President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. will pursue the completion of all signed peace agreements, a top peace and unity official said on Thursday.
Secretary Carlito Galvez Jr. of the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process, Reconciliation and Unity (OPAPPRU), said President Marcos is determined “more than ever to pursue the completion of implementation of all signed peace agreements and the corresponding transformation program,” aligned with the Five-Point Peace Agenda of his administration.
Galvez led the opening Thursday at the Quezon Memorial Circle in Quezon City of the National Peace Consciousness Month in September, even as he emphasized the gains of the processes and the President’s commitment to upholding the continuity of peace agreements’ implementation.
He said this year’s National Peace Consciousness Month jumpstarts with the Theme: “Paghilom: Isang Bansa Para sa Kapayapaan” or “Unity and Healing as One.”
A nation for peace, Galvez said, is “inspired by our collective vision to bring peace, reconciliation, and unity throughout the country.”
Galvez said by heeding the call for unity, regardless of religion, culture and political beliefs, “We, as a PEOPLE and of one nation, can attain our common goal of achieving a genuine and long-lasting peace.”
He said through united efforts, there is no doubt that the Filipino people could sustain the gains of the comprehensive peace processes.
“But in order for us to move forward, we need to let go of the pain of the past (and) learn from our experiences,” he said.
Galvez said learning from lessons of the past will inspire the Filipinos “to build a better future for our nation that is free from conflict, prejudice, violence, and animosity.
He enumerated the Five-Point Agenda of the second Marcos presidency, as, namely: 1) Completion of the Peace Agreements with the MILF and the MNLF towards healing and reconciliation in the Bangsamoro; 2) Ending of local communist armed conflict by expanding the transformation programs for local conflict peace process;
Third, the completion and sustainment of the gains of the signed agreements with the RPM-P/ RPA/ ABB and CBA-CPLA; 4) Enhancement of the resilience for peace of communities and vulnerable groups through social healing and peace-building approaches in support of the Peace Processes; and
Fifth, the enhancement of the delivery of CSPP-Compliant Socio-Economic interventions in addressing the key drivers of conflict through convergence and complementation in support of the Peace Processes.
The Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM), the Government of the Philippines (GPH) and Moro Islamic Liberation Front’s (MILF) Joint Normalization Committee (JNC), in partnership with the Fondation Suisse de Déminage (FSD) and Philippine Campaign to Ban Landmines (PCBL), meanwhile held a risk education and demining workshop here.
According to Ariel Hernandez, GPH-JNC co-chairman, the workshop aimed to align the efforts of the JNC, FSD, PCBL Armed Forces of the Philippines and Philippine National Police in the safe clearance of UXOs and IEDS, which are among the key deliverables under the security component of the Normalization Program.
“The program on addressing UXOs and landmines is under the security component. Kaya nga may mga programa tayo na palakasin ang AFP sa Bangsamoro because after 2025, you will no longer see JPST (Joint Peace and Security Teams) there. After the Exit Agreement, you will have a stronger police force in Bangsamoro,” Hernandez said.
In particular, the workshop held early this month seeks to reduce the dangers from unexploded land mines, artillery, and mortar shells that were left behind during the decades-long armed conflict between government troops and rebel groups.
“The programs of the FSD, a non-violent peace organization, constitutes the ideals with the bridging of the transition. While everything is in transition, these are one of the things we are very particular about,” Hernandez noted.
The workshop was participated by the representatives from the GPH and MILF Implementing Panels, JNC, Joint Peace and Security Committee (JPSC), the various ceasefire mechanisms, PNP, AFP, and other international and local peace partners.
Hernandez emphasized that there was a need “to harness what has been done to come up with a substantial accomplishment as conferred in the Peace Agreement [between the national government and the MILF].”
Making the Bangsamoro safer
Following the signing of the Framework Agreement in Bangsamoro in October 2012 between the GPH and MILF, the FSD began work to reduce the threat of landmines and unexploded ordnance in conflict-affected areas across Mindanao.
The program was then expanded to include mine-and unexploded ordnance (UXO) risk education (MRE), as well as the development of local capacities in UXO clearance and explosives and weapons stockpile management.
According to FSD Program Manager Paul Davies, the program aims “to reduce the risk to local communities and strengthen the peace process” by facilitating cooperation in UXO reporting and clearance among all stakeholders in the Mindanao peace process.
This year, FSD has delivered 282 Non-Technical Survey (NTS) and 258 Explosive Ordnance Risk Education sessions to various communities throughout the BARMM benefiting a total of 9,434 residents.
In March this year, the FSD also handed over 12 individual Hook & Line EOD kits to the AFP and PNP units responsible for the clearance of UXOs and IEDs within the Bangsamoro Region.
Ways forward for a safer and peaceful Bangsamoro
“If you would not be able to get these UXOs that would be a component of IEDs. We really have to do it as quickly as possible because there’s someone out there just waiting for the next victim,” said PCBL National Coordinator Fred Lubang.
Lubang said the workshop intends to “amplify distinctions on technical works,” particularly on how the peace-stakeholders will be able “to organize themselves in terms of explosives hazard management in order to address a very quick response.”
Meanwhile, Hernandez emphasized that the BARMM government should also identify its role in the sustainability of the program as “a way of positioning itself” with regards to achieving the goals of the Normalization Program.
“Ipagpatuloy lang natin ang ating mga ginagawa because things are made out and are leveled in the Malacañang and the President [Ferdinand Marcos Jr.] expresses his support for the Peace Agreement between the MILF,” he said.
For his part, Office of the Presidential Adviser on Peace, Reconciliation and Unity Secretary Carlito G. Galvez, Jr. lauded the organizers of the workshop for carrying out interventions that aim to reduce or eliminate the risks from UXOs and IEDs.
“The work being carried out by the JNC, FSD and PCBL is crucial in our peacekeeping efforts in Mindanao, especially in ensuring the safety and security of residents in their communities,” Galvez said.
“Through the security component of our Normalization Program, the national government, in collaboration with our local and international peace partners, will make sure to rid Mindanao of these UXOs and IEDs, and make the Bangsamoro and the rest of Mindanao a safer and more secure place to live in,” he added.
