MILF calls for disbandment of politicians’ private armies

COTABATO CITY, Philippines – Leaders of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) on Sunday, February 26, called for the dissolution of private armies controlled by politicians in the Muslim-majority region.

The MILF, which now leads the government of the Bangsamoro region, made the call as a response to an appeal by four governors from the region to expedite the full decommissioning of the MILF before the barangay elections scheduled for October 30 this year. 

MILF chairman and Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) interim Chief Minister Ahod Balawag “Murad” Ebrahim said his group has no problem fast-tracking the process of decommissioning. 

However, he said this effort should coincide with the eradication of private armies of the local politicians.

“One problem we see that increases tension in the region is the private armed groups of the politicians,” Ebrahim said.

MILF chief panel negotiator and peace implementing panel chair Mohagher Iqbal also responded to the letter-appeal sent by BARMM governors to Malacanang. 

The governors called for the postponement of the barangay elections in the region until after the full decommissioning of the MILF.

“The irony of all is that MILF has engaged in decommissioning, and we have no doubt that we will undergo this part of the agreement. It is our commitment, but what about the private armed groups, including the firearms of the politicians? So, what will happen now is that they have firearms and we won’t have any?” Iqbal said.

He said one of the eight agreed “deliverables” in the normalization process is the disbandment of private armed groups which will be undertaken by the government, MILF, and the Joint Normalization Committee (JNC).

Iqbal said the governors’ appeal “gives us the opportunity to discuss (the deliverables) again in accordance with the agreement of the parties.” 

He said the governors were wrong in claiming that there was a climate of lawlessness in BARMM areas where MILF base commands are located.

Citing the February 17 ambush of Lanao del Sur Governor Mamintal Adiong Jr., Iqbal said, “The suspects are drug and ISIS groups.”

“We have no quarrel with him (Adiong), and we cannot do that to him either. They cannot conclude that we are part of it. That’s a fallacious argument,” Iqbal said.

He pointed to the Maguindanao areas where victims of violence during the 2022 election period were members of the United Bangsamoro Justice Party (UBJP), the MILF’s political party.

The decommissioning of the MILF, he said, is a work in progress.

“It’s a process, and although there is an urgency, we don’t have a timeline. It really depends on the delivery of commitments of both sides,” Iqbal said.

The MILF said gun ownership has been classified into three: the MILF-owned, MILF member-owned, and those owned by private individuals.

Iqbal said only the organization-owned firearms are to be decommissioned.

The decommissioning process is in its third phase now. 

About 40,000 MILF members and the 7,500 firearms owned by the organization are covered by decommissioning.

The Office of Presidential Adviser on Peace, Reconciliation, and Unity (OPARU) said the third phase of the decommissioning process aims to decommission 14,000 combatants.

Since 2015, when the decommissioning process began, 19,345 members of the MILF have undergone the process, while 2,175 weapons have been decommissioned.

The first phase of decommissioning happened in 2015, with 145 MILF members and 75 of their weapons decommissioned. 

The second phase, in 2019, resulted in the decommissioning of 12,000 MILF members and 2,100 of their weapons.

The Independent Decommissioning Body (IDB), established as part of the Annex on Normalization of the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro (CAB) by the negotiating panels, is responsible for managing the decommissioning process. 

The IDB is composed of representatives from the governments of Turkey, Norway, and the Kingdom of Brunei, as well as local experts appointed by the government and MILF peace panels. – Rappler.com

Ferdinandh Cabrera is an Aries Rufo Journalism fellow.