Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

19" CONGRESS
First Regular Session

No, 2975

HOUSE BILL NO.

INTRODUCED BY REPRESENTATIVE ZIAUR-RAHMAN “ZIA” ALONTO ADION'
and REPRESENTATIVE YASSER ALONTO BALINDONG

EXPLANATORY NOTE

On March 27, 2014, the Government of the Republic of the Philippines (GRP) and the
Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) signed the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro
(CAB), outlining the institutional mechanisms and modalities necessary to end the sovereignty-
based conflict in Mindanao that has plagued the region for several decades.

Under the CAB, both parties agreed to “work out a program for transitional justice to
address the legitimate grievances of the Bangsamoro people, correct historical injustices, and
address human rights violations and marginalization through land dispossession.” For this
purpose, the Annex on Normalization provided for the creation of an independent “Transitional
Justice and Reconciliation Commission (TJRC) to undertake a study and recommend to the
Panels the appropriate mechanism for transitional justice and reconciliation.”

‘Thereafter, on September 27, 2014, the TRC was established and convened. Utilizing the
‘dealing with the past’ framework, they went through an elaborate Consultation Process that
involved community-based “listening process” sessions, study group reviews of existing research,
as well as key policy interviews. Additional independent research projects were also implemented
relative to the mandate of the TIRC.

Intotal, the TIRC conducted a “listening process” in more than 210 Moro indigenous, and
settler communities in Mindanao and the Sulu archipelago, involving some 3,000 community
members and local officials. The TJRC also engaged with a wide range of experts from the
Bangsamoro Region and at the national level, including peacebuilding and human rights
practitioners, community and religious leaders, academies and scholars of Bangsamoro history
and culture, public servants, and representatives of the security and private sectors.

The TJRC turned over its report to the peace negotiating panels of the GRP and MILF in
December 2015 and subsequently released its report to the public on March 15, 2016. In said
report, TJRC recommended for the creation of a National Transitional Justice and Reconciliation
Commission for the Bangsamoro (NTRJCB).

On April 24, 2019, the Office of the President issued Executive Order No. 79 entitled,
“{mplementing the Annex on Normalization under the Comprehensive Agreement on the
Bangsamoro”, created the Inter-Cabinet Cluster Mechanism on Normalization (ICCMN) to
guarantee the implementation of the recommendations provided in the report of the TJRC
towards the adoption and implementation of the Transitional Justice and Reconciliation Program
for the Bangsamoro. On March 30, 2021, ICCMN approved the proposed Transitional Justice and
Reconciliation roadmap.

Unfortunately, a Transitional Justice and Reconciliation Program for the Bangsamoro has
yet to be created.

‘Transitional justice is an evolving practice in conflict resolution that covers the full range
of processes and mechanisms associated with society’s attempt to come to terms with the legacy


of large-scale conflict, repression, violations, and abuses, in order to ensure accountability, serve
justice, and achieve reconciliation.'

A Transitional Justice and Reconciliation Program for the Bangsamoro will essentially be
the attempt of the Philippine State to recognize the legitimate grievances of the Bangsamoro,
rectify these injustices by addressing the root causes of the conflict, and ensure its non-recurrence
through the establishment of institutional mechanisms for transitional justice and reconciliation.
‘The full realization of this program shall serve as vehicle for peace and harmony in the Mindanao,
in consonance with the national clamor for unity and progress.

In view of the foregoing, this bill seeks to institutionalize a Transitional Justice and
Reconciliation Program (TJRP) for the Bangsamoro, and thereby creating the NATIONAL
TRANSITIONAL JUSTICE AND RECONCILIATION COMMISSION FOR THE
BANGSAMORO.

Consistent with our collective desire to sustain the gainyof peace, unity and development
in the Bangsamoro, the passage of this bill into law is earnestlysought.

HON. ZIAUR- RA\ “Z1A” ALONTO ADIONG
Representati¥e, 1*' District, Lanao del Sur

HON. YASSER ALONTO BALINDONG
Representative, 2™' District, Lanao del Sur

1“OHCHR: Transitional Justice and Human Rights,” OHCHR, November 12, 2021,


Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

19™ CONGRESS:
First Regular Session

2975

HOUSE BILL NO.

