(Eagle News) — President Rodrigo Duterte on Wednesday said he would grant amnesty to the communists who have been waging a war in the countryside for decades.
This, however, is “with the concurrence of Congress” and if “magkaayusan tayo.”
“I’ll (do that). This is not a wild guess but makakaya kong makuha ito. We are talking with the (New People’s Army) so there’s no more killing,” he told a crowd during the People’s Day celebration in Oriental Mindoro.
The NPA is the armed wing of the Communist Party of the Philippine, which announced in a statement on Saturday that it was set to declare a unilateral ceasefire not later than March 31, before the resumption of peace talks in April between the Philippine government (GRP) and the National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP).
The fourth round of peace talks are slated from April 2 to 6 in the Netherlands.
In the statement, the CPP added it “looks forward to a similar unilateral ceasefire declaration by the GRP as mutually agreed upon in the March 10-11 backchannel talks.”
Duterte had said he would first consult with leaders of Congress and the National Security Council before deciding how to respond to the ceasefire.
“Ngayon gusto niyo ng ceasefire, fine. I can walk the extra mile. My job as President is to seek peace for my land. It is not my duty, it is not even part of the presidency to wage a war against people,” Duterte said.
He then urged the NPAs to leave their life of war behind.
“This fight against the NPAs, the (Moro Islamic Liberation Front), the (Moro National Liberation Front), has been going on for the last 50 years. Unless we are ready to fight for another 50 years passing on to the next generation the violence and agony we have suffered. Kayo. Hindi sa lahat ng panahon magigiyera tayo. Kalokohan to,” he said.
