Committed to the attainment of genuine peace based on justice, supports the people’s just struggle, publishes policy papers on the peace process, provides specialized services to the gph-ndfp peace negotiations
National Union of Peoples’ Lawyers PRESS STATEMENT May 10, 2025
Memorandum Circular No. 83, which adopts the National Action Plan for Unity, Peace and Development (NAP-UPD) 2025–2028, cements the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) as the lead implementing agency of this so-called “blueprint” for peace. Beneath the rhetoric of peace-building, it revives and reinforces a state apparatus long implicated in red-tagging, arbitrary arrests, enforced disappearances, and other forms of politically motivated persecution.
What is framed as a “whole-of-nation” approach is, in reality, a recycled counterinsurgency strategy—tried, failed, and repackaged. It sidesteps the root causes of armed conflict and instead relies on trumped-up charges, perjured testimony from state-recruited witnesses, staged reintegration of alleged “former rebels” in militarized communities, and the coordinated red-tagging of rights defenders and dissenters.
The NTF-ELCAC lies at the core of this machinery of repression. Thus, UN Special Rapporteurs Ian Fry and Irene Khan, citing its central role in red-tagging and attacks on civil society, have both called for its abolition. Even the Office of the Ombudsman found its former spokespersons guilty of conduct prejudicial to public service, acting on a complaint filed by the NUPL.
Secretary Eduardo Año’s latest statement calls for “turning off the Red taps”—a euphemism for targeting civil society with financial repression. This framing attempts to cast legal organizations as enemies of peace, when in fact it is the shrinking of civic space and the systematic attack on dissent that undermines genuine democratic dialogue. Año’s proposal to vet foreign funding, establish government-run accreditation systems, and surveil NGO operations is not a peace mechanism; it is a scheme for authoritarian control dressed in development speak.
Worse, the call to legislate “due diligence” mechanisms for NGOs is a thinly veiled threat. It seeks to create a legal basis for defunding groups that challenge the state’s narrative and hold it accountable for violations of people’s rights. This would further criminalize solidarity, penalize development work, and vilify principled resistance as “terrorism.”
The NAP-UPD offers no credible path to peace. It forecloses prospects for negotiation and evades the structural conditions that fuel armed conflict: landlessness, joblessness, repression, and systemic exclusion. The claim that a “whole-of-nation approach” can secure peace is as hollow as the promises of every counterinsurgency campaign that came before—from Vietnam-era civic action to martial law psywar operations. Each failed because they treated rebellion as a problem of perception, not of injustice.
Until political power is democratized, land and wealth redistributed, national sovereignty asserted, and social justice realized, no policy—however artfully worded—will deliver peace. A whole-of-nation approach cannot dismantle a system that breeds resistance while preserving the very conditions that make such resistance necessary. ###
Manananggol Para sa Katarungan (MAKATA) Published on Apr 25, 2025 Bulatlat.com
The aggressive posturing of Donald Trump—manifested in trade wars with former allies, attacks on NATO, flirtations with authoritarian regimes like Russia, and the dismantling of key state functions—should not be dismissed as mere erratic behavior. These are the convulsions of a declining imperialist power grappling with internal contradictions that monopoly capitalism can no longer resolve. U.S. imperialism, long sustained through military dominance and global financial hegemony, now faces the crisis of overaccumulation, intensified class antagonisms, and the decay of its political institutions.
The economic base of the U.S. is deteriorating. With federal debt surpassing $36 trillion and a debt-to-GDP ratio exceeding 121.86%, the predatory & exploitative financial system continues to plunder state resources, while nearly $968 billion is funneled into military expenditures—tools of imperialist coercion. Economic growth is stagnating, projected at a meager 0.1% in 2025, as productive sectors shrink and speculative finance dominates. Inflation, estimated at 4–4.5%, and rising unemployment—expected to hit 5%—signal the sharpening of contradictions between capital and labor, with the burden once again pushed onto the working class. Real wages have stagnated despite productivity gains, while labor force participation remains below pre-pandemic levels, reflecting deep structural underemployment and disillusionment among the working class. The housing crisis, exacerbated by speculative capital inflating real estate prices, has pushed homeownership out of reach for millions, while homelessness surges across major cities. Student debt remains above $1.7 trillion, shackling an entire generation of workers into economic uncertainty.
