Rights of displaced folk assured with BARMM law
COTABATO CITY—The law that protects and promotes the rights of internally displaced persons (IDPs) in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) is now in full swing with the completion and signing on Wednesday of its implementing rules and regulations (IRR).
The Bangsamoro Autonomy Act (BAA) No. 62, also known as the Rights of IDPs of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region Act of 2024, will ensure the protection of an estimated 92,000 people still in various evacuation centers across the region, of whom over 80,000 are from Marawi City.
With the IRR now in effect, BARMM Social Services Minister Raissa Jajurie said the rights-based law ensures protection for IDPs throughout all phases of internal displacement.
“Today marks a crucial step forward in fulfilling the Bangsamoro government’s commitment to protecting the rights and dignity of displaced families across our region,” Jajurie said.
First of its kind
Jajurie said BAA 62 is the first law of its kind in the county and in Southeast Asia. It provides measures that protect and promote IDP rights before, during, and after displacement. At the national level, similar legislation is pending in Congress for at least six years already.
“This law is not just a promise on paper; it is a promise in action. We are paving the way to durable solutions for those who have long been affected by displacement, both within and outside the Bangsamoro region,” Jajurie said.
Apart from guaranteeing their rights, BAA 62 also empowers IDPs, especially in carving a path for rebuilding their lives after suffering from an episode of displacement.
Many BARMM communities, which used to be mired by armed conflict between government troops and rebel forces, are now hotbeds of political and communal violence with occasional gunfights of warring parties sending people evacuating from their homes to avoid being caught in the crossfire.
The Bangsamoro region is also among the country’s disaster-prone areas, with recurring floods, landslides, storms and drought.
“Displacement has been a painful reality in our homeland. But today, we declare that the Bangsamoro will no longer be a region where displacement defines our people’s lives,” BARMM interim Chief Minister Ahod “Al Haj Murad” Ebrahim said during the IRR signing ceremony.
“Through this law, we institutionalize comprehensive protection [and] prevention of displacement, humanitarian assistance during displacement, and the pursuit of durable solutions to ensure that every displaced family can rebuild and reclaim their future,” Ebrahim added.
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, and its partner, the Consortium of Bangsamoro Civil Society, supported the development of the IRR along with the United Nations Development Programme, Community and Family Services International, and International Organization for Migration.
