It's liberating to know that we hold in our hands the power to create and to destroy a nation.
In the past few days, renegade members of the armed separatist group, the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) butchered several civilians & soldiers, bombed commercial establishments and torched a number of houses & vehicles, in retaliation to a failed peace agreement - the Memorandum of Agreement on Ancestral Domain (MOA-AD) - with the government.
In the BusinessWorld article titled, "Moro rebels step up attacks on civilians in Lanao del Norte," Geefe L. Alba and Darwin T. Wee write, "the agreement reportedly provides the possibility of reclassifying 80% of the city's land area under the proposed Muslim homeland or Bangasmoro Juridicial Entity." To the layperson such as myself, this easily translates to a "state within a state". Mindanao, with its rich culture, heritage and natural resources, has always been a land of promise - and it's no wonder why everyone is interested in harnessing this dormant wellspring.
However, while I feel for our Moslem brothers and sisters, I begin to wonder what 'state' they will live in, assuming that the MOA-AD is executed by the two parties. How will the MILF or the Bangsamoro Juridicial Entity (BJE) be able to offer a better alternative for Mindanao? How will they make the renegade factions accountable for their criminal acts?
For the commoner like myself, a better awareness or education of the economic/developmental platform would be immensely helpful. How this platform (and the necessary action steps) is shared with the rest of our countrymen is probably the biggest challenge that the BJE or MILF should face.
The development of Mindanao, and the rest of the Philippines, lie within each of us as we play our significant, little parts in achieving this dream of national progress; be it delivering our work "on time & in full", properly disposing of the garbage in our streets, following traffic rules, or paying our taxes correctly. In the end, liberation is a choice that we must make and we must do so understanding the full consequences of our actions.
But for the war in Mindanao, most of us are merely spectators to the events as they unfold. With the government enjoying the support of the major dailies and television networks (almost all of them anyways), the President's vision - of a shift from "armed groups to communities" - of developing appears to be a better (public relations?) alternative - notwithstanding her unpopularity at the recent polls. The proclamation resounds even more because it is taken from the stance of tranquility and levelheadedness amidst the turmoil.
As the fighting rages on, I expect the the unaccounted number of missing and dead people - from both sides - to continue rising. While I do not agree with the forceful actions taken by some of the MILF insurgents, I believe that everyone deserves to be heard.
When the guns stop firing, only then will we clearly understand what everyone is saying and the healing can truly take place.
In the past few days, renegade members of the armed separatist group, the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) butchered several civilians & soldiers, bombed commercial establishments and torched a number of houses & vehicles, in retaliation to a failed peace agreement - the Memorandum of Agreement on Ancestral Domain (MOA-AD) - with the government.
In the BusinessWorld article titled, "Moro rebels step up attacks on civilians in Lanao del Norte," Geefe L. Alba and Darwin T. Wee write, "the agreement reportedly provides the possibility of reclassifying 80% of the city's land area under the proposed Muslim homeland or Bangasmoro Juridicial Entity." To the layperson such as myself, this easily translates to a "state within a state". Mindanao, with its rich culture, heritage and natural resources, has always been a land of promise - and it's no wonder why everyone is interested in harnessing this dormant wellspring.
However, while I feel for our Moslem brothers and sisters, I begin to wonder what 'state' they will live in, assuming that the MOA-AD is executed by the two parties. How will the MILF or the Bangsamoro Juridicial Entity (BJE) be able to offer a better alternative for Mindanao? How will they make the renegade factions accountable for their criminal acts?
For the commoner like myself, a better awareness or education of the economic/developmental platform would be immensely helpful. How this platform (and the necessary action steps) is shared with the rest of our countrymen is probably the biggest challenge that the BJE or MILF should face.
The development of Mindanao, and the rest of the Philippines, lie within each of us as we play our significant, little parts in achieving this dream of national progress; be it delivering our work "on time & in full", properly disposing of the garbage in our streets, following traffic rules, or paying our taxes correctly. In the end, liberation is a choice that we must make and we must do so understanding the full consequences of our actions.
But for the war in Mindanao, most of us are merely spectators to the events as they unfold. With the government enjoying the support of the major dailies and television networks (almost all of them anyways), the President's vision - of a shift from "armed groups to communities" - of developing appears to be a better (public relations?) alternative - notwithstanding her unpopularity at the recent polls. The proclamation resounds even more because it is taken from the stance of tranquility and levelheadedness amidst the turmoil.
As the fighting rages on, I expect the the unaccounted number of missing and dead people - from both sides - to continue rising. While I do not agree with the forceful actions taken by some of the MILF insurgents, I believe that everyone deserves to be heard.
When the guns stop firing, only then will we clearly understand what everyone is saying and the healing can truly take place.
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