Inclusive Right to Self-determination: The Grassroots Tri-Peoples Framework toward the Attainment of Justpeace in Mindanao (2013)

Inclusive Right to Self-determination: The Grassroots Tri-Peoples Framework toward the Attainment of Justpeace in Mindanao

Mindanao is about to chart a new history for its peoples as the Government of the Philippines and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) is at the threshold of forging a new peace deal which would give birth to a new Bangsamoro government. The islands of Mindanao have been ridden with armed conflicts for many decades. This has been mostly due to the clamor of the Bangsamoro for their Right to Self-Determination that was rooted on the historical injustice of annexing the Bangsamoro people to the Philippine Republic during colonial times. The inequitable sharing of resources has also effectively mired the majority of the population in the region in poverty. This marginalization is evident even in the access to political power. All these led to a protracted armed conflict that not only aggravated the poverty situation but also deepened the division among and between the tri- people communities. The Moro revolutionary fronts have emerged to advance their demand for self- determination. First, the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) that signed a Final Peace Agreement (FPA) with the Government in 1996 thus creating the present Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao (ARMM). However, even before a negotiated political settlement was reached by the MNLF and the Government of the Republic of the Philippines, internal disputes have already taken root within the MNLF that caused it to splinter, creating the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF). The latter Moro front entered into another peace negotiation with the government even though questions of the full implementation of the 1996 Final Peace Agreement is still rife from the side of the MNLF. After more than a decade of negotiations, the Government and the MILF signed the Framework Agreement on Bangsamoro in October 15, 2012. The FAB is set to lay the groundwork for the drafting of the Bangsamoro Basic Law and the eventual signing of the Final Peace Compact. A Bangsamoro Transition Authority will then be put up to ensure the transition to the new Bangsamoro Government.

Peoples at the Margin

In the wake of these high profile negotiations, between the peace panels, a segment of the population in Mindanao has remained at the fringes. The indigenous Peoples of Mindanao or the Lumad have remained in the sidelines for a long time. Before the Final Peace Agreement between the Government and the MNLF, the Indigenous Peoples were already living in their ancestral territories since time immemorial, with their own belief and justice systems. However these ancestral territories were covered and sanctioned in the FPA of 1996 and were accorded to the former MNLF combatants as part of logging concessions under the auspices of Integrated Forest Management Agreement (IFMA). This resulted to a conflict between the Moros and Lumad as the latter tried to protect and preserve their ancestral domain while the former asserted their legal rights under the IFMA. The conflict led to the deaths and displacement on the part of the indigenous people.

After the 1996 FPA, the Indigenous Peoples’ Rights Act (IPRA) was enacted, providing for the rights and entitlements for all Indigenous Peoples in the country. The law, however, has become ineffective inside the ARMM as no enabling law was passed until the present. This resulted to further marginalization of Indigenous Peoples in the region, as they remain deprived of their rights and entitlements under the law.

When the government opened its negotiation with the MILF, the Katawhang Lumad in the ARMM readily came up with their position that their ancestral territory and traditional justice system be recognized. This has become a consistent clamor of the Katawhang Lumad at all levels of the peace negotiations.

On the Governance aspect of the 2005 Teduray, Lambangian, Dulangan Manobo Position Paper(1), and is still applicable today, when the GPH-MILF started their Peace negotiations,…“The tribe shall conform to any type or form of governance that maybe agreed upon and mutually adopted, hence it is also the desire of the tribe to have equal opportunities and representation in all levels of governance, side by side with their Muslim brothers. Provided, that in the territory identified to the Teduray, Lambangian and Dulangan Manobo tribes, their right to rule and govern must be pursued, implemented, recognized and respected vis-à-vis their traditional and customary laws in a form of a genuine autonomy within the Bangsamoro nation. In the case of a federal state, our tribal based self-governance shall converge with other tribal based self-governance outside the ARMM to form a single state to be considered in the federal or union of states….”

