Govt backtracks, says it won't sign domain pact with MILF

MANILA, Philippines - Malacañang on Wednesday said it is not inclined to sign the present form of the memorandum of agreement on ancestral domain with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) until after a thorough review has been done. Press Secretary Jesus Dureza said the decision was made clear when Solicitor General Agnes Devanadera filed a motion before the Supreme Court seeking the dismissal of the case filed by North Cotabato Vice Governor Manny Piñol earlier along with several rejoinders. "Ang pakay nito (motion) is to tell the Supreme Court, number one, hindi na namin pipirmahan iyong MOA na iyan. Pangalawa, dahil kailangan may further negotiation. (The motion, in effect, tells the court that we're not going to sign the MOA pending further negotiations)," Dureza said in a radio interview. Dureza admitted that the filing of the motion would delay the signing of the peace agreement with the MILF, but added that the government remains committed to work for a peaceful settlement of the conflict in Mindanao. Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita said the Arroyo administration wants to "thoroughly review" and eventually revise or address "flaws" in the MOA that are unacceptable to some sectors. Meanwhile, a radio report said the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process sought the help of the Malaysian government to help relay the Philippine government's stand to the MILF. Kuala Lumpur is brokering the peace negotiations between the government and the MILF. The same radio report also said that Malacañang saw the need for a review of the agreement following the recent MILF attacks on communities in North Cotabato and Lanao del Norte provinces. It also said a new set of conditions is expected to crop up after the review of the agreement. This development came a day after Devanadera filed a petition before the Supreme Court seeking the dismissal of the petitions questioning the legality of the domain pact with the MILF. “Circumstances have changed from the time of the intended signing of the MOA in Malaysia. Following the filing of various petitions questioning the constitutionality of the MOA, fighting in some areas in Muslim Mindanao had resurfaced led by some disgruntled groups of the MILF," Devanadera said. Devanadera said the executive department will likely conduct further negotiations with the MILF to address contentious issues. The Office of the Solicitor General is representing the government panel that is talking peace with the MILF. Devanadera insisted that the agreement is not a "done deal" but “a codification of consensus points reached between the GRP and MILF peace panels and the aspirations of MILF to have a Bangsamoro homeland." “The respondents are clear in their position that the actualization or realization of the aspiration of MILF to have a Bangsamoro homeland of their own shall be achieved only by complying with the existing legal processes such as the enactment of appropriate legislation, amendment of the Constitution itself as well as the holding of a plebiscite," she said. MOA signing The government, through Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process Hermogenes Esperon Jr, earlier rejected calls for the renegotiation of the MOA, which was supposed to have been signed on August 5 in Kuala Lumpur. Esperon said a renegotiation would push the peace process back to square one. The signing of the MOA was stopped August 4 by the Supreme Court, which issued a temporary restraining order based on a petition filed by local government executives who expressed surprise when told that the MOA calls for the inclusion of more than 700 villages into the proposed expanded autonomous region which would be governed by the MILF. A day before the Supreme Court hearing on the petition, Esperon softened his stand, saying the government panel is open to renegotiate the MOA if the Supreme Court finds the creation of a Bangsamoro Juridical Entity unconstitutional. The expansion of the autonomous region will cover villages and municipalities in eight provinces where the MILF has been waging a bloody rebellion since 1978. The ancestral domain issue is the last remaining hurdle for a final political settlement that is expected to end the four decades-old insurgency that has claimed more than 120,000 lives. The High Court’s decision sparked a series of MILF attacks against towns in North Cotabato, Sarangani, Lanao del Norte and Lanao del Sur. The attacks claimed the lives of more than 30 people, most of them civilians. Malaysia cancels meet with RP Meanwhile, the bilateral meeting between the Philippines and Malaysia in Manila this week has been canceled, DFA spokesman Claro Cristobal said. The two-day meeting, which was supposed to take place from August 21 to 22, was postponed to a later date. Cristobal said Malaysia sought for the meeting’s cancellation, but he was quick to add that it had nothing to do with the ongoing armed conflict between government troops and MILF rebels in Mindanao. “The Joint Consultative Meeting is postponed upon Malaysia’s request citing domestic political developments," the DFA spokesman said. Malaysia’s Foreign Minister Rais Yatim and his counterpart DFA Secretary Alberto Romulo were supposed to discuss political and security cooperation, particularly the status of the peace process between the government and the MILF and the aborted ancestral domain agreement. The meeting was supposed to review and discuss the implementation of cooperative undertakings and to further strengthen the existing cooperation between the two countries on areas of trade and investment, education, health, tourism and culture, agriculture, information cooperation, environment and the welfare of Filipino migrant workers. Romulo and Rais were also supposed to witness the signing of the controversial territorial agreement in Malaysia last August 5. Malaysia was reportedly dismayed with the cancellation of the MOA signing.- GMANews.TV