Less than 48 hours after a resounding vote in favour of a new autonomous Muslim-majority region in the south of the Philippines, two bombs tore through a Roman Catholic cathedral in the city of Jolo, killing 20 people and wounding dozens more. The terrorist attack on Sunday, for which ISIS took responsibility, was thought to have been revenge for the local province of Sulu voting no in the referendum. However, the vote remains significant and represents a major milestone on the road to justice for the Bangsamoro, the mainly Muslim population named by the colonising Spanish after the Moors, who once occupied their own peninsula.
The new region could spell the end to a long-running insurgency that has cost 120,000 lives and displaced about two million people in the south of the country. Some 2.2 million voters took part in the referendum, or plebiscite, last Friday to decide whether Bangsamoro Autonomous Region should be created across part of Mindanao island. A second plebiscite will take place next month in other provinces in which a remaining 600,000 voters will make their decision about whether to join it.
Colonisation might have succeeded in converting most of the Philippines to Catholicism, but the Bangsamoro have historically always held out. One reason for them maintaining such a different sense of identity is because when, in the 1930s, the US government was considering plans for eventual independence, a group of Bangsamoro leaders asked that a completely separate state be created for them. Their wishes were ignored and after independence in 1946, Philippine governments were accused by the Bangsamoro of attempting to erase their culture by transporting in Christians from elsewhere in the country to live there. Nur Misuari of the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) went so far as to say that the policy constituted attempted genocide.
Over the decades, various forms of autonomy had been tried but they were insufficient to satisfy local aspirations or to bring to an end the separatist and often violent struggles chiefly spearheaded first by the MNLF and then by the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, which split from the former in 1977.
There have been many false starts along the way. In 1996, for instance, then president Fidel Ramos signed a "general cessation of hostilities" with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, only for his successor Joseph Estrada to declare "all-out war" on the group four years later. The latest agreement emerged from long-running talks hosted by the government of former Malaysian prime minister Najib Tun Razak, leading to the Moro Islamic Liberation Front and the Philippine government signing a historic framework agreement in 2012, followed by a "comprehensive agreement" in 2014.
In the aftermath of a deadly clash with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front the following year in which 44 Filipino policemen died, then president Benigno Aquino failed to get the necessary legislation through parliament. It was his controversial successor Rodrigo Duterte who last year managed to pass the Bangsamoro Organic Law, paving the way for the creation of the region.
As the first president from Mindanao, he has long vowed to bring peace to the area, his determination forged from personal experience as he has cousins who are members of rebel groups. For all his wild talk and his reckless approach to law enforcement, if the autonomous region brings resolution to this conflict, Mr Duterte can be proud of an achievement no other Filipino leader has managed to bring about.
The new region will have real powers. It will have a chief minister, a wali, or ceremonial head, and an 80-member parliament. It will have authority in 55 areas, including the administration of justice, health, housing, agriculture, water and trade and industry. It will retain 75 per cent of national taxes collected in the region and one twentieth of the Philippines' national budget will be reserved for the Bangsamoro government – crucial to its success, given that poverty levels are significantly higher in the region than in the rest of the country and if development does not accompany the new region's early years, the whole experiment will likely be deemed to have failed.
It is also an example of how patience and a willingness by governments to recognise that violence, while never acceptable, can spring from real maltreatment and inequality. It also shows how careful and persistent negotiations can persuade terrorists to take the path of peace. Both the Moro Islamic Liberation Front and its antecedent group had links to Muammar Qaddafi, who notoriously supported armed insurrections around the world. But now the region will be led by the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, whose leadership has urged Mr Misuari of the MNLF to join and support them.
Some might suggest that separating a Muslim-majority region from a country that claims to be the only Catholic one in Asia risks increasing segregation and religious polarisation in the Philippines. But with his frequent talk of his joint Christian and Muslim heritage, Mr Duterte is a good example of how many people in Mindanao manage to overcome such differences. And it is significant that Cotabato City – a religiously mixed urban centre which is planned as the capital of the new region – voted for inclusion in the new area, despite having previously resisted.
The Bangsamoro government will need the support of the neighbouring Malaysia and Indonesia for intelligence-sharing and military co-operation to crack down on terrorist groups that will not support the agreement, such as Abu Sayyaf and the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters. It is less than two years since the Maute group, a terrorist cell affiliated to ISIS, laid waste to the Muslim-majority city of Marawi in a five-month siege, and memories live long. But authorities in the new region will also need help providing the trade and economic improvement that will ensure the agreement's success.
It is also not certain that all the areas in which next month's vote will take place will decide to join the new region, which is due to move into a transition stage within weeks. Neither does the impending autonomy represent what the Irish nationalist Michael Collins once called "the freedom to gain freedom". It is not a step towards independence – but it will go some way to righting a historic wrong.
French business
France has organised a delegation of leading businesses to travel to Syria. The group was led by French shipping giant CMA CGM, which struck a 30-year contract in May with the Syrian government to develop and run Latakia port. Also present were water and waste management company Suez, defence multinational Thales, and Ellipse Group, which is currently looking into rehabilitating Syrian hospitals.
