(Eagle News) — The Philippine government said it was “deeply disturbed” with the order from the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) directing the New People’s Army (NPA) to intensify attacks against government forces amid the ongoing fight against the Maute terrorists in Mindanao.
The government peace panel asked the CPP to reconsider its decision or else it might be misconstrued that the communists are abetting the terrorist acts of the Maute group.
The CPP’s order to the NPA was in reaction to the martial law declaration of President Rodrigo Duterte in Mindanao.
Government negotiating panel chair Silvestre Bello III said the order “betrays the absence of sincerity of the CPP in the negotiating table” and called on the CPP leadership to “correct its error and recall its senseless order.”
“At the very least, it was an insult to the candor and genuineness displayed by the President and the GRP Panel in talking peace.,” he said in a statement.
“At worse, it betrays the absence of sincerity of the CPP in the negotiating table. Lest it be construed as abetting the criminal and terror acts of the Maute group and a gang of Moro bandits, we put the CPP to task to correct its error and recall its senseless order,” Bello said.
Presidential spokesperson Ernesto Abella also cited Bello’s statement during a press conference on Friday in Davao City on the Marawi situation.
When asked about the CPP’s recent order, Abella said Secretary Bello’s statement was worth repeating.
CPP misreading martial law intent, says Bello
Bello had earlier expressed his worry and disappointment with the communist leadership’s order to the NPA.
“We are deeply disturbed that the Communist Party of the Philippines made a false reading of the intents of President Duterte in placing Mindanao under Martial Law,” Bello said in a statement.
“The circumstances that precipitated, and the condition that warranted such declaration were matters of public knowledge. There was a need to restore law and order, protect the lives of the citizens and preserve private and state properties,” he explained.
Bello said that the President “in no uncertain terms, categorically declared he was not after the New People’s Army.”
“He, in fact, reiterated his keenness on pursuing peace.”
” We therefore find the CPP directive to the NPA to intensify attacks as totally misplaced borne out of a grossly distorted appreciation of the President’s intention,” Bello stressed.
The meeting, that started on April 2, 2017, is the fourth round of talks between the National Democratic Front and Manila, which have been on and off for 30 years but were restarted by President Rodrigo Duterte after he took office last June. / AFP PHOTO / Sophie MIGNON
Peace talks in peril
A statement from the National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP) said it does not believe Bello’s pronouncement that the martial law was not directed against the NPA.
It added that the “martial law declared in Mindanao will have negative implications in the ongoing NDFP-GRP peace negotiations.”
“As Duterte’s martial law is against the people, it is imperative for the New People’s Army (NPA) to take action to oppose and fight it in order to defend the people’s rights and interests,” the NDFP statement dated May 25 read.
“If it was true that martial law in Mindanao is not directed against the NPA, then Bello must inform Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana. In announcing the declaration of martial law, it was Lorenzana himself cited the NPA as one of the GRP’s “problems” why the entire Mindanao had to be put under martial law,” it said.
Joaquin Jacinto, a spokesperson of the NDFP-Mindanao, also issued a statement calling on “all Mindanaoans, all Filipinos, to stand united in our opposition against the imposition of Martial Law in Mindanao.”
“Furthermore, the NDFP-Mindanao calls on all revolutionary forces to redouble their effort at defending the people from the onslaught of Martial Law,” Jacinto said in his statement.
Bello earlier said he was still confident that the quest for lasting peace would win in the end.
“Against this backdrop, we (government) reaffirm our commitment and remain confident in winning our quest for lasting peace,” he said. (Eagle News Service)