More thoughts on the BBL
WE are not surprised at the quiet campaign staged by groups who are against the passing of the draft Bangsamoro basic law. While some legal luminaries are divided on the issue of constitutionality, others raise the recent developments on the growing strength of the ISIS – the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria with which two local terrorist groups are affiliated –the Abu Sayaff and the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters ( BIFF),– even while aware of the fact that the MILF had openly declared that it is not supporting the movement. This, and stories shared about the situation in countries with a large Muslim population have stoked fear among some sectors of society. This is a normal reaction regarding a transition which should be confronted, but which should not be allowed to cloud judgment on the BBL. I often have to defend my own stance with colleagues and friends who think that our government should be more cautious in taking this important step.
A respected writer on human rights and Mindanao issues, Atty. Soliman Santos, is however, optimistic about the future of the BBL because of the existence of consensus among members of the Executive and the MILF that the BBL is faithful to the Constitution, and that both the Senate and House bills on the BBL are expected to be subject only to refinements and improvements. The MILF, he notes, has taken a leap of faith of sorts in trusting President Aquino and members of Congress. But he suggests the need for a more strategic direction for the longer road ahead to peace. This will likely take some more years ( decades?), he thinks, for the body politic to develop the political culture and maturity that would allow the Bangsamoro people to undertake the kind of credible democratic exercise like the recent Scotland and Quebec referendum for independence. But that scenario seems to be far-fetched and does not bother us at the moment.
Santos cites my good friend, former Justice Secretary, Ambassador, and Congressman Makabangkit Lanto who said: “Many Moros like myself will accept any piece of paper short of compromising our honor and dignity, that will keep the ember of hope for peace burning in our hearts and heal the wounds inflicted by injustices of the past.” A young-blood Moro, Maleila Sha- haira Alim, was said to have expressed as eloquently: “Our ancestors fought for it. Our people clamored and struggled for what is rightly ours. And now it is within our grasp to hold and uplift the proud land of the Bangsamoro.”
Finally, Fr. Jun Mercado, a highly respected Mindanaon, writer, and a fellow traveler in the peace process, prays that members of Congress will be able to enact the law by yearend. He notes the varied and differing readings where one camp says it is a formula for enduring peace but other voices say that the draft BBL is a formula for further division, a formula to dismember the republic. He, however, believes it is inclusive and that it would allow the people of Mindanao to discover their strength and their right to self-determination. I share his hope that should the Bangsamoro experiment succeed, this will encourage the Cordillera people to pursue the same course, and that eventually the country would undergo a transformation into a federal republic. To some of us, this is a prayer devoutly to be wished. It can only happen if everyone sees evolution and subsidiarity as the best hope for the country, and will pursue this vision with passion and tenacity. My email is florangel.braid@gmail.com