SULTAN KUDARAT, MAGUINDANAO — As the year ends, 5,250 Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) combatants have been decommissioned under the first part of the third phase of the decommissioning process.

The decommissioning process for this year concluded on December 17, where Member of Parliament Engr. Saida Silongan of the Bangsamoro Transition Authority (BTA) and minister of the Ministry of Science and Technology of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) accompanied MILF women members under her command unit to the Social Welfare Committee for processing before being decommissioned.

“Alhamdulillah, at least now, we have realized our promise to them that they will be decommissioned and they will get what is due for them. I am happy because somehow, the ones who worked so hard for…they are all old…because the first ones we scheduled (for decommissioning) were the legitimate women who had previously served (in the MILF),” Silongan said.

“Alhamdulillah, I am happy to see that the MILF and the government now reap the results for signing a peace agreement, Alhamdulillah,” she added.

As a member of the MILF and now of the Bangsamoro government, Silongan pledged to continue supporting the Bangsamoro peace process.

“We will continue what we have signed – our commitment to the government that we will end the suffering of the Bangsamoro. We will continue peace and development in the Bangsamoro so that nothing will happen that will be a problem for our country. We will support all government programs related to peace,” said Silongan.

She also called on MILF members and the Bangsamoro people to continue to support the decommissioning process, and remain patient, as the country confronts the challenges brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Let’s support this decommissioning process. Let’s not rush because we are in a pandemic so this process is a bit delayed. But In Shaa Allah, now that our health protocols are eased, the process of decommissioning will continue to flow, ” Silongan said.

“Let us wait, those who have not yet started decommissioning. Don’t hurry because we are going through many challenges but all of this also has an end, In Shaa Allah. We can overcome this, In Shaa Allah, ” she concluded.

Of the total 14,000 MILF combatants who are scheduled to be decommissioned under the third phase, 5,250 of them have been decommissioned this year, while the rest will undergo the process in 2022.

Peaceful transition after decades of struggle

Faiza Andal Silongan, 73, was among the last MILF members to be decommissioned this year.

Barely in her twenties when she joined the MILF as a social worker, she is hopeful that she has already seen the worst of the armed struggle, and that armed conflict will be a thing of the past.

“Noong kasagsagan ng kaguluhan noon, nasa Damakling kami, tuwing gabi saka kami umuuwi. Kasi kapag umaga, na nambobomba ang plane, nasa ilalim lang kami ng mga balon. Tuwing gabi kami nakakauwi ng bahay,” she recalled.

(During the height of the unrest, we were in Damakling, it was only during nighttime that we could go home because when the plane was bombing in the morning. We were just under the wells. Every night we go home.)

As a social worker, Silongan was deployed to MILF communities where she helped address the needs of women and children, as well as spread the teachings of Islamic.

Even to this day, she teaches as an Ustadza in their local Madrasah where she receives a monthly allowance of PhP 1,000.00. Although she admitted that her family struggles with their meager income from selling bananas and the allowance from her teaching, they are still able to make ends meet.

This is why she was very happy to be included in the batch of MILF women members who were decommissioned. She, along with the other decommissioned MILF members, received a cash assistance of PhP 100,000.00.

According to Silongan, she will use the money to finish the construction of their house, and for their day-to-day needs.

“Natutuwa ako dahil nakatanggap tayo ng kaunting grasya mula sa Allah SWT (I am glad because we have received a little grace from Allah SWT),” she shared, while beaming with joy and pride.

Silongan is also thankful that she is now reaping the fruits of the Bangsamoro peace process.

“Nagpapasalamat kami sa Allah SWT dahil nakapagpahinga na tayo, wala ng gulo, nakakakuha na kami ng mga supply galing sa BARMM (We are thankful to Allah SWT because we have now rested, there is no conflict anymore, [and] we are getting supplies from BARMM),” she said.

Faiza is hopeful that the next generation will have a brighter and better future, and that her grandchildren will no longer have to bear arms and engage in armed struggle.

“Ang pinapangarap ko para sa mga apo ko, maging maganda ang pangkabuhayan nila. Dahil ako, matanda na ako, darating ang panahon na iiwan ko na sila. Sana hindi na sila makipaglabanan. Baka nakaraos na tayo sa pakikipaglaban. Hiling ko sa Allah SWT na wala ng kaguluhan pang maganap, na nalampasan na natin yun,” she said in a voice full of hope.

(My dream for my grandchildren is for them to have a good livelihood because I am old. The time will come when I will leave them. I hope they will no longer fight. Maybe we have already surpassed the struggle. I ask Allah SWT that there will be no more chaos, that we have already overcome that.)

Sustaining the gains of peace in the Bangsamoro

Decommissioning is an integral part of the normalization track process under the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro (CAB), the landmark peace agreement signed between the Philippine government and the MILF in 2014.

The four components of the normalization track include socioeconomic development, security, confidence building measures, and transitional justice and reconciliation (TJR).

Under the socioeconomic development component, a total of PhP 1.7 billion in transitional cash assistance and PhP 2.5 billion in social assistance packages and social services have been provided to date to decommissioned combatants and their communities in support of their meaningful transformation.

Under the confidence building measure component, the Joint Task Forces on Camps Transformation (JTFCTs), together with the Bangsamoro Planning and Development Agency-BARMM, have formulated a Camps Transformation Plan (CTP) that will serve as roadmap in the transformation of MILF camps recognized by the Philippine government into show windows of peace and development.

To make the crafting of the CTP as inclusive and holistic as possible, the JTFCT conducted a series of camp core area assessments and resettlement area validations in March 2020 in Camps Badre, Abubakar, and Rajamuda.

These activities were followed by a series of community profiling. The JTFCT, along with BPDA-BARMM, have also developed a Camps Transformation Investment Program (CTIP) which is a part of the CTP.

The CTP and CTIP were approved by both the GPH and the MILF implementing panels on November 19, 2021.

On the Disbandment of Private Armed Groups (DPAGs), which is as part of the security component of the normalization track, 14 PAGs were disbanded through the collaboration of the National Task Force on DPAGs, local governments units, and the security sector.

In 2020, OPAPP signed an agreement with the Department of Interior and Local Government, the Armed Forces of the Philippines, and the Philippine National Police to operationalize the program on DPAGs.

To address the concern on unregistered firearms, OPAPP signed a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) with the local governments of Basilan, Lanao del Sur, Maguindanao, Sulu, and Tawi-tawi in 2020 to launch a program on the management of small arms and light weapons (SALW).

Under the transitional justice and reconciliation (TJR) component, the Inter-Cabinet Cluster Mechanism on Normalization (ICCMN) has approved the proposed roadmap on TJR.

Under this roadmap, programs, projects, and activities developed by ICCMN TJR cluster member-agencies are based on the recommendations of the Transitional Justice and Reconciliation Commission.

On the granting of amnesty to members of revolutionary groups, President Rodrigo Roa Duterte signed Proclamation No. 1090 on February 5, 2021 which will grant amnesty to MILF members who have committed crimes as a result of their political beliefs.

The President also signed Executive Order No. 125 establishing the National Amnesty Commission (NAC) which shall handle the cases of individuals who will be granted amnesty, including MILF members.

Currently, all of the peacebuilding initiatives under the Bangsamoro peace process are gaining momentum through the convergence of efforts of the national government, the MILF, and local and international peace partners. ###