Jesus Dureza: Peace process requires dealing with the past

MANILA, Philippines — Dealing with the past is important in addressing the needs of those affected by conflict, Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process Jesus Dureza said.

“In the peace process, we need to have social healing by going back to the past. We must not forget the past,” Dureza said during an interagency orientation workshop led by the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process (OPAPP) in Pasay City on Tuesday.

During the meeting, representatives of 31 regional and national government agencies identified existing plans and programs and created new initiatives that would address the recommendations of the Transitional Justice and Reconciliation Commission (TJRC).

Transitional justice refers to a country’s response to large-scale human rights violations during periods of conflict and repression.

In a report, the TJRC used the expression “dealing with the past” instead of transitional justice in creating mechanisms that would address human rights violations, legitimate grievances, historical injustices and marginalization through land disposition committed against the Bangsamoro.

The TJRC, part of the normalization annex of the Framework Agreement on the Bangsamoro (FAB), was tasked to study and make recommendations that would promote social healing and reconciliation to those affected by conflict in Mindanao.

The TJRC report recommended the creation of the National Transition Commission on the Bangsamoro.

It also pushed for 90 other recommendations that are doable under the existing setup of institutions.

In September 2018, the House of Representatives adopted House Bill 5669, which sought to establish a transitional justice and reconciliation program for the Bangsamoro.

Dureza urged line agencies to integrate the implementation of their TJR initiatives in their plans and programs, while the bill is undergoing the legislative process.

“There are things that we can do together under the executive powers embedded in your agency,” Dureza said.

OPAPP Undersecretary Nabil Tan lauded the agencies for converging and contributing to the discussion of the TJR agenda. 

“We hope that with the involvement of the national line and regional agencies, and even the civil society organizations who are active in the Bangsamoro, we can move this forward,” Tan said.