Joint Communique between United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF)

Export agreement:

Country/entity: Philippines
Mindanao
Region: Asia and Pacific
Agreement name: Joint Communique between United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF)
Date: 12 Mar 2007
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: Implementation/renegotiation
Conflict nature: Government/territory
Peace process: Philippines - Mindanao process
Parties: For UNICEF

Dr. Nicholas K. Alipui

Representative, UNICEF Philippines

For MILF

Chairman Al Haj Murad Ebrahim

Chairman, MILF
Third parties: IMT
Description: In the Joint Communique, UNICEF and MILF agree on the importance of rights of women and children and agree to deliver basic services (immunisation, birth registration, micronutrient supplementation, etc.) in an event called Days of Peace, with MILF tasked with providing security.

Agreement document: PH_070212_Joint Communique between UNICEF and MILF.pdf (opens in new tab) | Download PDF

Main category: Page1 :

1. Both parties agree that the rights of children and women should be upheld at all times and that essential services must be provided without interruption;
2. Both parties recognize the need to undertake deliberate extra-ordinary efforts to reach children and women living in conflict-affected and hard-to-reach communities;
3. Both parties acknowledge that political negotiations at the highest levels should be complemented by peace-building efforts at the grassroots to ensure support and participation of communities in the peace process;
4. To help improve the situation of children and women and contribute to the enhancement of the social condition for peace, UNICEF will launch a “Days of Peace” campaign designed to deliver basic social services in conflict-affected areas in Mindanao;
5. UNICEF will use its own resources as well as mobilise support from international organizations, the Philippine government and civil society organisations to deliver these services;
6. The initial round of Days of Peace will commence on April 16 and will consist of immunization, micronutrient supplementation, de-worming and breastfeeding counselling in selected barangays; follow-up rounds will occur in June/July and October in 2007 and beyond with additional basic services that will be added on, i.e. birth registration, malaria control, control of communicable diseases such as tuberculosis, etc.; the establishment of community-based health programmes in selected areas will also be initiated during this period;
7. UNICEF will work with the Bangsamoro Development Agency (BDA) for the identification of target barangays giving priority to those that have been affected by armed conflict and internal displacements, most inaccessible and with substantial number of children and women;

Women, girls and gender

Participation: No specific mention.
Equality: No specific mention.
Particular groups of women: Particular groups of women→Refugee/displaced women
Page 1:
7. UNICEF will work with the Bangsamoro Development Agency (BDA) for the identification of target barangays giving priority to those that have been affected by armed conflict and internal displacements, most inaccessible and with substantial number of children and women;
International law: No specific mention.
New institutions: No specific mention.
Violence against women: No specific mention.
Transitional justice: No specific mention.
Institutional reform: No specific mention.
Development: Development→Rehabilitation and reconstruction
Page1 :

1. Both parties agree that the rights of children and women should be upheld at all times and that essential services must be provided without interruption;
2. Both parties recognize the need to undertake deliberate extra-ordinary efforts to reach children and women living in conflict-affected and hard-to-reach communities;
3. Both parties acknowledge that political negotiations at the highest levels should be complemented by peace-building efforts at the grassroots to ensure support and participation of communities in the peace process;
4. To help improve the situation of children and women and contribute to the enhancement of the social condition for peace, UNICEF will launch a “Days of Peace” campaign designed to deliver basic social services in conflict-affected areas in Mindanao;
5. UNICEF will use its own resources as well as mobilise support from international organizations, the Philippine government and civil society organisations to deliver these services;
Development→Health (general)
Page 1:
6. The initial round of Days of Peace will commence on April 16 and will consist of immunization, micronutrient supplementation, de-worming and breastfeeding counselling in selected barangays; follow-up rounds will occur in June/July and October in 2007 and beyond with additional basic services that will be added on, i.e. birth registration, malaria control, control of communicable diseases such as tuberculosis, etc.; the establishment of community-based health programmes in selected areas will also be initiated during this period;
Implementation: No specific mention.
Other: No specific mention.

Joint Communique between the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF)

Dr. Nicholas K. Alipui, Representative of the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) Philippine Country Office, met with Chairman Al Haj Murad Ebrahim and the Central Committee of the More Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) at Camp Darapanan, Parang, Shariff Kabungsuan on 12 February 2007 and agreed on the following:

Both parties agree that the rights of children and women should be upheld at all times and that essential services must be provided without interruption;

Both parties recognize the need to undertake deliberate extra-ordinary efforts to reach children and women living in conflict-affected and hard-to-reach communities;

Both parties acknowledge that political negotiations at the highest levels should be complemented by peace-building efforts at the grassroots to ensure support and participation of communities in the peace process;

To help improve the situation of children and women and contribute to the enhancement of the social condition for peace, UNICEF will launch a “Days of Peace” campaign designed to deliver basic social services in conflict-affected areas in Mindanao;

UNICEF will use its own resources as well as mobilise support from international organizations, the Philippine government and civil society organisations to deliver these services;

The initial round of Days of Peace will commence on April 16 and will consist of immunization, micronutrient supplementation, de-worming and breastfeeding counselling in selected barangays;

follow-up rounds will occur in June/July and October in 2007 and beyond with additional basic services that will be added on, i.e. birth registration, malaria control, control of communicable diseases such as tuberculosis, etc.;

the establishment of community-based health programmes in selected areas will also be initiated during this period;

UNICEF will work with the Bangsamoro Development Agency (BDA) for the identification of target barangays giving priority to those that have been affected by armed conflict and internal displacements, most inaccessible and with substantial number of children and women;

The BDA who will act as the co-convenor of the Management Team of the campaign together with the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process (OPAPP) will help organise and prepare the target communities through their Regional Project Management Offices (RPMOs);

The Days of Peace campaign requires a commitment to full cessation of hostilities from all parties to facilitate maximum delivery of services for children;

the MILF will be in charge of providing access and guaranteeing security for the service delivery teams;

This agreement shall be implemented in cooperation and coordination with other stakeholders including, but not limited to, the International Monitoring Team (IMT), Joint Coordinating Committees for the Cessation of Hostilities (JCCCH), Local Government Units (LGUs) and Department of Health (DOH).

UNICEF and the MILF express sincere commitment to the implementation of this agreement in the hope that it will foster the realization of a just and lasting peace in Mindanao.

Done in on March 2007.

For UNICEF

Dr. Nicholas K. Alipui

Representative, UNICEF Philippines

For MILF

Chairman Al Haj Murad Ebrahim

Chairman, MILF

Witnessed by:

IMT