The Tripoli Agreement

A month after the late President Ferdinand E. Marcos declared martial law in the Philippines, the Moro National Liberation Front, led by Nur Misuari, launched a massive offensive in Marawi against the government and followed by a brief occupation of Jolo and Cotabato in 1973.

On May 21, 1976 six Muslim rebels hijacked the Philippine Airlines BAC-111 jetliner and forcibly landed it in Zamboanga. The passengers were taken hostage for three days which resulted to the death of six persons (including the three rebels).

In response to the secessionist threat, President Marcos increased the budget of the Armed Forces from Php900 million in 1972 to Php6.9 billion in 1976. Likewise, the President issued decrees, orders, and letters of instructions adhering to the cultural, historical, political, economic and religious aspirations of the Muslim people.

On November 14-16, 1976 Mrs. Imelda Marcos made a historic visit to Libya and successfully secured a commitment from Libyan President Col. Muamar Al Qathafi, top financial supporter of the MNLF, to resolve the Moro problem in Mindanao – the Tripoli Agreement.

The Tripoli Agreement was signed by the MNLF chairman, Nur Misuari, and the Philippine government in 1976. It was the first peace agreement signed between Muslim separatists and the Filipino government. Also involved in the negotiations was the Quadripartite Ministerial Commission Members of Islamic Conference, which included representation from the Libyan Arab Republic, The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, The Republic of Senegal, and The Democratic Republic of Somalia.

The year of 1976 is when the conflict between the Moros and government began to subside after the peak of violence from the years 1970-1975. The Tripoli Agreement is the result of a series of talks between the government and the Moros that began in late 1976 under the Organization of the Islamic Conference. This treaty was supposed to provide for Moro autonomy in the southern Philippines along with a cease fire. However this truce was broken in 1977 when the Moros charged the government of not really giving them the full autonomy they were looking for. 

Today, as a civil war rages in Libya, Muammar Gaddafi defies the opposition's clamor for his regime to end.  Unmindful of the international community's pressure to step down, the government continues to attack rebel forces and it may not be long before direct foreign intervention gets into the Libyan war.