MANILA, Philippines - The government has long been stressing the need for peace talks with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), but a recent survey shows that very few people understand the issues attached to it.

Because people are confused, they “could not make choices” when asked to choose between different options available to parties to the talks, according to Musa Sanguila, regional management coordinator of Dialogue Mindanaw for the Lanao region.

Sanguila said people need to understand the issues as well as “the implications of the different options,” so they can make “responsible, intelligent decisions.”

Cynicism, Confusion

The survey Sanguila was referring to was conducted among 3,005 respondents who attended a series of dialogues conducted by Dialogue Mindanaw in various parts of the country.

Dialogue Mindanaw is a project of the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process, which has been implementing for some time now “reflective dialogues” among various sectors and religions across the country.

Sanguila presented the poll results at the Davao City leg of the "Peace Forum for Sustained Partnership" last week.

Among other things, the survey asked respondents how they feel about the success of the peace talks and whether these would lead to the “signing of a peace agreement which will result to a cessation of hostilities and peace and development in their communities.”

Some survey participants said they felt "happy and hopeful" about the GRP-MILF peace negotiations because this will lead to the signing of a peace accord, Sanguila said.

But others expressed worry, anxiety, doubt, frustration, disappointment, cynicism, and confusion, apathy and indifference, Sanguila added.

Lack of awareness

A report done by MindaNews on this same survey revealed that “there is lack of consensus on all issues except on the joint management of natural resources where all regions favored the joint management by the ARMM Regional Government and National Government.”

“There is a lack of awareness and understanding of the issues in the GRP-MILF Peace Talks,” it further stressed.

On the other hand, Davao-based lawyer Charina Sanz, coordinator of the reflective dialogues for Northern Mindanao and Caraga regions, noted that the most frequently cited issues from the dialogue participants were the Bangsamoro homeland and identity as well as future governance and the sharing of resources.

"Right to self-determination has been mentioned several times in the report as an issue but also a cross-cutting theme of many of these issues, and not treated as a separate issue," Sanz said.

Sanz revealed that participants from Iligan, Cotabato, Zamboanga, Sulu, and Tawi-tawi seemed to have a better understanding about concepts relating to Bangsamoro homeland and identity.

"Majority of those from other areas outside of these five regions [in Mindanao] appear to have minimal comprehension on the issues as indicated by the type of questions they posed," Sanz said.

Need to clarify issues

“If there is one clear imperative arising from the findings, it is the need for a comprehensive communication program to help people understand the issues as well as the implications of the different options so they can make responsible, intelligent decisions,” Sangila said in a press release.

Fr. Bert Alejo, both of Konsult Mindanaw and Dialogue Mindanaw, said it would be good to engage the people more and make the peace process more participatory.

"On the ground, people are not that polarized, the way the political élite portray the situation. People may lack information but they are not stupid. They may be critical, but they are not totally cynical. They want to help," Alejo explained. – abs-cbnNEWS.com