Gov't panel chair cites role of military, police in GPH-NDF peace talks

Davao City, Mar. 18 – Government chief negotiator Alexander Padilla on Thursday underlined the role of the military and police in pursuing a negotiated political settlement with the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army-National Democratic Front (CPP-NPA-NDF). Joining Padilla were Government of the Philippines (GPH) panel members Jurgette Honculada, Lourdes Tizon and Ednar Dayanghirang.

The armed struggle pursued by the CPP-NPA-NDF is one of Asia’s longest running insurgencies, causing untold death and destruction over four decades, and stunting the country’s economic growth.

In a consultation with top officials and local commanders of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and the Philippine National Police (PNP) at the Commission on Audit headquarters here, Padilla shared the results of the GPH-NDF formal talks held on February 15-21 in Oslo, Norway. The Davao consultation is the third that the peace panel has conducted with the AFP and PNP to ensure continuing dialogue and cooperation in support of the peace process with the CPP-NPA-NDF.

Providing updates were MGen. Arthur Tabaquero, head of the Eastern Mindanao Command (EASTMINCOM) and PDir. Victorino S. Panganiban, Jr., head of the Directorate for Integrated Police Operations (DIPO) – Eastern Mindanao. Also present was BGen. Reynaldo Ordonez, Senior Military Adviser for the GPH Panel.

The call for peace resonates among military’s rank with Panganiban quoting one soldier thus: “We, soldiers and police, want peace the most because it is we who do the fighting, who risk life and limb for the cause we believe in.” Tabaquero said, “We must always nurture in our minds that peace talks and the peace process, no matter how long and tedious, give us hope as a nation.”

Padilla stressed the active participation of the military and police in generating and nurturing ‘new spaces’ for peace building. “Our security forces can get involved in community dialogues, promotion and protection of human rights, peace and order keeping, reform advocacy, among others,” he said.

Padilla underscored the need for military and police in closely coordinating with the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process (OPAPP) and the negotiating panel in implementing AFP and PNP policies and programs that have direct impact on the peace talks, such as the AFP Internal Peace and Security Plan (IPSP) and the PNP Internal Security Operation (ISO) Campaign Plan.

He also said that the security forces’ implementation of the Suspension of Military Operations (SOMO) and Suspension of Police Operations (SOPO) also contributes to moving the peace talks forward as this helps create a conducive environment for negotiations.

“We want to know how the military and the police think in relation to the peace process. We want to know how we can be of help to each other,” he related. “It has been an opening and welcoming experience for us to be talking to our uniformed and armed personnel both from the police and the military.”

Peace settlement as only alternative

Padilla said the government and the NDF have agreed to complete the agreements on the substantive agenda in 18 months. Agenda items include socio-economic reforms, political and constitutional reforms, and cessation of hostilities and disposition of forces.

Despite some doubts that a peace deal cannot be signed by both parties in the given timeframe, Padilla remains optimistic that “now is the best time for them (NDF) to negotiate” because there is no other option in ending the 42-year-old armed conflict but to pursue a peace agreement. “We believe in two things: the insurgency cannot be won by armed might, and the CPP-NPA-NDF cannot win by armed struggle. The only alternative is to negotiate a political settlement,” he said.#