The Office of the Presidential Adviser on Peace, Reconciliation, and Unity (OPAPRU) was formally launched on Wednesday, March 23, as the agency expanded its mandate to ensure the continuation of the peace process in Mindanao now that President Duterte’s term is about to end in June.
OPAPRU Secretary Carlito Galvez Jr. led the ceremony which highlighted the reorganization of the agency from the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process (OPAPP).
“Our organization is not only focused on fulfilling the national government’s commitment under all signed peace agreements but also fostering the reconciliation and unity among our people and nation,” Galvez said.
“Despite the many challenges we continue to face with the pandemic and the emerging realities on the ground, the OPAPRU is determined more than ever to sustain the gains of the peace process by helping the transformation of former combatants and their families into peaceful and productive members of the society,” he added.
PAPRU‘s predecessor is the OPAPP which was created in 1993 by then President Fidel V. Ramos when the National Unification Commission (NUC) was dissolved. It was tasked to work on the country’s peace process by addressing the concerns of different rebel groups and armed insurgents.
On Dec. 27, 2021, Duterte signed Executive Order No. 158 which reorganized OPAPP to OPAPRU and shifted the agency’s mandate to focus on “embedding peace, reconciliation, and unity in the Philippines’ social fabric; enhance the nation’s resilience for peace; and help in the country’s social, economic, and political engineering by addressing the root causes of armed conflict.”
Under its expanded mandate, the OPAPRU shall “manage, direct, integrate, and supervise -- on behalf of the President -- all aspects of the Philippine’s peace process” including initiatives that promote and reinforce national reconciliation and unity.
Galvez said that under the Duterte administration, the agency was able to capacitate former rebels and their families by giving them sustainable livelihood and uplifting their way of life as they become farmers, traders, entrepreneurs, and peacekeepers through various intervention programs.
For instance, Galvez said that the agency helped establish the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) and the Bangsamoro Transition Government under the present administration. This helped bring down the occurrence of armed conflicts in the Bangsamoro region as they were given the autonomy to rule their own people.
In effect, decommissioned members of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) in Maguindanao were given livelihood assistance by the national government which they used to establish small businesses and expand their farm lands.
“In Jolo, Sulu, we are seeing Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) combatants address the situation as well as convince members of the extremist group to lay down their arms and return to the folds of the law,” he said.
Galvez added that the peace situation was also improving in Central Luzon after all local government units (LGUs) declared the communist groups as persona non grata which resulted in the surrender of communist rebels, most recent of which involved 300 former Reds in Nueva Ecija.
“ are taking the lead in conducting localized peace engagements which resulted to the peaceful surrender of hundreds of communist rebels,” Galvez shared.
Meanwhile, in the highlands of the Cordillera, livelihood opportunities were provided to members of the extremist group Cordillera Bodong Administration – Cordillera People’s Liberation Army (CBA-CPLA).
Several surrendered combatants of the Rebolusyonaryong Partido ng Manggagawa – Revolutionary Proletarian Army – Alex Boncayao Brigade in Visayas have also recently moved into brand new housing units provided to them by the LGUs when they signed peace agreements.
“In Marawi City, peace conversation and interreligious talks are carried out to repair the torn social fabric and ensure the resilience of conflict affected communities,” Galvez said as he gives updates on the rebuilding of the war-torn Islamic City.
“In Davao del Norte, members of indigenous peoples (IP) who are among the victims of communist rebels also received various socio-economic assistance as well as community infrastructures to uplift their living conditions,” he added.
Galvez said all of the peace efforts were made by the agency to better respond to the needs of their stakeholders.
“If there is one thing that we have learned in almost three decades of our peace-building efforts, it is the need for greater collaboration with the different agencies and development partners,” the OPAPRU Secretary stressed.