SC upholds Bangsamoro Organic Law but says Sulu not part of BARMM

MANILA, Philippines — The Supreme Court (SC) has upheld the validity of the Bangsamoro Organic Law (BOL) but declared that the province of Sulu is not part of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM).

In a press conference on Monday, SC spokesperson Camille Ting said its decision came after Sulu rejected the law’s ratification.

“In a unanimous decision, the Supreme Court partially granted the petition challenging Sulu’s inclusion in BARMM but denied challenges to other aspects of the Bangsamoro Organic Law. The Decision is immediately executable,” Ting disclosed.

Based on previous reports, BOL was enacted in July 2018, which resulted in the creation of BARMM.

To identify its territorial jurisdiction, a plebiscite was conducted in January and February 2019, covering areas of the then-Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM), Isabela City in Basilan, and Cotabato City.

In the same year, the court said Lanao del Norte, municipalities in North Cotabato, and other areas petitioned for voluntary inclusion, with most ARMM ratifying the law, apart from Sulu.

Although the province rejected this back then, SC disclosed that Sulu is still included in BARMM, which led it to file the present petition against the law.

“The Court ruled that the Bangsamoro Organic Law is constitutional because it does not make BARMM a separate state from the Philippines. The Law did not give it the power to enter into relations with other states, nor did it grant the BARMM its sovereignty,” the SC official said.

“The Court however declared unconstitutional the interpretation of the provision in the law directing the provinces and cities of ARMM to vote as one geographical unit as including provinces that did not vote to be included. It violates Article X, Section 18 of the Constitution, which states that only provinces, cities, and geographic areas voting favorably in the plebiscite shall be included in the autonomous region,” she further explained.

“As Sulu rejected the Bangsamoro Organic Law in the plebiscite, it was wrong to include the province in BARMM,” Ting also said.

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