Joma: Aquino sabotaging peace talks

LUCENA CITY—President Aquino is trying to sabotage the reopening of peace talks by blaming the communist rebels for the collapse of the negotiations in 2013, exiled Communist Party of the Philippines founder Jose Maria “Joma” Sison said on Saturday.

In an online interview, Sison said Mr. Aquino was making a “futile attempt to cast doubt or intrigue that may scuttle the reopening of the peace talks in July.”

Sison said the President was “spinning lies” to justify the breakdown of the peace negotiations with the National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP) during his term.

Sison denied that he had sought a personal meeting with Mr. Aquino in Hanoi in 2013 after the President  met with Moro Islamic Liberation Front leader Murad Ebrahim in Tokyo in 2011.

He said it was Mr. Aquino’s political adviser, Ronald Llamas, who proposed the meeting in Vietnam.

In October 2010, the Aquino administration expressed its desire to revive the peace talks which were aborted during the Arroyo administration, with the formation of a new panel to talk to the NDFP.

In February 2011, the two parties met in Norway but failed to reach a settlement, particularly on such issues as the release of detained communist insurgents and the declaration of a longer ceasefire. The peace process has not moved since then.

Both parties tried to revive the negotiations through back channels and exploratory talks but failed until the government terminated negotiations in April 2013.

The rebels blamed the government for not honoring the previous agreements, leading to the collapse of the talks./rga