Over 5,000 former separatist fighters to join Philippine police

According to Arab News, more than 5,000 former fighters who fought for Filipino Muslim autonomy in the southern Philippines will join the country’s police force as part of government efforts to sustain peace in one of Southeast Asia’s most conflict-torn regions.

The peace process in Bangsamoro, a region covering predominantly Muslim areas of Mindanao, has been underway for nearly a decade since the government struck a permanent ceasefire deal with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front after almost 40 years of conflict.

An armed breakaway group of the Moro National Liberation Front — the oldest Muslim separatist movement in Mindanao — MILF continued to fight when its parent organization reached a peace agreement with the Philippine government in the 1990s. Only in 2014 did MILF fighters agree to turn over their firearms in exchange for the establishment of a self-administered Bangsamoro.

As part of the peace process, the region’s inhabitants voted for its greater autonomy in a referendum held in 2019. The transition period will culminate in 2025, when Bangsamoro will elect its legislature and executive.