Manila Even if she is not the chief executive anymore, outgoing President Gloria Arroyo said she will continue her government's initiatives on peace as a member of the House of Representatives.
Arroyo is due to leave office on June 30 when her six-year term ends. The 63-year-old leader said even if she is not the president she will continue her efforts towards achieving peace by working in the legislature as a Pampanga congressional district representative.
"When I became President, I declared a policy of all-out peace in Mindanao. As President, I have fought every day in office to bring that peace to that great island," Arroyo said.
"I will continue to do so until the last minute of my term as President and maybe even beyond. As Congresswoman I will file the bill that I feel are needed in order to bring just and lasting peace in Mindanao," she added.
Mindanao occupies a special place in Arroyo's heart.
Although she won in the May 10, 2010 elections as Pampanga congressional district representative, she also identifies herself as hailing from Mindanao as she grew up in Iligan City in predominantly Muslim Lanao del Norte province.
Policy review
Speaking before international peace negotiators gathered in Makati City at the end of a two-day dialogue, Arroyo said that as a new representative she will file for a policy review towards an enhanced autonomy in the autonomous region in Muslim Mindanao to fully realise the aspirations of the Bangsamoro, the Muslim residents of Mindanao.
"It will be an enhanced autonomy, that's one very basic bill that we will file," she said.
"Mindanao is poised for peace. Whether we achieve it in the near future remains to be seen. For sure, there is more work to be done, but the efforts we have made over the last nine years have brought us closer to achieving long-term peace in the region," she said.
Arroyo said the two-day discussions gave valuable inputs concerning Mindanao and the Philippines' quest for peace.
The foreign speakers at the Makati conference included ex-Indonesian Vice-President Jusuf Kalla, Ireland's Gerry Kelly, Dr Nureldin Satti, who helped bring peace in Sudan and Burundi, Prof Omar Dajani who participated in the negotiation between Israel and Palestine and Aceh Governor Irwandi Yousuf.
