Comprehensive Agreement On The Bangsamoro
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

The Comprehensive Agreement on Bangsamoro (CAB) was the final peace agreement signed between the
Government of the Philippines The government of the Philippines () has three interdependent branches: the legislative, executive, and judicial branches. The Philippines is Central government, governed as a unitary state under a presidential system, presidential representativ ...
and the
Moro Islamic Liberation Front The Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF; ) is an Islamist group based in Mindanao, Philippines, which sought an autonomous region of the Moro people from the central government. The group has a presence in the Bangsamoro region of Mindanao, t ...
on March 27, 2014 at the
Malacañang Palace Malacañang Palace (, ), officially known as Malacañán Palace, is the official residence and principal workplace of the president of the Philippines. It is located in the Manila district of San Miguel, Manila, San Miguel, along Jose Laurel S ...
in
Manila Manila, officially the City of Manila, is the Capital of the Philippines, capital and second-most populous city of the Philippines after Quezon City, with a population of 1,846,513 people in 2020. Located on the eastern shore of Manila Bay on ...
, which eventually led to the creation of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (often referred to simply as the Bangsamoro, in January 2019. The agreement involved two tracks - the normalization track and the political track. Under the normalization track, the MILF would turn over their firearms to a third party, which would be selected by the rebels and the Philippine government. The MILF agreed to decommission its armed wing, the Bangsamoro Islamic Armed Forces (BIAF). Under the Political track, the government would work towards the creation of a new political entity known as the
Bangsamoro Bangsamoro, officially the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM; ; ), is an autonomous region in the Philippines, located in the southwestern portion of the island of Mindanao. Replacing the Autonomous Region in Muslim Minda ...
, to take the place of the
Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao The Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (; ''Al-ḥukm adh-dhātī al-'iqlīmī li-muslimī Mindanāu''; ARMM) was an Autonomous regions of the Philippines, autonomous region of the Philippines, located in the Mindanao Island groups of the P ...
(ARMM) which had been created in 1989. Power sharing was a central point to the autonomy redesign. The ARMM charter had only listed 14 areas which were outside the powers of the regional legislature. Under the comprehensive peace agreement, the parties listed 81 powers categorized into reserved for the central government, exclusive to the Bangsamoro, and concurrent with or shared by the two sides for power sharing. Of the 81 powers, 58 were devolved to the Bangsamoro, nine were reserved to the central government, and 14 were shared. The Framework Agreement on the Bangsamoro and Four annexes, namely on Transitional Arrangements and Modalities, Revenue Generation and Wealth Sharing, Power Sharing and Normalization, together with the Addendum on Bangsamoro Waters, will be included in the comprehensive agreement. The Armed Forces of the Philippines raised red alert status on March 24 in preparation for the event. Philippine President
Benigno Aquino III Benigno Simeon Aquino III (; born Benigno Simeon Cojuangco Aquino III; February 8, 1960 – June 24, 2021), also known as Noynoy Aquino and colloquially as PNoy, was a Filipino politician who served as the 15th president of the Philippines ...
, MILF chair Hadji Murad Ibrahim, and Malaysian Prime Minister
Najib Razak Mohammad Najib bin Abdul Razak (, ; born 23 July 1953) is a Malaysian politician who served as the sixth Prime Minister of Malaysia from 2009 to 2018. In 2020, he was convicted of corruption in the 1Malaysia Development Berhad scandal, on ...
were among the key people expected to be present at the signing of the agreement.


