ASIA/PHILIPPINES - Peace agreement arrives in Congress, but "the road is still long"

Manila (Agenzia Fides) - The peace agreement between the government in Manila and Muslim rebels of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), which traces the new "Bangsamoro" administrative entity on the island of Mindanao (southern Philippines), has reached the Philippine Congress which will examine and ratify it.
President Benigno Aquino, Jr. reaffirmed his will so that the draft agreement - reached after long negotiations with the MILF - is approved and enters into force. But, according to the PIME missionary Fr. Sebastiano D'Ambra, initiator of the "Silsilah" movement in Mindanao, "the road is still long".
In fact, D'Ambra says to Fides, "there are numerous objections already circulating in Congress and it seems that the text will not have an easy life. The government has created a commission of experts and parliamentarians who will examine it in detail".
The path towards the entry into force is so full of pitfalls and presents several uncertainties, the missionary said. "There is the presence of the other historic Islamic movement, the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF), which claims space and presence. In addition, there is a radical group of the 'Bangsamoro Freedom Fighters', that rejects it because it would like a distinctly Islamic entity and could trigger new violence". In addition, "President Aquino is not experiencing a happy political moment, some are trying to involve him in cases of corruption", said Fr. D'Ambra. Christians and Muslims of "Silsilah" he concludes, "hope and pray for lasting peace, in respect of all religions and ethnic groups in Mindanao". (PA) (Agenzia Fides 12/09/2014)