All of us want peace. Not the peace of the dead but the peace of the living

President Rodrigo Roa Duterte unmistakably embarked on his first year in office on a journey with the Filipino people full of hope that he can bring the torch of peace forward during his administration, but not without misgivings.

His inaugural speech on July 25, 2016 had moved to tears many among Filipinos whose longing for peace had made them vie for a Duterte presidency. Quote in part he had said:

“We will vigorously address the grievances that have been time and again expressed not only by the Bangsamoro indigenous peoples and other groups for security, development, their access to decision-making and acceptance of identities.

To our Muslim brothers, the Moro country and members of the CPP-NPANDF, let me say this: All of us want peace. Not the peace of the dead but the peace of the living.

Mindanao was already Islam by 100 years. It’s imperialism thing, there’s a historical injustice against the Moro people and we have to correct it.

We cannot return to you all, ‘yung mga nakuha ng Amerikano at Español pati yung mga Pilipinong kapitalista, those who exploited Mindanao. We cannot solve it the way you want it to be. We have to understand each other then live with each other.

Yung Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL) ay ibigay na natin minus the things that you do not want, yung constitutional issues. Tanggalin muna natin, ibigay natin yung area. I ask you, pass it minus the constitutional issues that are contentious.

To immediately stop violence on the ground, restore peace in the communities and provide enabling environment conducive to the resumption of the peace talks, I am now announcing a unilateral ceasefire with the CPP-NPA-NDF effective immediately.” But then, things are easier said than done.

Over 360 days of rough and tumble in his administration, and what followed after his “war on drugs”, could we say that we are closer to peace than we expected?

There’s no doubt the President has made a mark with the Peace Process underway, despite the kinks that left the 5th round of talks still hanging. Indeed, for decades of failure under different administrations, Duterte’s first year in office was more significant for making headway into the heart of the problem besetting the peace process. However, it seems there’s too much distraction on the president’s focus nowadays.

With the Marawi crisis getting out of hand, and the city now totally destroyed, clearly, there is an impasse, as there seems to be no winners but only losers in this war that is causing the Moro people more misery than relief.

Whether the military solution was a failure or success, only the Moro people can judge for themselves, having lost not only a foothold on their abode that has been rendered irredeemable and crushed to the ground, literally.

Perhaps, it’s not only the Moro people who are deemed losing in this “war against terror”. It is actually the whole lot of the Filipino people who are all maimed and pained, most especially the so-called 16 million voters who originally cast their ballots for peace that was exemplified by the initial stance of the president.

No doubt the destruction of Marawi is a clear sign of intolerance that could also be a manifestation of weakness on the part of national leadership, and thus, could be manipulated by the enemies of peace.

A case of burning down the house to kill the cockroaches and the mites, it would all seem.

But there’s no pre-empting what the president is set to do in the days ahead. The Filipino spirit might have been dampened by the bungled peace process, but still, there is that “flicker of hope” left for us to cling to at this time, whatever that is.

Genuine peace based on justice is still alive and well and burning in our hearts. That’s what Filipinos are made of. No matter how many times our leaders may have failed us, the Filipino spirit is one in aspiration, no doubt. It’s not only a passive dream of peace, it is the indomitable passion for a better future for the rest of the generations of Filipinos to come that has kept us fired and alive in pursuing our oneness.