US, Malaysia have vested interests in Bangsamoro homeland

U.S. ambassador to the Philippines Kristie Kenney was in Kuala Lumpur to witness the signing of the memorandum of agreement (MOA) with the MILF the day before yesterday, which was aborted at the last minute by a restraining order issued by the Supreme Court. Ever her ebullient and cheerful self, Ambassador Kenney reportedly tried to lift the somber mood in Malaysia by being upbeat and looking at it as a “temporary setback” and “part of the rule of law”.

The effervescent Ambassador Kenney was the only one who seemed to take the turn of events in stride. Presidential peace adviser and would-be signatory Hermogenes Esperon Jr. considered the non-signing a national embarrassment. Officials from both the Philippines and Malaysia had intended the signing to be a special diplomatic event, with Foreign Secretary Alberto Romulo and Malaysian Foreign Minister Rais Yatim serving as witnesses. Among those invited for what should have been a historic signing to lay the foundation of a Bangsamoro homeland were representatives from the U.S., Japan, Brunei, Libya, the Organization of Islamic Conference and the World Bank. The U.S. was supposed to have announced an additional U.S. $ 25 million in development assistance for Mindanao had the signing taken place.