In 2008, the Memorandum of Agreement on Ancestral Domain (MOA-AD) was initialled and eventually TROed by the Supreme Court and later on was declared unconstitutional on reasons, among others, for lack of consultations in a massive project in violation of the people’s right to self -determination.

A Mindanao-wide IP assembly was called in August 2008. In this assembly, they emphasized that the Lumad of Mindanao have a distinct identity from the Bangsamoro. They complained that they were not consulted in making their territories part of the proposed Bangsamoro Juridical Entity (BJE). The majority position during this gathering was a demand not to be included in the BJE. On the other hand, the IPs within the ARMM asked for the inclusion of their agenda in the peace talks (2). They went on further to demand for IP Autonomy. This call is not new. In 1986, Lumad Mindanaw, a coming together of representatives of fifteen (15) out of eighteen (18) ethno-linguistic groups, already assert their right to self-determination as a distinct segment of the Mindanao population. Further, they wanted to govern themselves within their ancestral domains in accordance with their customary laws. Genuine autonomy within the Republic was their battle cry (3). Despite the consistent demand of the IPs, the current FAB came up with a definition of the Bangsamoro that includes them. The question of recognition of their ancestral territory remained silent in the provisions of the FAB. For the IPs, ancestral domain encompasses their indigenous political structure, traditional belief systems, control, and management of resources.

At the present context where the Government of the Philippines and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) is about to sign a new peace deal that would give birth to a new Bangsamoro government, the IPs within the current ARMM are asking how they would be treated. Will they found themselves in a similar situation, a minority within a minority nation?

 This is a predicament that the Indigenous Peoples tried to avoid and which MPPM fully and continually supports. A process that would further marginalize the already minority sector of our society is no victory for the people. Rather this will open new windows for discontentment and rebellion, a repeat of our bloody and violent history.

A Glance at History

Before the colonizers came, the island of Mindanao was populated by the Indigenous Peoples who thrive with their own belief and traditional justice systems in place. Anthropological studies in this period revealed that this group of people conducted trade with the Chinese through the barter system. Towards the end of the 13th century, Muslim traders came and in the process of doing business with the locals were able to convert portions of the population to Islam. It was also after this period that the Sultanate of Sulu and, a little later, the Sultanate of Maguindanao were sovereigns as they conducted trade with neighbouring nations.

The Sultanate of Sulu, a state in its own right, was established in 1450, fought the Spaniards for 333 years and had remained free until 1898 when Spain ceded control of the Philippines to the United States through the Treaty of Paris. True, the sultan signed a treaty with Spain in 1878 technically reducing its political status to that of a protectorate of Spain but it remained a de facto state and uncolonized to the end (4). The Bangsamoro’s resistance continued on to the American and Japanese colonization. After the latter’s incursion to the Philippines and the Americans came back and granted second independence to the country, Mindanao was again made part of the Philippine state. These series of illegal annexation of Mindanao to the Philippine Republic had become the historical bases of the Bangsamoro’s continuing struggle and resistance against the succeeding Philippine regimes.

American colonization paved the way for the resettlement program in Mindanao. It virtually opened the region to exploitation by the Multinational Corporations (MNCs) as vast tracts of lands were made into plantations. Land laws were adopted to enable the settlers to own lands while discriminating the locals, thus marginalizing them in the process. This started the big land grab of ancestral domains of the Indigenous Peoples and the Bangsamoros. It also effectively planted the seeds of distrust and division among and between the peoples of Mindanao.

As most countries with multi-nationalities, the then Philippine government and succeeding ones adopted the policy of integration and assimilation of the Indigenous Peoples and Bangsamoros into the Filipino identity, under one country, one flag, and one territory.

