Philippines

International Alert’s programme in the Philippines is based both in Manila and Davao City, Mindanao. Locally led, in both locations we seek to work with our partners to advocate for peace-positive progress to be made by the new NoyNoy Aquino administration in Manila and with a wide range of other parties on the island of Mindanao, where there have been decades of conflicts involving the MILF (Moro Islamic Liberation Front) and the Communist Party of the Philippines/National Democratic Front.

Location

The Advocates for a Peace Covenant (APC), a group of Filipino peace practitioners convened by International Alert’s former Board Member and Senator Bobby Tanada and Alert’s Senior Policy Adviser Ed Garcia, recently initiated a consultation on a Peace Covenant based on the respect for human rights and the pursuit of social justice in the Philippines.

Waging Peace Philippines (WPP), a civil society network convened by International Alert, warmly welcomed the recent political developments in the Philippines which could significantly advance the peace process in the country. The Government of the Republic of the Philippines and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) recently announced the suspension of offensive military operations, therefore giving respite to more than 200,000 internally displaced persons (IDPs) living in precarious conditions in makeshift camps.

As part of our programme in the Philippines, Alert recently took part in the Philippines’ Month of Peace with many activities.

Day of Peace and World March for Peace and Non-Violence

International Alert recently met representatives of the Government of the Republic of the Philippines (GRP) panel negotiating with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF). Led by its chair, Foreign Affairs Under-secretary Rafael Sguis, the panel and the former UK Ambassador to the Philippines, Peter Beckingham, visited Alert offices in London before embarking on a tour to Belfast, upon the invitation of the UK’s Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) to learn from the Northern Ireland’s peacebuilding experience.

THIS REPORT SHEDS analytical light on the complex linkages between economic factors and the conflict in Mindanao, and on the possible role of local business leaders and their associates in communities or other sectors in the country in breaking these links. It also explores options for government in addressing these dynamics.

Full report

This publication makes the case that the local business community in conflict-affected countries can and should play a role in building peace. Linking up with other peacebuilding actors, and taking advantage of their own resources and skills, business communities should address socio-economic, security, political and reconciliation dimensions of peacebuilding. Section 1 is divided into 5 thematic chapters, and Section 2 contains 19 country case studies. Executive Summaries are also available in Spanish and French.

Executive Summary

Table of Contents

Introduction

Section 1: Thematic Chapter 1

Section 1: Thematic Chapter 2

Section 1: Thematic Chapter 3

Section 1: Thematic Chapter 4

Section 1: Thematic Chapter 5

Section 1: Conclusions

Section 2: Overview of Case Studies

Section 2: Afghanistan Case Study

Section 2: Bosnia and Herzogovina Case Study

Section 2: Burundi Case Study

Section 2: Colombia Case Study

Section 2: Democratic Republic of Congo Case Study

Section 2: El Salvador Case Study

Section 2: Guatemala Case Study

Section 2: Israel and Palestine Case Study

Section 2: Kosovo Case Study

Section 2: Nepal Case Study

Section 2: Nigeria Case Study

Section 2: Northern Ireland Case Study

Section 2: Philippines Case Study

Section 2: Sierra Leone Case Study

Section 2: Somalia Case Study

Section 2: South Africa Case Study

Section 2: South Caucasus Case Study

Section 2: Sri Lanka Case Study

Resumen ejecutivo: Las empresas locales y la paz: el potencial de construccion de paz del sector empresarial nacional

Résumé: Entreprise Locale, Paix Locale: Le potentiel du secteur privé national pour la construction de la paix

This report reflects some of the perspectives and lessons learned from the Philippine-Nepal Exchange on the Peace Aspects of Constitution-making that took place in Kathmandu in August 2008. The report includes pertinent lessons from the Philippines experience of constitution-making from the perspectives of a Filipino peace practitioner, who served as a member of the Constitutional Commission that drafted the 1987 Philippines Constitution.

Full report

This paper argues that at the core of the problem of persistent violence in Mindanao is the exclusionary political economy that is developed and sustained through a complex system of contest and violence. “Rebellion-related” violence relating to the vertical armed challenges against the infrastructure of the state combines with “inter- or intra-clan and group violence” relating to horizontal armed challenges between and among families, clans, and tribes.

Full report