NDFP negotiators cancel PHL visit due to security reasons, says Joma Sison

Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) co-founder Jose Maria "Joma" Sison on Monday said National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP) officials cancelled their trip to the Philippines because of security reasons.

"Fidel Agcaoili, chairman of the NDFP Negotiating Panel, Coni Ledesma, member, and Luis Jalandoni, senior adviser to the panel, have decided not to proceed to Manila for reasons of security," Sison said in a statement.

"They have been threatened with arrest by military and police authorities of the Duterte regime and Duterte himself has given no assurance of safety," the self-exiled leader added.

Sison added that the NDFP lawyers have been warned of court summons being served as a result of President Rodrigo Duterte's Proclamation 374 classifying the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) and New People's Army (NPA) as terrorists.

Furthermore, Sison said that Duterte has publicly expressed his lack of interest in any effort to resume the peace talks between the government and NDFP which has been terminated on November 23, 2017.

The resumption of the peace negotiation clashes with Duterte's plan to carry out a nationwide martial law and control the 2019 elections, according to Sison.

Presidential Adviser Salvador Panelo earlier said that the Communist leaders will not be arrested once they set foot in the country and that the arrest warrants reportedly mentioned by Interior Secretary Eduardo Año last week will only apply on the peace negotiation.

"Certainly, because how can we be talking if they will be coming in just to be arrested. As I said, Secretary Año was only saying that on the basis of the cancellation of the peace talks. So if there is any informal talks then that would not apply," Panelo said in an interview with ANC television.

"The instruction [from Duterte] is to meet with them and see if there is any compelling reason for the President to continue with the peace talks. That was the marching order. We'll have to sit down and discuss, if we can agree on terms and conditions prior to the talks," he added. — BAP, GMA News