Officials warn peace process could be jeopardized by NPA attacks

From the Business World (Feb 1): Officials warn peace process could be jeopardized by NPA attacks

TOP government officials on Tuesday expressed alarm over the recent attacks allegedly carried out by the New People’s Army (NPA), the armed wing of the united communist movement under the National Democratic Front (NDF) that is in peace talks with the state.

Reports of encounters between armed rebels and state forces came on the heels of the third round of peace talks in Rome that negotiators described as a “success.”

In a statement issued yesterday, Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Spokesperson Col. Edgard A. Arevalo said field reports indicate that members of the NPA have launched “planned and coordinated attacks” against military personnel from different army units.

Such attacks, Mr. Arevalo said, include ambushes and abductions of soldiers in various locations in the country on Jan. 29 and 30.

“This is a disturbing development. We have reported these unfortunate incidents to the Office of the Presidential Assistant on the Peace Process (OPAPP),” he said, adding that they have also demanded the release of Erwin Salan of 30th Infantry Battalion, who was reportedly abducted at gunpoint by alleged members of the NPA.

“We urge them to stop attacking the soldiers. Those acts violate their own cease-fire declaration. Those acts are actually assault to the communities and its people who sought for the assistance of the army in improving their lives,” the AFP spokesperson said.

For his part, Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process Jesus G. Dureza said in a separate statement that the government is “distressed and extremely disturbed” by these recent attacks by alleged “elements” of the NPA in various areas nationwide amid an ongoing unilateral cease-fire.

“Either some in the [NDF] leadership talking to the government are not in full control of their own forces on the ground, or they are themselves undermining these efforts for sustainable peace, or pressuring government for certain concessions,” said Mr. Dureza.

Before the new round of talks started in Rome, the NDF had cautioned that government troops on the ground were jeopardizing the five-month-old unilateral cease-fire. The organization also expressed frustration over what it called the government’s “broken promises,” including the release of around 400 political detainees.

President Rodrigo R. Duterte, who describes himself as a socialist, has expressed commitment to ending one of Asia’s longest-running insurgencies.

He called for a resumption of the peace process soon after taking office in June last year and appointed three leftists to his Cabinet.

http://www.bworldonline.com/content.php?section=Nation&title=officials-warn-peace-process-could-be-jeopardized-by-npa-attacks&id=139939