“On Peace Process: We have to manage expectations of everyone”

The former secretary of the peace process Atty. Jesus Dureza said that there’s a need to manage the expectations of everyone in the ongoing peace process.

“Peace-building is incremental. It can be a work of a lifetime,” Dureza said during his input on the 42nd Bishops-Ulama Conference (BUC) last December 11.

He added that there are sectors expecting that the Bangsamoro Basic Law will benefit the Muslims right away, saying expectations should be managed to avoid disappointment.

Dureza, a columnist of DCHerald said happiness is equivalent to expectation over delivery.

He cited challenges in the ongoing peace process: 1) The 1st draft of the Bangsamoro Basic Law is watered down, 2) Congressional Consultation and Public Hearings—constitutional issues and desire of entrenched politicians to stay in power, 3) External factors like enemy image of rebels, distrust among each other, and 4) Internal Factors—MILF Command and control, resource generation, and disarmament issues among MILF.

He added the existing peace agreement between the Government of the Philippines and the Moro National Liberation Front should be converged with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) Agreement, and that the transition period of the implementation should be extended.