Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, November 15) — A lawmaker from Mindanao has pointed out flaws in the decommissioning process for armed fighters of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) in the wake of the deadly firefight between members of the group and the military last week.
Basilan Rep. Mujiv Hataman on Monday urged the national government and other stakeholders to prioritize the decommissioning of armed MILF combatants to minimize incidents of violence.
“Hindi tama ang decommissioning natin, I’m saying this for the record. Maraming armas ng MILF ang hindi na-decommission. Masasabi ko kahit sa isla lang namin sa Basilan. Kaya importante sa akin ang listahan kung ilan talaga ang subject,” he said during the hearing of the House Committee on Peace, Reconciliation on Unity’s briefing on the state of the peace process in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM).
[Translation: We are not doing the decommissioning right, I’m saying this for the record. The MILF has many firearms which were not decommissioned. This is true for Basilan. It’s important to get the list of subjects we are dealing with.]
“This is a wakeup call to all of us: not only for the GPH (government of the Philippines), even to IDB (Independent Decommissioning Body). Let us be transparent and let us be honest. Wag tayong maglokohan. I-prioritize natin ‘yung armed combatants. Kung matapos ang armed combatants, wala nang pwedeng magdala ng armas. So kung wala nang armas, hindi tayo magkaka-giyera,” he added.
[Translation: Let us not kid ourselves. Let’s prioritize the armed combatants. They should no longer carry firearms. Without firearms, there will be no war.]
Hataman made the remark days after the bloody clash between the MILF and military forces in Ungkaya Pukan, Basilan on Nov. 8. The incident left three soldiers and three MILF fighters dead.
The Office of the Presidential Adviser on Peace, Reconciliation, and Unity (OPAPRU) said 24,844 former MILF combatants have given up their firearms since the decommissioning process started in 2015. The IDB, which oversees the process, said it has received 4,625 weapons or 66 percent of its target.
IDB vice chairman William Hovland said the peace process involving the MILF and the Philippine government is one of the “very few peace processes going well globally.”
Hataman, however, said several weapons owned by MILF fighters have yet to be decommissioned even in Basilan. He also claimed to know of someone who’s not part of the group but underwent the decommissioning process.
OPAPRU Undersecretary David Diciano said former MILF combatants who gave up their arms each received ₱100,000 in cash aid. An estimated 40,000 MILF fighters are still due for decommissioning.
The panel adopted Hataman’s motion to hold an executive session to get details about the MILF fighters who gave up their arms after Hovland said information about them was confidential.
For National Coordinating Agency (NICA) Director General Ricardo De Leon, the recent violent incidents “could sow some distrust on the MILF-led BARMM government’s capacity to handle the security situation.”
De Leon said he has ordered the creation of a provincial security office in Region 12 since NICA currently has no office in BARMM.
