COTABATO CITY (March 27, 2023) – The Government of the Philippines, Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) and other peace stakeholders commemorated the 9th year anniversary of the signing of the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro (CAB), held at Abueva hall, Philippine International Convention Center, Pasay City, on March 27, 2023.
Present in the celebration of the CAB signing through the activity entitle “Forum on the Progress of Peace: Challenges and Prospect for the Bangsamoro” were Acting Presidential Adviser on Peace, Reconciliation and Unity (OPAPRU) Secretary Isidro L. Purisima and MILF Chairman and Interim Chief Minister of Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) Ahod Balawag Ebrahim.
Sec. Purisima extended deepest gratitude to partners from the national government, Bangsamoro government. He also thanked the representatives from the academe and security sector, Bangsamoro civic leaders and members of the diplomatic corps who were present.
The OPAPRU chief said, “We commend each and everyone who have been involved on pushing forward the Bangsamoro peace process over the year particularly, those who played an instrumental role to the passage of Comprehensive Agreement of the Bangsamoro (CAB) nine years ago.”
Chief Minister Ebrahim said in his message, “All the visitors who are here with us, they are all the people who have been instrumental in achieving what we have achieved today.”
“The comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro was signed in twenty fourteen (2014), and the difficulties that lie ahead in achieving lasting peace in the Bangsamoro region, this is an opportunity to engage in constructive dialogue and exchanges of ideas towards our goal of promoting inclusive growth, participation and human development,” he said.
The chief minister pointed out, “In the 9th anniversary of the signing of the CAB may we all be reminded that this political settlement is not the end of the Bangsamoro narrative but rather the continuation of our lifelong quest for justice, peace and progress.”
The panel discussions were focused on the developments, aspect and challenging of the implementations of CAB in the context of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) as a political entity as well as changes in security landscape and social political issues in the governance of the BARMM.
This forum which was also livestreamed over Facebook were divided into four (4) sessions: 1st session – Inclusive Growth and Human Development in the Bangsamoro; 2nd session – Salient Feature of the Bangsamoro Electoral Code and Prospects for Bangsamoro Election in 2025; 3rd session – Inclusive Participation in the BARMM; and 4TH session – Security outlook in the Bangsamoro and its Implication for Peace. ### (USM-BMN BSIR Interns/BangsamoroToday, Photo courtesy OPAPRU Facebook)
