GPH mulling new approach to revive talks with CPP-NPA-NDF

From the Philippine News Agency (Apr 29): GPH mulling new approach to revive talks with CPP-NPA-NDF

The Philippine Government is mulling on a new approach to pursue talks with the Communist Party of the Philippines, National Democratic Front and New People's Army (CPP/NDF/NPA) to peacefully resolve the armed conflict amid the impasse in the negotiations and the increasing violent activities of the rebels in the countryside.

Health Undersecretary Alex Padilla, chair of the government peace panel, said the government will be taking the approach called special track as proposed earlier by Jose Maria Sison, chair of the CPP.

He said the special track aims to hasten the negotiations through an agreement on a draft declaration on National Unity and Just Peace which would lead to an immediate ceasefire and creation of a Committee for National Unity, Peace and Development.

Padilla said the ST imposes no preconditions and would skirt the protracted process of the formal peace negotiations.

He recalled that in pursuing the special track, the government peace panel and the rebels met on Dec. 17-18, 2012 in The Netherlands where they agreed to discuss further a draft Declaration of National Unity and Just Peace prepared by Sison.

Padilla said that when the parties resumed the Special Track meeting on Feb. 25-26, 2013, the NDF proposed three new documents that backtracked from their original position on a Draft Declaration, particularly on ceasefire, which they now subjected to preconditions, instead of discussing the Sison draft.

"They also reverted to the prolonged and untenable process of the Regular Track," he said.

Padilla said that apart from the demand to free their detained consultants, the communists also demanded that the government abolish its peace and development programs, such as the Conditional Cash Transfer, PAMANA and Oplan Bayanihan.

He called these demands unbelievable.

"We don't want to engage in a negotiation where the other party is clearly fooling us," Padilla said.

He said that the communist rebels were the ones who initiated the special track and then abandoned it.

Padilla added the government no longer wants to return to the regular track (formal talks) because it has been going nowhere for the last 27 years.

He also reiterated the government's stance that it remains open to renewed talks under a new framework.

"We are always open to peace negotiations. But the other side has to do better than present endless roadblocks to formal talks. We need to see sincerity and political will on their part to seek peaceful ways to build consensus between them, the government and the whole of society and put an end to the senseless violence they are inflicting on our people especially on innocent civilians," Padilla said.

http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=2&sid=&nid=2&rid=520893