Comments: Transforming the Facilitation in the
Mindanao Peace Process
Kamarulzaman ‘Zam’ Askandar
Coordinator, Research and Education for Peace, Universiti Sains Malaysia
(REPUSM)
Regional Coordinator, Southeast Asian Conflict Studies Network (SEACSN)
Penang, 21 November 2010
To many interested observers and students of peace like me, a conflict like the GRP-
MILF conflict in Mindanao ‘seems’ to possess all the necessary ingredients for peace.
However, at closer scrutiny, problems are evident and the formulas somehow lack the
final ingredients to make them work. The current stalled status of the peace talks and
the complaints from the Philippines government (GRP) about the Malaysian
Facilitator and the facilitation process is just an example of the problems that have
plagued this peace process and will need to be sorted out quickly.
Calls are currently being made, including by members of the GRP peace panel
themselves, (current and former) to remove the Facilitator, and arguments are being
put forth that the problem of the stalled peace process lies with the appointed
Facilitator and the facilitation process which is accused as not being impartial.
Malaysia is being criticized for not making the changes as requested and previous
calls of replacing Malaysia with another country are slowly resurfacing again.
The current impasse and the finger pointing being made now have given rise to many
interesting questions. What is really the alleged problem with the facilitator and the
facilitation process? Has the facilitator really been biased and are there proofs to back
this up? Are there any (other) reasons why this is being brought out in the open now
when it is crucial to get the peace talks going immediately? How does this bode for
the future of the peace process, including the role of Malaysia as the host of the talks?
Common sense (as well as all the text books on third party intervention) dictates that a
third party will have to be accepted by the conflicting parties. The third party also
needs to show that it has the knowledge about the conflict; the know-how, skill, and
patience of doing facilitation and mediation; the capacity to reach out to both parties
and act as a bridge between tem; the backing and support of the constituents at all
levels; and the wisdom to bring out the best of the parties and ensure that a just and
fair solution is finally achieved. Impartiality is important too, but if by being impartial
means that a just and fair solution is not achieved, and that the more dominant party in
an asymmetric conflict gets to dictate the process to its advantage, or that it gets to
decide if and when it wants to be cooperative or not, or even to become a spoiler
itself, then impartiality of the third party does not mean anything.
Malaysia started out as the facilitator of the GRP-MILF peace process on the
invitation of the conflict parties. Since the beginning of the process, the Office of the
Prime Minister and especially the Research Department (OPM-RD) has been tasked
to handle the facilitation. The Director General of this RD office assembles a team
from the department to help him carry out the facilitation duties. He himself then acts
as the Facilitator upon appointment by the Prime Minister. Dato’ Othman Razak was
the previous Director General of this office and was given the task of being the
Facilitator. He continues with this appointment even when he retired from being the
Director General. His current official position is the Advisor to the Prime Minister,
tasked with among others, the facilitation of the GRP-MILF peace process. As he is
appointed by the Prime Minister, only the Prime Minister can remove him from this
duty.
Throughout the peace process, the Malaysian team has diligently worked on finding a
just and fair solution to the Mindanao problem. As is the case with any peace
processes, the work has not been smooth sailing all the way. The work has been made
easy when the parties themselves have been sincere about moving forward. The first
two agreements to accept ceasefire and to start socio-economic programs for the
Bangsamoro were easily achieved. The third point, on ancestral domain, was much
more difficult. Even then, to the Malaysian team, it was still a success because they
managed to overcome the hurdles and was able to convince the parties to initial the
MOA-AD agreement. All that they need to do now is to convene the parties and other
stakeholders and observers to sign the agreement in a formal event. This wish to
celebrate the momentous occasion in August 2008 proved to be their downfall as the
spoilers quickly got news of this and managed to stall the signing and eventually
derail the whole peace process, which was eventually declared unconstitutional and
illegal. The facilitation team, as was all others following the process, was utterly
disappointed and disillusioned. The team felt betrayed by the GRP and especially the
GMA administration for being left with the task of picking up the pieces of this failed
effort. They were asking for support from this administration for the process and they
felt that this support was not forthcoming. Many people in Malaysia also questioned
the sincerity of the GRP and especially the President herself for allowing the process
to collapse. They were also bitterly disappointed that after spending so much energy,
time, and money doing the facilitation and supporting monitoring work on the ground,
their own sincerity, capability, commitment, and impartiality are being questioned by
the Philippine public. They felt like giving up when calls were made by some quarters
to remove them and replace them with another country. In fact, some groups in
Malaysia were saying quietly that the whole exercise is useless and that they have no
place being there. If Malaysia is not wanted, then Malaysia should honorably leave.
But calmer heads prevailed and it was pointed out that even if Malaysia does not take
into account the time, energy, and money spent in helping out the Philippines solve
this issue, Malaysia still has a responsibility as a neighbouring country to ensure that
peace and justice prevail in Mindanao. It was also pointed out that the conflict has
forced hundreds of thousands of refugees to flee Southern Philippines since the time
of martial law in the early 1970’s and until the conflict is finally resolved, this trend
will not stop.
The problem is how to restart. Innovations were made to the process and international
guarantors were brought in, in the form of the International Contact Group (ICG).
This was supposed to provide support and ideas for the process, but also meant to
ensure compliance with agreements made. A civilian protection mechanism was also
introduced to protect the victims on the ground. Everything seems set to continue. The
presidential election in the Philippines put a delay to the progress of the process. But
promises were made to start the process as soon as possible, and to fulfill the
commitments and pledges made. Somehow, the process has yet to continue and
fingers are now being pointed to Malaysia and especially to the Facilitator himself as
the problem. Is this finger pointing proper? This lengthy discussion on the peace
process intends to show that the problem might not necessarily be with the facilitation
team, nor with the Facilitator himself, but might be with sincerity in finding a just and
fair solution to the problem.
