Kuala Lumpur - After seven years of arduous journey filled with countless negotiations and some botched talks, a ray of hope for an end to four decades of conflict in the southern Philippine province of Mindanao shimmers on the horizon.
This came on the heel of a compromise reached between the Government of Republic Philippines (GRP) and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) on the ancestral domain (homeland) issue, the most contentious aspect of the peace talks between them.
Scheduled to be inked here tomorrow, the agreement is seen as opening a new path for both parties to eventually resolve the conflict, which has killed about 120,000 people and displaced millions since the late 1960s.
As a facilitator, Malaysia reserves the rights to rejoice over the latest development as some quarters had raised their doubts over Malaysia`s ability to help both sides reach a breakthrough.
In pointing this out to Bernama, Datuk Othman Abdul Razak, who has been instrumental in putting an end to what was considered a stalemate issue, said it was quite a success as the discussion on ancestral domain was the toughest they had had so far.
"After months of stalling, we finally have a breakthrough and of course I`m very happy. The ancestral domain is the third and final aspect, the most important aspect out of three issues under Tripoli Agreement.
"The other two aspects -- security and rehabilitation -- were already signed back in 2001 and 2002, and the ancestral domain was the toughest but we managed to overcome it," said the chief facilitator of the peace talks.
The talks were stalled in September, 2006, but Malaysia took the initiative to resume the process in November last year.
However, despite best efforts from Malaysia to get the momentum going, it was to no avail as GRP and MILF failed to reach an agreement on the aspect.
Last April, in what could be considered as a gambit, Malaysia, which has been leading an International Monitoring Team (IMT) charged with peacekeeping in the southern region since 2004, issued a statement that they would pull out the team in stages beginning May.
Following this on May 10, Malaysia brought home 28 of its 41 soldiers and police officers while the remainder, along with 10 soldiers from Brunei, eight from Libya and a Japanese development officer are expected to pack their bags and leave for their respective countries by the end of this month.
It was reported that ever since IMT manned the volatile territory, violence incidents had decreased significantly but after Malaysia made known its intention, both GRP and MILF, as well the people in Mindanao had expressed fears that the situation could change.
"I think this (move) had be seen as a signal to both the GRP and MILF that we could not be there forever and therefore they must get the wheel of motion going if they were sincere in wanting peace in the region.
"I must say, getting them to reach consensus on the final issue was very, very difficult and in fact at one point during the talks last week, one party was ready to board the plane and go home," he said laughing.
However, Othman said, they managed to salvage the talks and it was done in a very unconventional way -- through phone calls and text messages.
"They called and texted me and vice versa, and this was going on till the wee hours of Saturday and then the next day (Sunday) two GRP ministers flew in to finalise the talks," he said.
The ancestral domain refers to the MILF`s demand for the expanding territory of what will constitute a Muslim homeland of which they govern.
Under the to-be-signed agreement, both parties reached a consensus to let more than 700 villagers to vote on whether they wanted to join the existing autonomous Muslim region or Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM).
According to some news reports, the deal gives the future government of the autonomous region wide economic powers, among others.
It was reported that on Friday, two days before they reached consensus, the talks were on the verge of collapse when Manila tried to delay a referendum on enlarging the existing Muslim homeland until after a separate political agreement was reached.
Explaining further, Othman who also an advisor to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, said that with the final hurdle out of the way, both parties could now resume talks on the comprehensive compact or final agreement.
"The talks will resume immediately after the signing on Tuesday. However I must say it`s going to be another long thorny road ahead of us," he said.
Othman also pointed out that although they had a 15-month time frame to conclude negotiations for the comprehensive compact, all parties involved were actually rushing against time as Gloria Macapagal Arroyo`s term as Philippine president would end six months after the deadline.
Describing the whole peace talks as a very delicate matter, he expressed concern that a change of administration might flush years of efforts down the drain, leaving all parties back in square one.
"But we, as a facilitator, will continue with our responsibility. After all, we were invited by the GRP to be the facilitator, and mind you, not many know about this fact.
"As for us, we are doing it out of the Asean spirit and at the same time we believe in the prosper-thy-neighbour concept," he said.
The Philippine government began negotiating with the MILF in 1997 to end peacefully three decades of Muslim separatist rebellion in the resource-rich Mindanao.
Talks collapsed in 2000 when the military launched offensives and captured several of the MILF`s jungle bases, but Malaysia rescued the peace process in 2001 and has since then brokered the talks.
Compelled to walk down memory lane, Othman said that after agreeing to play the role as facilitator, Malaysia had sent a representative into the jungles in the southern region to seek and hold meetings with MILF leaders.
"Back then, we didn`t know any of the MILF leaders, but our representative, Datuk Tengku Abdul Ghafar, managed to meet with the late (MILF chairman) Hashim Salamat and he agreed for us to become facilitator with several conditions and one of thaem was that all talks must be held outside Philippines," he said.
After that, said Othman, there was no going back for Malaysia, and the government was committed to seeing peace restored in the volatile region.
"We just hope they are sincere enough and really want to end the crisis," he said.
Expressing the same hope, Future Global Network Foundation (FGN) chairman Ahmad Azam Abdul Rahman said that although the yet-to-be-signed deal would not guarantee an end to the conflict, it was still an opportunity for all parties involved to finally create a path for peace in Mindanao.
"We shouldn`t give up, because it is also in the interest of Malaysia. Mindanao is home to more than four millions Muslims and the region is rich in natural resources.
"If we are able to steer these negotiations to reach what the sceptics deemed as unattainable -- that is peace -- then it will benefit Malaysia, especially people in Sabah," he said.
The Mindanao archipelago which is part of BIMP-EAGA, (Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines-East Asean Growth Area), has yet to see significant development despite its natural wealth due to the conflict.
"I don`t think BIMP-EAGA will be a success if conflict in Mindanao remains unresolved," he added.
The Kuala Lumpur based non-governmental organisation (NGO) for stateless and downtrodden peoples was also in the opinion that peace in the region would ease the illegal immigrants problem in Sabah.
"Our concern is the influx of illegal immigrants from this region into Sabah, which has also led to various problems in the state. And now we are sending them back to their respective homelands, but do they really have a homeland," said Ahmad Azam.
Therefore, he said, it was also imperative for Malaysia to ensure that the region remained calm throughout the peace talks to avoid more refugees fleeing into Sabah. By Nor Hayati Muda
Source: http://www.bernama.com.my (August 04, 2008)
