DND urges communist rebels to seek peace

Luis Jalandoni

MANILA, Philippines –The Department of National Defense on Tuesday expressed optimism that other armed groups will be the next to sign a peace pact with the government, following the signing of the framework agreement with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front.

“We hope that the CPP-NPA-NDF and other armed groups will follow suit in the ongoing peace talks headed by Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process,” DND spokesman Dr. Peter Paul Galvez told reporters.

Meanwhile, the Communist Party of the Philippines should not go back to negotiations with the government with uncertainties, said Luis Jalandoni, Chairperson of the National Democratic Front of the Philippines Negotiating Panel in a statement earlier.

“The propaganda of the GPH on the signing of this Framework next week is to pressure the NDFP to agree on a ceasefire and resume formal GPH-NDFP peace negotiations, without complying with basic binding GRP/GPH bilateral agreements such as the Joint Agreement on Safety and Immunity Guarantees (Jasig) and the Comprehensive Agreement on Respect for Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law (Carhrihl). The Jasig requires the GPH to release 13 NDFP Consultants in GRP prisons. The Carhrihl requires the release of political prisoners who have been charged, detained or convicted for common crimes in violation of the Hernandez political offense doctrine. There are some 385 political prisoners, 107 of them arrested and detained under the current Aquino regime,” he said.

He also said there were other points to be considered under the newly signed agreement between the government and the MILF.

“There are still major points to be negotiated, namely power sharing, wealth sharing, transitional arrangements and modalities, and normalization. These have to be negotiated in detail and put down in four annexes which will form part of the Framework Agreement,” he said.

The Framework Agreement between the government of the Philippines and the MILF was signed Monday in Malacañang.

The Bangsamoro political entity will replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao under the framework agreement.