Inviting Misuari to Senate may not be OK with Zamboanga siege victims

ARMM Gov. Mujiv Hataman. INQUIRER.net FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines — Inviting Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) founder Nur Misuari to share his thoughts on the draft Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL) may not sit well with victims of the Zamboanga City siege, a local official said Thursday.

“Our people, especially the victims of the Zamboanga siege, may misunderstand the gesture,” Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) Governor Mujiv Hataman told Radyo Inquirer 990AM.

Hataman was asked if he agreed with Senator Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. who said they were considering suspending the warrant of arrest of and inviting Misuari to hear him out.

“Because if you remember, the Zamboanga uprising was precisely the product of the feeling that they were out of the (peace) process,” Marcos said on Wednesday following the turnover of the draft BBL to Congress.

The Senator added that they were thinking of allowing the suspension of Misuari’s warrant of arrest.

At present, Misuari and his top aides are still being pursued by authorities for their involvement in the Zamboanga City siege, which resulted in the displacement of thousands of families and the death of more than 200 people.

The clashes between the Misuari-led faction of the MNLF and the Philippine forces lasted for almost a month and left many houses razed to the ground.

A year after the crisis, many families remain homeless and without livelihood. The government promised to finish constructing the permanent houses for their relocation by December.

The BBL and the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro are products of the 17 years of peace negotiations between the Philippine government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF).

However, the Misuari-led faction of the MNLF is said to have been left out of the talks despite being involved in an earlier peace deal that resulted in the creation of the ARMM.

Ask the people 

Hataman pointed out that more than personalities and organizations, it is the people that should be consulted by the lawmakers.

“I think the MNLF and not Misuari should be consulted. Because Misuari is not equivalent to MNLF or MNLF is equivalent to Misuari,” he said.

“What is important here is not the organization but the people,” he added.

Hataman explained that the not everyone residing in the Bangsamoro region are members of the MNLF or the MILF.

“There are still more ordinary citizens and they are Bangsamoro and also Muslim,” he said.

Under the BBL, Bangsamoro people are defined as original inhabitants of the Mindanao and Sulu archipelago, and adjacent islands, as well as their descendants and the families of their spouses.

Hataman pointed out that whatever the new structure will be, what is important is that the Bangsamoro will be able to address the needs of the people.

He said he hopes that the Congress’ amended version of the BBL would not deviate from the draft version that was agreed upon by both parties.

Congress leaders estimate that the bill will be approved during the first quarter of 2016.

Hataman said it might be ratified by a plebiscite by July 2015.

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