Victoria Tecson

IV BS MGT
123969
At a Distant: The Bangsamoro Basic Law
The Bangsamoro Basic Law is an attempt for peace process in
Mindanao. For years now, they have proposed to be an autonomous
and self-governing region of the Philippines but have not successfully
done so. One of the longest-running internal conflicts in Asia is the
struggle by the Muslims of the southern Philippines for greater
autonomy or even independence (Abinales 2015, 121). This literature
review will tackle several possible reasons on the failed attempts of
Bangsamoro to establish themselves as an autonomous region.
Before tackling the reasons behind this long standing attempt of
Mindanao, we first have to recognize our lack of information on this
region of the Philippines. It is a part of our country but usually in our
History classes or Social Studies classes, it is just mentioned in
passing. We say it is a part of Philippine National territory but usually
treat Mindanao as the other. Especially coming from Luzon and
Visayas, there seems to be a focus on attaining educational
background and economic prosperity. In reality, we have stereotypical
images of Mindanao even if we have not experienced it for ourselves.
It is shaped by what is fed to us by media and what we hear.
There are peculiarities in the dynamics of Muslim-Filipino
separatism (Abinales 2010, 126). There is a struggle for sovereignty
and there is limited geography covered. They cannot seem to expand,
making their operations fail. In addition to that, they have asked
international help from countries similar to US, Malaysia and Japan to
settle peace talks. The most peculiar of them all is that the Muslims
have conflicts among themselves. There are a number of
interpretations by the constituents of Mindanao. On McKenna: It was
striking how rarely any of the insurgents, in expressing their
motivations for taking up arms or fighting against great odds, made
spontaneous mention of either the Moro nation (Bangsamoro) or
Islamic renewal, the two central components of Muslim nationalist
ideology (Abinales 2010, 126)
There is cultural diversity in Mindanao and one prominent
indigenous group are the Lumads. The community has different forms

of traditions and we realize that not all of the constituents are

essentially Muslim. Muslims became the key trade partners in other
parts of Asia, namely Indonesia and Malaysia (Juliano 2015). As a
result, there is a tension with the issue of superiority. There is no
solidarity between the Muslim and non-Muslim communities. The
indigenous communities dont have the same needs and demands as
some are unwilling to really stand consistently behind the rebellion.
The Muslims have been pushing for their independence and autonomy
especially since Martial Law but the Lumads have as well. Rudy Rodil
says that one major political conflict is the Lumad assertion of their
own distinct identity and fight (unarmed) for self-determination
(Magdalena 2012, 72).
The tension between the constituents themselves is also caused
by differences in financial opportunities. There is an imbalance in the
people identified with privilege in the society. There may be
urbanization in Mindanao but this is only in a few areas. Thus, there is
still rivalry to gain power among themselves. The difference in socioeconomic factors also hold a big weight because there is a tendency to
forget that the lower economic classes have a different notion. It is
not a unanimous decision that they want armed resistance for greater
autonomy. Political warlordism is still present where there is a cycle of
killings for power. The community becomes a war zone where victims
are being recruited by political families. The Moro Islamic Liberation
Front collects revolutionary taxes that indigenous people are afraid to
refuse (Juliano 2015). Here, we can see that unidentified,
unrepresented cultures and political power is a hindrance too, for the
Bangsamoro to be totally established. The peace process thus needs
a cultural approach grounded on the current realities of
globalization... Recognition of ethnic identities, including decision to
declare ones identity rather than follow an imposed one, is one major
aspect of multiculturalism (Magdalena 2012, 76).
Another immense factor that Bangsamoro needs to address is
their economic growth. Mindanao has been trying to integrate
themselves to the countrys economy. Again, the money is limited only
to the urbanized areas. The Bangsamoro Developmental Plan tackles
the regions economy and livelihood, together with their environment
and natural resources. The sources of dissatisfaction are poverty, lack
of livelihood opportunities and poor transportation network, to name a
few. ARMM continues to lag significantly behind those of the rest of

Mindanao and the Philippines, contributing only 1% of the national

GDP in 2012. The ARMM had the lowest regional per capita output in
the Philippines in 2013. (BDP) To add, a little bit more than half of
the workers are involved with informal work. There is also a lack of
healthcare facilities and access to drinking water which are
supposedly essential for sustainable livelihood. Everything I
mentioned may all be numbers and data, but this cannot hide the fact
that ARMM has lagged as compared to other provinces. In the BDP,
the section on employment shows a labor force participation of 56%
and low unemployment and underemployment rates. As mentioned in
class, these are good if we follow the Bangsamoro standards. In all
actuality, these are very far off from the Philippine standards.
According the the Bangsamoro Developmental Plan, their
strategic goals involve programs to support smallholder farmers and
fisheries, promote the halal food industry and various efforts for
literacy programs, mass mobilization of health and education workers
and increased incentives for banking. Again, this is all a matter of
those living in the urbanized and privileged areas. The people who
can put their money in banks, start small businesses or start investing
their money are limited. Although these are commendable and
possible, there needs to be a combined effort and synergy to make the
Bangsamoro happen. As they want to expand their markets, its not
just about supporting the small livelihood of farmers and fishers but
actually taking them to a bigger level. This means a wider scope.
There is still a chance for more investors to come in if they see that
there is a possible growth and expansion in the economic aspect.
The Bangsamoro Basic Law also provides the people with a
justice system. Being a ministerial structure they will have legislators,
a chief of state and a head of state called the wali for ceremonial
functions. The lines for jurisdiction are unclear as they have courts for
the Shariah, for tribal and indigenous groups, for local courts and
alternative dispute systems. This may seem fair as each of religious
groups beliefs will be upheld. Unfortunately, there will also be a
conflict if the two separate religious parties are involved. Whose rules
will be followed? If there are also issues or crimes that deal with
extreme cases, similar to dealing with citizens from other regions, it
will be difficult as to whose jurisdiction this will fall under.
Given what has been said, the Bangsamoro Basic Law might not

be the best approach to fixing the countrys internal conflicts. There is

already a division towards Mindanao coming from the rest of the
regions, due to what we see and what we hear. The more they
establish themselves, the more we will not fully understand and
cooperate with the well-being of all. Dividing them further will make
the rest of Filipinos see them at a distant, as if another separate Asian
country we do not identify ourselves with. Will we be a Filipino who
will throw out the bad parts or is it about a shared responsibility?

Reference List:
Bangsamoro Development Agency (BDA). Chs. 7, 9, 10 & 12 of the
Bangsamoro Development Plan. Bangsamoro Development Agency:
Cotabato City, 2015.
Patricio N. Abinales, Sancho Panza in Buliok Complex: The Paradox
of Muslim Separatism, in Orthodoxy and History in the MuslimMindanao Narrative. Quezon City: Ateneo de Manila University Press,
2010. 119-153.
Federico V. Magdalena,"Configuring the Mindanao Peace Process:
Implications for Development and Globalization" in The Mindanao
Forum 25(1), June 2012