A peace deal was put together allowing an autonomous region, Bangsamoro (Area of the Moro), to form in the Southern Philippines. The deal was brokered by Malaysia as part of an ASEAN initiative. Peace is very hard to come by and this is not a done deal. Yet.
The area is full of rebels and armies. The armies are both private and government. The major difference this time, the major rebel group MILF (Moro Islamic Liberation Front), the next largest group has taken a wait and see attitude, actions speak to their desire for peace in this resource rich region. Peace deals are not new to the island nations or the ASEAN. It is their culture.
Europe's colonization found the area easy pickings. When Ferdinand Magellan arrived in the Philippines, he found a series highly civilized islands involved in global trade. The nations still like trade. The proposed area will offer Muslims all types of products they will not find anywhere else.
Many nations have played an active role in bring about this peace, however, it is the rebels themselves, Malaysia, and the Philippines that brought forth a chance at Heaven.
Note:
History of ASEAN
On 8 August 1967, five leaders - the Foreign Ministers of Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand - sat down together in the main hall of the Department of Foreign Affairs building in Bangkok, Thailand and signed a document. By virtue of that document, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) was born. The five Foreign Ministers who signed it - Adam Malik of Indonesia, Narciso R. Ramos of the Philippines, Tun Abdul Razak of Malaysia, S. Rajaratnam of Singapore, and Thanat Khoman of Thailand - would subsequently be hailed as the Founding Fathers of probably the most successful inter-governmental organization in the developing world today. And the document that they signed would be known as the ASEAN Declaration.
Link to Proposed Peace Deal:
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