Heed our call for protection and justice
Statement of Non-Moro Indigenous Peoples
26 March 2025
We, Non-Moro Indigenous Peoples (NMIPs) in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM), first and foremost recognize and look forward to working with the newly appointed Interim Chief Minister Abdulraof Macacua. We are hopeful that your leadership will foster peace and security in the region.
Secondly, we would like to appeal to the Interim Chief Minister to take immediate action in response to violence and killings affecting NMIPs in the region. Just last February 17, another NMIP leader was brutally killed and beheaded in Datu Hoffer Ampatuan. He was the 85th NMIP killed since 2014 – the year when the Comprehensive Agreement on Bangsamoro was signed. Last year, 15 NMIPs were killed.
To this day, no perpetrator has yet been brought to justice. Families of victims, especially witnesses to the crime, face continuing threats to their lives. Others, including those from neighboring communities have been displaced.
As head of the BARMM government, the Interim Chief Minister is in a position to
create strong and reliable protection and justice mechanisms for NMIP communities in the region guided by the safeguards and guarantees enshrined in the Philippine Constitution, Bangsamoro Organic Law, the Bangsamoro Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) Act of 2024 and the Bangsamoro Indigenous Peoples Act of 2024.
We call on the Interim Chief Minister to:
1. Initiate immediate action, in coordination with the PNP and AFP, for the establishment of permanent military detachments in NMIP areas experiencing increasing violence such as South Upi, Datu Odin Sinsuat, and Datu Hoffer Ampatuan. These detachments should collaborate with local mediation bodies to prevent violent transformation of conflicts;
2. In line with Section 9g of the Bangsamoro Indigenous Peoples Act of 2024 on the right in case of displacement, and Section 8 of the Bangsamoro IDP Act of 2024 on immediate assistance to IDPs, to enjoin the Ministry of Social Services and Development and other relevant regional and national government agencies to facilitate the return of internally-displaced NMIPs to their home communities;
3. In the light of impunity and lack of justice to the victims, to coordinate with the Department of Justice (DOJ) for the designation of a DOJ Special Prosecutor tasked to respond to NMIP killings; and,
4. Mobilize relevant ministries, such as the MIPA and BHRC to provide legal and paralegal support to families of victims, witnesses and other NMIPs at risk.
We appeal to the new Interim Chief Minister to act on our calls to help restore hope and alleviate the fear in our communities. We need bold, decisive measures that guarantee our protection and deliver long-overdue justice. Let this be the turning point that ends our suffering and secures a future where our rights are respected and our voices heard.