In later Philippine administrations, Filipinos from the North and the Visayas were sent to settle in Mindanao. The region was dubbed as the “Land of Promise” as settlers were promised lands to till. This continued in the time of then Pres. Ferdinand Marcos. Due to the systematic marginalization of the Katawhang Lumad and the Bangsamoro, the masses of the Mindanao Migrants and their Descendants have been regarded by both the Bangsamoro and Katawhang Lumad as the reason for their continuous marginalization and minoritization in the islands of Mindanao. However, the migrants maybe majority in terms of number but it did not follow that these group of people are better situated than the Bangsamoro and the Katawhang Lumad. Majority of the migrants wallowed in poverty, dispossessed and voiceless in many aspects of Philippine and Mindanao society. The politicians who hold the seat of political power and weld influence socially and economically may be mostly migrants, but this group only represents a tiny minority compared to the vast majority of the migrants population who remained unrepresented and not listened to. In this respect, the majority of the grassroots tri-people have a common ground.

Pushing for an Inclusive Framework

MPPM is now on its 13^th year as a peace movement. Over the years, it has cultivated not only its Tri-People character, but also the solidarity it affords to each peoples’ struggle. As a Tri-People organization, MPPM has been advocating for the recognition and realization of the Right to Self-Determination of peoples. It this historical moment of Mindanao’s history as it carve another milestone; MPPM attempts to articulate the inclusivity of its peace framework through defining an inclusive Right to Self-Determination for the tri-people.

For many years, the Bangsamoro and the Indigenous Peoples have consistently articulated and give flesh to their assertion of their Right to Self-Determination. For the most part, this was aided by international instruments and covenants that defined the right to self-determination of nations/peoples. Meanwhile, the migrant members of MPPM struggled long and hard as they tossed the question among themselves if they as well can claim their own Right to Self-Determination if international standards are to be followed.

Right to Self-Determination: The tri-people Grassroots Perspectives

The series of Tri-Peoples pre-summits conducted last October 2013 to November 2013 somehow helped in shaping all these articulations. It is a by-product of thirteen (13) years of open discussion, togetherness and journeying together of these grassroots tri-people striving to work for just, peaceful and sustainable communities for every Mindanaon.

In defining the Right to Self-Determination, the Indigenous Peoples and the Bangsamoro have three common themes, which are premised on Identity, Self-Governance and Territory (Ancestral Domain):

The Bangsamoro's assertion for self-determination is more known as it had been advanced by the Moro Liberation Fronts (MNLF and MILF) for the past four decades. In their long period of struggle, the Bangsamoro did try to use diplomatic means. The Bangsamoro leaders presented the Zamboanga Declaration to the United States Congress on February 1, 1924 stating that 50 years after the granting of Independence to Luzon and Visayas, the inhabitants of Mindanao, Sulu and Palawan should decide by vote whether their territory would be incorporated with the islands of Luzon and Visayas, or whether it should be independent.

In 1996, Bangsamoro Civil Society groups such as the Bangsamoro People's Consultative Assembly (BPCA) conceptualized the idea of a United Nations Managed Referendum as an alternative to the long running war in the islands of Mindanao. The idea was supported by the Mindanao Peoples' Peace Movement and during its June 28-30, 2002 meeting of its Council of Peoples' Representatives, it adopted the idea and made its continuing program thrust for the decade (5). At the second Mindanao Peoples' Peace Summit on December 2002, over 500 participants representing the Katawhang Lumad, Bangsamoro and Mindanao Migrants or their Descendants unanimously decided to call on the Government of the Philippines" to hold within the next few years a United Nations-Supervised Referendum in the Bangsamoro areas of Mindanao. In the Referendum, the Bangsamoro would have the opportunity to determine their political future as part either of the Philippines or as an independent nation. The MPPM pledges its commitment to support and promote this proposal through a multi-track strategy, including but not limited to legislative pressure, peoples' initiative, peace constituency building and national and international lobbying (6)."

The call was in support to the Bangsamoro's assertion for their Right to Self-Determination. MPPM greatly believes that this will help address the Bangsamoro problem in a bloodless, diplomatic and peaceful manner as shown by experiences of other countries with self-determination struggles such as East Timor, Aceh of Indonesia, Northern Ireland and others.

