(Eagle News)– Communist rebels on Thursday, June 21, reiterated peace negotiations with the government should be held in a “foreign neutral venue,” contrary to President Rodrigo Duterte’s proposal they be held in the Philippines.
In a statement, the National Democratic Front said the two sides, after all, “must comply” with the Joint Agreement on Safety and Immunity Guarantees, “consistent with the general practice of warring parties to negotiate peace outside of their country or their respective territories.”
“In the meantime, both sides expressed their intention to conduct separate unilateral consultations and in due course bilateral consultations according to their respective needs on the premise that the (Government of the Republic of the Philippines) and NDF Negotiating Panels are mandated by their respective principals in accordance with existing agreements and that the GRP and NDF are mutually determined to overcome obstacles and impediments to the peace negotiations,” the NDF said.
The NDF said that while the meeting on June 18 in Utrecht, Netherlands did not start on time because the government panel had to seek clarification on Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque’s statement a third-party facilitator for the talks was no longer needed, the two sides finally “expressed their commitment to protect and preserve the gains that had been achieved in the four rounds of informal talks that produced documents containing important agreements to move the process forward.”
During the meeting, the government panel announced the decision to suspend backchannel talks with their counterparts for three months, saying there was a need for public consultations and a review of all signed agreements.
In a statement, Hernani Braganza, the government’s negotiator for the backchannel talks, said the NDF representatives “expressed willingness to keep an open mind on the President’s decision and wait for the outcome of the government’s review before proceeding with any peace conversation with government.
