Pat Diaz on "Transparency Question"

MINDAVIEWS
COMMENT: Transparency Questions
By Patricio P. Diaz/MindaNews

GENERAL SANTOS CITY (MindaNews/28 Nov) --  (Note: I'm interrupting my
"Disturbing Questions" series to give way to a timelier topic. The
third part will be in the next posting. – PPD)
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Kusog Mindanao, a consensus-building peace advocate organization, will
conduct a forum in Davao City on November 30 and December 1 to tackle
transparency questions concerning the peace negotiation of the
Government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front. This forum will
bring together the peace negotiators and Mindanao leaders.

On the forum theme, "The Shape of the Forthcoming Peace Agreement
between the GRP and the MILF", Kusog Mindanao secretary-general Rey
Magno Teves said, "We want to hear more from our (peace) panelists
about the negotiations."  (MindaNews, Nov. 27)
From the news report, it is clear that Mindanao leaders want to fully
know what have been agreed on the critical issues of ancestral domain,
self-determination, governance and others.  They feel that they are
not being properly informed.
Mindanao Business Council representative Vicente Lao, South Cotabato
Gov. Daisy Avance-Fuentes, and Prof. Abhoud Syed M. Lingga of the
Institute of Bangsamoro Studies in Cotabato City will present the
issues to be taken up at the forum.
On December 1, Peace Panel Chairs Rodolfo Garcia of GRP and Mohagher
Iqbal of MILF will be at the forum to clarify questions.  Secretary
Jesus Dureza, presidential adviser on the peace processes, will also
be present.
Past Lessons
The importance of transparency should never be overlooked or
downplayed.  Lessons from the past should not be forgotten. Despite
the relative openness in the crafting of Republic Act 6734 starting
from the Mindanao Consultative Commission, biases and prejudices still
influenced decisively the composition of the original Autonomous
Region in Muslim Mindanao.
Both the GRP and MNLF kept secret the Jakarta negotiation.  It was
only in the last few days that agreements were published.  That
last-minute gesture at transparency helped little in dispelling the
anxieties that had already fueled built-in biases and prejudices.
Of course, the secrecy in the negotiation should be viewed with utmost
understanding. Giving the public a blow-by-blow account is not
conducive to deliberation.  However, it is expected that after an
agreement has been reached, the people concerned should be allowed to
know and to give feedbacks. Factoring into the agreement the feedbacks
will make it more relevant.
I think the same questions that bothered Christians in the past are
bothering them in relation to the GRP-MILF negotiation especially in
the inclusion of more villages in the existing ARMM as called for in
the resolution of the ancestral domain issue. This issue is popularly
contentious.
Transparency
I think the territorial expanse of the Bangasamoro Juridical Entity –
the area demanded by the MILF for their ancestral domain – is
different from the Area of Autonomy in the 1976 Tripoli Agreement of
or in the 1996 Final Peace Agreement. BJE is confined to the present
ARMM and Muslim villages contiguous with the ARMM.
However, it is these villages that are central to the anxieties of
Christians and some political leaders. According to reports, the
boundaries of the BJE have already been agreed and will become
official in the interim agreement being drafted.
It will help ease anxiety and opposition if before drafting the
interim agreement, GRP and MILF will form a joint panel to discuss
with the governors and town officials the inclusion of villages in
their provinces into the BJE.  And they should meet the people of the
villages to be included in the BJE to hear and assuage their fears,
anxieties, etc.
Whatever they are able to gather from the governors, town officials
and village people will be useful in drafting an agreement that is
agreeable not only to the negotiating panels but, most important, to
all others concerned.  That is an indispensable ingredient of the
peace process.
Plebiscite
It was also reported, that the MNLF had withdrawn its opposition to a
plebiscite as long as they will have no part in it. The government can
do what it wants as long as the BJE agreed will be as it has been
agreed.
Will the people of the ARMM be asked if they will agree to have
autonomy transformed into another form of government consistent with
self-determination under the BJE? That will be subject of the
plebiscite in the ARMM.  Provinces and cities outside of the ARMM will
not be involved.
The purpose of including predominantly Muslim villages into the BJE is
to give flesh to the Muslim aspiration to reclaim whatever they can of
their ancestral domain and determine for themselves the kind of
government suited to their political, economic and social well-being
according to Islam. Surely, the MILF will insist that the area agreed
must remain intact.
To avoid what the MNLF calls "veto of Christian majority", the
