Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, December 6) — An anti-communist group said on Wednesday it is on the same page with Vice President and Education Secretary Sara Duterte when it comes to peace and development, and that her skepticism was towards the sincerity of the rebels to end the armed conflict.
Officials of the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) acknowledged Duterte’s apprehensions, but they believe this is not directed to the government’s exploratory peace talks with the National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP).
Duterte on Monday said “the government’s statement with the NDFP in Oslo was an agreement with the devil.”
The vice president also questioned the sincerity of the rebel group in peace talks, urging President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to review his decision to grant amnesty.
\”If you read and see and look closely at what she [Duterte] said, she is for peace and development. So her skepticism is primarily based not on government’s desire for peace but on the sincerity and credibility of the communist terrorist groups,\” NTF-ELCAC StratCom Cluster Chairperson Jonathan Malaya said in a media briefing.
\”Her position is essentially the same as that of government, as that of the National Task Force ELCAC. We want a principle and peaceful resolution to the armed conflict and a complete end to the armed struggle,\” he added.
NTF-ELCAC Secretariat Executive Director Ernesto Torres Jr. echoed the sentiment.
\”We may differ really on how we see things at the moment, but ‘yung objective natin ay pare-pareho naman (but our objective is the same). And that is to end, to finally in this particular case, to finally end the local communist armed conflict,\” he said.
He also underscored Duterte’s “big role” in peace efforts, since the vice president is also co-vice chairperson of the NTF-ELCAC.
Malaya and Torres said the vice president is an ally of the NTF-ELCAC despite her different stance on the peace talks and amnesty grant.
\”We expect that the opinion of our vice president, the co-vice chair of NTF-ELCAC will be seriously considered in the discussions in crafting the IRR (implementing rules and regulations) and the discussions also doon po sa ating (in our) peace efforts as we move forward,\” Torres said.
Malaya said the objective of the vice president has always been the same and in line with the goal of the president to end the communist armed conflict.
The NTF-ELCAC is optimistic the NDFP will be sincere in the exploratory peace negotiations, since the lack of such has been a persistent problem in previous talks.
It said the rebel group repeatedly committed violations, atrocities even if negotiations were ongoing between them and the government.