Background

In pursuit of their goal of liberating
Bangsamoro Bangsamoro, officially the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM; ; ), is an autonomous region in the Philippines, located in the southwestern portion of the island of Mindanao. Replacing the Autonomous Region in Muslim Minda ...
, the MNLF engaged the government forces in extensive armed collisions, peaking in the early 70s when the rebels’ blitz-like operations brought them control of a substantial number of municipalities surrounding
Cotabato City Cotabato City, officially the City of Cotabato (Maguindanao language, Maguindanaon: ''Kuta nu Kutawatu'', Jawi alphabet, Jawi: ; Cebuano language, Cebuano: ''Dakbayan sa Cotabato''; ), is a Cities of the Philippines#Legal classification, inde ...
and its airport complex. This prompted the Marcos regime to beef up military presence by deploying almost three-fourths of the army in most Muslim parts of
Mindanao Mindanao ( ) is the List of islands of the Philippines, second-largest island in the Philippines, after Luzon, and List of islands by population, seventh-most populous island in the world. Located in the southern region of the archipelago, the ...
. Things took a different turn in 1976 when
Libya Libya, officially the State of Libya, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to Egypt–Libya border, the east, Sudan to Libya–Sudan border, the southeast, Chad to Chad–L ...
n leader
Muammar Gaddafi Muammar Muhammad Abu Minyar al-Gaddafi (20 October 2011) was a Libyan military officer, revolutionary, politician and political theorist who ruled Libya from 1969 until Killing of Muammar Gaddafi, his assassination by Libyan Anti-Gaddafi ...
brokered an agreement that led to the signing of the Tripoli Agreement introducing the concept of an autonomous Muslim region in Mindanao. On August 1, 1989, under the mandate of the new 1987 Constitution,
Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ...
enacted Republic Act 6734 authorizing the creation of the
Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao The Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (; ''Al-ḥukm adh-dhātī al-'iqlīmī li-muslimī Mindanāu''; ARMM) was an Autonomous regions of the Philippines, autonomous region of the Philippines, located in the Mindanao Island groups of the P ...
(ARMM). However, out of the 13 provinces and 9 cities that participated in the plebiscite, only the provinces of
Lanao del Sur Lanao del Sur (; Meranaw and ; Jawi ''(Batang Arab)'': ), officially the Province of Lanao del Sur, is a province in the Philippines located in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM). The capital is the city of Marawi (th ...
,
Maguindanao Maguindanao (; Maguindanaon: ''Dairat nu Magindanaw''; Iranun: ''Perobinsia a Magindanao''; ) was a province of the Philippines located in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM). From 2014 to 2022, its provincial capital ...
,
Sulu Sulu (), officially the Province of Sulu (Tausug language, Tausūg: ''Wilaya' sin Lupa' Sūg''; ), is a Provinces of the Philippines, province of the Philippines in the Sulu Archipelago. It was part of the Bangsamoro, Bangsamoro Autonomous R ...
, and Tawi-Tawi opted to become part of the ARMM. The ARMM was formally established on November 6, 1990. Instead of bringing the Muslim leaders together, this agreement further fragmented the MNLF, because some factions within the group preferred independence over autonomy. Thus, a group of officers led by Hashim Salamat broke away and formed the
Moro Islamic Liberation Front The Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF; ) is an Islamist group based in Mindanao, Philippines, which sought an autonomous region of the Moro people from the central government. The group has a presence in the Bangsamoro region of Mindanao, t ...
(MILF) to continue their armed struggle for an independent Bangsamoro (Moro nation) in Mindanao. Though the combined strength of these two rebel forces has not reached a point of posing any real threat to the
government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a State (polity), state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive (government), execu ...
in
Manila Manila, officially the City of Manila, is the Capital of the Philippines, capital and second-most populous city of the Philippines after Quezon City, with a population of 1,846,513 people in 2020. Located on the eastern shore of Manila Bay on ...
, their existence—and the reasons for their resilience—certainly brings many headaches for the government. For nearly five decades, five presidents have tried to completely end these two rebellions, utilizing both
force In physics, a force is an influence that can cause an Physical object, object to change its velocity unless counterbalanced by other forces. In mechanics, force makes ideas like 'pushing' or 'pulling' mathematically precise. Because the Magnitu ...
and
diplomacy Diplomacy is the communication by representatives of State (polity), state, International organization, intergovernmental, or Non-governmental organization, non-governmental institutions intended to influence events in the international syste ...
. So far, no combination has succeeded. Perhaps the most remarkable effort to bring closure to these movements was that of the Ramos Administration, which tried to reach out to both the communist and Muslim rebels through peaceful means. There were many efforts to reach peace with Islamist separatists.


