The Southern Philippine island of Mindanao faces one of the longest-running violent
conflicts in the world. Starting in the late sixties with clashes between Christian and
Muslim armed militias, the conflict quickly obtained a more ‘national’ character as a
full-scale war developed in the early seventies between the MNLF (Moro National
Liberation Front), as the main representative of the minority Muslim population at
that time, and the Philippine army. In later stages of the conflict, new rebel groups
emerged of which the MILF (Moro Islamic Liberation Front) and the ASG (Abu
Sayyaf Group) are probably the most well-known. As a result of this post-colonial
history of violence and confrontation, the region has also witnessed different and
often protracted rounds of peace negotiations. Already in 1976, the GRP (Government
of the Republic of the Philippines) and the MNLF managed to reach a peace
agreement, the so-called Tripoli agreement. However, this agreement only became
implemented in different stages. After the signing of the Tripoli Agreement in 1976,
Regions 9 (Zamboanga) and 12 (Cotabato) were declared as Autonomous Regions.
Yet it was only in 1989 that the ARMM (Autonomous Region for Muslim Mindanao)
was finally proclaimed, thereby including the provinces of Maguindanao and Lanao
del Sur. Ultimately, with the final peace agreement of 1996 between the Philippine
government and the MNLF, the city of Marawi and the island of Basilan were also
included within the ARMM.