Cayetano, Legarda join calls for resumption of peace talks with Reds

Senators Loren Legarda and Alan Peter Cayetano have joined calls for the resumption of peace talks between the government and the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People's Army-National Democratic Front (CPP-NPA- NDF).

Legarda and Cayetano issued separate statements after President Rodrigo Duterte ordered the termination of the peace talks and the Joint Agreement on Safety and Immunity Guarantees (JASIG).

Signed in 1995, JASIG guarantees safety and immunity to negotiators, consultants, and other personnel involved in the negotiations between the Philippine government and the CPP-NPA-NDF.

“The government’s peace talks with the communists or the left collapsed. But we are all hoping it is not permanent,” Cayetano said in a press briefing with the Philippine-American press in New York City on Thursday.

Legarda, who had been involved in negotiating the release of prisoners by the NPA, said in a statement on Saturday that she supports a "a negotiated bilateral ceasefire agreement, with effective monitoring procedures and strict compliance mechanisms."

"This ceasefire agreement should be unconditional as it benefits both parties to the conflict. More importantly, it is good for our people and they will welcome this. It will also prevent unexpected and untoward incidents that could derail the peace process."

Quoting former Israeli president Shimon Peres, Cayetano said citizens must pressure the government and the CPP-NPA-NDF to reach a compromise in order to reach a favorable end to the peace talks.

"In peace negotiations, if you give too much, you lose your base. If you give too little, you lose the other side. Thus, there has to be pressure from all of us Filipinos to get these two sides to give more and accept less," he said.

Legarda, chair of the Senate Committee on Finance, said she will work on a 2018 national budget to support and advance "the gains of the peace process" under the Duterte administration.

“President Rodrigo Roa Duterte has a solid and comprehensive vision for peace. He has been willing to back it up with the strongest political will. Let us support the peace process so that this vision is achieved," she said.

“Those who have chosen a parliamentary rather than an armed struggle are always welcome and are part of a healthy dialogue with the government,” Cayetano stressed.

Cayetano and Legarda follows the number of politicians and civil rights groups advocating for the resumption of peace talks between the government and the CPP-NPA-NDF.

Vice President Leni Robredo has urged the administration of Duterte to continue the peace  negotiations with communist rebels despite the cancellation of JASIG, a sentiment echoed by more than a hundred members of the House of Representatives.

The NDF itself hopes for the continuation of the talks as it rejected a letter from the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process Secretary Jesus Dureza terminating JASIG. —ALG, GMA News