In the Know: Peace deal with MILF
The government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) signed on Oct. 15, 2012, a framework agreement to end the war and establish a new autonomous region in Mindanao to be called Bangsamoro.
The 13-page document contained general agreements, including the extent of power, revenue and territory granted to Bangsamoro, the new Muslim administrative region.
Two months after the signing of the framework agreement, President Aquino issued Executive Order No. 120 creating the Transition Commission (Transcom) that would draft a proposed law creating the Bangsamoro autonomous government.
Once drafted, the Bangsamoro basic law would be certified urgent by the President and submitted to Congress.
Four annexes
The two sides also worked on the four annexes to the framework agreement: Transitional mechanisms, power-sharing, wealth-sharing and normalization. It took them 15 months since the signing of the framework agreement to complete the four annexes. The framework agreement and the four annexes together with all the major agreements signed by the parties over the years constitute the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro.
The annex on transitional arrangements and modalities, signed on Feb. 27 last year, outlined a transition process consisting of several components beginning with the creation of the Transcom and ending with an exit document terminating the peace negotiations, “if and only when all agreements have been fully implemented.”
The other transition steps include the crafting and ratification of a basic law that will serve as the Bangsamoro charter; proposals for amendments to entrench the peace agreement in the Constitution; operation of the MILF-led Bangsamoro Transition Authority (BTA); and periodic third-party monitoring of all agreements.
Wealth-sharing
The second annex, which tackled wealth-sharing, was signed by both parties last July 13. Under the annex, 100 percent of the revenue from the exploration, development and use of nonmetallic minerals would go to Bangsamoro. For metallic minerals, 75 percent of the revenue would go to Bangsamoro and 25 percent to the government. Earnings from fossil fuels, such as oil, natural gas, coal and uranium would be divided equally.
Further, Bangsamoro would get 75 percent of national taxes collected from the territory, up from the current 70 percent in the ARMM.
The government and the MILF panels signed the annex on power-sharing, the third of four annexes, last Dec. 8. It outlined the powers that would be reserved for the national government, those that would be held by the autonomous Bangsamoro region and those that would be shared by them.
The government and the MILF peace panels signed the normalization annex, the last of four documents, on Jan. 25. At the heart of the last document is the deactivation of the MILF fighting force of 11,000 and the laying down of their weapons.—Inquirer Research
Sources: Inquirer Research, opapp.gov.ph
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