On the matter of a ceasefire declaration, peace talks and the proscription of the CPP/NPA
Sunday, July 8, 2007
Communist Party of the Philippines
July 04, 2007
The past several days, Arroyo's key security and defense officials have been jabbering about resuming formal peace negotiations with the National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP) preconditioned on the capitulation of the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) and the New People's Army (NPA) through a premature and unwarranted declaration of a ceasefire.
In the face of the rejection of such a demand, National Security Adviser and Acting Defense Secretary Norberto Gonzales has gone to the extent of threatening to proscribe the CPP/NPA as "terrorists" under the so-called Human Security Act (HSA) together with such groups as the Abu Sayyaf, Rajah Solaiman Group and the Jemaah Islamiyah.
At the same time, Gloria Arroyo has vowed to use the HSA, scheduled to take effect this July 15, to "crush the terrorist movement." Gonzales has issued instructions to government troops to pay no attention to criticisms of its rights violations and step up its campaign of suppression.
Such arrogant threats and patently fascist attitude do not indicate an honest desire for real peace talks.
The CPP and the revolutionary forces cannot be compelled to declare a ceasefire in the absence of any substantive agreement to resolve the basic socio-economic and political reforms that lie at the roots of the armed conflict.
The NPA cannot declare and implement a ceasefire while gross human rights violations continue to be committed by the Arroyo regime against the leaders, consultants and forces of the revolutionary movement, activists of the democratic movement and the masses. A ceasefire under such conditions would be tantamount to capitulation. The NPA cannot allow the Arroyo regime to carry out its campaign of suppression with impunity. Revolutionary armed resistance against state terrorism is just and necessary.
The CPP, NDFP and the revolutionary forces in the Philippines are much desirous of resuming formal peace negotiations, stalled since 2004 because of the GRP's adamant refusal to fulfill its obligations under agreements reached with the NDFP. The NDFP had earlier forwarded its willingness to enter into a ceasefire agreement with the GRP within the framework of a 10-point Concise Agreement for an Immediate Just Peace that sets key favorable conditions and the adoption of necessary agreements before a ceasefire could be put into effect.
The Arroyo regime, on the other hand, has failed to show sincerity in the peace process. Not once in the past six years has it shown good faith by fulfilling its obligations. It has consistently reneged on its responsibilities embodied in The Hague Declaration of 1992, the 1998 Comprehensive Agreement on Respect for Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law (CARHRIHL), the Joint Agreement on Security and Immunity Guarantees (JASIG) and the Oslo Accords of February and April 2004.
A major provision in the Oslo Accords, in particular, requires the GRP to undertake efforts to resolve the outstanding issue of the inclusion of the CPP, the NPA and NDFP chief political consultant Jose Ma. Sison in lists of "terrorist organizations" maintained by the US and EU. The Oslo Accords took cognizance of the fact that such listing and meddling by the US in Philippine internal affairs violate national sovereignty and are detrimental to the peace process.
The Arroyo regime's plan to proscribe the CPP and NPA in its own list of "terrorist organizations" all the more makes the resumption of formal peace negotiations impossible.
The Arroyo regime wants to use the proscription of the CPP/NPA under the HSA as basis for its all-out campaign of suppression first against the revolutionary forces, and then against the legal democratic forces and other staunch anti-Arroyo forces and oppositionists the regime claims to be "fronts of the CPP/NPA."
There is nothing new in the Arroyo regime's threat to proscribe the CPP/NPA. Notwithstanding the repeal of the anti-subversion law, the Arroyo regime has all long maliciously branded the CPP/NPA as "terrorist" to denigrate the legitimate revolutionary demands of the Filipino people, vilify the revolutionary armed struggle, scuttle the peace negotiations and justify the US-supported all-out war of terror and campaign of suppression against the revolutionary forces and the people.
Since 2001, the Arroyo regime has engaged in an all-out terror campaign of extrajudicial killings, abductions, illegal arrests, military saturation drives, artillery shelling and aerial bombing of entire communities. All these compel the Filipino people to take up arms to defend their rights and exact justice and retribution for all the crimes perpetrated by the state's armed forces
The NPA and the revolutionary forces must persist in vigorously advancing revolutionary armed struggle to defend the people and put an end to the Arroyo regime's reign of terror.Labels: Philippine
posted by Resistance 7/08/2007 10:03:00 AM,