Meanwhile, for the part of the Indigenous People, the assertion for the right to self- determination is anchored on identity and self-governance of their ancestral domain. The manifest example of this assertion at present is those of the Teduray, Lambangian and Dulangan Manobo within the core area of the proposed Bangsamoro territory. These peoples are currently pushing for their ancestral claim within the area under the Teduray, Lambangian, Dulangan Manobo Ancestral Domain Claim (TLDMADC). The Teduray and Lambangian’s Timuay Justice and Governance (TJG) could very well be the model among all other IP tribes in Mindanao for their indigenous political structure. In 2002, these two tribes managed to codify their laws and in an Inter-Tribal Summit put up the TJG composed of a legislative, executive and judicial department. Their continuing claim for their Ancestral Domain is an initiative that correlates to their assertion for the full realization of their Right to Self- Determination as a people. Interestingly enough, it is this current assertion for the recognition of their distinct identity as Indigenous People within the context of Framework Agreement on the Bangsamoro that have somehow put the assertion of the Katawhang Lumad in clearer perspective. They posed that as a distinct group of people, with their own set of belief and justice system they are entitled to self-governance within the future Bangsamoro Government.“…

In exercising our right to self-determination within the propose Bangsamoro Ministerial government, in minimum, we can establish an “autonomy” or self - government in matters relating to our internal and local affairs, as well as ways and means for financing our autonomous functions within our ancestral domain territories.

Said rights are protected in the present Philippine legal systems (Constitution, IPRA & MMA N0. 241) and in the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) of 2007 and other international instruments.

The autonomy arrangement we envisioned to be included in the Bangsamoro Basic Law:

The proposed Bangsa-Mamalu Autonomy is a confederation of territorial customary governance system of the Teduray, Lambangian and DulanganManobo (+) that has internal legislative, administrative and judicial powers and functions in contiguous areas within the core area of the Bangsamoro.

- The Bangsa-MamaluAutonomy is not to take over the powers and functions of the Bangsamoro Ministerial government in local governance (barangay, municipal or  province);

-This is to establish a democratic political-space for the full participation of Ips in shaping their own future side by side with the Bangsamoro bearing in mind their distinct identities despite the many commonalities and similarities they have as native inhabitants in the region.

-Empowered to select/decide representative/s to the BangsamoroMinisterial  government (Cabinet, Parliament etc (7)).

Meanwhile, the other tribes of the Indigenous Peoples are at different levels of development while pushing for their ancestral domains as embodied in the Indigenous Peoples' Rights Act (R.A 8371) of 1997. The tribes who managed to have their ancestral claims awarded to them are going through the process of designing their Ancestral Domain Sustainable Development Protection Plan (ADSDPP). Many of the ancestral territories are confronted with the incursion of development projects that the tribes felt have threatened the security of the territory. The Matigsalog tribe is mostly situated in the tri-boundary of North Cotabato, Bukidnon, and Davao. In the Davao side, an Integrated Forest Management Agreement (IFMA) was implemented by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR). Even before the agreement expired, an oil palm plantation came in without the corresponding Free and Prior Consent (FPIC). Another group, the Erumanen Menuvu, Tinanen, and Manobo of Bukidnon and North Cotabato, continually resisted the establishment of Pulangi Dam V that threatens to flood twenty-two (22) communities. While in South Cotabato, Zamboanga Peninsula and CARAGA, the B'laan, T'boli, Tagabawa, Subanen, Higaonon, Manobo, and Banwaon are faced with the constant threat of mining. For these tribes, right to self-determination is having the right to manage and control over their ancestral territory free from any interference. Development should have the approval of the tribes within the area and must redound to their benefit. This approval should be given free from force and coercion.

In relation to this, the tribes demand from revolutionary groups or any armed groups present in their ancestral territories to respect and recognize the Indigenous Political structure of the Indigenous People and their decision if they opt not to join with these groups. On the other hand, Mindanao migrants cannot speak of a common identity as they came from different ethnic groupings bound by a common language from their places of origin either from Luzon or from the Visayas. While most are Christians, they are also grouped into different religious denomination. When the migrants speak of right to self-determination, these are often manifested in their day-to-day lives, within the family, their community organizations and their locality.

