Army's 4th ID chief optimistic that government, rebels forge joint ceasefire

From the Philippine News Agency (Nov 28): Army's 4th ID chief optimistic that government, rebels forge joint ceasefire

A top military official here expressed optimism on Monday that the government and communist rebels would agree to a bilateral ceasefire as the Christmas holidays near.

Maj. Gen. Benjamin Madrigal, Jr., Army's 4th Infantry Division (4ID) commander, said that at present both government and rebels had separately declared a unilateral ceasefire as both parties observe a “defensive mode.”

Madrigal said that an official declaration of a joint unilateral ceasefire by the government and communist rebels would ensure the total suspension of combat operations by both sides during the holiday season.

He said the bilateral ceasefire comes with an effective mechanism like the creation of a monitoring committee to ensure that no armed violation would be committed by the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and New Peoples' Army during the observance of the cessation of hostilities.

“So far, peace is holding,” Madrigal said, as he hoped that the situation would sustain until Christmas time and even after December.

He said that everybody has benefited from the ongoing ceasefire as formal peace talks between the negotiators from both parties had been conducted in the past few weeks in Oslo, Norway.

Madrigal said he personally supports the peace negotiations between the government and the National Democratic Front (NDF, the umbrella organization of the leftists.

Madrigal also assured the rebels that the continued presence of soldiers in rural communities was only to implement the peace and development program of the military and the local governments.

The military top brass issued the statement in response to the rebel accusations that the Phil. Army was conducting surveillance and questioning residents in remote villages in Northern Mindanao.

Earlier, Capt. Joe Patrick Martinez, Army’s 4ID spokesperson, said that soldiers would only enter a community upon the invitation of the local officials.

Besides, the Army soldiers would only go to the communities in order to extend assistance in the form of infrastructure development and medical missions.

Martinez said that the AFP is ready to lend a helping hand because the military has the equipment and the expertise in implementing infrastructure projects.

http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=2&sid=&nid=2&rid=944038