Meanwhile, corporate profits soar—particularly among monopolies in Big Tech, pharmaceuticals, and finance—highlighting the growing chasm between the ruling class and the impoverished majority. These indicators are not anomalies; they are the inevitable outcomes of a decaying monopoly capitalist system in its imperialist stage, where accumulation for the few proceeds through dispossession of the many.
The political superstructure also reflects this decay. Deepening polarization, legislative deadlock, and the erosion of public trust in bourgeois democratic institutions have exposed the ruling class’s inability to maintain hegemony through consensus. In this vacuum, right-wing populists like Trump emerge, offering economic nationalism and chauvinism as false solutions to a capitalist system in terminal decline.
Trump’s brand of economic nationalism—marked by protectionist tariffs and deregulation—seeks to repatriate industrial capital to American soil. But such policies, we believe, are a smokescreen for intensified exploitation.
Tariffs on allies like Canada, Japan, and Mexico do not restore productive capacity; instead, they raise costs for workers and consumers, while monopolies pass on losses to the public and continue offshoring production when convenient.
The historical record contradicts the promises tariffs are supposed to generate for the American economy. The Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act of 1930 exacerbated the Great Depression. Trump’s own 2018 tariffs on steel and aluminium raised costs for U.S. manufacturers, triggered retaliatory tariffs, and led to job losses in downstream industries. Many corporations passed the added costs to consumers rather than investing in domestic production.
The so-called “Department of Government Efficiency,” backed by tech oligarchs like Elon Musk, is a neoliberal assault aimed at dismantling public services at the expense of the working class, altogether disregarding, even removing, public oversight and further subordinating the state to the dictates of capital. Verily, these protectionist actions are framed as tools of national revival but, in truth, are mechanisms for redistributing the crisis of capitalism onto workers at home and abroad.
This economic reorientation is mirrored in foreign policy. Trump’s disregard for NATO and the U.S. security umbrella stems from a transactional, cost-benefit approach that reduces alliances, mutual support and cooperation to profitability. Trump expressed disdain for the defense of Ukraine. Russia is seen not as a threat, but as a declining power to be ignored. Allies with trade surpluses are labeled freeloaders. This inward turn reflects the unraveling of the post-WWII imperial order, replaced by short-term bargaining for capitalist gain.
It can be said, therefore, that the pivot inward represents not peace, but the strategic repositioning of a beleaguered power—one still armed to the teeth and capable of violent outbursts as it loses ground to competing capitalist blocs, particularly China.
This sharpening contradiction between the U.S. and China mirrors the classic imperialist tendency toward inter-capitalist conflict. Yet history offers a warning: when declining imperialist powers feel cornered, they lash out. Japan’s attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941, Germany’s invasion of Poland in 1939, and the Soviet incursion into Afghanistan in 1979 were not acts of confidence but of desperation, triggered by economic isolation and political overreach.
The current trajectory of U.S.-China tensions risks repeating these patterns. Today, with the U.S. empire in decline and China asserting its own imperial ambitions under the guise of a multipolar world order, the world edges closer to conflict once more.
The Philippine Situation: Neocolonial Vulnerability Amid Imperialist Rivalry
The Philippines, long a semi-colony of U.S. imperialism, stands on precarious ground as this new inter-imperialist rivalry escalates. Our country, made dependent on imported agricultural inputs due to decades of neoliberal agricultural policy, is dangerously exposed. Tariffs and trade disruptions driven by U.S.-China tensions threaten our nation’s food security.
The Philippines, long trapped in a neocolonial economic structure imposed by imperialist powers and upheld by the local comprador elite, remains dangerously dependent on foreign agricultural imports—a dependency rooted in the destruction of our own productive base. In 2024, the country imported 4.7 million metric tons of rice, making it the world’s second largest rice importer after China. Despite being an agricultural nation, the Philippines relies on Vietnam, Thailand, and other countries to feed its population—an outcome of decades of land-use conversion, liberalized trade policies, and the systematic neglect of domestic food production in favor of cash crops for export.
