MikeLigalig.com

source: PNA

The Philippine government and Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) will sign on Monday, Oct. 15, the Framework Agreement on peace aimed at ending the conflict in Mindanao that has spanned two generations and has resulted in hundreds of casualties.

In a press conference in Malacanang on Wednesday, Presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda said that among those who were expected to attend the signing, included Malaysian Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak, MILF Chairman Al Hadj Murad, MILF contingent and other partners who helped in the successful conclusion of the peace talks in Malaysia.

The Monday’s event will be the first time Murad steps in Malacañang, Lacierda said.

Prior to the signing of Framework agreement, Prime Minister Razak and President Benigno S. Aquino III will have bilateral discussions.

Lacierda clarified that both sides are signing the Framework Agreement and not the annexes, explaining that the Framework Agreement secures the foundations for a more detailed implementation of the peace agreement.

“The Framework Agreement is the foundation for the house. It’s pleasant… how good and pleasant it is for brothers Christians, Muslims, and Lumads to dwell together in peace. So that’s where we are right now. We have established the foundations of the house,” Lacierda said.

Reacting to reports saying the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) felt betrayed by the Framework Agreement, Lacierda said the MILF and the MNLF had a solidarity agreement and that the MNLF has always been part of the negotiations. It will also take part in the development of the Basic Law, he said.

President Aquino announced last week that the government and the MILF was nearing the forging of a Framework Agreement on peace aimed at ending the conflict that has spanned two generations and has taken the lives of more than 100,000 Filipinos.

The Framework Agreement laid down the ground work for achieving the “final and enduring peace in Mindanao" by enjoining all stakeholders to support the implementation of the needed 'structural reforms'," the chief executive said.

Under the Framework Agreement, a new political entity will replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) and will be named “Bangsamoro.”

After the signing of the Framework Agreement, the President will issue an Executive Order (EO) creating a Transition Commission that will recommend a draft bill to Congress creating the Bangsamoro. Congress will then deliberate on the Bangsamoro Basic law, government chief negotiator Dean Marvic Leonen said this week.

The commission will hold an all inclusive consultations in the affected areas to know the pulse of the people in the proposed Bangsamoro, he said.

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