(Eagle News) — President Rodrigo Duterte announced he is pulling out members of the government’s peace panel negotiating with communist leaders in Rome and Oslo, as he cancels peace talks with the National Democratic Front.
In a talk with reporters in Davao City, late Saturday night, the President said he is not interested with arguing with the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) anymore, as the latter insisted on the release of the remaining 400 political prisoners.
Duterte directed members of the government’s peace panel to “to fold up the tents and come home.”
He said peace talks can resume only if “there is a compelling reason” to do so.
“Peace talks will remain cancelled unless there is a compelling reason that will benefit the interest of the nation,” he said during his visit to his parents’ tomb in Davao City.
This came about as the President expressed disgust that the New People’s Army rebels had been attacking and killing unarmed soldiers and government troops while the ceasefire was supposedly still in effect.
Three soldiers killed by the NPA rebels in Bukidnon were in civilian clothes and were unarmed, according to Captain Joe Patrick Martinez, spokesperson of the Philippine Army’s 4th Infantry Division.
Each of the soldiers killed had more than 20 bullet wounds each, or a total of 76 gunshot wounds.
Captain Norman Tagros, 403rd Infantry Brigade civic military operations officer, explained that the soldiers were just out “to secure some documentary requirements for a livelihood project that they were facilitating in the community” when they were stopped by the NPA rebels on their way from Malaybalay to Barangay Manalog.
Another junior army officer, 2nd Lieutenant Victor Alejo was killed by NPA rebels in in Sitio Paliwason, Lambog in Manay, Davao Oriental. He was part of a joint police and army team heading to Brgy. Lambog after they received information that the NPA rebels were intimidating residents in the area and forcing them to evacuate.
For the President, these killings of his troops were the last straw.
The government and NDF panels were still supposed to hold a special meeting in The Netherlands this month to talk about the bilateral ceasefire which is part of the agenda for the scheduled resumption of talks this April in Oslo, Norway.
The peace negotiators just concluded last month the third round of talks in Rome.
Shortly after this, the NPA rebels suddenly announced on February 1 that they are withdrawing from the August 28 unilateral ceasefire, claiming that this termination would take effect on February 10.
On that same day, February 1, they launched an attack that killed junior army officer Alejo in Davao Oriental. The NPA also admitted to have launched at least 20 attacks on government forces, including those doing community work, in the course of the ceasefire deal.
Because of the NPA attacks on unarmed soldiers, President Duterte decided to lift the ceasefire with the rebels on Friday night, and on Saturday night, also decided to cancel peace talks altogether. Before this, the CPP-NDF leaders said they still want peace talks to resume as scheduled in April.
-Duterte threatens to cancel passports of NDF negotiators-
The President on Saturday night also threatened to cancel the passports of the communist leaders he had released in August last year to attend peace talks in Oslo.
“They are in the wanted list, so I will alert the International Police to arrest them where they are because they are in [the] wanted list. I’ll cancel their passports,” Duterte said Saturday night.
He said said the NDF panelists, acting as the negotiating arm of the Communist Party of the Philippines, were only granted temporary freedom so they can fully participate in the ongoing peace talks which started in August last year in Oslo, Norway.
“They can return, all of them. For those released by the government, they should, on their own volition, return here and go back to prison. Or else I will be forced to, I am alerting all the intelligence community to keep track of where they are now,” he said.
The President said that the amnesty given to NDF negotiators would be revoked while peace talks are suspended.
“Yung na-release temporarily to talk with us in Oslo, they should come back and submit themselves to the jurisdiction of the government because they are still in prison. Walang pardon, walang amnesty, wala lahat,” he added.
Among the 23 communist officers and political prisoners released earlier by President Duterte were Wilma and Benito Tiamzon, Renante Gamara, Alan Jazmines, and Adelberto Silva.
The communist leaders are demanding the release of more than 400 political prisoners as condition for a binding peace agreement to be passed, claiming there was a promise made by Duterte earlier.
But Duterte said what he promised was only the release of the NDF peace panelists, and that the release of the 400 political prisoners could only happen after a peace deal had been forged.
“I never promised. I said leaders, that the leaders can go to Oslo to talk. You do not release all prisoners because they committed a crime along the way against the Republic of the Philippines,” the President said. “I would not be stupid in entering that kind of arrangement.”
“I tried everything. As you can see I walked the extra mile, released the prisoners, released their leaders so they could go to Oslo to talk. Now they want 400 plus prisoners who fought the government under a rebellion [to be released]? That is only given, common sense would tell you, after a successful talk,” Duterte said.
“Ako ginawa ko na ang lahat. Gumastos ang gobyerno. I released all the prisoners, they started with 18, now they came up with 23 leaders, and now its 400. Eh kung ganon mag-surrender na lang kami?” he added.
-Not interested in talking to communist leaders-
In cancelling the peace talks with the communists, the President said he is not interested in arguing with the CPP-NDF leaders anymore.
The CPP is chaired by 77-year old Jose Maria Sison who founded the CPP in 1968. He was also a former teacher of Duterte at the Lyceum of the Philippines.
“I am not interested in talking to them (the rebel leaders). I will refuse to talk about it anymore,” he told reporters.
“We have been fighting for 50 years. If you want to extend it for another 50 years, so be it, we will be happy to accommodate you.”
Duterte also directed soldiers to be ready to fight, and to prepare for a long war, after the communist rebels attacks on unarmed government troops doing community development work while a ceasefire was still in place.
“I told the soldiers to prepare for a long war. I said (peace) will not come during our generation,” he said late Saturday.
When asked if he was giving a deadline to the Armed Forces of the Philippines, the President said, “No, because I said the struggle might go on for 50 years.” He said he is leaving it up to the military on to operate against the communist rebels.
