What, Why, When & How on FAB

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ABOUT THE FRAMEWORK AGREEMENT ON THE BANGSAMORO

WHO OR WHAT IS THE BANGSAMORO?

• Ø  Those who at the time of conquest and colonization were considered natives or original inhabitants of Mindanao and the Sulu archipelago and its adjacent islands including Palawan and their descendents whether mixed or full native blood shall have the right to identify themselves as Bangsamoro by ascription or self-ascription. Spouses and their descendents shall also enjoy this right. The freedom of choice of other Indigenous Peoples shall be respected.

WHAT IS THE FRAMEWORK AGREEMENT ON THE BANGSAMORO?

• Ø   The Framework Agreement outlines the general features of the political settlement between the Government of the Philippines(GPH) and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front(MILF). It defines the structure and power of the Bangsamoro entity that will replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao(ARMM). It also sets the principles, processes and mechanisms for the transition until the regular election in 2016 for the new Bangsamoro Autonomous Political Entity. The Agreement paves the way forward to the just resolution of the historical divide between the Government and the Bangsamoro.

    photo by: Zamboanga South Wall

WHY IS THERE A NEED FOR A FRAMEWORK AGREEMENT? ITS SIGNIFICANCE?

• Ø  The Framework Agreement puts together the points of consensus achieved in the series of talks between the GPH and the MILF that took off with the forging of the Ceasefire Agreement in 1997. It elaborates on the nature of the political entity that will replace ARMM. This new entity shall be called the Bangsamoro. The document also charts the road map or the steps and mechanisms for the transition leading to the creation of the Bangsamoro. The road map can aptly be described as an inclusive and people-driven process.

AFTER SIGNING OF THE FRAMEWORK AGREEMENT, WHAT’S NEXT?

• Ø  The President will issue an Executive Order that will create the Transition Commission(TC). Eight (8) members of the TC shall be selected by the MILF; seven (7) shall be selected by the GPH. Both parties are committed to make the TC representative of the different sectors and groups in the Bangsamoro

•  Ø  The TC shal work on a draft Bangsamoro Basic Law. The draft law shall then be submitted to Congress for deliberation. Once the Bangsamoro Basic Law is passed and signed by the President, a plebiscite shall be conducted in the envisioned cire territory of the Bangsamoro. Elections for the new Bangsamoro Government will held in 2016.

• Ø  As the TC is being organized, the panels will continue to work on the Annexes. Aspects of the Agreement that do not require legislative action, such as those on development and normalization, will simultaneously be implemented through the different joint transition mechanisms that will be created.

WHAT’S GOING TO HAPPEN TO THE ARMM?

• Ø  As envisioned, the Bangsamoro shall replace the ARMM. The ARMM shall continue to function until Bangsamoro Basic Law is passed and ratified. The law shall provide a transitory period whereby a Bangsamoro Transition Authority shall bridge the period between the plebiscite and the 2016 election. The Transition Authority shall prepare for the transformation of the region into the Bangsamoro.

IS THE BANGSAMORO AN AMENDED ARMM?

• Ø  No, it is not an amended ARMM, but a replacement of it.

HOW WILL THE BANGSAMORO GOVERNMENT LOOK LIKE?

• Ø  The Bangsamoro shall have a MINISTERIAL FORM. Voters will vote for political parties, and the parties who win seats in the legislative body shall elect the head of the Bangsamoro.

WHAT DOES A MINISTERIAL FORM OF GOVERNMENT MEAN?

• Ø  In a ministerial form of government, the people will elect their representatives to the assembly. This assembly will then elect its leader who will be called the CHIEF MINISTER.

WHAT IS THE GEOGRAPHICAL COVERAGE OF THE BANGSAMORO?

• Ø  The geographical scope of the Bangsamoro shall be determined through the plebiscite that will be held after the Congress passes the Bangsamoro Basic Law. The people will decide whether they will join the Bangsamoro or not.

• The plebiscite will be held in the envisioned core territory of the Bangsamoro, namely the current ARMM provinces and MARAWI CITY; the cities of COTABATO and ISABELA; the six (6) municipalities in Lanao del Norte that voted for inclusion in the ARMM in the 2001 plebiscite (Baloi, Munai, Pantar, Nunungan, Tagaloan & Tangkal); and the barangays in the six (6) municipalities of North Cotabato province that likewise voted for inclusion in 2001 (Kabacan, Carmen, Aleosan, Pigkawayan, Pikit and Midsayap). Other contiguous areas where there is a resolution for inclusion from the local government unit or a petition of atleast 10 percent of the qualified voters may also join after the requisite plebiscite.

WHAT WILL HAPPEN IF PEOPLE REJECT THE BANGSAMORO ENTITY IN THE PLEBISCITE?

• Ø  If it is not agreed upon by the people themselves to establish the Bangsamoro entity, then there will be no mandate. It will mean that there will be no Bangsamoro and ARMM stays.

=FOR ME, ITS JUST A MATTER OF FAITH AND TRUST=