FACTS: The Government of the Republic of the Philippines (GRP) and the MILF, through the Chairpersons of their respective peace negotiating panels, were scheduled to sign a Memorandum of Agreement on the Ancestral Domain (MOA-AD) Aspect of the GRP-MILF Tripoli Agreement on Peace of 2001 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
Embodied in concepts and principles, is the definition of Bangsamoro as all indigenous peoples of Mindanao and its adjacent islands. These people have the right to self-governance of their Bangsamoro homeland to which they have exclusive ownership by virtue of their prior rights of occupation in the land.
The MOA-AD goes on to describe the Bangsamoro people as “the ‘First Nation’ with defined territory and with a system of government having entered into treaties of amity and commerce with foreign nations.” It then mentions for the first time the “Bangsamoro Juridical Entity” (BJE) to which it grants the authority and jurisdiction over the Ancestral Domain and Ancestral Lands of the Bangsamoro.
As defined in the territory of the MOA-AD, the BJE shall embrace the Mindanao-Sulu-Palawan geographic region, involving the present ARMM, parts of which are those which voted in the inclusion to ARMM in a plebiscite.
Included in the resources is the stipulation that the BJE is free to enter into any economic cooperation and trade relations with foreign countries and shall have the option to establish trade missions in those countries, as well as environmental cooperation agreements, but not to include aggression in the GRP. The external defense of the BJE is to remain the duty and obligation of the government. The BJE shall have participation in international meetings and events like those of the ASEAN and the specialized agencies of the UN. They are to be entitled to participate in Philippine official missions and delegations for the negotiation of border agreements or protocols for environmental protection and equitable sharing of incomes and revenues involving the bodies of water adjacent to or between the islands forming part of the ancestral domain.
And lastly in the governance, the MOA-AD claims that the relationship between the GRP and MILF is associative i.e. characterized by shared authority and responsibility. This structure of governance shall be further discussed in the Comprehensive Compact, a stipulation which was highly contested before the court. The BJE shall also be given the right to build, develop and maintain its own institutions, the details of which shall be discussed in the comprehensive compact as well.
ISSUE: Whether or not by signing the MOA, the Government of the Republic of the Philippines would be BINDING itself to create and recognize the Bangsamoro Juridical Entity (BJE) as a separate state, or a juridical, territorial or political subdivision.
RULING: It is not merely an expanded version of the ARMM, the status of its relationship with the national government being fundamentally different from that of the ARMM. Indeed, BJE is a state in all but name as it meets the criteria of a state laid down in the Montevideo Convention,154 namely, a permanent population, a defined territory, a government, and a capacity to enter into relations with other states.
Even assuming arguendo that the MOA-AD would not necessarily sever any portion of Philippine territory, the spirit animating it – which has betrayed itself by its use of the concept of association – runs counter to the national sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic.
The defining concept underlying the relationship between the national government and the BJE being itself contrary to the present Constitution, it is not surprising that many of the specific provisions of the MOA-AD on the formation and powers of the BJE are in conflict with the Constitution and the laws.
Article X, Section 18 of the Constitution provides that “[t]he creation of the autonomous region shall be effective when approved by a majority of the votes cast by the constituent units in a plebiscite called for the purpose, provided that only provinces, cities, and geographic areas voting favorably in such plebiscite shall be included in the autonomous region.” (Emphasis supplied)
As reflected above, the BJE is more of a state than an autonomous region. But even assuming that it is covered by the term “autonomous region” in the constitutional provision just quoted, the MOA-AD would still be in conflict with it. Under paragraph 2(c) on TERRITORY in relation to 2(d) and 2(e), the present geographic area of the ARMM and, in addition, the municipalities of Lanao del Norte which voted for inclusion in the ARMM during the 2001 plebiscite – Baloi, Munai, Nunungan, Pantar, Tagoloan and Tangkal – are automatically part of the BJE without need of another plebiscite, in contrast to the areas under Categories A and B mentioned earlier in the overview. That the present components of the ARMM and the above-mentioned municipalities voted for inclusion therein in 2001, however, does not render another plebiscite unnecessary under the Constitution, precisely because what these areas voted for then was their inclusion in the ARMM, not the BJE.
