MANILA, Philippines - The Philippine Constitution would have to be amended to make way for the ancestral domain pact between the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), members of the government and the MILF peace panels affirmed on Wednesday.
In a public forum at the University of the Philippines College of Law, government peace panel chief Rodolfo Garcia said constitutional amendments are being eyed to make way for the memorandum of agreement on ancestral domain with the MILF.
"Constitutional amendments as a means to enable the MOA-AD...is designed as a long-term goal," said Garcia in his presentation.
"As in the oral argument in the Supreme Court, reference was made by one of the justices that things that are unconstitutional per se would not immediately be said as incapable of being implemented because the Constitution does have Article 17 which allows for itself to be amended," he added.
"The Constitution's framers does not intend the Constitution to be rigid as a rock...(it) was envisioned by the framers to reflect and embody the needs of the time and the aspirations of its peoples,"he added.
Atty. Musib Buat of the MILF peace panel, meanwhile, suggested that the MOA be drafted under international laws because the Philippine Constitution would be too limiting.
"Using the Constitution as a main framework would be virtual surrender on the part of the Moro front because it would be placed under a side, a leather jacket, unable to maneuver during the peace negotiation. So, for a revolutionary organization, the framework should be extra-constitutional or beyond the constitution," said Buat.
"It does not necessarily mean a violation of the Constitution but it would be in the nature of a constitutional negotiation," he added, saying constitutional reforms may be done if the concluded peace agreement is found to be in violation of the present Constitution.
He said this practice has been done in several peace agreements in other countries.
"This has been the terms in many international peace agreements," he said, citing situation between the Southern Sudan People's Liberation Army with the Sudan central government and other situations in Papua New Guinea, Great Britain, and Ireland.
For their parts, UP College of Law dean Marvic Leonen and United Opposition spokesperson Adel Tamano said the context in other countries are different and should not necessarily be applied in the Philippines.
Leonen added that if constitutional change is to be undertaken, the process should be "deliberate," "conscious," "intelligent," and done under a "credible environment."
"People would want to go into an honest-to-goodness discussion, in a community where the government can actually follow the consent of the people," said Leonen.
Garcia said now would be "best time" to formally go into the ancestral domain agreement that would eventually lead to constitutional changes.
Malacañang on Wednesday, however, said it is not inclined to sign the present form of the MOA until a thorough review has been done.
Press Secretary Jesus Dureza said this was made clear a day after Solicitor General Agnes Devanadera filed a motion before the Supreme Court seeking the dismissal of the case filed by North Cotabato vice governor Emmanuel Piñol earlier along with the several rejoinders.
"Ang pakay nito (motion) is to tell the Supreme Court, number one, hindi na namin pipirmahan iyong MOA na iyan. Pangalawa, dahil kailangan may further negotiation. (The motion, in effect, tells the court that we're not going to sign that MOA pending further negotiation)," he said in a radio interview.
Dureza said while the filing of the motion would delay the signing of the peace agreement with the MILF, the government remains committed to its goal of working towards a peaceful settlement in Mindanao. - Johanna Camille Sisante, GMANews.TV