Aquino hits ‘enemies of peace’

By: Christian V. Esguerra - 10 years ago

President Benigno S. Aquino III delivers his speech at the Edsa Shrine during the 29th anniversary of the EDSA People Power Revolution on Wednesday. Acting as interpreter using sign language is Fr. Luke Moortgat. LYN RILLON

A month after the Mamasapano fiasco, a defiant President Benigno Aquino III on Wednesday launched his own offensive against critics of the proposed Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL), saying he would not yield to “enemies of peace” in Mindanao.

In a speech on the 29th anniversary of the 1986 Edsa People Power Revolution, the President stressed that he continued to trust the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), despite the massacre of 44 police commandos in Maguindanao province last Jan. 25.

Mr. Aquino recalled how MILF leaders “made us feel their trust and confidence [and] that they would also be our partners, along with the rest of the Bangsamoro, in the search for peace.”

“If we give in to the enemies of peace, it’s as if we’re also allowing the conflict in Mindanao to worsen. If we surrender the establishment of the Bangsamoro, it’s like we’re allowing them to bequeath arms to the next generation of our fellow Filipinos,” Mr. Aquino said at the packed Shrine of Mary Queen of Peace at the corner of Edsa and Ortigas Avenue.

“We would never allow this to happen. It’s only by attaining lasting peace that all the sacrifices will be worth it for those who fought in Edsa, including those who lost their lives to end fear and violence in society.”

Focus on BBL

The slaughter of SAF troopers has raised questions over the MILF’s sincerity in talking peace. With the signing of a peace agreement last year, the focus is now on the passage of a law creating a new Bangsamoro territory in Mindanao.

Despite the Mamasapano debacle, Mr. Aquino insisted that this stage of the peace process was a “golden opportunity where peace in Mindanao is now within reach.”

“To those saying that we should stop the peace process and the passage of the Bangsamoro Basic Law, our question is: How sure are they that we would again get this opportunity?” he said.

Mr. Aquino’s 10-minute address did not touch on the controversies of the Mamasapano operation that killed 44 members of the elite Special Action Force (SAF) at the hands of MILF fighters and other armed groups but said that it should not “spark more violence.”

‘Desperate’ take advantage

“For us who experienced Edsa, we are aware of the positive effect of sobriety. Instead of giving in to anger and emotion, let us give way to reason, trust and love for one another,” he said.

Mr. Aquino assailed people allegedly “taking advantage of this incident,” saying “as we get closer to our aspiration (of lasting peace in Mindanao), those against it become even more desperate.”

“It would be better that aside from criticism, they can also lay out an alternative solution,” he said. “That’s why we cannot help but think: They don’t want peace because they’re benefiting from the conflict. They want Filipinos to go their separate ways, lose their trust in one another, so they can pursue their own agenda.”

The President again recalled his father’s killing. A picture of the late Sen. Benigno Aquino Jr. shortly after the assassination was flashed on the big screen. “I looked back at this story, not to seek sympathy for myself, but to emphasize the lesson it brings.”

In his homily, Manila Archbishop Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle urged Filipinos to “work toward the eradication of this mentality, this atmosphere that makes people enemies.”

“The path to peace is finding a neighbor, a brother, a sister. When I don’t see anyone anymore as an enemy, I don’t have to fight. I don’t have to wage any fight. Why will you fight a brother or a sister?” he said.

7 business groups’ support

In a joint statement on Wednesday, seven business groups expressed support for Mr. Aquino’s peace initiatives.

“In the midst of national mourning, certain sectors and political players have openly called for an all-out war in Mindanao, branded our brother and sister Muslim Filipinos as terrorists, cast doubt on the Bangsamoro peace process and the sincerity of the negotiators, and vigorously demanded the resignation of the President,” the statement said.

“As members of the Philippine business community, we do not and will not support such calls. We call instead for sobriety, courage and unity,” it said.

Signatories to the joint statement were the Cagayan de Oro Chamber of Commerce and Industry Foundation, Employers Confederation of the Philippines, Financial Executives Institute of the Philippines, Makati Business Club, Management Association of the Philippines, Mindanao Business Council and the Philippine Business for Social Progress.

The groups pointed out that the Philippines had achieved much under the stewardship of Mr. Aquino, particularly in restoring integrity and good governance.

But they said that the facts surrounding Mamasapano must still be satisfactorily established and justice must be dispensed. They said investigations must be completed at the earliest time possible and that the President “ultimately will have no choice but to render a full accounting on Mamasapano to the Filipino people.”

BBL timetable

Minority lawmakers said on Wednesday that Mr. Aquino during a meeting with congressmen on Monday in Malacañang ordered the passage of the proposed BBL before June this year.

Cagayan de Oro Rep. Rufus Rodriguez, who was present in the meeting, said that the President’s marching orders were to approve the draft BBL “without diluting it too much.”

Rodriguez confirmed that the BBL ad hoc committee which he chaired would resume next week in compliance with the President’s orders to have it approved at the committee level on March 18 (when Congress takes its Lenten break) and the BBL approved at plenary before June 11 (when Congress adjourns sine die).

But this early, Rodriguez said that the President should be ready for a big disappointment because even his allies were expected to cut at least five alleged unconstitutional provisions in the draft charter.

Creeping expansion

Rodriguez also said that the representatives would chop off a patently illegal provision which would allow “a creeping territorial expansion” for the Bangsamoro—the opt-in provision in which residents in contiguous areas could join it with as little as 10 percent of residents petitioning for such a switch.

Senate President Franklin Drilon on Wednesday said the President might need to meet senators to get the BBL passed by June. He told reporters the March deadline was too tight.

He said the meeting was needed “to discuss the timetable on the BBL, to emphasize the need to pass the measure, maybe in a modified form.”

Vice President Jejomar Binay warned against railroading the BBL. “This should be given a thorough study. It should not be passed because of the deadline,” he said. “This is something that needs a lot of time, and not something that should be controlled by time.” With reports from Gil C. Cabacungan, TJ Burgonio and Nikko Dizon