Philippines Set For Historic Vote In Muslim Mindanao's BARMM

(MENAFN- Khaleej Times) The Philippines is gearing up for historic regional elections to be held on Monday, one that government officials dubbed“a grand experiment.” Interior and local government secretary Jonvic Remulla described September 14's polls as the creation of“a Muslim nation inside a Christian republic.”

The Commission on Elections (Comelec) conducted its final tests on automated ballot-counting machines and delivered them to 5,212 polling precincts throughout Muslim Mindanao over the weekend.

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About 2.4 million voters are expected to cast their choices for 80 parliament seats that would complete the region's transition from appointed to elected governance.

Stay up to date with the latest news. Follow KT on WhatsApp Channels. What Is BARMM?

Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) is the Philippines' only autonomous region with a parliamentary system of governance, created through a peace agreement after decades of armed struggle by the Moro people. It replaces the first attempt to establish an autonomous government called the Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao (ARMM).

ARMM was created in 1989 to provide self-governance for predominantly Muslim provinces south of the country. It emanated from the 1976 Tripoli Agreement, a preliminary peace pact between the Ferdinand Marcos Sr. government and the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) and brokered by Muammar Gaddafi to end the armed conflict in Mindanao by granting regional autonomy.

Many MNLF members, however, quarreled with its founder Nur Misuari over ideological lines, wanting a stronger Islamic focus and governance for the movement's secular Moro nationalism. They established the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) in 1977.

It took 13 years after the signing of the Tripoli Agreement and the 1986 ouster of dictator Marcos Sr. to create the first regional autonomous government in 1989, the ARMM. The Manila government expanded the territories governed by the ARMM, but within just a few years of its existence, many had concluded the regional government was already“a failed experiment.”

By 1997, Manila started peace negotiations with the MILF, culminating in a peace agreement in 2014 signed in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Its main agreement called for the creation of the BARMM.

In a two-part plebiscite in 2019, a Bangsamoro Transition Authority (BTA) started governing the five provinces, one city (Cotabato) and 63 villages of Cotabato Province that chose to join the BARMM.

Once duly elected and constituted after Monday's elections, the Bangsamoro Parliament shall exercise legislative power and is tasked with electing the autonomous region's executive officials.

Why is Moro autonomy important?

The Muslim Bangsamoro had been victims of historic injustices in the Philippines. Their heroic resistance against Spanish and American colonization had resulted in horrific massacres, land grabbing and resource exploitation. Despite having fully functioning states before European colonisation, they have been included in Philippine territories and subsequent republics without consent.

Under various Manila governments, the Muslim region of Mindanao languished as one of the country's most underdeveloped regions. Because of the presence of belligerent Moro armed forces such as the MNLF and the MILF, the region is heavily militarised to this day, leading to violations of human rights and international humanitarian law.

BARMM framers say Bangsamoro autonomy provides a political solution to decades of armed struggle against historic injustices against Muslims in the Philippines. It honors the self-determination of the Moro people and addresses historical marginalisation in Mindanao. It also guarantees self-management of resources and the regional economy.

Will there be peaceful elections?

Violence has already reared its ugly head weeks prior to Monday's election. BTA Interim Chief Minister Abdulraof Macacua was ambushed by gunmen in Maguindanao del Norte. He survived, and his staff also survived the assassination attempt.

Climate Conflict Action Asia (CCAA), a group that monitors conflict in the predominantly Muslim region, reported 58 gun-related incidents from July 31 to end of August. The group warned that violence and low public confidence in the electoral process could depress turnout and undermine the credibility of Monday's polls.

Katungod Bangsamoro (Bangsamoro Rights), a non-partisan consortium of civil society organisations in Mindanao, also expressed alarm that the election is being treated as a major security operation by the Philippine police and military.

The Philippine National Police deployed 9,435 personnel across the region while the Armed Forces of the Philippines deployed more than 10,000 military personnel, with infantry battalions reinforcing Lanao del Sur and parts of Cotabato province.

The Comelec has flagged 39 areas that reported election-related violence prior to September 14. Twenty-seven other areas have been classified as having“serious armed threats” while another 27 localities have an“intense history of poll violence.”

Katungod Bangsamoro challenged President Ferdinand Marcos Jr to ensure peaceful and credible elections on Monday.“The ballot must reflect the free will of the Bangsamoro people-not the power of political dynasties, warlordism, patronage, money, intimidation or factional maneuvering.”

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