Ahlul Bayt News Agency (ABNA.ir), MANILA: A group of Muslim leaders and scholars yesterday welcomed the appointment of University of the Philippines’ College of Law dean Marvic Leonen as chief of the government panel that will negotiate with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF).
In a statement, the Philippine Council for Islam and Democracy (PCID) expressed confidence that Leonen would be able to come up with a peaceful solution to end the decades-old Mindanao conflict.
“The Philippine Council for Islam and Democracy (PCID) welcomes this latest development as the new government prepares to fulfil its promise for a just peace in Mindanao,” PCID said.
The group said Leonen, as the new government peace negotiator, is expected to adopt the rigid position of the government in pursuing peace with the rebel group but with a new approach.
“We see his deep knowledge of the Constitution as an advantage as he attempts to find a creative and ‘out-of-the box’ political solution to the decades old conflict,” the PCID said. Among the contentious issues between the government and MILF is whether to abide by the Constitution on any agreement regarding sovereignty and territorial integrity.
The government has supported the so-called “inside the box” approach with the Constitution serving as the framework for the accord. The MILF, however, rejected this, saying such setup does not take into account the interests of the Bangsamoro people. PCID said Leonen has taken a stance that a government could not be expected to negotiate only within the limits set by the Constitution.
“We are further encouraged when we recall him asking these questions: ‘How can a minority ever change the Constitution? And when ever in our history did we take into consideration ethnicity or the interest of an ethnic group, the Moro peoples, when we crafted the Constitution?’” the group said.
MILF spokesman Von Al Haq, on the other hand, said the appointment of Leonen had no significant effect on the MILF struggle.
“Marvic Leonen’s appointment as head of the government panel is the sole prerogative of the government,” Al Hag said.
“Whoever is appointed as chair of the panel has mild effect on us because we are negotiating with the government and not with the head of the peace panel,” he said.
Al Haq though declined to outline what the MILF expects from Leonen as the new peace panel chief.
The peace talks between the government and the MILF were suspended after the Supreme Court (SC) ordered both parties to set aside the signing of a preliminary peace deal in 2008 that could have allowed the MILF self rule and control over an expanded autonomous Muslim region in Mindanao. Hostilities erupted after an MILF faction launched attacks in Central Mindanao in apparent protest of the aborted signing of the agreement.
The SC later declared the territorial deal as unconstitutional, which eventually led to the trashing of the agreement.
Last Thursday, President Aquino named Leonen as head of the panel that will continue the peace efforts with the MILF.
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