ZAMBOANGA CITY (BusinessWorld/13 June) -- The southern peace negotiations have reached an impasse after the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) rejected anew yesterday the government’s new proposal on wealth sharing, a significant issue in efforts to strike a deal that aims to end more than a decade of talks, a rebel official said.

 

MILF chief negotiator Mohagher Iqbal said the group’s central committee has stood pat on the version that both sides have initialled last February in Kuala Lumpur.

 

Asked on why the MILF rejected the government’s new offer, Mr. Iqbal told BusinessWorld that there is "no substance" in the government’s notes, which were relayed early this week by the Malaysian facilitator brokering the talks.

 

"[The notes] do not have the important subject on natural resources," he said in a phone interview.

 

The provision outlines sharing of revenue between the government and the proposed Bangsamoro administration from the development of natural resources within the region, which is planned to replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) before the Aquino administration ends its term in 2016.

 

Asked on the next move, Mr. Iqbal said the MILF will no longer send a response to the proposal.


"We have told the Malaysian facilitator that we will stick on what we have signed last February," he said.


Sought for comment, government chief negotiator Miriam Colonel-Ferrer said in a separate interview yesterday that her panel remains positive amid the deadlock. "We will continue to discuss and find a way out of the impasse," she said in a text message.

 

Ms. Colonel-Ferrer has said earlier this week both sides have agreed on how to divide the wealth, provided mechanisms are in place as proposed by the government. The additional provisions, however, were rejected by the MILF last April.

 

On the issue of taxation, she said the government peace panel has consolidated the inputs and feedback of the departments of Finance and Budget, as well as the Bureau of Internal Revenue on how to harmonize the government’s position with the MILF.

 

Yesterday’s development was the second time the MILF turned down the government’s attempt to change some provisions of wealth sharing in the proposed peace deal. The first rejection last April prompted both sides to resort to an exchange of notes before talks could resume after last month’s midterm polls.

 

Wealth sharing is one of four annexes of the Framework Agreement on the Bangsamoro, or the peace plan that both sides signed in October last year. The other three are power sharing, normalization -- including the gradual decommissioning of MILF fighters -- and the transitional modalities that detail the transfer of the functions from the existing Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao to the future Bangsamoro region.

 

So far, only the annex on transitional modalities has been finalized. Once all the annexes were agreed upon, the Framework Agreement on the Bangsamoro would be a comprehensive final peace deal that will give birth to the new Bangsamoro region.

 

Wealth sharing is a key component of the planned final peace deal to achieve the Bangsamoro region’s fiscal autonomy. Part of the resources to be shared are proceeds from minerals extracted within the new territory, which spans five provinces and several towns in Mindanao, namely Basilan, Lanao del Sur, Maguindanao, Sulu and Tawi-Tawi.

 

Both sides have been discussing wealth sharing even before the framework agreement was signed, even creating a joint technical working group to harmonize differing positions.

 

Mr. Iqbal criticized the government’s changing positions.

 

"Are we just playing games here?" he asked, adding "so much time has been consumed" on the issue.

 

In a statement on Wednesday, Khaled Musa, deputy chairman of the MILF committee on information, admitted rising frustration from the rebel group over delays in the talks.

 

"Frustration on the ground is gaining momentum, as a consequence of too much unnecessary delay from government," he said.

 

"Radical elements within the MILF are beginning to be restive and hitting the MILF and its peace panel." -- Darwin T. Wee/BusinessWorld Online