Militant lawmaker welcomes formation of peace panel

MANILA, Philippines - A militant lawmaker welcomed yesterday President Aquino’s creation of a peace panel to negotiate with the National Democratic Front (NDF).

“The formation of the panel is a positive step towards the resumption of the peace talks. We hope for the immediate start of the discussions on the next substantive agenda – the Comprehensive Agreement on Social and Economic Reforms (CASER),” Anakpawis party-list Rep. Rafael Mariano said.

He said the biggest challenge facing Mr. Aquino is how to come out with an agreement on social and economic reforms to address the roots of the armed conflict.

“Crafting an agreement on social and economic reforms, that includes agrarian reform and agricultural development is the biggest challenge to the Aquino administration,” he said.

The Hague Joint Declaration signed by the government and the NDF defines the agenda of the negotiations, namely human rights and international humanitarian law, social and economic reforms, political and constitutional reforms, and end of hostilities.

Mariano described CASER as “the meat of the peace negotiations.”

“For the peace talks to succeed, the President needs a lot of political will including letting go of his family’s vast landholdings,” he said, referring to Hacienda Luisita, the 6,000-hectare sugar plantation owned by the Aquino-Cojuangco family.

Mariano also called on the Aquino administration to abandon its disarmament, demobilization and reintegration (DDR) tack, saying it is “a militarist approach” that does not address the roots of the armed conflict.

“If the Aquino government is really sincere in attaining a just and lasting peace, it must do away with its DDR framework on the peace talks. A just and lasting peace can only be achieved by addressing the roots of the armed conflict like landlessness, joblessness, extreme hunger and poverty, human rights abuses, and other forms of oppression and exploitation,” he said.

Meanwhile, the militant Pambansang Lakas ng Kilusang Mamamalakaya ng Pilipinas (Pamalakaya) urged the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) to voice its support for the resumption of the peace talks between the government and the NDF.

Pamalakaya national chairman Fernando Hicap said the prelates belonging to the CBCP are “morally and spiritually” obliged to support the resumption of the talks.

“In the name of our people’s collective and national interest, we appeal to CBCP to strongly endorse and support the resumption of peace talks between the government and the NDFP,” Hicap said in a statement. “The Roman Catholic community has a stake in the peace talks and therefore it is morally and politically proper for the bishops and archbishops to express interest and perform collective action for the resumption of the talks,” he said. – Paolo Romero, Rhodina Villanueva