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A Neutral Foreign Venue for Formal Peace Talks
Wisely Agreed Upon by GRP and NDFP
By LUIS G. JALANDONI
Chairperson, NDFP Negotiating Panel
20 July 2007
Rep. Antonio Cuenco may be well-meaning. But he shows his lack of knowledge
of the GRP-NDFP peace agreements when he proposes that Prof. Jose Maria
Sison go to the Philippines for peace talks and that the peace talks be held there.
In 1995, during the presidency of Fidel V. Ramos, the GRP and the NDFP agreed
on a neutral foreign venue for the formal peace negotiations. This provision is
contained in the Joint Agreement for Safety and Immunity Guarantees (JASIG)
signed in February 1995 and approved by the Principals of both Parties in the
same year.
This wise provision agreed upon by both Parties is consistent with the practice
of other armed conflicts, such as those between the GRP and the Moro Islamic
Liberation Front (MILF), the Sri Lankan Government and the Liberation Tigers of
Tamil Eelam (LTTE), and the Government of Israel and the Palestine Liberation
Organization.
Holding of formal talks in the Philippines and Prof. Jose Maria Sisons going back
to the Philippines would violate this basic agreement for a neutral foreign venue.
It would lead to the danger of scrapping other fundamental agreements achieved
since 1992 up to 2004.
It is not true that talks in the Philippines would be less expensive. There would
be more expensive and dangerous movements of security forces on both sides
for every meeting of the negotiating panels.
The NDFP has drawn valuable lessons from the peace talks held in Manila in late
1986 and early 1987. Upon the collapse of the peace talks after the Mendiola
massacre of peasants demonstrating for genuine land reform in January 1987,
many NDFP consultants and staff were arrested and killed. General Rafael Ileto
boasted that the militarys intelligence stocks on the revolutionary movement
had gone up significantly through surveillance. Such surveillance was strictly
forbidden in the bilateral agreement between the GRP and the NDFP.
Hence, holding formal talks in the Philippines would open the NDFP to deadly
pressure from the Arroyo government through surveillance and even more
assassinations of NDFP personnel, staff and supporters.
REFERENCE:
Ruth de Leon
Executive Director
NDFP International Information Office
Tel.+31-30-2310431
Fax +31-84-7589930
Email: [email protected]
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