Lookout bulletin out vs 20 NDF consultants
Released communist rebel leaders, from left, Adelberto Silva, Wilma and Benito Tiamzon, Alan Jasminez and Renante Gamara, pose with their clenched fists, as they wait for their departure for Oslo, Norway for peace talks with the Government Saturday, Aug. 20, 2016 at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport in suburban Pasay city south of Manila, Philippines. The Department of Justice has issued an immigration lookout order against National Democratic Front peace consultants after President Rodrigo Duterte canceled the peace talks. AP/Bullit Marquez
MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Justice on Wednesday issued an immigration lookout bulletin against 20 political consultants of the National Democratic Front following the cancelation of the peace talks.
The government peace panel has formally written a notice of termination of the Joint Agreement on Safety and Immunity Guarantees to the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People's Army-National Democratic Front.
The political consultants were temporarily released from prison for them to participate in the peace talks in Oslo, Norway and in a later round in Rome, Italy.
The DOJ cited various criminal cases pending against the following NDF peace consultants:
- Tirso Alcantara
- Ma. Concepcion Bocala
- Pedro Codaste
- Renante Gamara
- Alan Jazmines
- Ernesto Lorenzo
- Ma. Loida Magpatoc
- Alfredo Mapano
- Ruben Saluta
- Adelberto Silva
- Benito Tiamzon
- Wilma Tiamzon
- Ariel Arbitrario
- Renato Balers Sr.
- Kennedy Bangibang
- Jaime Soledad
- Rafael Baylosis
- Alex Birondo
- Winona Birondo
- Porfero Tuna
The DOJ instructed the Bureau on Immigration to be on the lookout for the NDF consultants should they pass through immigration counters in any international port or seaport. A lookout bulletin does not prevent a person listed from leaving the country. Immigration officers are required to alert the DOJ and the National Bureau of Investigation if a person on the list is spotted at a sea or airport.
A hold-departure order bars a person from leaving the country. HDOs are issued by the judiciary.
The BI earlier confirmed that the consultants were not arrested when they returned to the country on January 31 after the formal talks in Rome. President Rodrigo Duterte had not yet ordered them arrested at the time.
"These people are facing criminal cases so we have to prevent them from evading prosecution. They could possibly leave the country," Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II said Wdnesday.
The Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process assured the public that the Duterte administration remains committed in its peace efforts despite the cancelation of peace talks with the communist rebels.
"We assure our people that the government will continue its vigilance in the preservation of law and order and in protecting our people against insurgent activities and threats of terrorism, and pursue the enhancement of our democratic institutions," the OPAPP said in a statement.
- Latest
- Trending
