Duterte: NPA next after Marawi
MANILA — President Rodrigo Duterte practically slammed the door on further peace talks with communist rebels and ordered the Armed Forces to train its sights on the New People’s Army once it defeats extremist gunmen in Marawi City.
Duterte bared his decision in a speech to government forces during his visit to Marawi on Thursday, his first to the war-torn Lanao del Sur capital since the start of the fighting that prompted him to place Mindanao under martial law on May 23.
Earlier, he had ordered government negotiators to drop backchannel talks scheduled this weekend with the National Democratic Front of the Philippines, which represents the communists, after five personnel of the Presidential Security Group were wounded and a militiaman killed in an incident involving the NPA in Arakan, Cotabato Wednesday.
From an earlier offer to help combat extremists, which security and defense officials turned down, the communists have since taken a more belligerent attitude and ordered more attacks on government targets citing intensified military operations against the NPA and even hinterland civilian communities since Duterte declared martial law.
“Ayaw ko nang makipag-usap sa kanila. Marami na akong sundalo na pinatay nila. Marami na akong pulis na pinatay nila,” Duterte declared in Marawi.
“Huwag kayo masyadong magkumpiyansa kasi there is a strong resurgence. Nabubuhay na naman ang NPA,” he told the troops.
“Pagkatapos nito… pagkatapos niyong makuha ‘yung mga ulol d’yan (sa Marawi), mag-reorient tayo, NPA naman kasi marami silang utang sa atin,” he added.
Pointing the recent killing by rebel assassins of two Marines returning from marketing in Palawan, Duterte said: “Mabuti nalang na sa Republika tayo kung hindi.”
Reacting to Duterte’s statement, the Communist Party of the Philippines, through its information bureau, noted that, “in the first place, the AFP (Armed Forces of the Philippines) did not stop attacking the NPA.”
“Napakarami nang masang pinatay dahil lang pinaparatang ang sumusuporta sa NPA,” it added.
The CPP acknowledged that the NPA was picking up the pace of attacks across the country but said this was “dahil nagpapatuloy ang kaapihan at pagsasamantala sa kanila sa ilalim ng rehimeng Duterte.”
At the same time, the CPP doubted Duterte would see the end of the violence that began in Marawi.
“Masuwerte siya kung matapos niya ang giyera niya sa Marawi. Ngayon pa lang napakaraming Moro ang nag–aarmas sa paghahangad na labanan ang ginawang pang wawasak sa kanila,” the CPP said.
It also reminded Duerte that “kahit sa panahon ng idolo niyang si (Ferdinand) Marcos hindi napigilan ang pagsulong ng armado ng rebolusyon ng mamamayang Pilipino at Moro (even during the time of his idol Marcos the progress of the armed revolution of the Filipino people and the Moro could not be stopped).”
But Duterte’s peace adviser, Jesus Dureza, cautioned against interpreting the chief executive’s words to mean the peace talks were being scuttled.
“Take his exact statement as is please,” Dureza said in a statement. “Let’s not interpret.”
“I have not heard him say categorically ‘talks over or terminated,’ did he? What is clear now is that the scheduled backchannel meeting to work on (the) possible resumption of (the) suspended fifth round was cancelled,” Dureza said.
The government peace panel decided not to sit at the negotiating table for the fifth round of formal talks, scheduled for May 27-June 2 in The Netherlands after the Communist Party of the Philippines ordered the NPA to intensify attacks in reaction to the declaration of martial law.