Termination of UP-DND accord stays – Teodoro

From Malaysia Business Insight (Jun 9, 2023): Termination of UP-DND accord stays – Teodoro (By Jocelyn Montemayor)

DEFENSE Secretary Gilberto Teodoro, Jr. yesterday said he will neither reverse the decision of his predecessor to terminate the accord between the University of the Philippines (UP) and the Department of National Defense (DND) requiring prior notification for military and police operations in the campus, nor support any law that would institutionalize such move.

“That has been a policy already done by my predecessor and I do not want to reverse the policy,” Teodoro said in a briefing in Malacañang, quickly adding: “But that does not mean to say that I am not mindful of the autonomy of the University of the Philippines.”

The newly installed defense chief, however, reminded law enforcement members to be respectful and mindful of the balance between the freedom of expression and protecting peace.

The 1989 UP-DND accord, which required prior notification before police and military personnel can enter and conduct operations inside the state university’s campuses nationwide, was unilaterally terminated by former DND chief Delfin Lorenzana in 2021, saying that UP cannot be given special consideration or be compared to a demilitarized zone.

Lorenzana also said that because of the agreement, UP campuses have become free recruitment hubs of communist groups.

A UP alumnus himself, Teodoro said he was not open to supporting legislative proposals to revive and institutionalize the cancelled agreement, saying that the state university should not be singled out by the government since insurgent groups have also been targeting other universities and schools to recruit new members.

UP students have been calling for the passage of House Bill No. 10171 and Senate Bill No. 249 seeking to institutionalize the UP-DND accord.

The measures both proposes that state security forces, such as the Philippine National Police (PNP) and Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), be prohibited from entering and carrying out their duties in any UP campus without first notifying “the President or the Chancellor of the constituent university or the dean of the regional unit concerned,” except in urgent situations such as “hot pursuit and similar occasions or emergencies.”

NO PEACE TALKS

Teodoro also reiterated on Thursday that he is personally against the resumption of peace talks between the government and the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army- National Democratic Front of the Philippines (CPP-NPA-NDFP).

He said as far as he knows, this is also the position of the security cluster of the Marcos administration, but he has yet to consult with President Marcos Jr. on the administration’s official stand on the matter.

Teodoro said that as far as he is concerned, there is no need for peace talks since the government is always open to those who want to surrender and return to folds of law which is what the members of the CPP-NPA-NDFP should do.

He said they may also seek help from the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace, Reconciliation, and Unity (OPAPRU) that oversees the welfare of those who had already surrendered and went back to the folds of the law.

He said rebels who would surrender and return to the folds of society may also form their own political party to be more involved in the “legitimate political process.”

“Pwede naman nating pag-usapan iyong mga isyu na iyan sa tamang forum – iyan ay ang Kongreso – at sumanib sila sa legitimate political process. Hindi naman bawal ang CPP eh. Republic Act 1700 was repealed long ago. Pero iyong indirect at direct support sa armadong pakikibaka, iyan ang problema (We can talk of the issues at the right forum – Congress – so they should join the legitimate political process. CPP is not banned, Republic Act 1700 was repealed long ago. But indirect and direct support for armed movement is the problem),” he added.

The government, under then President Rodrigo Duterte, had initially held peace talks with the CPP-NPA-NDFP until the talks collapsed due to alleged lack of sincerity on the side of communist rebels who continued to attack government forces despite the negotiations.

The Duterte government later on designated the groups as terrorists.

https://malaya.com.ph/news_news/termination-of-up-dnd-accord-stays-teodoro/