Drafting of the Bangsamoro Basic Law Holds First En Banc Session

The peace process between the Government of the Philippines (GPH) and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) continues to gain headway as the Transition Commission (TransCom), the body tasked to draft the Bangsamoro Basic Law,  holds its first en banc session today, Wednesday.

In a statement, the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process (OPAPP) revealed that the Transition Commission (TransCom), composed of 15 members, will begin its work on drafting the Basic Law following its first meeting at a hotel in Ortigas Center, Pasig City.

Seven of the TransCom members were nominated by the GPH while eight were recommended by the MILF.

The Transcom is chaired by MILF peace panel chair Mohaqher Iqbal.

OPAPP held its meeting this morning from 10 a.m. to 12 noon today at the Crowne Plaza Hotel.

In a previous news story, Teresita Deles, presidential adviser on the peace process, said the TransCom meeting would serve as venue for the government and the MILF “to formally introduce to the public the members of the all-Bangsamoro body.”

Deles said aside from her, Cabinet officials led by Executive Secretary Paquito Ochoa would observe the conduct of the TransCom meeting.

The draft Basic Law will be certified as urgent by the President, submitted to Congress for passage, and subjected to a plebiscite in the proposed core territory of the Bangsamoro.

Once the law is ratified, the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) will be abolished and the new Bangsamoro region will be established.

“We welcome the holding of the first en banc meeting of the Transition Commission on April 3,” GPH peace panel chair Professor Miriam Coronel-Ferrer said.

“The Government Panel will work closely with the Transition Commission in continuing to reach out to the public and coming up with a draft law that will embody the just aspirations of the peace negotiations,” she added.

Coronel-Ferrer, at the same time, also assured civil society groups and stakeholders that despite the postponement of the 37th round of formal exploratory talks which was supposed to take place last March 25 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, “the two-week postponement does not in any way derail a process that has already gained momentum and wide support, locally and internationally.”

The parties, it was recalled, agreed to meet in the second week of April 2013 for the 37th round of formal exploratory talks in view of President Benigno Aquino’s request to reschedule the talks to have more time for review and consultations on the draft annexes.

The Transcom was created by President Aquino in December through Executive Order No. 120 and appointed its members, based on recommendations by both the government and MILF panels, on Feb. 25.

The other Transcom members, who was described by Deles as having been “drawn from various ethnic, professional and political backgrounds from within the Bangsamoro,” were Robert M. Alonto, Abdulla Camlian, Ibrahim Ali, Raissa Jajurie, Melanio Ulama, Hussein Muñoz, and Said Shiek; Akmad Sakkam, Johaira Wahab, Talib Benito, Asani Tammang, Pedrito Eisma, Froilyn Mendoza, and Fatmawati Salapuddin.

The President also ordered the release of P100 million to bankroll the Transcom’s task of laying out the basic law for the future Bangsamoro government, which will replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao.

Deles said the government was confident the Transcom “can perform its functions even if the comprehensive agreement is still being worked at.”

“The FAB (Framework Agreement on Bangsamoro) already provides enough guidance for the Transcom to start its work,” she said.

Deles also said even as the panels have been striving to come to terms over annexes to the FAB, OPAPP would “work closely” with the Transcom to come up with a draft law that would govern the future Bangsamoro government and in its other tasks.

As outlined in Aquino’s order, the Transcom is mandated to assist in identifying and coordinating development programs in the proposed Bangsamoro; and conduct dialogues and consultations with the national government and other stakeholders.

Iqbal said the meeting of the Transcom should have taken place last week yet but it was reset to April 3 due to the Lenten season.

He said the body would spend the next 21 months from April 3 to draft the Bangsamoro charter.

Source: ph.news.yahoo.com, inquirer.net