Prof. Miriam Coronel-Ferrer delivers her speech during the 10th anniversary of the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro (CAB) at Camp Darapanan, Sultan Kudarat, Maguindanao del Norte on Wednesday, March 27, 2024. (Benyamen Cabuntalan/BIO)
MAGUINDANAO DEL NORTE—Professor Miriam Coronel-Ferrer emphasized on Wednesday, March 27, during the 10th anniversary commemoration of the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro (CAB) held here, that women’s participation is among the unique elements of the Bangsamoro peace process.
Professor Ferrer is the first woman in the world to serve as a chief negotiator in signing a concluding peace agreement with a group of government foes.
Ten years ago, Ferrer chaired the panel for the Government of the Philippines (GPH) in signing the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro (CAB).
The CAB, signed in 2014, is the final peace accord between the GPH and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), ending decades of armed conflict between the parties.
Ferrer shared that during a forum she attended in Northern Ireland last week, the active participation of women was highlighted as a distinctive feature of the country’s peace process with former rebels.
“Marami pong babae na kasama dito sa proseso na ‘to. Hindi po ‘yan makikita sa ibang lugar na halos lalaki lamang ang nag-uusap; lalaki lamang ang nagdidesisyon at lalaki lamang ang nagsasagawa,” she stressed.
[There are many women involved in this process. That cannot be seen in other places where almost only men talk, make decisions, and act.]
The professor added that such contribution is visible not only inside negotiating rooms but also in the public sphere.
She also acknowledged the women from faraway places across Mindanao who attended the event, saying, “Mahalaga po ang inyo pong papel [sa prosesong ito].”
[Your contribution plays a pivotal role in the peace process.]
Ferrer also recognized the female Members of Parliament (MPs) who have been involved throughout the peace negotiations.
Currently, 16 Bangsamoro female parliamentarians are represented in the Bangsamoro Transition Authority (BTA) Parliament, indicating the crucial role of female catalysts in implementing the provisions of the peace agreement.
“We laud the MILF for really seeing what women can do and for bringing them in here in the process,” she mentioned.
“We also saw how, throughout the last ten years, a lot of progress (has been made), including, for example, the 30 percent in the Electoral Code passed by the Bangsamoro Parliament,” she added, reiterating the minimum composition of female nominees in a political party.
The Bangsamoro Electoral Code (BEC), one of the seven priority codes of the BTA Parliament, consists of provisions regarding the parliamentary electoral system of the BARMM, which will be beneficial in the upcoming 2025 election in the region.
Ferrer further stated that the peace process will continue beyond next year’s election and after the parties’ exit agreement.
She said that it will proceed according to the original aspirations of the Bangsamoro region and the Philippines as a whole, aiming for transformation, peace progress, and development anchored primarily in Moral Governance.
Among Ferrer’s listed unique features of the Bangsamoro peace process, where women’s participation is one, are the continuous implementation of the CAB for a decade now and the innovative mechanisms and strategies for addressing and sustaining the gains of the signed agreement.
Women’s evident representation in various peace interventions reflects their self-sustaining and inclusive development while upholding a conflict-free BARMM, aligned with the 11th and 12th priority agenda of Bangsamoro Chief Minister Ahod Ebrahim. (Johamin Inok/BIO)
