Sison must face music, says Palace

He is welcome to come home to avail of his constitutional right to confront his accusers and prepare for his defense

Communist leader Jose Maria Sison must end his self-exile and come home to face his multiple charges pending before a Manila court, Malacañang said on Friday.

Presidential spokesperson Salvador Panelo made the remark after the Manila Regional Trial Court (RTC) Branch 32S issued warrants for the arrest of Sison and 30 others for the 2006 discovery of a mass grave in Inopacan, Leyte that purportedly contained the remains of victims of the alleged purging orchestrated by the New People’s Army (NPA) in the 1980s.

“Mr. Sison should unchain himself from his exile and face the music. His elusive, if not illusory, dream of wresting political power from the present dispensation should give way to a principled and courageous stand to face trial,” Panelo said in a statement.

“He is welcome to come home to avail of his constitutional right to confront his accusers and prepare for his defense,” he added.

The Palace official likewise said the government will make sure to implement the arrest order as it echoes the calls of the victims’ families for justice.

“The law is no respecter of any transgressor and prosecution, therefore, must proceed in accordance thereof. Mr. Sison, et al. will have their day in court,” noted Panelo.

“We are one with the families and loved ones of the victims in calling for justice, the warrant of arrest shall be served as directed upon us by the Judiciary,” he concluded. Sison, founding chairman of the Communist Party of the Philippines, went on an exile to the Netherlands after peace talks with the government of then-President Corazon Aquino bogged down in 1987 and has not stepped on Philippine soil since.