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[av_heading heading=’Stumbling blocks’ tag=’h3′ style=’blockquote modern-quote’ size=” subheading_active=’subheading_below’ subheading_size=’15’ padding=’10’ color=” custom_font=”][/av_heading]
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Tuesday, January 17, 2017
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ELATED as we are about the strides in the peace negotiations in the short time since President Duterte took office, we are worried about the stumbling blocks threatening the already tenuous and fragile situation from where the third round of talks between government and National Democratic Front of the Philippines will be held in Rome, Italy will start.
The year 2016 ended with slightly dimmed hopes, as well as fears that the legacy of the previous Aquino administration is being continued with regards to the peace talks. We refer to the issue of non-release of political prisoners and issues related to a ceasefire. Is the Office of the Presidential Assistant on the Peace Process more interested in a bilateral ceasefire rather than addressing the unjust situation of political prisoners and achieving substantial agreements on socio-economic, political and constitutional reforms? The obsession with a ceasefire agreement ahead of talks on substantial issues on the negotiating table raises questions on the sincerity of the government in peace negotiations. These talks are supposed to address the root causes of the armed conflict. The talks are not solely for the purpose of securing a ceasefire while the roots of the armed conflict remain unresolved.
The fact is, armed conflict has been raging for more than four decades, fueled by social and economic problems such as landlessness, poverty, injustice and hunger. For those who are keenly following the details and developments of the peace talks, the third round’s agenda bears the biggest challenge, and has the largest potential towards achieving real change. Progressive people’s organizations, church groups and sectoral movements have been active in pushing for their respective concerns and agenda to be included into the agreement.
The Comprehensive Agreement on Social and Economic Reforms (CASER) is acknowledged as the “meat” of the peace negotiations by both sides. As the third round of talks starts, it is the hope and prayer of everyone that both sides earnestly sit down to discuss the social and economic reforms necessary to end the armed conflict, and develop our country.
We look forward to the crafting and implementation of CASER which will then pave the way for the negotiations of the next substantive agenda which focuses on political and constitutional reforms.
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