1996 peace agreement his group signed with Manila.
But Ebrahim said the Bangsamoro agreement will bring peace to Mindanao and benefit its people. He appealed to the MNLF and other Muslim groups to support the peace process.
He said the agreement resolves the complex issue of sovereignty as well as the problem of peace and order that had been a major stumbling block in the government’s effort to attain full economic development, progress and political stability in Mindanao.
Ebrahim said the Bangsamoro deal is a “win-win solution to the sovereignty-based conflict that has pitted the ideology of Philippine national sovereignty and territorial integrity against the alienable right of the Bangsamoro people to self-determination.”
“In this context, we are inviting all our brothers and sisters in the Moro National Liberation Front as well all other Moro groups who still harbor reservations about this agreement and the commitment and sincerity of the MILF and GPH to join us in making this agreement work. We now have to think, act, and work together as one Bangsamoro nation so we can move forward to this new phase of engagement and struggle,” Ebrahim said.
“Our main task this time is to rebuild the nation, entrench the culture of self-reliance, and develop that sense of belonging among our people to make them feel and realize that the Framework Agreement is not only an agreement between the MILF and GPH, but an all inclusive agreement between the Bangsamoro people and the Philippine State,” he added.
The MILF chieftain also appealed to the Philippine media to support the peace talks by reporting only the truth.
“I take this opportunity to appeal also to the members of the media to sincerely journey with us in our quest for peace in Mindanao. Please be the messengers of goodwill, fair play, and truth and support the Framework Agreement on the Bangsamoro, the result of almost 16 years of hard bargaining across the negotiating table, seriously interrupted by three major all-out wars in 2000, 2003 and 2008,” Ebrahim said. (Mindanao Examiner. With a report from Mark Navales)
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