This dependence extends beyond rice. The country imports more than 95% of its soybean needs, and around 60% of its corn supply for livestock feed. Even basic food commodities like garlic (93% imported) and onions (60-70%) are sourced from abroad. Fertilizers and agricultural machinery are also heavily imported, making local production extremely vulnerable to global price shocks, currency fluctuations, and geopolitical tensions.
As U.S.-China trade wars escalate, the resulting supply chain disruptions, rising tariffs, and export restrictions threaten to drive up the costs of these critical imports. This will inevitably lead to higher food prices, scarcity, and worsening food insecurity for the Filipino masses.
This dependency is no accident. It is the product of imperialist economic restructuring—via institutions like the IMF, World Bank, and WTO—that has de-industrialized the Philippines and dismantled food security in favor of global supply chains that serve monopoly capital.
The geopolitical stakes are just as high. The contested waters of the West Philippine Sea have become a flashpoint where rival imperialist powers flex their military might. The Philippines, caught between two giants, is again treated as a pawn. ASEAN, riddled with contradictions and beholden to transnational capital, has proven incapable of mounting a coherent response.
In this setting, the continued reliance on the U.S. for military protection is a dangerous game. The abrupt U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan and Trump’s threats to abandon NATO allies, as recent examples, make clear: U.S. commitments are governed by capitalist interest, not moral obligation. Should the costs outweigh the returns, the U.S. will not hesitate to abandon the Philippines.
Meanwhile, China advances its own hegemonic ambitions. Its encroachment in the West Philippine Sea and its economic penetration through projects tied to the Belt and Road Initiative reflect its bid for regional dominance. Both the U.S. and China exploit the Philippines through unequal trade, militarization, and ideological influence. Neither side offers genuine liberation.
The Path Forward: National Democracy and People’s Sovereignty
In this period of deepening crisis, the Filipino people must not be passive observers. We must reject both the fading Pax Americana and the rising Sinocentric order. Neither U.S. nor Chinese imperialism will liberate us from poverty, hunger, or foreign domination.
Instead, we must rally behind a vision of national democracy—one that fights for genuine land reform, industrialization, and an independent foreign policy rooted in people’s sovereignty. Food sufficiency must be reclaimed through the revitalization of local agriculture, state investment, and peasant empowerment. We must dismantle the existing structures that enable exploitation and oppression and create a system of governance that prioritizes the protection and welfare of the masses, free from exploitation and foreign domination & control.
As José María Sison aptly stated, “Imperialism is the principal enemy of the Filipino people, and it is the primary cause of the country’s underdevelopment, poverty, and dependence on foreign powers. National liberation and democracy cannot be achieved unless imperialist domination is ended” (Sison, The Philippine Revolution: The Leader’s View, 1989).
The crisis of the imperialist system is also an opportunity. As contradictions sharpen, new alignments become possible. But the people must be organized, conscious, and militant. Only then can we chart an independent path in a world gripped by capitalist decay.#
Area command units of the New People’s Army (NPA) in four different provinces in the Philippines recently engaged in battles in their respective areas without suffering any casualties.
On 11 February, the 203rd IBde of the armed forces of the Marcos regime attacked units of the NPA-Mindoro (Lucio de Guzman Command) in two towns, San Jose in Occidental Mindoro and Mansalay, Oriental Mindoro, reported Ka Madaay Gasic, the spokesperson of the NPA-Mindoro. In the first incident, Red fighters were doing mass work among the indigenous people and farmers of San Jose when they learned of the approaching 68th IB of the enemy and thus were able to quickly conduct an active defense that injured two of the regime’s soldiers. The Red fighters were able to withdraw safely.
Less than an hour later, another unit of the NPA-Mindoro, in Mansalay, was attacked in a disguised operation by the Special Warfare Group (SWAG) of the 4th IB. The civilian clad SWAG operatives pretended they were NPA and deceived the villagers. The Red fighters seized the initiative and inflicted two casualties on the enemy.