My own conclusion from observing this peace process is that even if there are
problems with the process, including the facilitation process, the facilitation team has
been fair in the pursuit of a just and fair solution for all. The ill-fated MOA-AD was a
good piece of document creatively crafted by the parties with support from the
facilitation team. The facilitation team sincerely believed that peace in Mindanao
could have been achieved if that document was officially signed in 2008. It would
have provided the best stepping stone for the next rounds of talks.
Another conclusion is that the facilitation team, and especially the Facilitator himself,
have made efforts to ensure that any agreement signed is just and fair to everyone. It
is their belief that coming up with a flawed, incomplete agreement is useless. This
process should not repeat the mistakes of the previous GRP-MNLF process, in which
an agreement was signed and implemented but the problem has not been resolved.
The MILF will not accept such an agreement and are willing to continue their struggle
to get justice, even to go to war. The Facilitator and his team wanted to prevent this
from happening at all cost. If it means that they have to be a bit undiplomatic in their
ways, or vigilant in regards to the moves and maneuvers of the parties especially the
more dominant party in this asymmetric conflict, so be it. The goal is, to repeat, to get
a just and fair solution within the boundaries and scope of the process. Not to please
the parties. The solution itself should please the parties as it brings promises of peace
for all. To the minds of the Facilitator and his team, not getting a just and fair solution
to the Bangsamoro problem would surely result in the continuation of the conflict and
even war, bringing suffering to all. I believe that the Facilitator is firmed in his
resolve not to allow this to happen and in so doing has opened up opportunities for his
detractors on the GRP side to accuse him of not being impartial and to have him
removed.
In regards to the current impasse on the position of the Facilitator, the problem is sad
but not without solution. As mentioned above, the Facilitator is appointed by the
Prime Minister of Malaysia. The PM and all the people I’ve talked to believe that
Dato’ Othman is still the best person to lead the facilitation. He has the experience,
the knowledge, and the team to move forward the process. His style and personality
might not be acceptable to the GRP but at the end of the day how would we know
what kind of personality might we get from the next Facilitator. It is also known that
he has no chemistry with the current panel unlike with the previous panels.
By going to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) and bypassing the OPM-RD, the
GRP is actually making a mistake. It is understandable that the GRP sees this as a
government to government communication and hopes that whatever is passed on will
be conveyed to the PM’s office, but it does not necessarily work that way in Malaysia.
Worse, it can be seen as an insult to the facilitating office at the RD and to the PM’s
Office itself. The intention of persuading the MOFA to take up the facilitating role
will also not be successful as the knowledge and capacity for facilitation work in the
Mindanao peace process is in the OPM-RD. The trust of the PM is in the OPM-RD.
MOFA is a far off option.
The PM knows that he has to do something quickly about this current impasse in the
peace process as people will be faulting Malaysia with delaying the process. Malaysia
still wants to be involved as the facilitator of the process. Talks about replacing
Malaysia with Indonesia or other countries have deeply offended the Malaysian, and
no way will they allow this to happen. Despite having reappointed Dato’ Othman as
the Facilitator, the PM can still review his decision, given the current situation. The
PM will definitely gather his advisors together to come up with a plan, if he has not
done so already. There will be several options. One is to insist that the current
Facilitator, Dato’ Othman, and his team at the OPM-RD stay, as requested by the
MILF. This is easy because Dato’ Othman, despite his frequent frustrations, still
wants to stay on and continue his work. He has put in a lot of himself in this process
and wants to ensure that it is successful. Retaining Dato’ Othman can also ensure
continuity in the process at a crucial time when creative solutions need to be achieved
in the aftermath of the MOA-AD debacle. This is also crucial when a new set of
players have just been introduced on the GRP side. This however will result in the
continuation of this current stalemate, and Malaysia will definitely be blamed by the
GRP and observers in the Philippines and elsewhere. Demands to replace Malaysia as
the facilitator will surely increase. The situation will be made more complex because
the MILF has already announced that they want Malaysia to continue as the
facilitator. Introducing a new facilitating country will totally collapse the peace
process with possible dire circumstances for all.
The second option is to replace Dato’ Othman as the Facilitator. A person who is
acceptable to both sides and who has the knowledge, capacity, and diplomatic skills to
lead the process to a just and fair solution can be appointed by the Malaysian PM.
This is not difficult to do. There are a number of qualified and prominent Malaysians
who can fulfill this role. The best thing to do is however to appoint from within the
OPM-RD office. Preferable somebody who has an inside knowledge of the process.
He/She will still have the institutional memory provided by the facilitating team at the
OPM-RD and should not have any problem of continuity. A panel of Advisors should
also be set up to assist and provide support to the new Facilitator and the facilitating
team. Dato’ Othman should be the first name to go on the list of Advisors. His
knowledge and experience will be very much appreciated there. It will also give him
an honourable exit while still playing a very important role in the process. I believe
that he knows that the cause of peace is more important than one person and that his
sacrifices will be remembered by all.
This second option will definitely break the current stalemate with the GRP and
prevent Malaysia from being accused as a spoiler in the peace process. It can also
provide an added incentive to move the process faster. Caution has to be taken though
to ensure that there is no further delaying tactic on either sides, and that the building
blocks remain intact. The process has taken a long time to reach this stage and even if
the structure of the process including the Facilitator has changed, previous
achievements should still be honoured and used as stepping stones to move forward.