Deles asks civil society to help keep peace working

Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process Teresita Deles AP FILE PHOTO

DAVAO CITY—President Aquino’s chief adviser on the peace process sought the help of civil society groups to prevent a peace pact with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) from falling apart after Aquino steps down from office in 2016.

“We need to dedicate ourselves beyond every milestone (in the negotiations),” Deles told some 100 delegates to the three-day Mindanao Civil Society Organizations (CSO) Leaders Peace Summit, which opened on Monday.

The 17-year negotiation between the government and the MILF for a peaceful settlement of the Moro rebellion in Mindanao ended on Jan. 25 with the signing by the two parties of the Annex on Normalization, the last of four sets of documents that peace negotiators of both sides need to hammer down to be compiled in a comprehensive agreement on the Bangsamoro.

Deles, who hailed from the civil society community before joining government, said the end to negotiations was just the start of another phase of the peace process—implementation.

She said though that the task of nurturing the gains of the peace talks under Mr. Aquino would surely outlive the President’s term of office, requiring civil society to fill a bigger role in keeping the peace.

“We need to push on. We need to look forward,” Deles said.

Earlier in Maguindanao, Deles urged local officials and residents to vote yes during a plebiscite that will be held to ratify the Bangsamoro basic law, which would create a new autonomous setup for the Bangsamoro.

“We’ve already come this far so let us all support this peace process,” she said.

“The important thing on the part of the government during the negotiations was that it was guided by the principle not to make promises it cannot deliver politically, economically and culturally,” she added.

During the CSO summit, groups from various parts of Mindanao will present the results of public consultations held on behalf of the Bangsamoro Transition Commission (BTC) to solicit inputs from grassroots communities.

The BTC is drafting the law that would create the new autonomous setup. Ryan D. Rosauro, Inquirer Mindanao