The Visions Of Peace In Mindanao

“The Visions of Peace in Mindanao” Speech delivered by Atty. Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III During the Week of Peace Celebration In Zamboanga City on Dec. 1, 2006

We are observing a week of peace. “Peace” is not only the absence of a shooting war and violence but more importantly the lasting presence of understanding, compassion, concern, trust, and love for one’s neighbor and fellowman. Let us imagine for a few seconds a Mindanao where peace prevails. What do I see? It’s the same typhoon-free Mindanao we are all familiar with, where land is very fertile and all marketable crops and produce of the soil in the entire Philippines can and will grow. But its also a very different Mindanao. It will be a Mindanao where all people believe that they are all together on board one ship. If the ship sinks, they all sink together to the bottom of the ocean, but if it floats on top of a tsunamic wave, they also all go together sky-bound. Truly one people Mindanao. It’ll be a Mindanao with an integrated master plan for human, social, political, and economic development. It’ll be a Mindanao with millions of tourists, both local and foreign, roaming around enjoying our sights, sound, cuisine, and company, without fear for their personal safety. It’ll be a Mindanao where the budget for bullets, mortars, and bombs have been diverted and spent on school buildings, water systems, tractors, farm to market roads, irrigation systems, and post-harvest facilities.

It will be a Mindanao populated by well-educated, literate, well-informed, understanding people, tolerant of other cultures and supportive of the right of people to preserve and observe their own religion, cultures and heritage. It will be a Mindanao which can feed itself as well as the entire Philippines. A Mindanao with a standard of living that is much better than what the majority of Mindanaoans are currently enjoying or suffering from today. For the good of Mindanaoans of the future generations, PEACE must reign in Mindanao. It is good that we are pursuing peace through dialogue and negotiations. It is imperative that we all pursue peace. What can we do, immediately? (1) We should come up with a comprehensive Peace Strategy involving all the stakeholders of Mindanao. A purely military solution to the conflict in Mindanao has been tried for decades and has proven to be a failure. A new strategy must be formulated and adopted and there is no better strategy than that which involves the people who are affected by the conflict in its formulation. A people to people dialogue is a must. This kind of a dialogue will promote understanding, it will erase mistrust and certainly evolve a common vision for all Mindanaoans. (This Interfaith Conference is indeed a step in the Right Direction.) (2) “Peace Negotiation” with rebel groups is necessary. It will serve as a forum for the articulation of grievances and interests necessary for formulating a common strategy for Mindanao. Peace Negotiation however should be participated in and handled by the people of Mindanao

themselves. After all, it is the people of Mindanao who can feel the problem. It is they who can work out the solution. Talking of the Peace Process, I was informed that the Peace Negotiation between the GRP and the MILF has reached an impasse. The negotiation failed to reach a consensus on the issue of ancestral domain. I have been informed that the MILF is looking at ancestral domain from a different perspective than the one the GRP views it from. Today, you will note that we have the Indigenous Peoples Right Act. This law defines Ancestral Domain from the concept of the indigenous people. Their right to their ancestral domain is founded on the concept of native title (long and continuous possession and “time immemorial possession”), a concept premised on the legal maxim of “prior in time, prior in right”. This may be the perspective of the GRP Panel. On the other hand, the MILF views ancestral domain as the totality of the “Bangsa Moro Homeland” a political territory and not a mere land tenure. This concept of political territory is anchored on the Moro belief, that at one point in our history, the Moros or the Muslims were suzerain in Mindanao and Sulu. This disagreement based on differing points of view can be resolved by the people of Mindanao, the people who understand their history and beginnings, and can not be left to people from the “outside”. Let the “one people of Mindanao” search for the peaceful and lasting solution to this impasse. With Peace at hand, development in Mindanao will come as a matter of course. People with money will surely come. Money after all, is a cowardly commodity; it comes and remains only in areas where there is PEACE.

However, the Philippine Government must manifest its sincerity in the search for peace in Mindanao by developing war devastated and other neglected areas in Mindanao. The National Government must support infrastructure like airports, seaports, roads, railways, telecommunications, markets, power and water systems, which will allow Mindanao to leap-frog from a land of perpetual promise to a land of real progress, “a land of fulfilled promises”. Mindanao can indeed be the land of fulfilled promises. This, however, can only be a reality if we in Mindanao speak as ONE. We must advocate for a fair share in our National and natural resources and demand that we be treated equally with the rest of the country. To do that, we must be wellrepresented in all agencies of State especially in the agencies where the allocation of public funds is determined, that is, the House of Representatives, the Senate, and even the Presidency. In short, Mindanaoans must involve themselves in the decision-making processes in our country, at all levels but most especially at the national level. My dear fellow peace-loving Mindanaoans, let us therefore spare no effort nor leave any stone unturned in our quest to promote mutual understanding, tolerance, and respect among Muslims, Christians, and Lumads, and make possible the peaceful and harmonious co-existence of all inhabitants of Mindanao, regardless of their religions, culture, and social and economic standing. Mindanao is after all, our one and only land. Thank you very much.