PH gov’t yet to terminate Jasig, Tiamzon couple covered—peace group

By: Kristine Angeli Sabillo - 10 years ago

Rey Casambre (left), executive director of the Philippine Peace Center (PPC), together with other officers of PPC, talks to the media about Jasig and the Tiamzon couple. KRISTINE ANGELI SABILLO

MANILA, Philippines – Benito Tiamzon and his wife Wilma, alleged top officers of the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP), are still covered by the Joint Agreement on Safety and Immunity Guarantees (Jasig), which has yet to be terminated by the government of the Philippines (GPH), a peace organization said Wednesday.

“The Jasig remains in effect to this day,” Rey Casambre, executive director of the Philippine Peace Center, told media.

This is contrary to Justice Secretary Leila De Lima’s pronouncements that the Tiamzon couple cannot be covered by the Jasig and if they were, the Jasig was still not in effect because of the stalled peace negotiations.

The Jasig was signed in 1995 by the Philippine government and the National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP) to provide for the safety and immunity guarantees of those involved in the peace negotiations.

Casambre pointed out the Jasig may only be terminated by either party through an “an official notice of termination to the other Party, and shall be considered terminated 30 days after receipt of the other party.”

“No party can terminate the talks merely by announcing it over the media,” he said, adding that both parties must agree to the termination.

Benito and Wilma Tiamzon were arrested on Saturday in Cebu. The military claimed Benito was the chair of the CPP, as well as its military arm the New People’s Army (NPA), and Wilma the head of its finance committee.

The couple, however, said they were National Democratic Front consultants.

Casambre further said that the couple not being physically or visibly present in the peace negotiations did not mean that they should not be covered by the Jasig.

“The NDF is an underground organization…Many of the consultations being conducted by the NDF are done in guerrilla areas beyond observation by the GPH,” he said.

As in the case of Wilma Austria Tiamzon, Casambre said any NDF consultant released from detention “and return to the underground to resume one’s functions including those in relation to the peace negotiations remain duly accredited or Jasig-protected.”

Meanwhile, individuals facing criminal cases should still be covered by the Jasig since the agreement provides that, “In all cases involving duly accredited persons, the prosecutors shall move for the suspension, during the peace negotiations, of criminal proceedings or processes including arrest and search, for acts allegedly committed prior to the effectivity of this Joint Agreement.”

Casambre said the Philippine government is now in violation of the Jasig by arresting the Tiamzon couple.

He explained that the Jasig has a crucial role in the peace talks.

“Without the Jasig, persons involved in the negotiations would always feel or actually be under a cloud of threat and would be unable to perform their functions freely. The negotiations would always be at risk of being disrupted and totally jeopardize,” he said.

On the other hand, Casambre pointed out that both the government and the NDFP have been stating that they are open to continuation of peace negotiations.