Arroyo: Government may observe Christmas ceasefire, after all

Maybe, maybe not.

President Arroyo strongly hinted yesterday that the government may, after all, observe its traditional unilateral ceasefire with communist rebels during the Christmas season.

"For now," though, the President said, there is no final decision yet on the proposed annual Yuletide truce with the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army (CPP-NPA) rebels until she gets the recommendations of the field commanders of the Philippine National Police (PNP) and the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) involved in the anti-insurgency campaign.

Mrs. Arroyo indicated, however, that she may declare a holiday truce when she reassured the Filipino people that there is no reason for alarm over the series of offensives launched by the communist insurgents in various parts of the country.

She said these attacks were nothing but "tactical" attempts to show they still have the forces and capability to sow terror in the countryside.

"Strategically, (the CPP-NPA is) having great difficulties because the funds are running out ... the funds are cut off from abroad because of the declaration of the United States, United Kingdom, European Union and Canada" that the CPP-NPA is a terrorist organization – a move followed by the Netherlands and other countries, Mrs. Arroyo said.

"When you have great strategic difficulties, then you do some tactical offensives to try to compensate," she added.

The most recent NPA attacks include the Dec. 7 arson attack on a logging company that destroyed P60 million worth of logging equipment. The firm, reports said, refused to pay "revolutionary taxes" to the insurgents. – Marichu Villanueva