BOL@7: Building on the gains of peace

Six years ago, my team and I were on our way to attend a townhall meeting in a municipality in Maguindanao. It was perhaps the third area we had visited that day to rally the public's support for the ratification of the Bangsamoro Organic Law (BOL).

- SECRETARY CARLITO G. GALVEZ, JR.

Our energies were ebbing, as we had been on the road for more than a month. Starting in December of 2018 when I was appointed as Presidential Peace Adviser, we had flown to the southernmost provinces of Tawi-Tawi, Sulu, Basilan, and then to the heartland of Central Mindanao.

But what sustained us during that challenging period was the thought that the success of our mission would not only sustain the gains of peace, but more importantly, shape the future of the Bangsamoro people.

Passed by Congress on July 26, 2018, the BOL is the landmark law that operationalized the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro (CAB), the historic peace deal that put an end to the decades-long armed conflict in the region.

Signed by the Government of the Philippines (GPH) and Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), the CAB is a result of both parties' commitment and determination to bring long-lasting peace and sustainable development to the region.

The ratification of the BOL and the passage of the CAB were major turning points for the people of the Bangsamoro, as these laws are a realization of their long-held aspiration for self-determination and self-governance.

The BOL has paved the way for the creation of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) and the establishment of its interim government, the Bangsamoro Transition Authority (BTA).

The BTA, which is being led by the MILF, has been at the forefront of the BARMM's unprecedented march towards progress by creating an environment that is conducive to trade, tourism and investment.