Surveil is the author's column in BusinessWorld.  

THE CONGRESSIONAL Ad Hoc Committee on the Bangsamoro Basic Law conducted a hearing with civil society organizations last Wednesday. Before that, Committee Chair Rufus Rodriguez had invited the constitutional commissions, the defense and police establishments, and academe and legal luminaries. During the last hearing, former Supreme Court Justice Adolf Azcuna maintained that the Basic Law may be thinking outside the box “but it is not unconstitutional”.

At the civil society hearing, some 30 representatives of Mindanao organizations were present. Half of them presented the concerns of indigenous peoples, worried about their rights within the Bangsamoro.

Former Congressman Greg Andolana, who has been representing indigenous peoples, spoke about the protection of IP rights gained when the IP Rights Act (IPRA) was passed 17 years ago.

He said the Basic Law should enhance the IPRA and correct the historical injustice against the indigenous peoples, as it corrects the injustice against the Bangsamoro tribes.

IP Leader Bai Nanapnay Saway of the Talaandig tribe, chair of the Moro-IP Kinship Council, said that right after the signing of the Comprehensive Agreement for the Bangsamoro (CAB) in Malacanang, traditional leaders of the indigenous and Bangsamoro people gathered at the Peace Arc along Mendiola to perform a very important ritual which the Talaandig call Tampuda Hu Balagon, a ritual for establishing a covenant. This sacred ritual was performed hundreds of years ago by their ancestors, Apu Mamalu and Apu Tabunaway. Mamalu and Tabunaway were brothers. When Islam arrived, Apu Tabunaway converted to Islam. The brothers entered into a peace pact, promising to remain as brothers to protect each other from common enemies and invaders. The sacred covenant is the basis for the Talaandig pillars for kinship, a recognition of the close relationship between the indigenous peoples and the Islamized tribes.

The Talaandig still believe in the covenant. “Whoever will break the kinship will be cursed,” Bai Nanapnay said.

Since the CAB is also a sacred covenant among the peoples of Mindanao, she stressed that provisions of the IPRA and the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) should be recognized in the Basic Law.

Several organizations spoke out about women’s issues, that the gains of women’s struggles for equality not be lost with the passage of the Basic Law. This is a major concern for women and human rights organizations, since Sharia (Islamic law) will be the principal justice system for the new political entity, going beyond personal and family laws and into criminal and commercial law.

The concerns of women were presented in a position paper by the Women’s Peace Table, an initiative organized by the Mindanao Commission for Women (MCW), Women and Gender Institute (WAGI), and the Philippine Center for Islam and Democracy (PCID) to reach out to the women. The issues raised in the paper were echoed by other organizations such as WE Act 1325, which promotes the implementation of UN Security Resolution 1325 for the participation and protection of women in conflict resolution and post-conflict programs. Basically, women -- more than half of the population of the Autonomous Region for Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) -- want not only to be protected but to participate in decision-making and governance of the Bangsamoro. After all, females in ARMM outnumber males.

The PCID was invited as a resource. I presented a position paper, which encapsulated the concerns of almost all the organizations present. While the Center’s convenors support the enactment of the draft Bangsamoro Basic Law, we hope that the resulting legislation will ensure that economic, political and social dividends will be gained for the benefit of all.

The Basic Law is the next step toward ensuring that a just and lasting peace is established, pursuant to the signing of the agreement with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF). The draft law is the product of over two decades of at times contentious negotiations. Once enacted into law by Congress and ratified through a plebiscite, the law will serve as a charter for the new autonomous political entity called the Bangsamoro, which will replace the present ARMM. The ARMM is the product of a peace agreement with the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF).

The Muslim and non-Muslim citizens of the Philippines who belong to the Islamized indigenous tribes or nations -- Maguindanao, Maranao, Iranun, Tausug, Sama, Badjao, among many -- as well as other Mindanao communities have been waiting for a just and lasting peace for generations. A just peace -- to compensate for the stolen sovereignty of these tribes or nations. We have to bear in mind that the Muslim liberation fronts, both the MNLF and the MILF, fought for the independence of the Islamized tribes or nations whose sovereignty was usurped by colonial masters. The wars of independence carried over from the Spanish to the American era, then manifested itself during the establishment of the new Republic of the Philippines. The peace agreement signed between the (then) undivided Muslim liberation front, the MNLF, had the front agreeing to accept autonomy in lieu of independence.

The PCID conducted and participated in workshops and consultations, including a series co-organized with the Foundation for Economic Freedom on strengthening the business and investment climate in the Bangsamoro. Based on our consultations over the last year, we have gathered that the Basic Law should address the following concerns:

Protection of the rights of women, indigenous peoples and non-Muslims, and their equitable participation.

Protection of ancestral domains, including the domain of the Sultanate of Sulu.

Protection of land and property rights.

Synergy with provisions of the 1996 Final Peace Agreement, which fleshed out the 1976 Tripoli Agreement that established a region of autonomy for the Mindanao Muslim tribes.

Clarity on intergovernmental relationships -- not just the mechanism to address differences between the Bangsamoro and the central government but also the relationship between local government units and the Bangsamoro government.

Development of the appropriate civil service system. The rights of ARMM civil servants should also be protected.

Corollary to the above, there is a need to ensure that the Bangsamoro Transition Authority is provided enough time. Since one year of transition is inadequate, we should provide for an extended period of transition which may require that the first elections for the Bangsamoro Parliament to take place in 2019.

Development of an appropriate and effective electoral system, particularly since the form of government will be ministerial.

Development of an appropriate and effective public order and safety system. (This concern has become stronger after the reports that P250 million in ransom was paid to the Abu Sayyaf for the release of two German hostages.)

Establishment of effective, efficient fiscal management systems following standards of good governance.

Amina Rasul is a democracy, peace and human rights advocate, and president of the Philippine Center for Islam and Democracy.

 Amina Rasul is a democracy, peace and human rights advocate, and president of the Philippine Center for Islam and Democracy. Comments toThis email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..