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Early this year, former Peace Adviser Jesus Dureza
dangled federalism as a key to unlock the deadlock in the GRP-MILF
talks over the territory that would form the ancestral domain. The
idea was for a single amendment to the Constitution, which would
create a federal state for Muslim Mindanao.
However, the Moro Islamic Liberation Front leaders saw the
offer as a trick. Opposition
leaders concurred, claiming that the revival of charter change or
Cha-cha, which coincided with the Senate investigation of the
scandalous $329 million National Broadband Network deal with the
Chinese ZTE corporation, was a Malacanang ploy to distract
attention. Worse,
Cha-cha would simply be a way to remove term limits.
Thus, Mrs. Gloria Arroyo would stay in power beyond 2010,
this time under a parliamentary setup.
However, Senate Minority Leader
Aquilino “Nene” Q. Pimentel Jr. believes that cha-cha, which
would focus on the adoption of a federal system, is the best way to
jumpstart the stalled peace negotiation. Manong Nene maintains that
the shift to a federal government will accomplish two goals:
economic development of the entire country, and the elimination of
the root causes of rebellion, particularly in Mindanao.
Pimentel filed Senate Resolution
No. 10, supported by 16 senators, calling for amendments to the 1987
Constitution for the adoption of a federal system through a
constituent assembly. Pimentel proposes the creation of 11 states
out of the Republic, to “establish centers of finance and
development in the archipelago.” The current system concentrates
too much power in the hands of central government, leading to the
abuses of power being investigated by the Senate, Pimentel claims.
Gen. Rodolfo Garcia, chair of the
government panel in the peace talks with the MILF, has commented
that the
federalism option has to be approved by the MILF in peace talks and
cannot be unilaterally offered.
Garcia however felt that federalism is a solution to the
deadlock, one which the government can support since it would follow
constitutional processes.
Even MNLF Chair Nur Misuari,
triumphant after the successful MNLF Peace Congress last week, which
drew over 50,000 MNLF supporters from Mindanao, supports the
federalism proposal. Two
weeks ago, Misuari met with Davao congressman and House Speaker
Prospero Nograles to discuss the Pimentel proposal.
Misuari is reported to have nodded to the proposal.
However, in a conversation, Misuari said he would support
federalism only
if fewer states would be created.
He believes there should be only three states: Luzon, Visayas
and Mindanao. Muslim
Mindanao could be a special autonomous region, but clothed with real
powers.
I can empathize with MILF advisor
Michael Mastura when he asks, “Why does the government prefer to
disrupt the procedural steps of the peace talks while redirecting
the MILF side’s position to be locked into the constitutional
mandate?”
Manong Nene, can cha-cha be
safeguarded? Will a
shift to federalism truly allow Muslim Mindanao to exert its right
to self-determination, a core demand of the MILF? Will a change in
the political system provide more powers to the Autonomous Region of
Muslim Mindanao? Or
will tinkering with the system present an opportunity to take away
powers already granted under the Organic Act? What guarantees do we
have that the ARMM will not become weaker than it already is, even
less autonomous than the non-autonomous administrative regions?
On paper, the Organic Act allows the ARMM government – with
its Regional Legislative Assembly – to chart its own course. On paper, ARMM is supposed to be free from the control that
the central government normally wields over the 15 administrative
regions.
Clearly, if the puppeteers in the
Palace control the implementers, no amount of power provided on
paper will benefit ARMM. My friend Benny Bacani, executive director
of the Institute of Autonomy and Governance, points out: “The
problem does not lie in the structures of autonomy but in the Malacañang-anointed
regional leadership that is unwilling to exercise in full the powers
already.” Benny is one of the Cotabato City legal experts in touch with
the MILF.
In the meantime, a bomb explosion
on Thursday outside the Col. Edwin Andrews Air Base in Zamboanga
City claimed
three lives and wounded 23 others. The military has accused the MILF.
Khaled Musa, deputy chairman of the MILF committee on
information, has denounced the allegation and condemned the attack.
A way back to peace is
imperative. The government and the MILF must return to the
negotiating table. Perhaps
it is time to suspend our suspicions and investigate the federalist
option offered by Senate Resolution 10.
aminarasul@yahoo.com
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