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TALKS BETWEEN the government and communists have been suspended over the latter’s demands of prisoner release, an official said yesterday.
In an effort to break the stalemate, Alex A. Padilla, head of the government peace panel, has scheduled a meeting on Aug. 8 with Fidel Agcaoili, panel member of the National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP), to clarify positions and possibly reschedule a resumption of talks for the comprehensive agreement on social and economic reforms (CASER).
NDFP is the political arm of the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP).
Based on the agreed time line, the talks should have been held on Aug. 2-4 to hammer out the CASER. This was postponed, as was the previous meeting in July, given renewed demand from the rebels to release 17 of their “peace consultants.”
To date, the government has released four political prisoners, namely, Angelina Ipong, Jovencio Balweg, Maria Luisa Purcray and Jaime Soledad, and is currently reviewing the files on the rest.
“We finished with the draft [CASER]. It’s subject to Cabinet review, but we’ve asked the NDF to schedule conference in August and September. Unfortunately they postponed it… They’ve put prisoner release as a condition, and this we do not subscribe to or agree with,” said Mr. Padilla in a phone interview.
“If they keep delaying CASER, if it reaches until the end of the year, [our conclusion will be that they are] not interested in the peace talks…,” he added.
Mr. Padilla said there should be no “precondition” to the talks, noting that prisoner releases should be verified with the communist leadership in exile in Utrecht, Netherlands in line with the Joint Agreement on Safety and Immunity Guarantees.
“They were supposed to have placed 85-95 names in a safety deposit box, with pictures… but there were no photographs… [What the government panel representative saw] was a diskette that was seven years old, walang makita sa loob, wala kaming na-verify [we retrieved nothing, we verified nothing] and without verification, it’s not covered under [JASIG].
If there is no satisfactory agreement during the meeting on Monday, Mr. Padilla said he will have to consult with the Presidential Adviser for the Peace Process Teresita Q. Deles and perhaps the security cluster and President Benigno S. C. Aquino III.
He is having doubts, however, on the period to reach a final peace deal.
“We have a timetable of three years. By 2013 we should have completed the final negotiating settlement, and before that it is within time-bound agreement, kung matuloy man [if it is followed]. The CASER, September will no longer be the date [of completion], konting [so there will be a little] delay, [but] we’ll see,” said Mr. Padilla.
Ms. Deles, who met with the President yesterday, could not be reached for comment.
In Tacloban City, the military said soldiers from the 20th Infantry Battalion (IB) rescued two minors who were forcibly recruited by the communists from a rebel camp in the hinterland villages of Northern Samar.
Lt. Col. Noel A. Vestuir, 20th IB commanding officer, said a 16-year-old girl and her seven-year-old younger brother were among the minors who were allegedly recruited by a certain Jerome.
“They were brought to an NPA (New People’s Army) encampment located in the mountainous area of Barangay Mabuhay where… they were indoctrinated with the communist ideology and given a series of lectures on communism,” Mr. Vestuir said. The NPA is the CPP’s military arm.
They were allegedly not allowed to go home and threatened that their families would be killed if they inform on NPA activities.
“They were scheduled to take their oath as regular members of the New People’s Army last July 2. However, the said oath taking ceremony did not materialize after the troops of Charlie Company of 20IB raided the communists’ encampment in Barangay Mabuhay,” Mr. Vestuir said.
As this developed, the NDF-Eastern Visayas dismissed the allegations of using minors in their war against the government.
“It’s an old hat. The NPA has long been complying with the Geneva Conventions and other aspects of international humanitarian law,” Santiago Salas, the group’s spokesperson, said in a statement.
“The NPA recruits Red fighters who are at least 18 years old as regular combatants, and any claims to the contrary by the military have all been found to be untrue,” he added.
Salas further said that the minors claimed by the military to be rebel recruits were children of ordinary peasants or coerced relatives of Red fighters.
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By: Johanna Paola D. Poblete and Reyan L. Arinto
Source: Business World, Aug. 4, 2011
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