Peace caravan continues amid MILF armed combatants' decommissioning delay

The Office of the Special Assistant to the President (OSAP) is continuing its "peace caravan" project across the Bangsamoro regions, providing vital services despite delays in the final phase of decommissioning Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) combatants.

The mobile government service initiative has been crucial in sustaining peace efforts and delivering essential services to Bangsamoro communities.

An initiative spearheaded by Special Assistant to the President Antonio Lagdameo Jr., the Peace Caravans aim to bring national government services directly to former MILF and Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) combatants and their communities affected by armed conflict.

As part of the normalization track of the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro (CAB), the caravans offer social protection, livelihood support, health care, civil registration, skills training, and educational assistance.

The OSAP initiative is designed to complement the decommissioning process with tangible socioeconomic support.

One significant stop was in Lamitan City, Basilan, on 25-26 February 2025. Coordinated by the OSAP and the Inter-Cabinet Cluster Mechanism on Normalization (ICCMN), the caravan reached approximately 800 beneficiaries, including former MILF and MNLF combatants, their families and residents from nearby communities.

Services provided included agricultural inputs, such as seedlings, livestock and boats; medical consultations and minor procedures; civil registration assistance; health insurance enrollment; internet access; cooperative registration; education materials and assistance with amnesty applications.

Despite a delay in Phase 4 of the decommissioning process, which covers roughly 14,000 remaining combatants and some 2,450 firearms, the government emphasizes that normalization efforts are continuing unabated.

The OSAP has expressed concern that postponing the decommissioning unfairly affects combatants eager to transition to civilian life and access related benefits.

"It is unfair and unjust for those who are willing to undergo the decommissioning process, depriving them of their opportunity and right to be transformed into productive, peaceful citizens as envisioned in the CAB," Lagdameo said.

The "peace caravans," a key component of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.'s Mindanao peace agenda, are central to a two-track strategy under the CAB.

While the political-legislative track has led to the establishment of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) government, the normalization track — which includes these caravans — focuses on decommissioning, security, economic reintegration, transitional justice and confidence-building programs.

At the Basilan caravan, the OSAP relayed the President's message reaffirming the government's commitment that "no Filipino shall be left behind" and that government services and normalization efforts will continue, even with a pause in decommissioning.

Lagdameo echoed this sentiment, underscoring that the normalization process remains a high priority.

"This caravan is a testament to the government’s commitment to the Normalization Program under the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro," he said, stressing the broader mission of transforming MILF camps into thriving communities.

The ICCMN, established by Executive Order 79 and strengthened under Executive Order 6 (2022), ensures a holistic government approach, coordinating more than 30 national agencies and BARMM ministries in delivering services under the normalization track.

Notable contributions include "school-in-a-bag" information and communications technology kits for students, cybersecurity and digital literacy training, seedling and livestock distribution, explosive ordnance risk education awareness sessions, peace and reconciliation dialogues, birth registration and health facility upgrades in former MILF camps like Camp Bilal, Camp Bushra and Camp Abubakar.

As the government works toward decommissioning the full complement of around 40,000 combatants before the BARMM parliamentary elections in 2025, OSAP continues to lead in ensuring that normalization programs deliver real and measurable benefits to affected communities.

Through initiatives like the Peace Caravans, the Marcos administration reaffirms that while decommissioning may be temporarily postponed, the larger peace building agenda remains resolute and operational.