On 8 February, in La Libertad, Negros Oriental, Red fighters of the NPA-Central Negros (Leonardo Panaligan Command) carried out a punishment operation against the plundering and destructive operation of a company owned by big comprador Limkaichong. The unit paralyzed a dump truck, a roller, and two backhoes used in the construction of a road for a mine and plantation. Damage was estimated at P20 million.
The spokesman of the unit, Ka JB Regalado, said the construction of the road will “pave the way for the operation of large mines, commercial reforestation under the National Greening Program, plantations, and other projects that will destroy the environment and drive the people out of the affected communities in the mountains.”
On February 17, the NPA-Rizal (Narciso Antazo Aramil Command) struck the fascist troops of the 80th IB in Barangay San Jose, Antipolo City. According to Macario Liwanag (Ka Karyo), spokesperson of the command, the offensive was a strike against the troops that are launching sustained focused military operations that are squandering public funds to torture the people and harm the area. One soldier was killed in the incident.
Ka Karyo said, for a long time the troops of the 80th IB in Rizal have been protecting the anti-people projects that have evicted many farmers and indigenous people in Antipolo City and other towns in Rizal.
Right after the last incident, the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) commended the NPA Red fighters who carried out military action. “They are true people’s warriors who are dedicated to serve the people, defend their rights and protect the environment.”
The NPA’s actions are a just response to the people’s clamor for social and environmental justice. They are also a blow to the claims of the Marcos fascist regime and its armed forces that the country is now “insurgency free”.
Coalition calls for genuine effort to re-engage for a just peace ICHRP Press Statement February 14, 2025
“The International Coalition for Human Rights in the Philippines (ICHRP) condemns the Marcos Jr. administration for crudely negating the 2023 initiative for the resumption of peace talks between his government and the National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP),” said ICHRP Chairperson Peter Murphy today.
“The apparent opening announced in the Oslo Joint Statement on November 23, 2023, is being wrecked by Marcos Jr. Back-channel talks through 2024 have failed to get the formal talks re-started because of the government’s actions. The international community should hold Marcos Jr. to account for this, press him to change course from bad faith to good faith, to go back to the negotiations to conclude the Comprehensive Agreement on Social and Economic Reforms (CASER), and to proceed with the agenda agreed in the Hague Joint Declaration way back in 1992,” Murphy said.
“As a practical step and a confidence-building measure, the Marcos Jr. government should immediately lift its designation of the NDFP as a terrorist organization,” said Murphy. “This June 2021 designation by the Anti-Terrorism Council has no judicial support, blocks the peace talks, and enables sweeping anti-terrorism finance charges against many community-based non-profit organizations,” said Murphy.
National Security Adviser Eduardo Ano, and Assistant Director General of the National Security Council Jonathan Malaya, have opposed the peace talks and continue to justify the violent attacks by government security forces on unarmed NDFP peace consultants and negotiators, and more broadly to commit war crimes against the population.
During 2024 government forces killed NDFP peace consultants Ariel Arbitrario and Concha Araneta-Bocala, and arrested consultant for the Cordilleras Simeon Naogsan, consultant for Southern Mindanao Porferio Tuna, consultant for Southern Tagalog Wigberto Villarico and consultant for Panay Island Tomas Dominado. In August 2022, under Marcos Jr., NDFP peace panel member Benito Tiamzon and consultant Wilma Austria were brutally murdered. After the formal talks were cancelled by Duterte in November 2017, peace consultants Randy Malayao (2019), Julius Giron (2020), Randall Echanis (2020), Eugenia Magpantay and her husband Agaton Topacio (2020), Antonio Cabanatan and Florenda Yap (2021), Jorge Madlos (2021), Rustico Tan (2021), Reynaldo Bocala (2021), Menandro Villanueva (2022), Ericson Acosta and Pedro Codaste (2022), and Rogelio Posadas (2023) were killed.
None of the peace consultants illegally arrested under Duterte have been released – Vicente Ladlad, Adelberto Silva, Loida Magpatoc, Renante Gamara and Frank Fernandez.
All of these people should have been protected by the Joint Agreement on Security and Immunity Guarantee (JASIG) and under the Comprehensive Agreement on Respect for Human rights and International Humanitarian Law (CARHRIHL), which are formal commitments of the Philippine government.
