Joint Statement -8th GRP-MILF Exploratory Talks (June 21 2005)

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Country/entity: Philippines
Mindanao
Region: Asia and Pacific
Agreement name: Joint Statement -8th GRP-MILF Exploratory Talks (June 21 2005)
Date: 21 Jun 2005
Agreement status: Multiparty signed/agreed
Interim arrangement: Yes
Agreement/conflict level: Intrastate/intrastate conflict
Philippine Insurgencies (1968 - )
The Maoist Insurgencies (1968 - )

Philippines-NDF

The Philippines have been defined by a series of center-periphery and often ideologically Maoist, separatist insurgencies. The Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP), began its war against the central Philippine government in 1968 through their armed wing – the New People’s Army (NPA). Further legitimacy was gained through the establishment of the National Democratic Front (NDF) in 1973. Grievances were predominantly opposed to the corruption and repression under the authoritarian Marcos regime.

Philippines-Cordillera

With the overthrow of Marcos’ regime in 1986, the CPP factionalized further to take on more localized characteristics. The Cordillera Peoples Liberation Army (CPLA) broke away from the NDF in 1986 to focus on the protection of the Cordilleran people and land in northern Luzon. Hostilities were formally ended in July 2011, with an agreement signed between the central government, the CPLA and the Cordillera Bodong Administration (CBA) that allowed for the absorption of CPLA fighters into the Philippine Army and the re-working of the CBA-CPLA into a socio-development organisation.

Philippines-RPM-P

Meanwhile, purge among the CPP in the early 1990s, encouraged the formation of a parallel party, the Revolutionary Workers Party (RPM-P). Their armed wing, the Alex Boncayao Brigade (ABB) which had carried out a number of assassinations during the 1980s at the bequest of the CPP, followed suit and allied themselves with the RPM-P in 1997 forming the (RPM-P-RPA-ABB). Severely weakened by the split with the CPP and with the arrest of several key figures, the RPM-P-RPA-ABB signed a peace agreement in December 2000, which encouraged the RPM-P’s branch in Mindanao to break away in 2001.

The CPP-NPA has only participated in intermittent talks with the government. Talks halted in 2004 when Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s administration sought closer ties with the U.S. in the war on terror and added the CPP-NPA to the list of terrorist organisations, renewing violence. Following the launch of a counter-insurgency by the Philippine government, negotiations have been further delayed due to suspected internal differences between the CPP ‘old guard’ and younger members.

The Moro Insurgency (1968 - )

Philippines-Mindanao

The Moro Insurgency began in 1968, in Mindanao and the Sulu archipelago after the killing of Moro Commandos, the so-called Jabidah Massacre, by the Philippine Army following a plot to invade Sabah province in Malaysia. The Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) captured a swath of territory in the mid-1970s. In an attempt to stem the violence, the constitution was reformed and Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) was created 1990 granting a devolution of power to the provinces of Lanao del Sur, Maguindanao, Sulu and Tawi-Tawi. Following the establishment of the ARMM, the MNLF splintered into a range of smaller groups including Islamic factions such as the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) and the Abu Sayef Goup (ASG). The Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro was signed in 2014.
Stage: Pre-negotiation/process
Conflict nature: Government/territory
Peace process: Philippines - Mindanao process
Parties: Sec. Silvestre C. Afable, Jr., GRP Peace Panel Chairman;
Mohagher M. Iqbal, MILF Peace Panel Chairman
Third parties: -
Description: Agreement by the Peace Panels informing on the 8th Round of Exploratory Talks between the Government of the Philippines (GRP) and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), in which the Parties agreed to extend the Ad Hoc Joint Action Group (AHJAG) for another one year period, and to resume talks in July 2005 to forge clear parameters and principles relating to governance and ancestral domain of the Bangsamoro People. Concluding, the Parties thanked the Malaysian Government for the support and facilitation of the talks.

Agreement document: PH_050621_Joint Statement.pdf (opens in new tab) | Download PDF

Groups

Children/youth: No specific mention.
Disabled persons: No specific mention.
Elderly/age: No specific mention.
Migrant workers: No specific mention.
Racial/ethnic/national group: No specific mention.
Religious groups: No specific mention.
Indigenous people: Groups→Indigenous people→Rhetorical
Page 1,
The Malaysian Secretariat joined hands with the GRP Panel in congratulating the successful holding of the MILF General Consultation at Darapanan, Sultan Kudarat, Maguindanao, a tribute to the leadership of the MILF and a reflection of its clear mandate form the Bangsamoro People to negotiate with the Philippine Government towards a peaceful, just, lasting and comprehensive political solution to the Bangsamoro problem.
Other groups: No specific mention.
Refugees/displaced persons: No specific mention.
Social class: No specific mention.

Gender

Women, girls and gender: No specific mention.
Men and boys: No specific mention.
LGBTI: No specific mention.
Family: Both Parties agreed to forge clear parameters and principles to be pursued on the strand of Governance of the Ancestral Domain aspect of the negotiations. In this context, the Parties agreed to resume talks in July 2005.

