The government of the Philippines and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) have today signed the final agreement for the autonomy of the Bangsamoro, which puts an end to half a century of armed conflict between the Philippine army and that guerrilla. The agreement, which has been signed by the Philippines and MILF chief negotiatiors, provides for the establishment of a new autonomy for the Moro, a Muslim people inhabiting Mindanao in the southern Philippines.

In his speech just before signing the agreement, President of the Philippines Benigno Aquino III said the agreement was "an example to the world" and explained that his country's imminent task is to draft the Bangsamoro Basic Law. This act lays the foundations for the Bangsamoro autonomy, which should be operational next year, after a local plebiscite is held. It is expected that an election to choose 50 members of the new Bangsamoro legislature will be held in 2016.

Aquino admitted that the inequalities between Mindanao and the rest of the country have caused "resentment and insurgency", and said that now it is the task of everyone to reduce this inequality so that there a peaceful future there can exist.

The Philippine government and the MILF reached a power sharing deal last December. Defense, foreign policy, currency, citizenship, immigration, customs and common market will remain as exclusive powers of the Philippine government. The government of the Bangsamoro will have exclusive jurisdiction over 58 areas, including agriculture, industry, labor, tourism, culture, language, education, sports, traditional laws, environment and health. Both governments will collect their own taxes.

Other armed groups not included in deal

One of the immediate tasks to be addressed by the Philippines is the disarmament of 10,000 to 15,000 MILF guerrillas. But beyond that, the issue of other armed groups still operating in Mindanao will still be left open. The Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF), the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF), and Islamist guerrilla Abu Sayyaf are three armed groups that have not participated in the negotiation process, nor they have signed the agreement.

Another issue that future Bangsamoro institutions will need to manage is the territory's ethnic diversity. On the one hand, the Moro people is not homogeneous, but comprises several ethnic groups. Two of them -the Maranao and the Maguindanao- make up the majority of the MILF members, while the Tausug are the main component of the MNLF ranks. Second, the region is also home to both indigenous, non-Muslim communities, and Christian communities from elsewhere in the Philippines. The Philippines-MILF agreement foresees that those communities will have their own representatives in the Bangsamoro assembly.