MalacaƱang has expressed elation after the Philippine
government (GPH) and the National Democratic Front (NDF) agreed to an
accelerated timetable for peace talks.
”We are happy with the ongoing peace talks in Oslo, where
both parties have promised to complete the work on the comprehensive agreement
on socioeconomic reforms within six months,” Presidential Spokesperson Ernesto
Abella said in a press briefing at the Palace Friday.
Abella said GPH chairman and Labor Secretary Silvestro Bello
III considers the Comprehensive Agreement on Socio-Economic Reforms (CASER) the
“heart and soul” of the peace negotiations.
The CASER, according to Abella, would tackle issues such as
agrarian reform, national industrialization and foreign policy.
The accelerated timetable was agreed upon and submitted to
the GPH and NDF panels by their respective working committee and groups, which
held simultaneous discussions in the ongoing peace talks in Oslo , Norway .
"We, in the government panel, were surprised that the
RWC and RWGs came up with agreements in so short a time. Discussions only
lasted from nine minutes to 30 minutes. It was really morale-boosting for both
panels," Bello
said in a press statement.
The government RWC on CASER is led by Atty. Efren Moncupa, a
human rights lawyer and former political detainee, while his counterpart is
Juliet de Lima-Sison, member of the NDF negotiating panel.
Bello said the GPH-NDF Working Committees on CASER will hold
their first meeting in October to discuss the framework and outline of the
CASER, their work schedule and methods of work.
The RWGs on Political and Constitutional Reforms (PCR), for
their part, agreed to hold their first meeting also in Oslo in synchronization with the RWC on CASER
in October.
The RWG on the End of Hostilities and Disposition of Forces
(EoH-DF) meanwhile agreed to present their respective draft outlines for a
Comprehensive Agreement on the substantive issue on Oct. 24 or the next
scheduled Panel meeting, whichever comes first.
"We are right on schedule and the talks are proceeding
smoothly. We expect a final peace agreement after one year so we can devote
five more years of President Rodrigo Duterte's term in implementing the reforms
agreed upon by both parties," he said.
http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=1&sid=&nid=1&rid=917572
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