“The Marcos Jr administration committed to pursue peace in November 2023, but in reality imprisons or kills the people working to achieve a just and lasting peace,” said Murphy.
“With the open conflict between President Marcos Jr. and his Vice President, Sara Duterte, now leading to an impeachment trial, the international community should acknowledge the lawless reality behind the facade of democracy in the Philippines, withhold all military aid, and insist on the upholding of the human rights of the people. The peace talks with the NDFP are an alternative pathway, and should be retrieved from the Marcos freezer,” Murphy concluded.
By Franco Jose C. Baroña The Manila Times December 12, 2024
PRESIDENTIAL Adviser on Peace, Reconciliation and Unity Carlito Galvez Jr. said crucial components of the peace agreement with the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army-National Democratic Front (CPP-NPA-NDF) were expected to be ready after the midterm elections in May next year.
“We are positive that maybe after the elections we will come up with the contents of the peace agreement,” he said during the Kapihan sa Manila Bay media forum on Wednesday.
Once the contents were approved by all parties, efforts would shift toward the finalization of annexes, leading to the completion of the comprehensive peace agreement.
Galvez said he was confident that a peace pact would be accomplished during the administration of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.
“I don’t want to preempt the ongoing exploratory talks, but we are positive that the Marcos government can achieve the final peace agreement with the CPP-NPA-NDF. Very, very optimistic. Yes, within the term of the president — or even before the term ends. The president is very committed to finishing all agreements and implementing them during his term. That is his guidance to us, and we are inspired to fulfill this aspiration,” he added.
The peace negotiations, currently being conducted in Norway, aim to address the socioeconomic and political factors fueling the insurgency.
However, Galvez said relocating the talks to the Philippines was being considered for practical reasons, adding consultations with stakeholders and government agencies would follow the exploratory talks to ensure the agreement’s inclusivity and sustainability.
In November last year, Special Assistant to the President Antonio Lagdameo Jr. and NDFP Executive Council member Luis Jalandoni signed a joint communique declaring commitment to peaceful resolution of the conflict and national unity.
It was witnessed by Galvez and retired general Emmanuel Bautista, NDF interim head Julieta de Lima, NDFP negotiating panel member Coni Ledesma, Norwegian observer Kristina Lie Revheim, and Norwegian Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide.
Council of Leaders for Peace Initiatives (CLPI) October 31, 2024
In a few weeks, on November 23, 2023, we will be marking the first-year anniversary of the signing of the GRP-NDFP Oslo Joint Statement. In that statement, the Philippine government and the National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP) agreed to work for a principled and peaceful resolution of the armed conflict. That gave the country hope that we will be able to finally achieve a just and lasting peace of a conflict, rooted in legitimate socioeconomic and political grievances, that has gone on for decades.
The Council of Leaders for Peace Initiatives (CLPI), a multisectoral and diverse group of peace advocates from all over the country, affirm our trust in the ongoing process of discreet talks under the auspices of the Royal Norwegian Government. We also hold fast to our belief in the sincerity of the two Parties in pursuing this difficult but indispensable road to peace. However, we would like to raise concerns about recent developments that could derail progress, or worse, result in the abandonment of the process.
We are worried, in particular, of the recent arrests of Wigberto Villarico, Porfirio Tuna, and Simeon Naogsan. All three, as announced by the NDFP, are peace consultants protected by the Joint Agreement on Safety and Immunity Guarantees (JASIG). Such arrests have a chilling effect on the peace process and erodes the trust that is so necessary to move forward to fulfill the promise made with on what the Oslo statement promised.
It is clear that there are elements in the Marcos Jr administration that are working to block any progress towards a permanent peace agreement between the government and the NDFP. The hawks and hardliners espousing an all-out war approach to the armed conflict in contravention to the pronouncements of the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process (OPAPP) and the President himself must be exposed and condemned. We earnestly appeal to President Marcos Jr: rein them in and reiterate your administration’s commitment to work towards such an agreement.