State definition

Nature of state (general): No specific mention.
State configuration: No specific mention.
Self determination: No specific mention.
Referendum: No specific mention.
State symbols: No specific mention.
Independence/secession: No specific mention.
Accession/unification: No specific mention.
Border delimitation: No specific mention.
Cross-border provision: No specific mention.

Governance

Political institutions (new or reformed): No specific mention.
Elections: No specific mention.
Electoral commission: No specific mention.
Political parties reform: No specific mention.
Civil society: No specific mention.
Traditional/religious leaders: No specific mention.
Public administration: No specific mention.
Constitution: No specific mention.

Power sharing

Political power sharing: No specific mention.
Territorial power sharing: Power sharing→Territorial power sharing→Autonomous regions
Page 1, The Malaysian Secretariat joined hands with the GRP Panel in congratulating the successful holding of the MILF General Consultation at Darapanan, Sultan Kudarat, Maguindanao, a tribute to the leadership of the MILF and a reflection of its clear mandate form the Bangsamoro People to negotiate with the Philippine Government towards a peaceful, just, lasting and comprehensive political solution to the Bangsamoro problem.

Both parties agreed to forge clear parameters and principles to be pursued on the strand on Governance of the Ancestral Domain aspect of the negotiations. In this context, the Parties agreed to resume talks in July 2005.
Economic power sharing: No specific mention.
Military power sharing: No specific mention.

Human rights and equality

Human rights/RoL general: No specific mention.
Bill of rights/similar: No specific mention.
Treaty incorporation: No specific mention.
Civil and political rights: No specific mention.
Socio-economic rights: No specific mention.

Rights related issues

Citizenship: No specific mention.
Democracy: No specific mention.
Detention procedures: No specific mention.
Media and communication: No specific mention.
Mobility/access: No specific mention.
Protection measures: No specific mention.
Other: No specific mention.

Rights institutions

NHRI: No specific mention.
Regional or international human rights institutions: No specific mention.

Justice sector reform

Criminal justice and emergency law: No specific mention.
State of emergency provisions: No specific mention.
Judiciary and courts: No specific mention.
Prisons and detention: No specific mention.
Traditional Laws: No specific mention.

Socio-economic reconstruction

Development or socio-economic reconstruction: No specific mention.
National economic plan: No specific mention.
Natural resources: No specific mention.
International funds: No specific mention.
Business: No specific mention.
Taxation: No specific mention.
Banks: No specific mention.

Land, property and environment

Land reform/rights: No specific mention.
Pastoralist/nomadism rights: No specific mention.
Cultural heritage: No specific mention.
Environment: No specific mention.
Water or riparian rights or access: No specific mention.

Security sector

Security Guarantees: No specific mention.
Ceasefire: No specific mention.
Police: No specific mention.
Armed forces: No specific mention.
DDR: No specific mention.
Intelligence services: No specific mention.
Parastatal/rebel and opposition group forces: No specific mention.
Withdrawal of foreign forces: No specific mention.
Corruption: No specific mention.
Crime/organised crime: No specific mention.
Drugs: No specific mention.
Terrorism: No specific mention.

Transitional justice

Transitional justice general: No specific mention.
Amnesty/pardon: No specific mention.
Courts: No specific mention.
Mechanism: No specific mention.
Prisoner release: No specific mention.
Vetting: No specific mention.
Victims: No specific mention.
Missing persons: No specific mention.
Reparations: No specific mention.
Reconciliation: No specific mention.

Implementation

UN signatory: No specific mention.
Other international signatory: No specific mention.
Referendum for agreement: No specific mention.
International mission/force/similar: No specific mention.
Enforcement mechanism: No specific mention.
Related cases: No specific mention.
Source: GRP-MILF Peace Process: Compilation of Signed Agreements & other related Documents (1997-2010); (MILF Peace Panel/Asia Foundation, 2010), p. 151.

In the name of God, the most beneficent, the most merciful

Joint Statement

The 8th Round of Exploratory Talks between the Government of the Republic of the Philippines (GRP) and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) through the facilitation of the Government of Malaysia held at Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on June 20-21, 2005 was marked with a high level of mutual trust and confidence.

The Parties, while expressing satisfaction with the positive achievements of the Ad Hoc Joint Action Group (AHJAG), agreed to the extension of the Interim Guidelines of the AHJAG for a period of one (1) year from June 21, 2005, subject to further discussions on proposed amendments to its guidelines.

The Malaysian Secretariat joined hands with the GRP Panel in congratulating the successful holding of the MILF General Consultation at Darapan, Sultan Kudarat, Maguindanao, a tribute to the leadership of the MILF and a reflection of its clear mandate from the Bangsamoro People to negotiate with the Philippine Government toward a peaceful, just, lasting and comprehensive political solution to the Bangsamoro problem.

Both Parties agreed to forge clear parameters and principles to be pursued on the strand on Governance of the Ancestral Domain aspect of the negotiations.

In this context, the Parties agreed to resume talks in July 2005.

Finally, both Parties express their gratitude to the Malaysian Government for the continuing support to ensure the success of the GRP-MILF Peace Process.

Done on the 21st of June 2005 at Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.