Ramos welcomes framework pact with MILF, but says results matter more

Former president Fidel V. Ramos. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines—Former president Fidel V. Ramos said the forging of the framework agreement between the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) was a good turn of event for war-torn Mindanao, but said the results of the initial pact would matter more for the Filipino people in the long run.

The former president, who opened the door to the MILF to negotiate with the government after he signed a peace deal with the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) in 1996, warned that peace deals would not automatically lead to peace.

“It is the results (of the implementation) that matter,” he said when chanced upon by the Philippine Daily Inquirer at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport on Monday.

“No matter how beautiful the aim is, it is the implementation that counts,” Ramos said.

He said that even if millions of peace deals were forged, these would not be effective unless implemented dutifully by both sides.

“You can have a million versions (of peace deal) but we need just one in order to work. Just one,” Ramos said.

He said like the rest of the nation, he has been hoping for the best for Mindanao.

Ramos said he also believed that Congress should immediately pass a legislation that would support the provisions of the framework agreement for it to become fully functional.

Meanwhile, the peace group Mindanao Commission on Women said it has lobbied for the appointment of women into the 15-member team that would form part of the Transition Committee (TransCom), which would draft a basic law that would serve as the charter of the new Bangsamoro entity.

“We continue to hold that women’s voices are necessary in peace-building not only because women and their children are victims of war but also because women can provide perspectives on how broken relationships may be restored and healed, and how resources may be allocated to address unjust political, economic and social structures that are at the root of the Mindanao conflict,” Irene Santiago, MCW chairperson, said in an e-mailed statement.