Once again, the CLPI calls on the Parties to move forward on the exploratory talks and agree on the framework for the GRP-NDFP peace negotiations. It is most urgent for them to agree soonest on confidence and trust building measures, including temporary ceasefires, and protection protocols and mechanisms for all participants in the process. Releasing the NDFP consultants who are currently in detention, including the three recently arrested, is one such measure. #
Reference:
Atty. Antonio G. M. La Viña Lead Convenor, CLPI tonylavs@gmail.com +639989984115 October 31, 2024
Julie De Lima, Chairperson of the NDFP Peace Negotiating Panel National Democratic Front of the Philippines September 4, 2024 | Peace Talks, Statements
The National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP) Peace Negotiating Panel firmly reiterates its commitment to the resumption of peace negotiations with the Government of the Republic of the Philippines (GRP). Our dedication to achieving a just and lasting peace remains steadfast, as we believe the negotiations present an effective means to address the underlying causes of the civil war.
The ongoing talks between the two delegations are meant to come up with an agreed framework for the negotiations towards forging an agreement that will address the root causes of the armed conflict.
In the past few months, we have observed with concern the mixed and contradictory signals emanating from the GRP. On the one hand, General Eduardo Año stated that peace talks are unlikely to proceed. On the other hand, Secretary Carlito Galvez Jr. said they are optimistic that the talks would resume. We hope that the GRP can resolve these contradictory views.
The NDFP Peace Negotiating Panel remains open and ready to engage in meaningful discussions that can lead to comprehensive solutions benefitting the Filipino people including addressing key issues of agrarian reform and national industrialization among other substantive socio-economic concerns.
The path to peace is indeed long and arduous, but it is a path that we must tread with unwavering determination, mutual respect and a genuine commitment from both parties if it is to succeed. We look forward to continuing exploratory talks with the GRP and hopeful to resume formal negotiations to achieve just and lasting peace in the Philippines.
By ANNE MARXZE D. UMIL Bulatlat.com August 29, 2024
MANILA – Human rights group Karapatan expressed grave concern over the reported disappearance of James Jazmines, brother of National Democratic Front of the Philippines consultant Alan Jazmines.
It has been six days since James was reportedly seen last August 23 in Purok 4, Barangay San Lorenzo, Tabaco City, Albay. Karapatan said that his wife, friends and human rights groups have been searching for James as of this writing.
“We believe that James’ disappearance is either the latest in the military’s arsenal of dirty tricks to force his brother Alan to surface… given the military’s continuing failure to arrest Alan,” said Karapatan Secretary General Cristina Palabay in a statement.
Palabay said that members of the Jazmines family, including James, have suffered surveillance, threats and harassment over the decades because of the military’s relentless operations to locate Alan and arrest him.
“In fact, James’ wife, a development worker, was red-tagged several times last year and was even erroneously referred to as Alan’s wife in an episode of ‘Laban ng Masa,’ a rabid red-tagging program aired over the Quiboloy-owned SMNI,” Palabay added.
James, 63, is the youngest brother of Alan. He is a graduate of the Philippine Science High School and took up BS Psychology at the University of the Philippines in Diliman. He was the editor of Commitment, then official paper of the League of Filipino Students (LFS) and later became the executive director of the Amado V. Hernandez Resource Center, a cultural institution.
From 1988 to 1992, James served as the information officer of labor group Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU). He was the information technology consultant of a non-government development organization up to the mid-2000s, and has been working freelance in the IT sector since then.
Karapatan demands that James be surfaced and reunited with his family.
“We denounce this foul maneuver by the military and demand that James be surfaced safe and sound and reunited with his family,” Palabay said.
Jame’s brother, Alan, was one of the NDFP peace consultants released to participate in the peace talks with the Philippine government in 2016 under former President Duterte. After a year, Duterte unilaterally terminated the peace talks and ordered the arrest of peace consultants. (RTS, RVO) (https://www.bulatlat.com)
National Council of Churches in the Philippines August 5, 2024
Let us Observe the National and International Day of Prayer for Just Peace in the Philippines
Sunday, September 1, 2024
On November 23, 2023 the Government of the Republic of the Philippines (GRP) and the National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP) released a Joint Statement indicating a possible resumption of peace negotiations.
