A leading Filipino Muslim figure is optimistic about a bill, which if passed by the Parliament, will grant autonomy to a Muslim region in the southern Philippines.
Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) Chief Murad Ebrahim said on Wednesday that the ratification process of the Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL) will enter the plenary session on May 15.
The BBL aims to establish a new region for the Bangsamoro-a collective term for Fillipino Muslims-to replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao. It is also seeks to establish a new autonomous political entity to the minority group.
The BBL has been discussed and drafted by the Philippine government and MILF, as the biggest resistance group.
Speaking to Anadolu Agency, on the sidelines of the World Ulema Summit in Bogor, Indonesia, Ebrahim said the majority of congress has accepted the bill.
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte conveyed his concern regarding Muslim rights in the BBL. In the latest meeting with the MILF on April 4, Duterte asked the Congress to finish the discussion before July.
Murad said that the passage of BBL can bring change and progress for Muslims in the southern Philippines.
"We all know that Bangsamoro people have been suffering as a result of decades-long wars and its growth rate is the lowest in Philippines," he added.
Murad underlined that the current priority for Bangsamoro is to create jobs.
"We also focus on education, health, and development," said Murad.
The proposed BBL was the culmination of a peace agreement signed between Philippines government and MILF four years ago, during the term of former president Benigno Aquino III.
The law proposes autonomous regions of Bangsamoro that consists of five predominantly Muslim provinces: Basilan, Lanao del Sur, Maguindanao, Sulu and Tawi-Tawi, and other cities outside the region.
The final draft of BBL had been presented to Duterte last August.