INTRODUCED BY REPRESENTATIVE ZIAUR-RAHMAN “ZIA” ALONTO ADIONG
and REPRESENTATIVE YASSER ALONTO BALINDONG

AN ACT

CREATING THE NATIONAL TRANSITIONAL JUSTICE AND
RECONCILIATION COMMISSION FOR THE BANGSAMORO,
ESTABLISHING A TRANSITIONAL JUSTICE AND RECONCILIATION
PROGRAM FOR THE BANGSAMORO, AND APPROPRIATING FUNDS
THEREFOR

Be enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Philippines assembled in
Congress:

Section 1. Short Title. - This Act shall be known as the “Transitional Justice and
Reconciliation Act for the Bangsamoro.”

Sec. 2. Declaration of Policy. — It is hereby a declared policy of the State to ensure
pursue a lasting and enduring peace, reconciliation and development in the Bangsamoro region.
The State shall create a program that shall address the legitimate grievances of the Bangsamoro
people, rectify historical injustices, address human rights violations, and marginalization through
land dispossession. The State shall likewise ensure the non-recurrence of such injustices and
violations.

Sec. 3. Definition of Terms, — As used in this Act:

(a) Historical Injustices - include acts committed and transactions entered into by
state and non-state actors with the Bangsamoro and other inhabitants of the
Mindanao and Sulu archipelago that have placed the Bangsamoro people at a
political and economic disadvantage and, while having occurred in the distant past,
continue to impact their lives today.

(b) Land Dispossession - includes dispossession by ostensibly lawful means, such as
public land laws but may have been attended by force, duress, intimidation,
stealth, and deception.

(c) Marginalization - refers to the political and economic disenfranchisement that the
Bangsamoro people and other inhabitants of the Mindanao and Sulu archipelagos
have suffered due to unjust national laws, programs, policies, as well as
government neglect and failure to address destructive and exploitative actions of
non-state actors

(d) Transitional J

ice -means the full range of process and mechanisms associated
with a society’s attempts to come to terms with a legacy of past abuses, in order to
ensure accountability, serve justice and achieve reconciliation which include
criminal prosecution, truth telling, reparations programs and institutional reform.

(c) Legitimate Grievances — refer to grievances that are rooted or grounded on
objective conditions and circumstances like landlessness, poverty, unemployment
widespread discrimination and abuses, ethnic dominance, inter-group hatred,
political /economic exclusion, gender violence or injusti

Sec. 4. Transitional Justice and Reconciliation Program for the
Bangsamoro. - There is hereby established a Transitional Justice and Reconciliation Program
for the Bangsamoro, hereinafter referred to as the “Program,” which shall address legitimate


grievances of the Bangsamoro and Indigenous peoples, historical injustices and human rights
violation, including marginalization through land dispossession, with the following aims:

a. Provide venues for the victims of conflict to be heard and mechanisms for the
investigation of serious violations of international human rights law and international
humanitarian law, and enable inquiries into specific events of the armed conflict;

b. Contribute to the resolution of outstanding land disputes in conflict-affected areas in
the Bangsamoro and address the legacy of land dispossession with concrete measures
to provide redress;

c. Provide effective counteractions to impunity, by promoting accountability and
strengthening the rule of law in relation to past and present wrongdoings, including
crimes identified under international conventions to which the Philippines is a
signatory; and

4. Promote healing and reconciliation among the different communities affected by the
conflict.

Sec. 5. National Transitional Justice and Reconciliation Commission on the
Bangsamoro. — There is hereby created a National Transitional Justice and Reconciliation
Commission on the Bangsamoro, hereinafter referred to as the “Commission”, under the Office of
the President. ‘The Commission shall design and formulate mechanisms to implement the
Program and supervise such implementation. In formulating the mechanisms, the Commission
shall be guided by a framework of dealing with the past that respects, protects, and fulfills the
right to truth, right to justice and right to reparation of the victims and ensure non-recurrence of
any violation. For this purpose, the Commission shall adopt its own operational guidelines and
rules of procedure.

Sec. 6. Composition. — The Commission shall be composed of five (5) regular members
headed by a Chairperson and two (2) ex-officio representatives from the civil society organizations
who shall sit as non-voting members of the Commission. The President shall appoint all members
of the Commission; Provided, That the two (2) ex-officio representatives shall be appointed upon
the recommendation of the civil society organizations.

