NEWS




11August
IN PHOTO- (front row, left to right)- MILF PIP Chair Mohagher Iqbal, GPH PIP Chair Nabil Tan signing the agreement reviving the Joint Coordination, Monitoring and Assistance Center (JCMAC)

GPH, MILF agree to join the rehabilitation of Marawi

SULTAN KUDARAT, MAGUINDANAO– The Philippine government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) have agreed to join the rehabilitation efforts to fully normalize the situation in Marawi, said a report posted on the website of the Office of Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process (OPAPP), on August 10.

The report said that, the GPH and MILF Implementing Panels signed an agreement on Thursday to revive the Joint Coordination, Monitoring and Assistance Center (JCMAC), which was a key mechanism in rescuing hundreds of hostages at the height of the armed conflict in Marawi City last year.

It also said that, Undersecretary Nabil Tan, Deputy Presidential Peace Adviser and Chair of the Government Implementing Panel for the Bangsamoro peace accords, said the first JCMAC was “a very good testament of the effective partnership that happened between the Philippine government and the MILF during the Marawi siege.”

He said, it was the decision of Presidential Peace Adviser Secretary Jesus G. Dureza “not to close but to continue” the operation of the JCMAC.

In the same online report by OPAPP, it says that Chairman Iqbal considers the reactivation as “a very modest intervention on the part of the MILF… in partnership with the government.”

“The main reason we are there is to help in the healing process, and help them journey the difficulties of their lives after the Marawi siege that really destroyed the beautiful city of Marawi,” Iqbal said.

“At least the people of Marawi City will feel that we really care for them, most especially the victims of the Marawi siege,” he added.

Iqbal said the reorganization of JCMAC v2.0 is “an indication that this is a work in progress. Although we cannot promise something big happening, at least we are with them in spirit and of course bodily.”

In the signed agreement, the JCMAC v2.0 is described as the “continuance of the Peace Corridor (that) will provide the MILF a formal platform as an approachable and neutral mechanism for the people of Marawi City and the Lanao areas to raise their concerns to the government and participate in the efforts to rehabilitate and rebuild Marawi City and the Lanao areas, where MILF strongholds and communities are situated. The mechanism will also address emerging needs and challenges, particularly on the security situation on the ground and the rise of violent extremism.”

Its main function is to link the GPH and MILF Implementing Panels to other government agencies involved in the reconstruction and rehabilitation of Marawi City and neighboring areas.

It will also assist or partner with government agencies and other entities in programs to address the issue of violent extremism.

A ceremonial launching of the JCMAC v2. 0 will be held in the later part of the month to officially operationalize the peace mechanism, according to the OPAPP report.