Framework Agreement

On October 15, 2012, the Philippine government signed a much-hyped document touted as the Framework Agreement on the Bangsamoro, which culminated the Aquino Administration's effort to end the deadlock in the peace process. This new document, while merely providing for a general framework for the actual peace negotiations, announced that "the status quo is unacceptable and that the Bangsamoro shall be established to replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM). The Bangsamoro was the new autonomous political entity (NPE) referred to in the Decision Points of Principles as of April 2012." According to President Aquino, this was the agreement that could "finally seal genuine, lasting peace in Mindanao." with
Bangsamoro Bangsamoro, officially the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM; ; ), is an autonomous region in the Philippines, located in the southwestern portion of the island of Mindanao. Replacing the Autonomous Region in Muslim Minda ...
replacing ARMM which was described by
President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...
Benigno Aquino III Benigno Simeon Aquino III (; born Benigno Simeon Cojuangco Aquino III; February 8, 1960 – June 24, 2021), also known as Noynoy Aquino and colloquially as PNoy, was a Filipino politician who served as the 15th president of the Philippines ...
as "a failed experiment".


Reaching the agreement

The peace talks between the MILF and the
Philippine government The government of the Philippines () has three interdependent branches: the legislative, executive, and judicial branches. The Philippines is governed as a unitary state under a presidential representative and democratic constitutional repub ...
had been brokered by
Malaysia Malaysia is a country in Southeast Asia. Featuring the Tanjung Piai, southernmost point of continental Eurasia, it is a federation, federal constitutional monarchy consisting of States and federal territories of Malaysia, 13 states and thre ...
since 1997. After 2009, the negotiations were also supported by an International Contact Group (the ICG). The ICG represented an innovation in peace process support, in that it was a hybrid body composed of both states and international non-governmental organisations (INGOs). The members were
Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...
,
Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in West Asia. Located in the centre of the Middle East, it covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula and has a land area of about , making it the List of Asian countries ...
, the
United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
, and
Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...
, The Asia Foundation, the Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue,
Muhammadiyah Muhammadiyah (), officially Muhammadiyah Society () is a major Islamic non-governmental organization in Indonesia.A. Jalil HamidTackle the rising cost of living longer New Straits Times, 30 October 2016. Accessed 1 November 2016. The organization ...
, and Conciliation Resources. When the Asia Foundation became an official member of the Third Party Monitoring Team in 2012, the Community of San’Egidio from Italy replaced the Asia Foundation in the ICG. On January 24, 2014, Philippine government chief negotiator Miriam Coronel Ferer and MILF chief negotiator Mohagher Iqbal signed a peace agreement in
Kuala Lumpur Kuala Lumpur (KL), officially the Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur, is the capital city and a Federal Territories of Malaysia, federal territory of Malaysia. It is the largest city in the country, covering an area of with a census population ...
. The agreement would pave the way for the creation of the new Muslim autonomous entity called "Bangsamoro" under a law to be approved by the Philippine Congress. The government aims to set up the region by 2016. The agreement calls for Muslim self-rule in parts of the southern Philippines in exchange for a deactivation of rebel forces by the MILF. MILF forces would turn over their firearms to a third party to be selected by the MILF and the Philippine government. A regional police force would be established, and the Philippine military would reduce the presence of troops and help disband private armies in the area. In the Agreement, the government committed to change a 37-year autonomy experiment whose current version, the
Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao The Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (; ''Al-ḥukm adh-dhātī al-'iqlīmī li-muslimī Mindanāu''; ARMM) was an Autonomous regions of the Philippines, autonomous region of the Philippines, located in the Mindanao Island groups of the P ...
(ARMM), has failed to live up to the Moro people's aspiration for freedom from a highly centralized government.


References

{{Moro conflict 2014 in the Philippines Bangsamoro peace process Treaties of the Philippines Peace treaties Treaties involving territorial changes Presidency of Benigno Aquino III