Tag: peace talks

Posted on

On the PNP’s No-Ceasefire Stance on the NPA

I support the PNP on this. The CPP/NPA is almost a spent force – thanks to the efforts of former President Rodrigo Duterte and the security forces during his term as president.

We should not squander those gains by giving them – already designated as a terrorist group – another breathing space to regroup and reconsolidate their strength to fight and overthrow the duly constituted authority which is their ONLY agenda in the first place.

If they surrender peacefully and unconditionally, they should be treated humanely and justly as fellow Filipinos. Otherwise, government should remain hard on them.

*****

Posted on

Peace Talks with Rebels to Continue under Lacson Presidency

Peace talks with communist rebels – combined with the development of areas cleared of the New People’s Army’s presence – will continue under a Lacson presidency.

This was made clear Monday by Partido Reporma chairman and standard-bearer Sen. Panfilo “Ping” M. Lacson as he said that at the end of the day, the rebels are also Filipinos.

“Unang una, tuloy-tuloy ang peace talks. Huwag natin kalimutan na kababayan natin yan (First, we will continue the peace talks. Let’s not forget that they are also Filipinos),” Lacson said on “Ikaw na Ba? The Presidential Interviews on DZBB.”

Continue reading “Peace Talks with Rebels to Continue under Lacson Presidency”

Posted on

On the Designation of the CPP-NPA as a Terrorist Group and Its Reported Call to Resume Peace Talks

It is called resource denial operations and rightly so, in order to tighten the noose on the financial and logistical needs of the CPP-NPA.

That being said, the non-traditional left-hand/right-hand approach must still be applied by welcoming back to the fold their members, making sure that they will be treated justly and ensuring their personal safety – the same way the earlier surrenderees who appeared before our Senate red-tagging hearings a few weeks ago are being treated.

Having the momentum with the series of successful operations against the CPP-NPA who are now officially a “designated terrorist group” by virtue of the authority vested by the Anti-Terrorism Act of 2020 upon the Anti-Terrorism Council, I doubt if the security sector will recommend the resumption of centralized peace talks to the President, more so after they validated the information that after all, peace talks are just part and parcel of their long-drawn strategy to consolidate their forces and stop the momentum gained by the security forces.

While we should not give up on peace, we should learn from the experiences of the past. It is better to have localized peace efforts, with guidance and support from the national government.

*****

Posted on

Why Localizing Peace Talks with Communist Rebels Has Better Chance of Success

cpp-npa-ndf

Not all local government units have the same level of intensity as far as insurgency is concerned. In fact, many LGUs do not even have insurgency concerns at all. Further, local officials have a better grip of the insurgency problems in their localities than national officials.

I would say that as long as the parameters of the national government are clearly defined to guide the local officials in dealing with the localized peace talks, and as long as they are adequately supported logistically with some degree of authority to extend livelihood programs to possible rebel returnees, I believe they have a better chance of success than what we have been failing to accomplish for the past several decades.

*****

Posted on

#PINGterview: Nasa Pangulo na ang Pag-Veto ng Pork sa 2020 Budget

In an interview on DWIZ Sen. Lacson answered questions on:
– ‘early’ signing of the 2020 budget in January 2020
– reinstatement of cops acquitted in Maguindanao massacre case
– NPA hit list and anti-terror bill
– assessment of 2019 and expectations in 2020

QUOTES and NOTES:
 Continue reading “#PINGterview: Nasa Pangulo na ang Pag-Veto ng Pork sa 2020 Budget”