Press Release

Secretary General Meets Leader of the

Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF)

The Secretary General of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation

(OIC), Mr. Iyad Ameen Madani received on Sunday 28 February
2016, Alhaj Murad Ebrahim, Chairman of the Moro Islamic Liberation
Front (MILF). The meeting came after the severe setback to the
peace process due to the failure of the Philippine Congress to adopt
the Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL). The Secretary General expressed
his deep disappointment over the non-passage of the BBL which is a
major step towards the final resolution of the Bangsamoro question.
The Secretary General urged all parties to remain fully committed to
the process and to stay the cause of peace. He urged the incoming
administration to re-file the BBL as originally agreed upon and ensure
its early passage.
Alhaj Murad assured the Secretary General that, in spite of the great
disappointment, the MILF would continue to uphold the peace
process, and would continue to call on the Bangsamoro people to
remain patient and to rally behind the full implementation of the
Comprehensive Agreement on Bangsamoro (CAB).
The Secretary General welcomed this continued firm commitment
towards the peace process and towards sustaining the ceasefire and
avoiding resorting to violence. At the same time, the Secretary
General warned of the adverse effect of the delay of adopting the
BBL or adopting a modified weak version of it, on human, security

and developmental aspect of the region. He also warned against the

risk of worsening the situation that could allow the spread of violent
extremism. A failure of peace process could adversely affect the good
relation existing between the Philippines and the Muslim world.
The Secretary General reiterated the firm support of the OIC to the
peace process and the full implementation of CAB and all related
agreements, namely the 1976 Tripoli Agreement and the 1996
Jakarta Agreement, and welcomed the commitment of Malaysian
government to continue its support for the peace process and its
willingness to work with the next administration for that purpose. The
Secretary General also called upon the international community,
particularly those involved in the peace process and those that
witnessed the signing of the CAB, to urge the incoming administration
to save this process and guarantee the passage of the BBL as
originally agreed upon.
The Secretary General urged the Bangsamoro people to unify,
consolidate and converge together towards the advancement of the
peace process and the final resolution of the conflict in Mindanao.
He further urged the leaders of the Bangsamoro people in particular,
the MILF and the MNLF to utilize the existing mechanism,
Bangsamoro Coordinating Forum (BCF) to achieve a more unified
position and a more coherent consolidated and sustainable
cooperation for the benefit of the Bangsamoro people.
The Secretary General urged the rest of the peace loving Philippines
people to stand by their brethren in the south in their struggle to
support the peace process.

01 March 2016

Jeddah