Sec. 7. Qualifications of the Regular Members of the Commission. — No person
shall be appointed as Member of the Commission unless he/she possess the minimum
qualifications:

(a) Anatural-born citizen of the Republic of the Philippines;

(b) Of proven competence, integrity, probity and independence; and

(c) Has distinguished himself/herself in the field of conflict resolution, peacebuilding,
human rights, and other related fields of expertise.

Sec. 8. Powers and Functions. — The Commission shall have the following powers
and functions:

‘a. Conduct a nationwide information, education, and dissemination program for the
popularization of the rationale and principles of transitional justice and reconciliation,
as well as its implementing mechanisms

b. Investigate, study, and recommend measures for the resolution of cases of individuals
and communities adversely affected by armed conflict, serious violations of human.
rights and international humanitarian law, and outstanding land disputes in the
conflict-affected areas, generally and as provided in the mandates of the sub-
commission. Pursuant to this, the Commission and its sub-commission may take the
testimony or receive evidence, administer oath, summon witnesses, and require the
production of documents by subpoena duces tecum;

c. Determine the factors that contribute to impunity in relation to past and present
wrongdoings, and recommend appropriate actions to dismantle impunity, promote
accountability, and strengthen the rule of law;

d. Coordinate with the public and private sectors in the formulation of short, medium,
and long-term programs under a comprehensive approach to transitional justice and
reconciliation;

e. Call upon other government agencies, including government-owned and -controlled
corporations and government financial institutions, for any support it needs to carry
out its mandate;



&

Submit to the President recommendations for further action, including proposed bills
on matters requiring legislative actions, when necessary, to fully implement its
proposals and programs; and

Perform such other functions as may be necessary for the effective discharge of its
mandate,

Sec. 9. Organizational Structure and Staffing Pattern. - Within three (3)
months from the creation of the Commission, the organizational structure and staffing pattern
shall be formulated and finalized in coordination with the Department of Budget and
Management. To assist the Commission in the performance of its duties, four (4) sub-
‘commissions are hereby created, which shall deal with specific aspects of transitional justice for
the Bangsamoro:

a.

b.

Sub-Commission on Bangsamoro Historical Memory, which shall have the
following specific functions:

To contribute to confidence building in communities affected by the conflict
through fact finding and truth seeking, while ensuring their protection, safety
and dignity. In particular, the sub-commission shall listen to the testimony of
victims in closed or public hearings, in order to collect witness statements and
evidence related to specific violent events, with sensitivity to accounts of
women who have been victims of gender-based and sexual violence;

To investigate serious violations of international human rights and

international humanitarian law, focusing, among other, on specific emblematic

cases of mass atrocity crimes, of land dispossession, and of conflict-related
sexual and gender-based violence to determine whether such forms of violence
were practiced as a deliberate strategy of war in the Bangsamoro conflict;

iii, To publish series of reports on the results of its investigation and cases of
international human right violations, which include an analysis of the findings
and recommendations related to individual, collective, and symbolic forms of
reparations, accountability for crimes committed, institutional reforms, and
reconciliation; and

iv. To establish databases on violations of international human rights and

international humanitarian law in the Bangsamoro from 1948 until the

present, particularly a database on confliet-related human casualties.

Sub-Commission against Impunity and on the Promotion of
‘Accountability and Rule of Law in the Bangsamoro, which shall be responsible
for the following:

i, To identify, investigate, and recommend policies, operational means, and
concrete measures to address and overcome practices of impunity at all levels,
whether of a technical, political, or financial nature and whether related to past,
or present wrongdoings; and

ii, To request disciplinary procedures against public officials who fail to cooperate
or who obstruct justice and the rule of law.

Sub-Commission on Land Dispossession in the Bangsamoro, which is

authorized:

i. Toaddress issues related to land dispossession, use, and tenure in the conflict-
affected areas in the Bangsamoro by developing or implementing a dispute
resolution mechanism for land conflicts, including indigenous peoples’ (IPs)
claims on ancestral domains, and for identifying lands where there are
competing claimants;

ii, To create a database on actual land ownership in the Bangsamoro and on land
dispossession that may be used to support legal proceedings and restitution or
reparation programs, including cadastral, geo-tagged, and community-based
participatory mapping sets;

iii, To support the overall redesign of land services in the Bangsamoro by
recommending changes in the legal framework and all procedures related to
land titling, registration, taxation, and management, including claims of IPs on
ancestral domains, for legislation.


