Peace talks between the National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP) and the Philippine government might resume in 2015, said Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) founder Jose Maria Sison.
In a podcast uploaded on Dec. 21, Sison said the NDFP and a special team from the Aquino administration have been having preliminary talks since September to prepare the agenda on renewal of formal talks.
“Puwedeng mag-formal talks muli ang mga negotiating panel ng dalawang panig sa ikalawang hati ng Enero, matapos ang bisita ng Papa,” Sison said in the podcast.
“Kung mapakatino ang rehimeng Aquino at OPAPP [Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process], posible pang matapos ang comprehensive agreement on economic reforms at agreement on truce and cooperation bago matapos ang term ni Aquino,” he added.
In the same podcast, Sison, who’s in exile in the Netherlands, said that the NDFP was assured the government will adhere to its obligations under the Joint Agreement on Safety and Immunity Guarantees (JASIG) and the Comprehensive Agreement on Respect for Human Rights and Intl Humanitarian Law (CARHRIL).
Sison added that the government-proposed ceasefire between the military and the NPA is a huge impediment to the resumption of talks.
“Malaking balakid sa peace negotiations ang kagustuhan ng rehimen na magtigil-putukan at magsurrender na lang basta ang mga pwersang rebolusyonaryo,” the NDFP official said.
He also demanded the release of NDFP consultants and 500 political prisoners.
The CPP, which commemorates its 46th anniversary today, was founded by Sison in 1968. The NDFP is the the movement’s political wing, while the New People’s Army is its armed wing.
