MILF decommissioning starts

MANILA, Philippines — The government has begun decommissioning the 12,000 combatants of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) in a bid to fast-track the normalization process in Mindanao following the ratification of the Bangsamoro Organic Law earlier this year.

“The government’s priority after establishing the peace is to ensure a smooth transition for those who have committed to help the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao bring peace, progress and prosperity to the region,” said Cabinet Secretary Karlo Nograles in a statement.

The 12,000 combatants to be decommissioned represent almost a third of the MILF’s troops.

Nograles said the combatants and their families will receive aid in the form of housing, livelihood assistance, skills development training, scholarships, employment opportunities, health coverage, conditional cash transfers, and birth certificates and postal IDs.

“We have targeted the decommissioning of 30 percent of combatants by 2019, 35 percent by next year and the remainder by 2022. All the different government agencies involved in these efforts believe we can meet these timelines,” Nograles said. —Julie M. Aurelio