plebiscite will be held only in the villages concerned.  But this is
not a sure-fire assurance of "YES-vote," especially in villages of
50-50 Muslim-Christian population.  This is where transparency is
important before the drafting of the interim agreement.
And, it should be noted that if the governors and mayors of the
provinces and towns where the villages are located – Sarangani,
Sultan
Kudarat, Cotabato, Lanao Norte, Zamboanga Sibugay, Zaboanga del Sur,
Zamboanga del Norte and Zamboanga City – could accept the necessity
of
BJE to the peace process, their help to convince their constituents
concerned to join the BJE will overcome a big obstacle.
FPA Hurdle
A collateral problem that can be a serious hurdle is the FPA.  The
present ARMM was set up bilaterally by the Government and the MNLF
through the FPA. To avoid derailing the peace process, the ARMM should
not be compromised without the consent of the MNLF. This has already
been done by the Government by unilaterally conceding it to the MILF.
There was no problem when the Government conceded to the MNLF the
original ARMM under RA 6734 because this was unilaterally established
by the Aquino government. The Arroyo government either overlooked or
ignored the difference. The MNLF has already registered its objection
through detained Chairman Nur Misuari and Interim Vice Chairman
Hatimil Hassan.
I think Kusog Mindanao should include this problem in its forum agenda
to be discussed and to formulate issues to be posed to the Government,
the MILF and the MNLF. This problem, if not handled well, can
stonewall the peace process. To some extent, it is a transparency
question.
Briefly the problem is: The ARMM is a house given to the MNLF under an
internationally recognized contract in 1996.  Within the first year of
the contract, the house was promised by the Government to the MILF as
a concession for the settlement of their differences. The settlement
is imminent.  Will the MNLF be just driven out of the house when the
1996 contract has not been revoked?
Not a Solution
Secretary Jesus Dureza, presidential adviser on the peace processes,
came up with a solution that can scuttle any GRP-MILF pact – his
so-called "best-case scenario" (MindaNews,Nov. 23). With due respect
to my good friend, the secretary, his "best-case scenario" is full of
haphazardly-thought—if not thoughtless –ideas, assumptions and
presumptions.
The "best-case scenario" in brief:
• Once the Jeddah Tripartite review of the FPA is completed, "the
provisions will be 'downloaded into a bill to amend the Autonomous
Region in Muslim Mindanao law' (RA 9054)."
• Once the GRP-MILF agreement is signed, this will also be
"downloaded" into another bill.
• The two bills will be consolidated into one bill to "converge" the
GRP-MNLF and the GRP-MILF pacts "into a legal framework for the
Bangsamoro [Juridical Entity]".
Here's a big "BUT": The resulting law will have two thrusts: (1)
suspend the 2008 ARMM election while keeping the present elective
officials on hold-over capacities; (2) provide the "legal framework"
for the BJE that – understandably – will be the terms of reference
for
the MILF-MNLF "transition council … to craft their own charter".
Carolyn O. Arguillas, MindaNews editor, must have in her mind the
Secretary's impossible assumptions and presumptions when she asked:
"But you're assuming a best-case scenario here. What if the GRP and
MNLF do not agree on the review and there are spoilers in the GRP-MILF
agreement?"
Dureza's response to Arguillas revealed a mindset in Malacañang –
Dureza being an alter-ego of the President – that poses the biggest
obstacle to the peace process. We will discuss this in a separate
"Comment"
Proposal
However, may I propose that Kusog Mindanao set a session for Dureza to
discuss his "best-case scenario."  Through no-holds-barred questions,
the participants may be able to see with utmost transparency the
mindset of Malacañang.
From Dureza's statements to MindaNews, it appeared that Arroyo's
political agenda have the priority over the peace process.  In his
official capacity as peace secretary, Dureza can give light on
Arroyo's top priorities.  The GRP peace panel's transparency is
limited to Arroyo's.
"Both government and Moro Islamic Liberation Front peace panels have
to be more transparent to the stakeholders in Mindanao about their
negotiations, an official of Kusog Mindanaw said." (MindaNews, Nov.
27) The imperative is a non-issue.
In its quest for transparency, Kusog Mindanaw must also zero in on
Malacañang.  Dureza's "best-case scenario" suggests a serious
question:  After the signing of the final agreement, "What"? The
MNLF-related scenarios should not be overlooked or forgotten.
("Comment" is Mr. Patricio P. Diaz' column for MindaViews, the opinion
section of MindaNews. Mr. Diaz is the recipient of a "Lifetime
Achievement Award" from the Titus Brandsma for his "commitment to
education and public information to Mindanawons as Journalist,
Educator and Peace Advocate." You may e-mail your comments to
patpdiaz@mindanews.com).