Government, NDF to resume peace talks next month

MANILA, Philippines - After a 12-year hiatus, the government and the National Democratic Front (NDF) have finally agreed to return to the negotiating table to resume peace talks, an incoming government negotiator announced yesterday.

Silvestre Bello III, who has been named government chief negotiator for the peace talks with the NDF, has set July 16 to 19 as the start of  formal peace negotiations.

“I received (a) text message from NDF that the start of the peace talks will be on July 16,” he told reporters during the weekly Kapihan sa Manila Hotel news forum.

Bello said the venue of the talks was not yet determined although Vietnam, China, India and Oslo in Norway are being considered.

The initial issues, he added, would include the release of 21 rebel consultants and security personnel who are detained in various prison facilities for no-bail offenses. 

He explained that a temporary release could be initiated by the Department of Justice, in coordination with the Supreme Court, so the safe conduct passes can be issued and consultants can participate in peace talks. 

Earlier, NDF negotiator Fidel Agcaoili said rebels who are serving as peace consultants should be freed because it is a government obligation under the Joint Agreement on Safety and Immunity Guarantees (JASIG) signed in 1995.

Bello said the release of rebel leaders would be temporary. 

Negotiations between the government and the NDF hit a snag after both sides failed to reach a consensus on jailed rebel leaders. 

The NDF had demanded the release of rebels charged with criminal cases, saying they are working as peace consultants and should, therefore, be immune from arrest. 

The government panel, however, rejected the demand, saying there is no way to validate the identities of the rebels who are supposed to be covered by the JASIG, especially those using aliases. 

Communist rebels have been waging an armed struggle against the government since the late 1960s. The insurgency, the longest running in the region, has claimed more than 40,000 lives.