— Yes, an IHL Law wasfinally passed in Decemberlast year, andits significance should not be underestimated, but the ensuing difficulty which arosein relation to the publication of that law, eloquently demonstrates how hesitant someof our leadersare, whenit comesto bolstering accountability for genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity. Also, over these last eight months, we have continued to witness incidents which appear to represent a willingness on the part of someto ignore or only pay lip service, to the laws and customs of war. We have seen howcivilians have continued to be lumped together with combatants, via branding and demonizing, and how manycivilians have been considered legitimate military targets,in violation of IHL. Someof the incidentsarerelatively high profile, such as the continuing concerns regardingthe arrest and detention of the “Morong 43.” Many other incidents take place underthe radar, from the militarization of barangays, to forced recruitment of community membersand indigenouspeoples, to the displacementof thousands by the indiscriminate use of force. And underpinningall of this, the violence, the deprivation, the destitution and despair, is the stop-and-start process that is the negotiationfor a lasting peace. It is appropriate, eight monthsafter the National Summit, to revisit the content of that event, the information gleaned, the discussions engaged in, the give-and-take, and the back-and- forth. It is imperative that we take a closer secondlook at the outputof that large group of professionals, from various backgroundsandinstitutions, who gathered togetherlast year to hammertogether and drive home, recommendations aimed at mitigating the horrorsof war, protectingcivilians and non-combatants, and thereby making true peace in our country,that much closer and that much morepossible. Allow meto express mydeep appreciation for the men and women,through whoseefforts this publication wascrafted and produced.Itis vital that the efforts ofyesterday, are not consigned merely to the back shelvesof ourefforts, but are built on and accumulated, so that they can enable an even moreeffective approach, going forward. iv