OZAMIZ CITY -- A functional ceasefire mechanism is what the government and the National Democratic Front (NDF) need, a peace group has suggested following the July 27 ambush in Kapalong, Davao del Norte that slightly soured the atmosphere of the upcoming peace talks between the parties.
The ambush by the New People’s Army (NPA) on a group of government militias that killed one and injured four came two days after President Rodrigo Duterte declared during his State of the Nation Address (Sona) a unilateral ceasefire and asked the communist rebels to reciprocate the gesture.
Seeing no reciprocal gesture from the NDF by early Saturday evening, July 30, the President recalled the ceasefire order raising concerns of possible renewed hostilities.
The NDF is the political front of the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP).
In a statement, Sulong (Advance) CARHRIHL said the incident in Kapalong “highlights the need for a robust and mutually acceptable ceasefire mechanism” to prevent a similar one from occurring in the future.
“We urge both parties to look into instruments that can independently investigate and prevent potential ceasefire violations,” the group added.
Sulong CARHRIHL is a network of 59 organizations throughout the country which has been advocating for a peaceful resolution to the nearly five-decade Maoist rebellion.
It has been in the forefront of calling for the observance of the provisions of the Comprehensive Agreement on Respect for Human Rights and the International Humanitarian Law (CARHRIHL), a major consensus between the government and the NDF.
Mr. Duterte has vowed to preside over a formal end to the Moro and communist rebellions in the country before he steps down from office.
In his various pronouncements, Mr. Duterte has desired to see a ceasefire instituted between government troops and NPA guerrillas as a way of creating a good atmosphere for tackling the substantive issues in Norwegian-facilitated peace negotiations.
“We call on both parties to take into consideration the complexity of the situation on the ground and as soon as possible ask all armed units on both sides to stand down while talks continue,” Sulong CARHRIHL stressed.
The group said that the opportunity to “fine tune the details of the ceasefire” would be the scheduled August 20 talks in Oslo, which it hopes would push through.
“We maintain that peace talks are fundamental for deeper understanding and forging a way for peace in Mindanao and the whole country as it finds ways to address the root causes of the armed conflict,” it added.
“So we appeal to both parties to keep the lines of communication and spaces of dialogue open and always keep the spark for peace aflame,” Sulong CARHRIHL furthered.
On Sunday, July 31, presidential adviser on the peace process Jesus Dureza has assured that the Oslo talks is a go.
When held, the upcoming Oslo meeting would be the first formal resumption of the negotiations between the parties after years of hiatus.
Until the Kapalong incident, the relations between Mr. Duterte and the country’s communist leaders have been warm.
Empty, defective
Human rights group Karapatan has criticized the Duterte administration for declaring a unilateral cessation of hostilities with the Maoist guerrillas as it accused the government forces continued engagement with the New People’s Army (NPA) in armed conflict in many parts of the country even after the declaration.
“Lest counterinsurgency programs like Oplan Bayanihan are junked, any unilateral ceasefire declaration of the Philippine government is empty and defective,” said Cristina Palabay, Karapatan secretary-general in a statement posted on social media over the weekend.
To ensure that his peace initiatives are not jeopardized, Palabay said “Pres. Rodrigo Duterte should junk Oplan Bayanihan.”
She said the program that Philippine Army has implemented supposedly to bring military closer to the people through community-based activities, has been “a cause of unpeace in many struggling communities and grassroots organizations fighting for genuine change.”
Combat operations
Karapatan, she noted, has received reports continuing military combat operations all over the country after Duterte’s declaration of unilateral ceasefire with the Communist Party of the Philippines, National Democratic Front, and the NPA in his State of the Nation Address (Sona) just recently.
In Mindanao, hostilities between state security forces and Maoist rebels were reported in Davao del Norte, Davao del Sur, North Cotabato, Davao City, Surigao, and other provinces.
“Essentially, Oplan Bayanihan remains operative in rural communities, as [Armed Forces of the Philippines] troops and paramilitary groups like Alamara and NIPAR (New Indigenous People’s Army Reform) continue to occupy barangays and sitios in the guise of civil-military operations (CMO) and so-called peace and development programs,” she said.
Last year, Karapatan said killings and frustrated killings, threats and harassments, and encampment in communities including lumad schools causing the forced evacuation of Manobo villagers to the United Church of Christ in the Philippines’ Haran compound in Davao City where they remain to this day.
If government soldiers continue to encamp in civilian-populated areas, the ceasefire proves empty for the people, it said.
Pullout
“Ceasefire or no ceasefire, the soldiers should totally pullout from the communities and go back to their camps, while paramilitary groups should be disbanded and disarmed immediately,” Palabay said.
These armed militia units, she added, are also part of AFP’s deception.
“Acting as force multipliers of the AFP, paramilitary groups still operate under the command of the Philippine Army. They are being used to circumvent the [government’s] unilateral ceasefire declaration,” she said.
While it condemned for the killings of innocent civilians being perpetrated by some members of the state forces, Karapatan has reiterated its call for the resumption of formal peace talks between the Philippine Government and the NDF to facilitate the points agreed by both parties last June in Oslo, Norway.
The pending items for further deliberation include the affirmation of previously signed agreements, process of discussion for the substantive agenda, mode of interim ceasefire, amnesty proclamation for political prisoners and the reconstitution of the list of those protected under the Joint Agreement on Safety and Immunity Guarantees (Jasig).