The Mindanao Peace Process Revisited

The changing of the guards gives a privileged opportunity to both the Government and the various liberation fronts (MNLF, MILF and NDF) to revisit not only the process itself but also the direction of the peace negotiations. The unfinished agenda in the GRP and the MNLF 1996 Final Peace Agreement is the contested implementation of said agreement. The GRP claims substantial compliance to the obligations imposed by the agreement. The MNLF claims non-GRP compliance. The OIC-sponsored Tripartite (OIC-GRP-MNLF) Review of the implementation of the said agreement has been going on for the last three years but with no end in view. On the GRP and the MILF peace talks, the two peace panels cite the following feats notwithstanding the difficulties and the odds brought about by the August 2008 botched MOA-AD. The new significant additions to discourse are the agreement on civilian protection and the entry of the so-called ‘international contact group’ or ICG in the peace talks. The civilian population are, often, the unfortunate victims of armed conflict. The new agreement, in concrete terms, has obtained the commitment of both Parties to respect the universally-accepted human rights of the civilians notwithstanding the conflict. Outside of the ARMM, the more important peace talk is the GRP and the NDF peace process. However, this talk is, for the most part, an ‘on and off’ negotiation. In fact, it is more an ‘off’ peace process than ‘on’. Mindanao, though not played prominently, is a major locus of the conflict between the GRP and the NDF. At one time, the NDF had nine liberation fronts and it had strong presence practically in all cities of Mindanao including Davao City. Their present true strength is contested claim and counter claim between the GRP and the NDF. What is clear is the importance of this peace talk regardless of what we believe. The present global consensus is that Conflict or political difference is no longer settled in battlefield but in the negotiating table. The most important document that has emerged from the GRP-NDF table is the comprehensive agreement on human rights and international humanitarian law. The tragic comedy about this important agreement is the non-implementation of the same due to the disagreement on the mechanisms that would implement it. With no mechanism and implementing guidelines, the agreement remains in paper. The more ticklish agenda in the GRP and the NDF talks are the political, social and economic issues that would ultimately shape the peace agreement. The first agenda in revisiting the three peace fronts is a simple inventory of all the contested issues and make matrices of the differing positions not only of the parties in conflict but also the major stakeholders. Second is to ‘build’ several platforms to openly hear and discuss these differing positions from the ‘lenses’ of the constituents that the parties boldly represent. Third is honestly assess the so-called relief, rehabilitation or even the claimed re-construction done in the conflict areas by both government, multi-donors and NGO’s. The multi-donors and international financial institutions like World Bank and the ADB believe that they are doing great yet the impact of their millions of dollars is hardly felt by the people on the ground, especially in conflict areas where they claim successful operations. Their reports are well done in glossy papers and with photos that parallel the story of Alice in Wonderland. Based from all indicators currently used from mortality rate to literacy rate and access to health services, the conflict areas remain the poorest in the country and in Mindanao. The major difficulty to hurdle is the belief that political settlement must come first before development. There are strong positions on this issue and these must be put on the table. Then there is the issue of multi donors and international aid agencies. No doubt, the multi-donors and international aid agencies are concerned with the peace process. But goodwill and ‘assistance’ can, at times, be misplaced. There are simply too many foreign players on the ground. For one there is the UN system; then the various international aid agencies that have their own interventions in Mindanao; then you have also the Visiting Forces (US) whose presence have become ubiquitous in Mindanao with their special planes, helicopters, drones, naval boats that shame our decrepit AFP. The new President and his team need to honestly assess what are the real score on the ground. What really work and do not work. But above all, the new administration should see whether we are using the same compass in our peace process and the said compass is pointed to a ‘north star’.