WELL, it seems “peace talks” are back again as the “flavor of the month”, six years after then President Rodrigo Duterte scrapped it as the government’s main negotiating tool with the Communist Party of the Philippines / New People’s Army / National Democratic Front (CPP/NPA/NDF) to end this more than 50 years of insurgency as it was proven that the communists are just using the “peace talks” and accompanying cessation of military operations to regroup, recruit and strengthen their dwindling forces.
Time and time again, the government are at a disadvantage as the top commanders of the CPP/NPA/NDF move freely and cannot be arrested ostensibly as “peace talks consultants”; meanwhile they continue their ambushes and cowardly attacks on police/military personnel who are caught off guard because of the ongoing “peace talks”. Until then President Duterte stopped those “peace talks” in The Netherlands and decided to do local peace engagements directly with the people on the ground, not some “demi-god” in Europe.
The local peace initiatives seem to work well, from a high of 89 guerilla fronts, 69 were dismantled, leaving one active in Northern Samar, six weakened guerilla fronts in Luzon, seven also weakened in the Visayas and six in Mindanao. And even as we speak those numbers were already reduced by more than half and with hundreds of “fighters” surrendering with their weapons almost every day.
And then this happened:
Upon the instruction of President Marcos, Presidential Adviser on Peace, Reconciliation and Unity Secretary Carlito Galvez Jr. announced that the government of the Republic of the Philippines and the NDF have affirmed and signed the Oslo Joint Communiqué on Nov. 23, where they agreed to a “principled and peaceful resolution of the armed conflict resolving the roots of the armed conflict and ending the arm struggle” which shall pave the way for the transformation of the Communist Party of the Philippines – New People’s Army – National Democratic Front.
The joint statement was a product of a series of informal discussions held in The Netherlands and Norway starting in 2022 between the emissaries of the GRP-NDFP with the presentation of the Royal Norwegian Government.
Galvez said after the joint agreement, they will come up with a framework that will set the parameters. The final peace agreement will then follow.
The timing is uncanny; it came at a time when the government is on the verge of winning this 50-year insurgency and the CPP/NPA/NDF running out of bullets, food and dying of diseases in the hinterlands, plus they’re running out “useful idiots” in the urban areas. At first glance it would seem the government is again taken for a ride, giving the insurgents the much-needed rest and resuscitation to regroup and continue the armed struggle for another 50 years.
Perhaps we should take comfort in this statement from National Security Adviser Eduardo Año – that he would not recommend a ceasefire because the CPP-NPA are engaged in violent activities.
There will be no holiday ceasefire and the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) will continue its military and non-military operations against communist rebels, as well as deliver services and bring development projects to far-flung areas under the whole-of-nation approach with no changes.
Año noted that the NDF’s demand or request that the CPP-NPA’s terror tag be removed is premature since that will require a process and it will have to be clear first that they want to abandon the armed struggle.
Along with this, the President issued Proclamation No. 404 granting amnesty to former members of the CPP/NPA/NDF who committed crimes punishable under the Revised Penal Code/Special Penal laws because of their political beliefs.
Anyway, let’s give peace a chance, hopefully this time it will work./PN
