Support for peace talks between gov’t and communists rebels continues to snowball

From the Philippine News Agency (Aug 5): Support for peace talks between gov’t and communists rebels continues to snowball

Support for the continuation of peace talks between the government and the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People's Army-National Democratic Front (CPP-NPA-NDF) continues to snowball.

Domingo B. Alidon, president of the Department of Education National Employees’ Union (DepEd NEU) and member of the Yes for Peace – Bayanihan ng Bayan Technical Working Group, declared support to President Rodrigo R. Duterte’s challenge for marathon peace talks with the NDF to start on August 20 despite his lifting of the unilateral ceasefire he declared during his first State of the Nation Address (SONA).

Aside from the conduct of marathon peace talks, Johnny Balawag, chairman of the National Board of Directors of the 20,000-strong DepEd NEU, suggested that the peace talks, wherever it may be held, be live streamed over social media.

"This will enable all stakeholders to keep abreast of developments as well as review what has transpired whenever they want or need to through social media,” Balawag said.

The DepEd NEU National Executive Committee and National Board of Directors unanimously reiterated its support to Yes for Peace – Bayanihan ng Bayan.

"We will simply go for it without reservations,” Fidel Salosagcol, DepEd NEU public relations officer, said.

Mama S. Lalanto, al Haj, adviser of Yes for Peace and a a member of the board of directors of the Philippine Postal Corporation, said that Yes for Peace has, through the years been anchored on the three principles of the peace process laid down by former President Fidel V. Ramos.

Particularly, “a comprehensive peace process should be community-based, reflecting the sentiments, values and principles important to all Filipinos. Thus, it shall be defined not by the government alone, nor by the different contending groups only, but by all Filipinos as one community,” she said. 

Meanwhile, Gen. Rhoderick M. Parayno, commanding general of the Community Relations Service of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, said: “Peace should be everybody's aspiration and not just by the government because peace benefits everyone except those who work against it. Many of the NPA combatants, we know, are longing to rejoin society to be reunited with their families.”

Yes for Peace – Bayanihan ng Bayan is the offshoot of a comprehensive review of the Yes for Peace – Bayanihan para sa KKK (Kapayapaan, Kaunlaran at Kasaganahan).

This, after the 10 million target set in an inter-agency memorandum of undertaking entered into by the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process, the Department of Education, the Philippine Postal Corporation, the Philippine Information Agency, the National Printing Office, the Alpha Phi Omega, the Boy Scouts of the Philippines and the Girl Scouts of the Philippines was exceeded early this year.

According to its website -- yesforpeace.com – 12,290,656 Filipinos, 10 years and older, or 122.90 percent of the 10-million target have thus far participated in the education and advocacy campaign.The cumulative results of Yes for Peace since it was initiated in the University of the Philippines System in 1988 was symbolically turned over to the previous administration during the programme of the EDSA 30 celebration.

The campaign was described as the new face of people power by the EDSA People Power Commission that organized the annual event to commemorate the day when the collective action of the Filipino people led to a non-electoral change of government.     

However, the need for all Filipinos to take part in the comprehensive peace process remains and thus, Yes for Peace was reviewed by members of the campaign’s technical working group from different partner agencies to realign and reformulate the questions to the policy statements of President Rodrigo Duterte.

http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=2&sid=&nid=2&rid=910882