Concretely, the migrants expressed their exercise of their Right to Self-Determination in establishing community organizations (sectoral or multi-sectoral) wherein they chose their own leaders and agreed on rules and regulations to govern these organizations for their collective welfare. Most of the time community issues that ranged from social, cultural, political and economic are the impetus in forming these organizations. Various initiatives in the communities have been undertaken and had taken shape in the different areas in Mindanao worth sharing and mentioning. Here are a few examples of these worthy initiatives.

Food Sovereignty and Sustainable Agriculture Campaign

Food insecurity, poverty, dispossession and climate change are situations faced by the masses whether in the rural and urban areas. Some members of MPPM in different areas try to address these by embarking on a Food Sovereignty campaign to address these issues head on. For these organizations and communities, to be sovereign is for the farmers to have control over seeds and land, technology and knowledge everything necessary to the food production. In Zamboanga del Sur, the Convergence of NGOs and POs in Zamboanga del Sur on Agrarian Reform and Rural Development (CONZARRD) and the Kahugpungan sa Mag-uuma, Mamumuong Kababayen-an sa Zamboanga del Sur (KASAMAKKA) are advocates of Food Sovereignty. CONZARRD is present in six (6) barangays in Zamboanga del Sur and they managed to extend to twenty-eight (28) barangays in Zamboanga del Norte. KASAMMAKA, on the other hand, is present in thirty-two barangays in the nine (9) municipalities in Zamboanga del Sur.

In the past five (5) years, they managed to put up an organic demonstration farm, where members, allied groups and individuals can learn about sustainable agriculture through the production of organic fertilizers and pesticides and diversified farming systems. They have also managed to collect more than a hundred varieties of seeds for their seed banking and promote exchange among and between communities. This is to ensure that these seeds will be protected, preserved and owned by the communities. They also worked for the awarding of lands to landless peasants under the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program and CARPER. Recently, they managed to get a Notice of Coverage for around a hundred hectares for farmers in Vincenzo Sagun before the expiration of issuance of notice of coverage last September 2013.

Similarly, the Demokratikong Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (DKMP)-Lanao, also embarked on sustainable agriculture in their organized communities in the municipality of Lala to provide safe and healthy food for their families. This is also reflected in farming communities in Midsayap where a core of Magsasaka Syentista, trained by the Southern Christian College's Community Extension, Research and  Administration (SCC-CEREA), have taken the lead in developing sustainable and ecological communities. For the Timuay Justice and Governance (TJG) in Upi, Maguindanao, their

Fenuwu (villages) also practiced Sulagad , a traditional farming system that is not harmful to humans and the environment. While these communities freely determine what crops they want to produce and the manner how these are produced while answering their basic need for safe and healthy food, they are also in the process of helping preserve and protect the environment by combating the global phenomenon of climate change. These community efforts have given the people a sense of power, as they are no longer at the mercy of opportunistic traders, big agribusiness and ruthless multinational companies who controlled the seeds, land and market. The campaign on food sovereignty has also forged strong solidarity among organizations, communities and peoples.

Participatory Governance

Small numbers of organization have shared that they are able to sit in the local special bodies in their barangays such as in Maragang, Tigbao, Zamboanga del Sur; in Lebak, Sultan Kudarat and in Capucao, Lala,Lanao del Norte though not everyone managed to pass local ordinances . Sectoral representation is provided in the Local Government Code, however, this still remained a struggle in many barangays where like in other levels of the state bureaucracy partisan politics is deeply ingrained.

 Access to Housing

Access to decent housing for the urban poor in Iligan City is the thrust of Lig-ong Hiniusang Kabus sa Iligan (LIHUK). Through its sustained interventions and networking with government agencies, they managed to put up relocation sites for the city's informal settlers. LIHUK organized housing cooperatives that ensured the management and maintenance of the housing project. Livelihood projects in consultation with the members of the housing cooperatives were also introduced. Education on basic human rights, discussion on social issues and skills training were also constantly given to the members. At present, the organization is working with the survivors of typhoon Sendong, the strong typhoon that hit the city in December 2011, in looking for a safe area for their relocation.

