What is the BOL and why do we need one?

The BOL, now officially called the Organic Law for the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao
(OLBARMM), is the result of decades-long peace negotiations between the rebel groups in Mindanao, mainly
the MILF, and the Philippine Government.

The OLBARMM abolishes the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM), established in 1989 through
Republic Act No. 6734 and strengthened in 2001 through Republic Act No. 9054. Officials have earlier called
the ARMM a failure, marred by corruption and mismanagement.

The new law then creates the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM), or simply the
Bangsamoro Autonomous Region.

University of the Philippines Islamic law and politics professor Jamel Cayamodin said the Bangsamoro law is
designed to address the grievances, sentiments, and demands of Muslims in the region.

"When you talk about the BBL, it's the advocacy of every Muslim… For the past years, since martial law, the
Muslims have been asking for self-determination," Cayamodin said.

He added the MILF previously called for total independence when under the helm of its founder Salamat
Hashim. When Hashim died in 2003, the rebel group toned down its demands and instead lobbied for a truly
autonomous region.

Cayamodin said provinces in the ARMM are consistently among the poorest sectors of the country, mainly due
to corrupt and inefficient government officials. Clan wars or Rido were also prevalent in the region.

The efforts of the Aquino administration to make significant changes with the former
version of the law, commonly known as the Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL), failed
perhaps because it was not the right law at the right time. Perhaps the tragedy of the war
in Marawi changed the climate of the discussion enough that we now have the
Bangsamoro Organic Law (BOL).

The BBL was criticized on all sides for not going far enough and also going too far in
giving the region more autonomy from the Philippine national government. The same
discussion has surrounded the BOL. But this time, everyone knew that something had to
be done. It was, of course, a compromise when no one gets everything that they want,
but everyone gets what they can live with.

The differences between the ARMM law and the BOL include the provision that the new
law grants 75-25 wealth sharing between the Bangsamoro and national governments—
higher than the current 70-30 scheme under the ARMM law.