By RAYMUND B. VILLANUEVA
Kodao Productions/Bulatlat.com
MANILA – The National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP) Negotiating Panel said the string of arrests of its peace consultants negates efforts to revive formal peace talks.
In a statement today, NDFP Negotiating Panel Chairperson Julie de Lima strongly condemned the “illegal arrests” – all in October – of Porferio Tuna in Tagum City; Simeon Naogsan in Bacarra, Ilocos Norte; and Wigberto Villarico in Quezon City.
“We wish to reiterate the NDFP’s policy of openness to resume peace negotiations, but how can we possibly engage in meaningful negotiations when our negotiators and consultants are subjected to arrests, killings, and torture?” de Lima asked.
De Lima said that the arbitrary detention of their consultants is part of a string of “blatant violations” by the Government of the Republic of the Philippines (GRP) of the Joint Agreement on Safety and Immunity Guarantees (JASIG) it signed with the NDFP in 1995.
She explained that the JASIG was signed to provide both parties to the negotiations the conducive conditions to engage in peace negotiations without the threat of arrest, killing or harassment.
“This issue is both a practical and political obstacle to the ongoing talks, as it threatens not only the safety of the NDFP consultants, negotiators and staff but also undermines the very foundation of trust and dialogue necessary for any productive peace negotiation to continue,” de Lima said.
READ: Villarico’s arrest meant to sabotage ongoing peace efforts—CPP
De Lima likewise refuted claims by the GRP National Security Council (NSC) that Villarico is not an NDFP consultant, saying the alleged top leader of the Communist Party of the Philippines was regularly engaged by the NDFP Negotiating Panel as a key representative from the Southern Tagalog region.
“His role is crucial in representing concerns of farmers and workers in the region and in advancing the substantive items in the negotiations including in the process of drafting the Comprehensive Agreement on Social and Economic Reforms (CASER),” de Lima said.
‘Abhorrence to agreements’
NSC Spokesperson Jonathan Malaya on Sunday disputed that Villarico is a peace consultant, claiming that demands for his release under the JASIG are invalid.
Malaya said the agreement was terminated by the GRP in 2017, referring to a pronouncement made by then President Rodrigo Duterte in February of that year in his first of several cancellations of formal negotiations.
The Joint Oslo Communique of 2023 signed under the Marcos Jr. administration with the NDF did not resurrect the JASIG,” Malaya also claimed.
In its nearly three decades of implementation, however, the JASIG is co-terminus with the peace negotiations.
It had only been formally terminated only once, in July 1999 after the Joseph Estrada GRP issued a notice of termination of the peace negotiations in June.
It had been repeatedly reaffirmed by successive GRP administrations – Gloria M. Arroyo, Benigno Simeon C. Aquino and Rodrigo R. Duterte – along with The Hague Joint Declaration, Comprehensive Agreement on Respect for Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law (CARHRIHL), and others.
The February 7, 2017 termination of the JASIG by the GRP was deemed waived as formal negotiations resumed the following April.
READ: GRP terminates JASIG
Deliberate bad faith
De Lima said the repeated arrests, torture, and killings of NDFP consultants under Marcos Jr., despite their protected status under JASIG, represent a deliberate act of bad faith by the GRP.
“The GRP’s actions undermine the peace process and violate the basic principles of mutual respect and accountability,” she added.
Under Marcos Jr., NDFP Negotiating Panel member Benito Tiamzon was killed in Catbalogan City, along with wife and peace consultant Wilma Austria.
Other NDFP consultants killed under Marcos Jr. include Ericson Acosta, Rogelio Posadas, Concha Araneta and Ariel Arbitrario.
NDFP and human rights organizations said all the victims were captured alive and were tortured before they were killed by their captors.
Protection for peace workers
De Lima said NDFP’s consultants have dedicated their lives to representing the Filipino people’s interests and are integral in the resumption of peace negotiations.
“Their unlawful arrests serve only to foster growing distrust and heightened tensions at a time when space for dialogue is critical,” she said.
De Lima explained that by repeatedly violating these protections, the GRP has disregarded its own commitments and continues to push the ongoing talks to the brink of collapse.
“It is unacceptable that while the GRP claims to pursue peace, it simultaneously targets and imprisons those working to achieve it,” she said.
De Lima said the GRP is deliberately creating hostile conditions to obstruct the peace negotiations.
“With consultants and negotiators of the NDFP repeatedly subjected to arbitrary arrests, extrajudicial killings and torture, the GRP has made a mockery of its own supposed commitment to peace,” de Lima said.
“The grave human rights violations demonstrate not only a disregard for JASIG and the CARHRIHL, but also a complete lack of respect for the lives and freedoms of those working for a just resolution to the armed conflict,” she explained. (RVO)
