MANILA - The Office of the Presidential Adviser on Peace, Reconciliation and Unity (OPAPRU) led the annual tradition of ringing the Peace Bell at the Quezon Memorial Circle in Quezon City to mark the celebration of the National Peace Consciousness Month.

The theme this year, “Kapayapaan: Responsibilidad ng Bawat Mamamayan,” recognizes the crucial role that each Filipino plays in sustaining and building on the gains of peace.

“The ringing of the Peace Bell must not be viewed as a mere ceremonial act; it’s reverberation carries such as enormous transformation that can touch the lives of people from all walks of life so they, too, can become instruments of peace, development and positive change,” Presidential Adviser on Peace, Reconciliation and Unity Secretary Carlito Galvez Jr. said on Tuesday.

According to Galvez, the celebration allows government to instill greater consciousness and understanding among Filipinos on the comprehensive peace process.

“The Marcos administration continues to push forward, build on and sustain the gains of peace… It is determined to fulfill, more than ever, its commitment to implement all signed peace agreements with the MILF, MNLF, Rebolusyonaryong Partido ng Manggagawa ng Pilipinas/Revolutionary Proletarian Army/Alex Boncayao Brigade – Tabara Paduano Group, and the Cordillera Bodong Administration – Cordillera People’s Liberation Army,” the secretary said.

“For the communist groups, this administration continues to make headways in carrying our several localized peace engagements in the country. All interventions under these peace tables will be carried out and be parallel with the complementary programs of the OPAPRU,” he added. “These include the social healing and peace building program, and the socio-economic development intervention under the Payapa at Masaganang Kapayapaan or Pamana Program.”

Galvez said the OPAPRU continues to implement the following five-point peace, reconciliation and unity agenda:

(1) completion of peace agreements with the MILF and MNLF towards healing and reconciliation in the Bangsamoro
(2) ending of local communist armed conflict by expanding the transformation programs for local conflict peace process; (
3) completion and sustainment of the gains of signed peace agreements with the RPM-P/RPA/ABB and CBA-CPLA;
(4) enforcement of the resilience for peace of communities and vulnerable groups through social healing and peacebuilding approaches; and (5) enhancement of the delivery of conflict-sensitive and peace-promoting-compliant development interventions in addressing the key drivers of conflict through convergence and complementation in support of the peace process.

“Over the past year, the Marcos administration has focused on promoting good governance in Mindanao, particularly the Bangsamoro, with their moral governance. The normalization programs for the MNLF and MILF in the Bangsamoro continue to improve the lives of the former combatants, their families and communities,” Galvez noted.

He went on, “Under our localized peace engagement initiatives, a total of 18 local community consultations were conducted in the communities located in 11 provinces formerly exploited by CTGs. 15 official government units were also assisted in developing their respective transformation program plans which define the respective provinces’ interventions in the areas of security, confidence building, healing and reconciliation and socio-economic.”

“Former combatants have been integrated into local community defense units. Housing units have been provided as well as other livelihood programs… We continue to implement socio-economic programs that will help shore up economic activities in conflict-prone and geographically isolated areas,” he added.

Galvez was joined by Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) Senior Minister Abunawas Maslamama and Quezon City Mayor Joy Belmonte. Other top national and Bangsamoro government officials, representatives from civil society organizations, and local and international peace partners also attended the program.

For Belmonte, who was also the guest of honor and speaker, the celebration promotes a culture of peace.

In Quezon City, she added, local officials encourage free and open discourse with and among their people, especially in matters rooted in legitimate grievances and progressive thinking.

Belmonte stressed that in order to attain peace, one must not drown out the voices of critics.

“In the most recent SONA, one of the protest groups’ rally program could not be heard due to the singing and loud music coming from a police band of the NCRPO. Don’t get me wrong, I have worked many times with the NCRPO. They felt it was their duty to drown out the voices of protesters. They brought a marching band and a videoke machine. While the protesters were delivering their speeches, the band started playing rock music,” the mayor shared.

“They called on me to say may they be allowed to speak without their voices being drowned out. To me, that is the essence of peace: to allow everyone to have their voices be heard and to understand various perspectives, and to choose to live in harmony with one another,” she continued. “Such free and open discourse must be promoted in order for challenges to the status quo not to spiral into insurgency or worse, radicalization.”

Aside from being a yearly ritual in the Philippines, the ringing of the Peace Bell has also become a tradition across the world to promote peace and to remind people that the pursuit of peace is a shared responsibility.

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