RP-NDF peace talks to resume in Oslo

The government and the communist umbrella group National Democratic Front (NDF) will hold a new round of peace talks next week in Norway, chief government peace negotiator Silvestre Bello III said yesterday.

Bello said the peace negotiations in Oslo, which will be held from March 30 to April 2, will focus on socio-economic reforms, one of the key issues proposed by the NDF.

The peace negotiations, brokered by the Norwegian government, resumed in February after the Philippine government suspended talks nearly three years ago.

Tarlac Gov. Jose Yap, senior consultant of the government panel, said Norway will continue to broker the peace negotiations after Beijing apparently failed to act on the request made by both panels.

NDF chief negotiator Luis Jalandoni said they will ask for the full implementation of human rights and international humanitarian laws through the "operationalization" of a Joint Monitoring Committee (JMC), which shall receive and address complaints of abuses by state and guerrilla forces.

Jalandoni said the NDF will also press for the release of 23 political prisoners, and ask the government panel on the status regarding rebel demands for the lifting of the "terrorist" label and payment of human rights victims of the martial law regime out of the escrowed Marcos ill-gotten wealth.

According to Yap, the NDF remains open to the government’s willingness to discuss possibilities on how to peacefully address the more than three-decade old communist rebellion in the country.

Bello, for his part, said he expects dis-agreement on how to implement rebel proposals for agrarian reform and their demands for "nationalist industrialization."

The leftist rebels are demanding a change to the current land reform law to allow free distribution of land without compensation for property owners. They also want key industries, such as the oil sector, under complete control of the state.

Bello said government negotiators also will discuss "confidence building measures" such as the release of political prisoners.

Guidelines for a joint committee to monitor the implementation of human rights and international humanitarian laws will also be tackled, he said.

Bello said the rebels will be urged to prevent civilian casualties during the conflict, and asked to stop the recruitment of tribesmen and minors to the New People’s Army (NPA). – AFP, Benjie Villa