Philippine Daily Inquirer

GOV’T SETS NEW CONDITIONS FOR TALKS WITH REDS

- By Jeannette I. Andrade @jiandradeI­NQ —WITH REPORTS FROM DELFIN T. MALLARI JR., JULIE M. AURELIO, FRINSTON LIM, FATE COLOBONG, IANNA GAYLE AGUS ANDAP

The government has set new conditions for the resumption of peace talks that are likely to be rejected by the communist rebels, including holding negotiatio­ns in the country, dimming the prospect of a settlement of the nearly 50-year-old insurgency under President Duterte.

“The doors for the resumption of peace talks with the NDFP (National Democratic Front of the Philippine­s) are still open,” presidenti­al peace adviser Jesus Dureza said in a statement on Thursday.

In addition to holding the talks in the Philippine­s, rather than abroad as has been done since 1992, Dureza said the resumption would be subject to other “wishes of the President.”

The other conditions were no power-sharing or a coalition government with the communist rebels, a stop to their revolution­ary tax collection, and a ceasefire agreement requiring the New People’s Army (NPA) encamped in designated areas.

Local initiative­s

Dureza also said that while both sides awaited the resumption of formal talks, local officials could initiate peace negotiatio­ns with insurgents in their areas.

The conditions were finalized in a meeting with top military and police officials on Wednesday night, Dureza said.

The rebels have repeatedly rejected holding talks in the country and their position has been affirmed in a 1995 agreement under then President Fidel Ramos to negotiate in a neutral country while giving security and immunity guarantees to negotia- tors of both sides and their staff.

In response, the Communist Party of the Philippine­s (CPP) said Dureza’s statement that the doors remained open for the talks “is an outright lie” intended to smokescree­n the government’s repeated terminatio­n of the negotiatio­ns.

The CPP said Mr. Duterte formally ended the peace talks through a presidenti­al proclamati­on last November. This was followed by another proclamati­on last December declaring the CPP and NPA terrorists or- ganization­s. Both proclamati­ons have not been rescinded.

By demanding to hold talks in the Philippine­s, “Duterte is driving another nail to completely shut down the NDFP-GRP peace talks,” the CPP said, adding that the condition was “unacceptab­le and unworkable for the NDFP.”

Martial law conditions?

“By completely shutting the door to the negotiatio­ns, Duterte is laying down the conditions for imposing martial law or a general crackdown, use the terror pro- scription against the CPP and NPA against his critics and dissenters against his tyranny, and push Charter change for pseudo-federalism to perpetuate himself in power,” the CPP added.

Presidenti­al spokespers­on Harry Roque said there was no such intention.

“The President has no plans to declare nationwide martial law. He has said it would be problemati­c,” Roque said.

He also said Norway, which had been brokering the talks, could still help “any which way they want” but no longer as third-party facilitato­r.

But Dureza said Mr. Duterte had “expressed his wish that Norway continues as facilitato­r in the event peace talks are resumed.

Sison statement

In a separate statement, CPP founding chair Jose Maria Sison, the chief political consultant for the NDFP in the talks, said they would consider returning to the negotiatin­g table only if Mr. Duterte revokes his two proclamati­ons, respects all accords reached by the two sides since 1992, and agrees to holding the talks in a foreign neutral venue.

He denied that the rebels had demanded a coalition government or that the rebels had a three-year plan to oust the President by October this year, referring to a claim by Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana, which he dismissed was “a mere fabricatio­n.”

The rural-based insurgency, which has raged since 1969, has left about 40,000 combatants and civilians dead, hampered security and economic developmen­t in the impoverish­ed countrysid­e for nearly half a century.

The NPA reached a peak strength of about 25,000 in the mid-1980s, but its ranks have since thinned due to surrenders, battle casualties and splits in the communist movement in the 1990s.

The military has estimated that only about 4,000 guerrillas were left, but a recent military statement seemed to contradict that figure.

Military spokespers­on Col. Edgard Arevalo last week said the NPA had lost 7,531 fighters, most of them by surrenderi­ng to the government, in the first six months this year.

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 ?? —DENNIS JAY SANTOS ?? NPA ENCAMPMENT One of the government conditions announced by presidenti­al adviser on the peace process Jesus Dureza (left) for the resumption of peace talks with communist rebels is a ceasefire agreement requiring the encampment of New People’s Army fighters (right) in designated areas.
—DENNIS JAY SANTOS NPA ENCAMPMENT One of the government conditions announced by presidenti­al adviser on the peace process Jesus Dureza (left) for the resumption of peace talks with communist rebels is a ceasefire agreement requiring the encampment of New People’s Army fighters (right) in designated areas.
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