| Autonomous regions of the Philippines | |
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 Bangsamoro, the only extant autonomous region in the Philippines | |
| Category | Autonomous region |
| Location | Philippines |
| Number | 1 (as of 2019) |
| Subdivisions | |
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 Philippines portal |
Anautonomous region of the Philippines (Filipino:rehiyong awtonomo ng Pilipinas) is a first-leveladministrative division that has the authority to control aregion's culture and economy. TheConstitution of the Philippines allows for two autonomous regions: in theCordilleras and inMuslim Mindanao. Currently,Bangsamoro, which largely consists of the Muslim-majority areas ofMindanao, is the only autonomous region in the country.
On October 15, 2012,[1] a preliminary agreement was signed by the Government of the Philippines' chief negotiator Marvic Leonen, MILF Peace Panel Chair Mohagher Iqbal and Malaysian facilitator Tengku Dato' Ab Ghafar Tengku Mohamed along with President Aquino, Prime Minister Najib Razak of Malaysia, MILF chairman Al-Hajj Murad Ebrahim and Secretary-General Ekmeleddin İhsanoğlu of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation atMalacañang Palace in Manila.[2][3][4]
It replaced theAutonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) and was formed after voters decided to ratify the Republic Act no. 11054 or theBangsamoro Organic Law in aJanuary 21 plebiscite. The ratification was announced on January 25, 2019, by theCommission on Elections.[5][6][7] This marked the beginning of the transition of the ARMM to the BARMM.
On September 9, 2024, theSupreme Court of the Philippines upheld the validity of the Bangsamoro Organic Law, but declared unconstitutional the provision that considered the provinces of the former Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao to be one unit for purposes of determining ratification. Because majority of the voters of the province ofSulu rejected the ratification of the law in the2019 Bangsamoro autonomy plebiscite, it was declared to be not part of the BARMM.[8]
TheAutonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) was proposed in 1976 during theFerdinand Marcos administration and created on August 1, 1989, through Republic Act No. 6734 (otherwise known as the Organic Act) in pursuance with a constitutional mandate. In 2012 PresidentBenigno Aquino III described ARMM as a "failed experiment". He proposed an autonomous region namedBangsamoro to replace ARMM with theagreement betweenthe government andMoro Islamic Liberation Front.
Aplebiscite was held in the provinces of Basilan, Cotabato, Davao del Norte, Davao Oriental, Davao del Sur, Lanao del Norte, Lanao del Sur, Maguindanao, Palawan, South Cotabato, Sultan Kudarat, Sulu, Tawi-Tawi, Zamboanga del Norte and Zamboanga del Sur; and in the cities of Cotabato, Davao, Dapitan, Dipolog, General Santos, Koronadal, Iligan, Marawi, Pagadian, Puerto Princesa and Zamboanga to determine if their residents wished to be part of the ARMM. Of these areas, only four provinces (Lanao del Sur, Maguindanao, Sulu and Tawi-Tawi) voted in favor of inclusion in the new autonomous region. The ARMM was officially inaugurated on November 6, 1990, in Cotabato City, which was designated as its provisional capital.
The Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) ceased to exist after a two-part2019 plebiscite that ratified theBangsamoro Organic Law (BOL). It was replaced with the newBangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) and now under the interim government,Bangsamoro Transition Authority.
Prior to the ARMM and BARMM, there were two autonomous regions in Mindanao, namely Western Mindanao (Region IX) and Central Mindanao (Region XII), each governed by aLupong Tagapagpaganap ng Pook (LTP) or Regional Executive Council led by a chairman.[9]
In the1977 Southern Philippines autonomy plebiscite, there was a proposal to merge the Western Mindanao and Central Mindanao regions into one autonomous region called the "Bangsamoro Islamic Region".
SenatorRobin Padilla in November 2024 filed Senate Bill No. 2879 creating the Basulta Autonomous Region withBasilan,Sulu, andTawi-Tawi as its constituent province. This followed a Supreme Court decision to excludeSulu from theBangsamoro autonomous region.[10] The proposal was opposed by the League of Bangsamoro Organizations (LBO) which called the measure "divisive and disruptive".[11]
TheCordillera Administrative Region administers the area that was designated for an autonomous region. Two plebiscites were held in the Cordilleras,the latest in 1998, to create an autonomous region, but both failed. There have been bills filed inCongress to re-propose and establish an autonomous region in the Cordilleras, but none of these have succeeded.[12]
In 1990,a plebiscite was held to create an autonomous region under Republic Act No. 6766 but onlyIfugao voted in favor of the law's ratification. The component provinces of the Cordillera Administrative Region at the time and the city ofBaguio participated in the plebiscite with only localities voting in favor of the law's ratification to be part of a new autonomous region in the Cordilleras. There was also a failed attempt to establish an autonomous region with a single province.[13]
It was proposed that theNational Capital Region orMetro Manila be converted to an autonomous region. Metro Manila is governed by mayors of its 16 highly urbanized cities and 1 independent municipality with theMetropolitan Manila Development Authority serving as an advisory body to the local government units of the metropolis. FormerQuezon City MayorHerbert Bautista had advocated for a Metro Manila autonomous region as an alternative toPresidentRodrigo Duterte’s campaign forfederalism, which would render Metro Manila as an independent state within the Philippines.[14]
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