Is Inclusive RSD possible?

MPPM is a microcosm of Mindanao society. With its tri-people membership, the difficulties, realities and triumphs of the grassroots communities are often reflected within the peace movement.

Individually and collectively, the tri-people membership defined the Right to Self-Determination as the freedom to decide individually or collectively their affairs without external control or compulsion from others. The individual’s freedom to exercise one’s basic human rights is a common demand with the corresponding acknowledgment that these rights are not absolute, as they also have to respect the rights of others.

It is with this respect of other people’s/peoples right that the migrants acknowledge and recognized the legitimacy of the assertion of the Bangsamoro and the Indigenous Peoples for their right to self-determination over their identity, self-governance and ancestral territories. In the same manner, both the Katawhang Lumad and Bangsamoro recognized the reality that the islands of Mindanao that used to be their ancestral territories are now a shared territory with the migrant populations, who are like them, suffering from poverty, dispossession, powerlessness, inequity and inequality.

Mindanao’s history has been a bloody one and often the strife and division of its tri-people communities have become a stigma for its peoples. However, history also showed that the tri-peoples of Mindanao used to live together in peace and harmony and these mixed communities are still very much evident and alive. To cite some examples, we will take the following experiences:

Fish Sanctuary as a Way to Peace

In Pikalawag, Sultan Naga Dimaporo, Province of Lanao del Norte, Bangsamoro and migrants fisherfolks live in unity and harmony. Despite the difficulties they faced with the dwindling fish supply in the seas and the dangers posed by pirates, the community organized themselves into Naghiusang Mangingisda alang sa Kalambuan (NAMANGKA). The group is a mixed of fishermen and their wives. To address the issue of declining fish supply in the area, NAMANGKA with the help of Lanao Aquatic and Marine Fisheries Center for Community Development (LAFCCOD), an NGO based in Tubod, Lanao del Norte helping fisherfolks communities, decided to rehabilitate the fishing ground and mangrove areas in the vicinity. To do this, they declare the area as a marine sanctuary. A buffer zone was set up and no fishing activity was allowed within the said area. At first difficulties were faced by the members of the organization as their neighbors not members of NAMANGKA refused to recognize the buffer zone especially when they noticed the significant increase of fishes in the area. They accused the members of the organization of depriving them of their livelihood and food. However, the member of NAMANGKA kept firm in imposing the policies they set. They believe that the marine sanctuary will soon bear fruit and will sustain the future generations. Because of their sincerity and commitment, the local government of Sultan Naga Dimaporo supported their initiative by passing a municipal ordinance protecting the marine sanctuary and imposing sanctions against the violators. Members of the organization were deputized as Bantay Dagat. Night time saw the men patrolling the marine sanctuary in pumpboats while the women took their turns during the day.

As conflicts with the neighbors lengthened, tension was felt in the community. A Culture of Peace Seminar was undertaken by the members of NAMANGKA and soon they learned skills on negotiation and mediation that they employ towards their neighbors. After a while, they managed to convey to their neighbors the importance of protecting the marine sanctuary and the role it plays in improving the marine biodiversity. The marine sanctuary helped in strengthening the relationship of the Bangsamoro and migrants in the community.

Respect of Historical Peace Pacts 

D'yandi or historical peace pacts were entered into by ancestors of the Katawhang Lumad and Bangsamoro. These pacts were the means that maintain the peace and order of territories as well as respect of territorial boundaries of different communities. This peace pact is still very much alive and enforced in Rabpes, Carmen, North Cotabato where the Eremenun ne Menuvu lives in peace with their Bangsamoro neighbors. The former's Datu is also respected by the Bangsamoro. The enforcement of the peace pacts is through their respective Council of Elders.