However, since then, there has been no further developments.
The two Parties, the GRP and the NDFP should be supported and encouraged to resume the formal peace negotiations. The peace negotiations should not work for the surrender of one of the parties but for identifying and addressing the roots of unpeace to prevent their continuation and aggravation.
One of the most important features of successful peace negotiations is the role of a strong peace constituency, most especially among Filipinos, but also from the international community. This peace constituency should always push for the resolution of the armed conflict based on social justice. It must tirelessly advocate for the two sides to persist with the peace negotiations on the basis of mutually agreed upon principles until a final negotiated peace settlement is achieved.
At the core of NCCP’s ecumenical vocation is peace building and it has faithfully supported the GRP-NDFP peace negotiations. On April 25, 2024, the NCCP Executive Committee approved a resolution for a National and International Day of Prayer for Just Peace in the Philippines on Sunday, September 1, 2024, to show support for the resumption of the GRP-NDFP peace negotiations. The date is significant because of the Signing of The Hague Joint Declaration in The Hague, The Netherlands by representatives of both parties on September 1, 1992. The Hague Joint Declaration sets the objective of the peace negotiations which is the attainment of a just and lasting peace by addressing the roots of the armed conflict and thereby resolving it.
Several of NCCP’s international ecumenical partners have already indicated support for this day of prayer. On July 5, 2024, the Philippine Ecumenical Peace Platform (PEPP) decided to adopt the Day of Prayer and encourage churches from other denominations to observe it
We are hoping that you will join us in observance of this Day of Prayer for a just and lasting peace in the Philippines.
Resources available:
Prayer for Just Peace in the Philippines in (English, Spanish, French and Filipino, Filipino, Bicolano, Bisaya, Ilocano, Kapampangan), by Deaconess Norma P. Dollaga of the United Methodist Church. Ms. Dollaga, Secretary General of KASIMBAYAN, is the recipient of the 2024 World Methodist Peace Award from the World Methodist Council, given to individuals who have struggled for peace with courage, creativity and consistency.
Liturgy that was originally prepared for the NCCP Peace Module by Rev. Dr. Sharon Rose Joy Ruiz-Duremdes, our former General Secretary from 2000-2007
Brief background paper on Day of Prayer for JustPeace in the Philippines.
Affirming our Fidelity to the GRP-NDFP Peace Process, statement approved during the 26th General Convention of the National Council of Churches in the Philippines on November 24, 2023.
Satur Ocampo At Ground Level – Bulatlat July 21, 2024
Throughout his first two years in Malacañang, President Marcos Jr. has stayed silent on the issue of continuing the GRP-NDFP peace talks, which his predecessor, Rodrigo Duterte, had resumed in 2016 and then backed away from in 2019.
Last Nov. 23, 2023, the government and the NDFP announced that they had agreed to return to peace negotiations. Since then, however, with the ball in his court, Marcos Jr. has made no move, nor said a word.
The statement was signed by Luis Jalandoni for the NDFP. Antonio Ernesto Lagdameo, Special Assistant to the President, signed for the GRP. It marked the culmination of almost two years of discreet informal discussions in Oslo, facilitated by the Norwegian government, between NDFP officials and retired AFP chief Gen. Emmanuel Bautista, who initiated the talks. In early 2023 Lagdameo joined the discussions and led the GRP team, presumably with Malacañang clearance.
Concerned that Marcos Jr.’s silence indicated a “return to the policy of all-out war… aimed at crushing the revolutionary movement,” a newly formed group, the Council of Leaders for Peace Initiatives (CLPI), is urging him, in his third State of the Nation address on Monday, to make a “clear and unqualified commitment to pursue a peaceful, negotiated solution” towards attaining just and lasting peace.
“Indeed, in the wake of this [all-out-war] policy,” the CLPI said, “grievous violations of human rights and international humanitarian law are the undeniable and unacceptable consequences.”
Thus, they urged Marcos Jr. to resume the formal negotiations “without preconditions, on the basis of previously inked bilateral agreements and bolstered by confidence and trust building measures from both parties.” They asked him to appoint the new members of the GRP negotiating panel and to release the NDFP peace consultants, who have been arrested and held in prisons, to enable them to do their designated roles in the negotiations.