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'Midnights'
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Founders: Abdulmajeed Alsukhan, Turki Bin Zarah and Abdulmohsen Albabtain.
Based: Riyadh
Offices: UAE, Vietnam and Germany
Founded: September, 2020
Number of employees: 70
Sector: FinTech, online payment solutions
Funding to date: $116m in two funding rounds
Investors: Checkout.com, Impact46, Vision Ventures, Wealth Well, Seedra, Khwarizmi, Hala Ventures, Nama Ventures and family offices
BeIN Sports currently has the rights to show
- Champions League
- English Premier League
- Spanish Primera Liga
- Italian, French and Scottish leagues
- Wimbledon and other tennis majors
- Formula One
- Rugby Union - Six Nations and European Cups
Multitasking pays off for money goals
Tackling money goals one at a time cost financial literacy expert Barbara O'Neill at least $1 million.
That's how much Ms O'Neill, a distinguished professor at Rutgers University in the US, figures she lost by starting saving for retirement only after she had created an emergency fund, bought a car with cash and purchased a home.
"I tell students that eventually, 30 years later, I hit the million-dollar mark, but I could've had $2 million," Ms O'Neill says.
Too often, financial experts say, people want to attack their money goals one at a time: "As soon as I pay off my credit card debt, then I'll start saving for a home," or, "As soon as I pay off my student loan debt, then I'll start saving for retirement"."
People do not realise how costly the words "as soon as" can be. Paying off debt is a worthy goal, but it should not come at the expense of other goals, particularly saving for retirement. The sooner money is contributed, the longer it can benefit from compounded returns. Compounded returns are when your investment gains earn their own gains, which can dramatically increase your balances over time.
"By putting off saving for the future, you are really inhibiting yourself from benefiting from that wonderful magic," says Kimberly Zimmerman Rand , an accredited financial counsellor and principal at Dragonfly Financial Solutions in Boston. "If you can start saving today ... you are going to have a lot more five years from now than if you decide to pay off debt for three years and start saving in year four."
If you go…
Emirates launched a new daily service to Mexico City this week, flying via Barcelona from Dh3,995.
Emirati citizens are among 67 nationalities who do not require a visa to Mexico. Entry is granted on arrival for stays of up to 180 days.
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if you go
Getting there
Etihad (Etihad.com), Emirates (emirates.com) and Air France (www.airfrance.com) fly to Paris’ Charles de Gaulle Airport, from Abu Dhabi and Dubai respectively. Return flights cost from around Dh3,785. It takes about 40 minutes to get from Paris to Compiègne by train, with return tickets costing €19. The Glade of the Armistice is 6.6km east of the railway station.
Staying there
On a handsome, tree-lined street near the Chateau’s park, La Parenthèse du Rond Royal (laparenthesedurondroyal.com) offers spacious b&b accommodation with thoughtful design touches. Lots of natural woods, old fashioned travelling trunks as decoration and multi-nozzle showers are part of the look, while there are free bikes for those who want to cycle to the glade. Prices start at €120 a night.
More information: musee-armistice-14-18.fr ; compiegne-tourisme.fr; uk.france.fr
Who's who in Yemen conflict
Houthis: Iran-backed rebels who occupy Sanaa and run unrecognised government
Yemeni government: Exiled government in Aden led by eight-member Presidential Leadership Council
Southern Transitional Council: Faction in Yemeni government that seeks autonomy for the south
Habrish 'rebels': Tribal-backed forces feuding with STC over control of oil in government territory
Analysis
Members of Syria's Alawite minority community face threat in their heartland after one of the deadliest days in country’s recent history. Read more
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Explainer: Tanween Design Programme
Non-profit arts studio Tashkeel launched this annual initiative with the intention of supporting budding designers in the UAE. This year, three talents were chosen from hundreds of applicants to be a part of the sixth creative development programme. These are architect Abdulla Al Mulla, interior designer Lana El Samman and graphic designer Yara Habib.
The trio have been guided by experts from the industry over the course of nine months, as they developed their own products that merge their unique styles with traditional elements of Emirati design. This includes laboratory sessions, experimental and collaborative practice, investigation of new business models and evaluation.
It is led by British contemporary design project specialist Helen Voce and mentor Kevin Badni, and offers participants access to experts from across the world, including the likes of UK designer Gareth Neal and multidisciplinary designer and entrepreneur, Sheikh Salem Al Qassimi.
The final pieces are being revealed in a worldwide limited-edition release on the first day of Downtown Designs at Dubai Design Week 2019. Tashkeel will be at stand E31 at the exhibition.
Lisa Ball-Lechgar, deputy director of Tashkeel, said: “The diversity and calibre of the applicants this year … is reflective of the dynamic change that the UAE art and design industry is witnessing, with young creators resolute in making their bold design ideas a reality.”
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
The figures behind the event
1) More than 300 in-house cleaning crew
2) 165 staff assigned to sanitise public areas throughout the show
3) 1,000 social distancing stickers
4) 809 hand sanitiser dispensers placed throughout the venue
Mobile phone packages comparison
