Moro Islamic Liberation Front and Turkey (Turkey's Inclusion Into The Process and We)

Dr. Mehmet Rıza Derindağ

                   Turkish Support of the Bangsamoro People: Care Association.

Behind every achievement, will always lie an unknown journey. Beneath what is visible, will always be much that will never be seen; the sorrow, the yearning, and the martyrdom…

Until 2008, the MILF (Moro Islamic Liberation Front) were not considered as significant by neither the national government, nor by the OIC (Organisation of Islamic Cooperation). In 1996 an agreement for autonomy had already been reached with the MNLF (Moro  National Liberation Front) to which the OIC was signatory to as guarantor.

                     I’d like to take this opportunity to share a brief account of some anecdotes.

The leadership of the MILF had convened for a summit in Manila Hotel to which representatives of the national government, the MNLF and General Secretary of the OIC E. Ihsanoglu were present. I was also in attendance. The MILF had never been represented  in previous negotiations and had always been excluded. But  having been personally on the ground, I knew very well that the MNLF no longer had the representative influence among the Bangsomoro people, and that the real stakeholder in the negations needed  to be the MILF.   I reached out to Ihsanoglu and requested to have a short meeting together with the leading representatives of  the MILF. Eventually I was arranged for an appointment for 30 minutes. Mawlana Alonto and Gazzali Jafar got to raise their concern  that nobody in the international arena had taken them seriously enough as stakeholders and that they needed the help and support of the OIC in this. However, clear from the tone of the meeting  was  that this presentation was not going to be convincing enough.

So I  naively and instinctively interjected to say:

        "Sir, the party you call to the table, has no currency left in representing the Bangsamoro cause. Speak with anyone on the ground in the Moro region, enter any mosque! You will see how they clearly declare support to the MILF. How can you call the MNLF,  which is a bankrupt group, as an observer for all your meetings and  negotiations, yet disregard the group who truly represents the Bangsamoro people." Ambassador El Misri replied by explaining how there was a historical process in place and that they need to  act within international norms rather than positions taken on the ground by the majority people or the imams; reiterating that the

MNLF  had always been the negotiating partners in this process. After uttering his words, he  left the room. But, just as the Ihsanoglu’s  assistant was leaving, he mentioned that we should prepare a file on the matter and present it to the officials in Turkey. Later, the MILF representatives prepared a file documenting the history of their  cause together with a  book, for me to present to the officials in  Turkey. Soon we were  looking to secure an appointment with the, then prime minister, Tayyip Erdogan to present this file. We were offered to meet with the Secretary of Foreign Relations in the Office of the Prime Minister, Prof Ahmet Davudoglu, with Hakan  Fidan  as his assistant. 

            We first met with Mr Hakan Fidan’s assistant, Ali Sarikaya, who later ushered us to Mr Hakan Fidan’s office. Even though it was Ramadan, he gave us around 45 minutes to present our file and brief on the Bangsamoro cause, admitting it was the first time he was  offered such detail. Mr Fidan then took us to meet Prof Ahmet  Davudoglu, who always had a keen interest in the issues of Mindano and the Moro region. In fact, during his time as lecturer at the Islamic University of Malaysia, he had visited Minadano and had  stayed at the home of the then Rector of Mindano State University,  Ahmed Alonto, later also taking up the supervision of his  children’s doctoral thesis. Quite pleased at seeing us together, Prof Davutoglu shared our concerns and said that he would personally  deliver it to the Prime Minister. A few weeks later, we organised to have the leadership of the MILF, including Haj Murad and his team, to visit Istanbul via Cairo. This was to be Haj Murad’s first  visit to Turkey, where he would meet Prof Davutoglu and see the  progress being made in seeking opportunities to be heard in the international stage. Haj Murad and  his team stayed over at our madrasas in Ankara. After our efforts, a few weeks later, I was asked to invite the MILF to the Summit of the OIC Foreign Affairs

         Ministers. This was an extraordinary breakthrough, and was a milestone in the MILF taking part in the peace negotiations. Davudoglu had convinced the  MILF to resume peace talks and assured them of Turkey’s ongoing  support in the process, explaining  that, in any case, the Turkish people and government would always stand by the Bangsamoro people. In the Spring of 2008, after securing the support of countries like Turkey, Malaysia and Libya, the MILF decided to sign the Memorandum of Agreement on  Ancestral Domain. On the 5th of August 2008, the national government of the Philippines also accepted the terms and agreed to sign the agreement in Kuala Lumpur. In my role as Peace Ambassador for the UN and Consultant on the Education of Moro Youth at  the Commission on Higher Education, throughout the 2007-2009 years, we assisted the MILF leadership in their dealing with officials in Turkey, and endeavoured with all our effort to promote the  importance of establishing peace and security for the future of the  innocent people in the region. In the August of 2008, when the agreement was overturned by the Constitutional Court, a radical faction within the MILF broke away and went on to carry out terrorist activities.

           Whereas, the key feature of the MILF until that time was that they had never targeted civilians, and keeping strong to their mainstream Islamic creed, they had never resorted to such acts of terrorism. We felt as though we had served our duty and had  informed the  necessary officials in the Philippines about the situation

Leaving the leadership of the MILF with the supportive hands of Turkish officials, we continued to advance in our primary purpose of offering moral and material support on the ground through  the madrasas, orphanages, schools and the thousands who had newly embraced Islam and their educational programs. We were also left sufficiently confident that at this point of the process, the government of Turkey would always stand behind the Bangsamoro  cause. Subsequently, in 2010, we expressed our deep appreciations to Mr Fidan and Mr Davudoglu about the  engagement of IHH in this process, as we have witnessed their following  the matters of  the Moro region in the spirit of worship and with concern of the  ummah in mind. We pray for their success as we proudly witness their sincere efforts since then.