Valuing Relationships

In Sitio Lawan-Lawan in Las Nieves, Agusan del Norte, the Higaonon tribe hosted the "Bisaya" or migrants in their ancestral territory without imposing rentals. The migrants are accommodated and given parcels of land to till and to put up their homes. This was done freely and openly by the Higaonon tribe. To them, this is based on the tribe's value of sharing and giving importance to mutual relationships.

 Judicial Pluralism 

"Judicial pluralism" is recognized and practiced in Buluan, Maguindanao with the togetherness of the Maguindanao tribe of the Bangsamoro and Ilonggos and Bisaya of the migrants. Whenever conflict arises in the community, if the parties to the conflict opt to have their differences settled by the Datu, the barangay will not intervene rather respects the decision of the conflicting parties. Despite the existing mainstream legal justice system, customary laws and traditional justice systems are allowed to flourish without interference by the former. This is also manifested in Brgy. Sta. Elena in Iligan City, wherein the migrants respect and recognize the traditional conflict resolution method of the Maranao. So that when the Maranaos are aggrieved, " kanduri" and giving of money to the aggrieved party is still practiced. The migrants also submit themselves to this practice especially when they understood and accepted this method of conflict resolution.

Kapamagogopa

Kapamagogopa or bayanihan farming is still practiced by the Maranaos and migrants in Balo-i, Lanao del Norte. The neighbors often help each other out and shares are given to those who helped in the harvesting.

Solidarity amidst Diversity

The grassroots tri-peoples commonly shared the universal values of baya-baya or freedom, equality, understanding, respect, unity and solidarity towards their fellow human beings that transcends ethnic, religious and ideological divide.

Thus, the tri-peoples of Mindanao have more commonalities than differences, and though they maybe diverse in culture, religion and beliefs, these are not reason to divide but rather these are the unique qualities that create the fabric of a Mindanaon society. It is with this recognition, respect and support to each other's struggles that real victory of the broad masses of the tri-people will be attained, genuine peoples development and peace based on justice will be realized.

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1 Bandara,Alim, “Perspective on IP Autonomy within the Bangsamoro :The Bangsa-Mamalu Autonomy”,Indigenous Peoples' Pre-Summit of the Mindanao Peoples' Peace Movement, October 26, 2013.

2 Bandara, Alim, “Option for IP Autonomy within the Bangsamoro”, Forum on the Implications of the Framework Agreement on Bangsamoro (FAB) to the Right to Self-Determination of the Indigenous Peoples, December 17, 2012.

3 Rodil, Rudy, “Achieving Peace and Justice in Mindanao thru the Tri-People Approach: A Huge Challenge”

 4 Rodil,Rudy, “Achieving Peace and Justice in Mindanao thru the Tri-People Approach: A Huge Challenge”

5 Senturias, Alvaro O., “A United Nations-Managed Referendum on Political Options in the Bangsamoro Areas in Mindanao, Palawan and the Entire Island Provinces of Basilan, Sulu, and Tawi-Tawi. Platform of hope for lasting Peace in Mindanao”

6 The Midsayap 2002 Declaration of the Mindanao Peoples' Peace Movement (MPPM) on the Occasion of the 2nd Mindanao Peoples' Peace Summit, December 17-20, 2002 

7 Bandara, Alim, “Perspective on IP Autonomy within the Bangsamoro : The Bangsa-Mamalu Autonomy”, Indigenous Peoples' Pre-Summit of the Mindanao Peoples' Peace Movement, October 26, 2013

Note:

This paper was initially presented during the tri-peoples pre-summits last October 24-26,  2013 (Katawhang Lumad Pre-Summit), November 4-6, 2013 (Katawhang Migrante Pre-Summit) and November 15-17, 2013 (Bangsamoro Pre-Summit) of the Mindanao Peoples’ Peace Movement (MPPM) at Midsayap, North Cotabato and ILigan City respectively as working  paper for the discussion on inclusive right to self-determination. The results of the pre-summits discussions have been incorporated in this updated document.