FB FRIENDS, FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION: In the Ramos administration, the scope of national security – then strictly confined to internal security and national defense - was expanded to include human, economic and ecological security. Food security, trade security, energy security, fiscal security, social security, responsible parenthood, reforestation and the like, impinged on political security and national stability, which were considered crucial underpinnings for lasting peace and sustainable development. Two important events impinging on national security took place a few days apart last week. On March 27, the Philippine government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) signed the BangsaMoro Agreement. Yestrday, the Philippine government filed its legal brief before the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague, Netherlands on our dispute with Chinas 9-dash line and annexation of the West Philippine Sea. The BangsaMoro Agreement still has some ways to go. Congress will begin to examine the Agreement and determine whether it passes constitutional and legal muster. Many questions have arisen, mainly from lack of information, suspicions about the integrity of the process, and possible hidden motives of the negotiating parties. Should serious questions arise, it may be brought before the Supreme Court. The court of public opinion will also matter as questions may arise about the lack of transparency on the Sabah issue; the condut of the consultation process; and inclusivity that may have left out the MNLF and the islanders from Basilan, Sulu and Tawi-tawi. And when it gets to the people to decide, will it be a national plebiscite or localized? The BM Agreement aims to achieve peace in Mindanao, but so did the 1996 GRP-MNLF Peace Agreement which earned a UNESCO Peace Award. Will this accord bring lasting peace or will it lead to more conflict? Given the regions history of splintering like the way the MILF broke away from the MNLF and the BIFFs vow to keep fighting for secession, that, indeed, is the question. It is important for Filipinos to comprehend the issues by going out of our way to familiarize ourselves with the: - GPH-MNLF Peace Process - Framework Agreement on the BangsaMoro - Primer on the Annex on Power Sharing - Primer on the Annex on Transitional Arrangements and Modalities - Primer on the Annex on Revenue Generation and Wealth Sharing Our dispute with China is now before UNCLOS Permanent Court of Arbitration. We have taken the legal path to peacefully settle a dispute that China caused with its 9-dash line (originally was 11-dash line, now modified to 10 dashes). That has been complemented by its brazen annexation of Mischief Reef in 1995, Bajo de Masinloc in 2012 and now, its on-going effort to take over Ayungin Reef, all within the West Philippine Sea. China has refused to participate and has instead resorted to threats of dire consequences to bilateral relations, as if it hasnt damaged it already by its imperial hostility. Both initiatives bear watching. Both seek peaceful resolutions of the issues that divide fellow-Filipinos on the one hand, and a crucial dispute with a hostile neighbor on the other. We live in interesting times and hope to emerge from these tests to our nationhood in victory for the cause of peace and universal brotherhood, with heads held high.
Posted on: Sun, 30 Mar 2014 23:58:10 +0000
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