Ex-MILF parties lead first Bangsamoro parliamentary vote in southern Philippines
MANILA, Philippines (AP) — Parties linked to a former Muslim rebel movement were leading the first parliamentary election in the southern Philippines’ predominantly Muslim Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, official results showed Wednesday, in a vote that will test whether a landmark peace deal can deliver stable self-rule.
The balloting marked a major step for autonomy in a region scarred by decades of deadly uprisings. A 2014 peace agreement ended the Moro Islamic Liberation Front’s armed campaign, with the rebels agreeing to disarm in exchange for a promise of greater self-government.
Parties descended from the MILF were ahead in the tally, but no single group appeared to have captured a majority, leaving it unclear who will be able to assemble a governing coalition in the regional parliament.
Commission on Elections Chairman Erwin Garcia said final turnout reached 84% of nearly 2.4 million voters. The Bangsamoro region covers five provinces, three cities and 63 additional villages.
The Bangsamoro Federalist Party, led by transitional Chief Minister Abdulraof Macacua, finished first in the party-list vote with nearly 36%, winning 16 of the 80 seats in the regional parliament. The party is also likely to have won more seats in district races, but the commission has so far released only the names of district winners, not their party affiliations.
The United Bangsamoro Justice Party, led by Moro Front chairman and former Interim Chief Minister Ahod “Al Haj Murad” Ebrahim, followed with more than 32% of the vote and 15 seats.
Lawmakers will take office on Oct. 30 and elect a chief minister, who will also head the executive department. A simple majority of 41 votes is required.
The autonomous region was created under the 2014 peace deal, replacing an older autonomous area with a larger, better-funded and more powerful government. Under the agreement, the Moro Front’s 40,000 fighters were to be demobilized and given livelihoods and other support to rebuild normal lives.
Since the 1970s, about 150,000 combatants and civilians have been killed in the southern Philippines, and development has lagged in what remains the country’s poorest region. Bombings and kidnappings once made Mindanao a suspected haven for al-Qaida and the Islamic State group, until a U.S.-backed Philippine offensive weakened the militants.
In May 2017, militants linked to the Islamic State laid siege to Marawi, triggering five months of ground assaults and airstrikes. More than 1,100 people, mostly militants, were killed, and the mosque-studded city’s commercial and residential districts were destroyed.
In a Facebook post Monday, Murad said the region’s first election opened “a new chapter towards a government with stronger leadership, true service, and focused on every community and village in our homeland.” He said the government “comes after a long struggle that is now being lived through democracy.”