4. Sub-Commission on Bangsamoro Healing and Reconciliation, which is
empowered:

i, Toidentify and support traditional practices of reconciliation at the community
level;
ii, To develop and promote a meaningful process for national reconciliation with
a view to encouraging cultural and attitudinal change; and
iii, To support the other three (3) sub-commissions in the implementation of their
mandate by shaping and promoting a reconciliatory vision for each of them.

Each sub-commission shall cooperate with relevant national, regional, and local
institutions, both governmental and nongovernmental, in the exercise of its mandate. Moreover,
each sub-commission shall ensure the meaningful participation of women in the processes that
will be undertaken, taking into consideration their experiences relevant to the objectives of
transitional justice.

Sec. 10. National Consultation Process. — The appointment of members of the
Commission shall be made through national public consultations.

For this purpose, the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace, Reconciliation and
Unity shall propose to the President a selection and appointment process for the members of the
Commission. This selection and appointment process shall include the appointment of a selection
committee composed representatives of national, regional, and local sectoral stakeholders. The
selection committee, after its convention, shall select, from the pool of nominees, the persons who
shall be included in the short lists of nominees from which the President shall appoint the
members of the Commission. The selection committee and the Commission shall ensure the
inclusion of women in its membership, corresponding to representatives of national, regional and
local stakeholders.

The Commission, whenever it deems appropriate, shall likewise conduct national public
consultations in the formulation of the implementing mechanisms of the Program.

See. 11. Secretariat. — The Commission shall organize its Secretariat that shall assist the
performance of its functions and shall provide administrative and technical support. It shall be
headed by an Executive Director who shall be appointed by the President. The Executive Director
shall execute the policies and programs of the Commission and shall be responsible for the
efficient, and effective day-to-day management of the operations of the Commission.

‘The Executive Director shall recommend to the Chairperson, for the approval of the
Commission, the budget of the Secretariat, its staffing pattern, position classification and
compensation scheme, and the appointment of its personnel subject to existing laws, rules and
regulations,

‘The Executive Director shall be appointed by the President.

Sec. 12, Transitional Justice and Reconciliation Forum. ‘The Commission shall
actively engage with stakeholders in the formulation and implementation of its projects and
programs. For this purpose, it shall convene a Transitional Justice and Reconciliation Forum
which shail serve as the platform for stakeholders to monitor and support the Transitional Justice
and Reconciliation Program for the Bangsamoro.

Sec. 13. Duration. — The Commission shall operate for a period of six (6) years from the
effectivity of this Act or upon completion of the purpose for which it was created, whichever comes
first. However, it may continue to operate for additional three (3) years upon the approval of the
President.

Sec. 14. Appropriation. — For the initial operating expenses of the Commission to carry
out the mandate of this Act, the amount of One Hundred Million Pesos (P100,000,000.00) is
hereby appropriated to be charged against the unexpended contingency funds of the Office of the
President. Thereafter, the amount needed for the operation and maintenance of the Commission
shall be included in the annual General Appropriations Act.


The Commission is likewise authorized to accept donations, contributions, grants, bequests
or gifts from domestic or foreign sources, for purposes relevant to its mandate and functions, in
accordance with applicable laws and rules and regulations subject to government accounting and
auditing rules and regulations.

Sec. 15. Implementing Rules and Regulations. — Within ninety (90) days from the
approval of this Act, the Commission shall promulgate rules and regulations implementing the
provisions of this Act. The implementing rules and regulations issued pursuant to this Section
shall take effect thirty (30) days after its publication in two (2) newspapers of general circulation.

Sec. 16. Repealing Clause. — All laws, orders, issuances, rules and regulations
inconsistent herewith are repealed or modified accordingly.

Sec. 17. Separability Clause. — If any of this Act is declared unconstitutional, the
remainder of this Act or any provision not affected thereby shall remain in full force and effect.

Sec. 18. Effectivity. - This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its publication in a
newspaper of general circulation or in the Official Gazette.

Approved,