To gov’t, MILF: Address resistance to peace deal creatively

I would like to share my views on the report “Peace deal foes will become ‘irrelevant,’ says Iqbal” by Nikko Dizon (News, 2/1/14).

The concern about possible spoilers of the peace agreement

between the Philippine government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front should be addressed with utmost cautiousness. I appreciate MILF chief negotiator

Mohagher Iqbal’s statement about how the MILF and the government are the two most likely spoilers of the peace deal. The statement signifies his acknowledgement of the grave responsibility to keep the integrity of the negotiations and of the peace agreement.

However, I am of the opinion that Iqbal was too rash in saying that the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters and the other separatist groups are now irrelevant. Considering them irrelevant neglects the very needs-based analysis of a conflict. History tells us that the majority of the insurgents’ assaults in the past resulted from this neglect. The Moro National Liberation Front, for instance, conducted the dreadful hostage-taking in Zamboanga City in September 2013 precisely because it felt left out of the peace process between the government and the MILF. The BIFF most likely finds itself in the same situation.

Also, it may seem unmindful for Iqbal to consider the other separatist groups irrelevant, especially that the MILF was once in the shoes of the BIFF, having been itself a breakaway group of the MNLF.

In addition, the government’s offensive stance against the BIFF should also be reconsidered, as this may cause more harm than good.  The sincerity of the government in wanting to achieve lasting peace in Mindanao should be expressed not only through the signing of the Framework Agreement on the Bangsamoro but also through its way of dealing with other separatist groups. The government should not forget that conflict, being a social situation that involves people, is dynamic and not static.

While we should certainly celebrate this important milestone in our country’s pursuit of peace, the government should not be complacent. Instead of dismissing the other separatist groups as irrelevant, the MILF and the government should be creative in addressing the resistance from these groups to ensure that sustained peace in the region is achieved.

—MICHELLE A. ROQUE,

MA  international political economy and development,

Fordham University