Manila: The lower house of Philippine Congress vowed to pass two bills to expand an existing autonomous region for Filipino-Muslims in the southern Philippines, to satisfy a proposed peace settlement being forged by the Philippine government and a separatist Muslim group based in the south, a local paper said.
One of the bills to be passed at the House of Representatives called for the recognition of seven villages in Lanao del Norte whose residents had voted in a plebiscite for autonomy in 2001, to be part of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM), Milo Ibrado, director general of the National Security Council told the Manila Standard.
Since 2001, the majority of residents in Lanao del Norte's towns of Baloi, Munai, Nunungan, Pantar, Tagoloan and Tangcal voted to be part of the ARMM. This should be realised now that the Philippine government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (the MILF) are negotiating to enlarge the ARMM for wider autonomy, Ibrado explained.
The House of Representatives also scheduled discussions of a bill proposed by Congressman Nur Ja-afar, which called for ARMM's division into two autonomous regions, to facilitate the holding of two plebiscites for autonomy in Muslim-dominated villages that are near ARMM, the Standard said.
Geographical grouping
Ja-afar called for the creation of a southwestern Mindanao autonomous area, saying this will facilitate the holding of a plebiscite for autonomy in all villages in the provinces of Sulu, Basilan, Tawi-Tawi, Zamboanga del Sur, Zamboanga del Norte, Zamboanga Sibugay and the cities of Isabela, Pagadian, Dipolog, Dapitan and Zamboanga, to determine whether they want to be part of the ARMM.
He also proposed the creation of Central Mindanao autonomous region to facilitate the holding of a plebiscite for autonomy in the villages of the provinces of Maguindanao, Lanao del Sur, Lanao del Norte, Sultan Kudarat, North Cotobato, South Cotobato, Saranggani and the cities of Cotobato, Marawi, Iligan, Kidapawan, General Santos, Koronadal and Tacurong.
Urgent
These bills were classified as urgent by President Gloria Arroyo, said House Speaker Prospero Nograles, adding that Arroyo wanted the Philippine government and the MILF to sign a peace settlement in June this year.
"These bills, if passed, will amend the Organic Act, which allowed a plebiscite for autonomy and paved [the way] for the establishment of the ARMM with four provinces in 1987," Nograles explained.
"The amendment will take into consideration the framework and the eventual agreements on the on-going peace talks between the Philippine government and the MILF," he said.
