First parliamentary elections held in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region of the Philippines, marking a turning point in the peace process

[COTABATO (Philippines) Current Affairs] Voting was held on the 14th in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region, which includes parts of Mindanao Island in the southern Philippines, for the first parliamentary election to form an official autonomous government. This marks a milestone in the peace process of the half-century-long conflict in Mindanao, which will lead to a transition to a governing system based on the will of the people.

While Christians make up 90% of the population in the Philippines, Muslims are the majority in the Bangsamoro. Since the late 1960s, armed struggle by Islamic groups seeking independence and autonomy continued, but in 2014 the government and the armed group Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) concluded a comprehensive peace agreement.

After the provisional autonomous government was established in 2019, elections scheduled for 2022 were repeatedly postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic and issues regarding electoral district allocation. After this election, the parliament will select the prime minister of the provisional autonomous government, which had been appointed by the president, and autonomy will begin in earnest.