Last week, a major breakthrough in the relentless search for that elusive peace in Mindanao was achieved which could lead to the resumption of the stalled peace talks between the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF).

It was the signing in Kuala Lumpur of the much-awaited agreement between the government and the MILF that will ensure the protection and care of civilians caught in the armed conflict.

The accord is considered by both parties as a milestone in finding solution to the decades-old conflict that has cost the lives of thousands of our brothers and sisters in Mindanao.

Last year’s hostilities alone displaced over half-a-million civilians.

President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo - who has been pushing for such an official agreement since one can remember – expressed elation over this development which she considers an important step towards the resumption of the stalled peace talks.

The agreement outlines the commitment of the government and the MILF to uphold the International Humanitarian Law as well as protect internally displaced persons (IDPs).

Under the agreement, the government and the MILF have committed to:

Refrain from intentionally targeting or attacking noncombatants, prevent suffering of the civilian population and avoid acts that would cause collateral damage to civilians;

Refrain from targeting or intentinally attacking civilian properties or facilities such as schools, hospitals, religious premises, health and food distribution centers, or relief operations, or objects or facilities indispensable for survival;

Facilitate the provision of relief supplies to affected communities;
Avoid incidental loss of civilian life, injury to civilians and danger to civilian objects; and

Ensure that all protective and relief actions be undertaken in a nondiscriminatory basis covering all affected communities.

The mechanism will form part of the mandate of the International Monitoring Team (IMT), which will review the ceasefire agreement’s implementation.

Both parties have also earlier agreed on the creation of the International Contact Group, a third party that would ensure the implementation of all agreements to be signed as a result of the peace negotiations.

A day after the signing, the President was informed by top officials of the government peace panel headed by Peace Process Adviser Secretary Annabelle Abaya and GRP peace panel Chairman Ambassador Rafael Seguis that both the NDF and MILF are “open and upbeat” to the resumption of the stalled peace talks. According to them, the peace talks may resume in December this year.