With 17 initial convenors, the CLPI introduces itself as a “collegial, multi-stakeholder and diverse body of Filipino advocates of a just and lasting peace in the Philippines that seeks to build bridges and spaces for dialogue.” It also seeks to foster a culture of understanding and appreciation for peace building; accompany the victims of violations of human rights and international humanitarian law as a result of the armed conflict and raise public awareness and create support for the GRP-NDFP peace process.
The advocacy group believes that it can play a significant role in the various mechanisms that can lead to achieving a just peace. It held its first assembly-cum-forum in Quezon City last Tuesday, to which I was invited.
Three women composed the forum panel: Melba Maggay, founder of the Institute for Studies in Asian Church and Culture, UP political science professor Sol Iglesias and Deaconess Norma Dollaga of the National Council of Churches in the Philippines. Each provided wider insights on peace-building and suggested ways to advance it.
Notably, they found the NTF-ELCAC as a major obstacle, suggested its “defunding” and backed the calls for its abolition.
The initial CLPI convenors include three bishops: Catholic Archbishop Jose Palma of Cebu and Kidapawan Bishop Jose Colin Bagaforo, the national director of Caritas Phils. and United Methodist Church Bishop Ruby-Nell Estrella.
The other convenors are lawyers Antonio La Viña of Ateneo de Manila’s Manila Observatory and Manuel Quibod, Ateneo de Davao College of Law dean; Melba Maggay; former Ambassador Victoria Bataclan; former Negros Occidental Gov. Rafael Coscolluela; former Commissioner Karen Gomez-Dumpit of the Commission on Human Rights; former UP-Diliman Chancellor Michael Tan; UP-Cebu Chancellor Leo Malagar; former Cultural Center of the Philippines vice president and artistic director Chris Millado; Youth Advocates for Climate Action Philippines spokesperson Mitzi Jonelle Tan; former ARMM Legislative Assembly member Samira Gutoc; Rose Hayahay of Save Our Schools; Guiamel Mato Alem, Consortium of Bangsamoro Civil Society chairperson and Vaughn Geuseppe Alviar, national president, Youth of the Iglesia Filipina Independiente.
“Much hope and optimism” was generated among peace advocates, the CLPI said, and those who suffer the most because of the ongoing armed conflict such as the rural poor and indigenous peoples’ communities.
“Unfortunately, since then we have not heard any positive development, especially prospects for the resumption of the formal peace negotiations.”
A news report Thursday in another national daily quoted a National Amnesty Commission statement as saying the peace negotiations were “still being worked out to be started.” They’re not even in square one!
In its July 16 statement, titled “A Just Peace is Imperative,” the CLPI made three critical observations:
We underscore the folly of prioritizing government financial and other resources for this all-out war policy over providing for basic social services such as health, education, affordable housing and economic development programs that address the plight of the poor and disadvantaged. This can only lead to exacerbating the roots of the armed conflict.
We are also alarmed that this militarist policy extends to civil society in its legitimate role to critique government policies and rightfully advocate for reforms. Thus, we denounce the use of red-tagging, the filing of unwarranted criminal cases including charges of “terrorism” and “financing terrorism” and other forms of political harassment against cause-oriented groups and activists, development workers, human rights defenders as well as journalists.
The military claims that the CPP-NPA’s remaining armed force has been significantly reduced and are bound for defeat. Nonetheless, history shows that armed conflict – rooted in widening socioeconomic and political disparities – persists precisely because those conditions lead to social unrest and lends credence and justness to the revolutionary cause.
Citing the heightening rivalry and tension between big powers especially in the Asia-Pacific region, the CLPI asserted that “it is high time to pursue all avenues, especially peaceful ones, to address and bring to a negotiated solution the ongoing armed conflict, so that we can unite our people and muster our resources towards forging an independent and peaceful foreign policy.”
Will this issue be addressed in Marcos Jr.’s forthcoming SONA? How important is it to him?
Coalition calls for genuine effort to re-engage for a just peace
Council of Leaders for Peace Initiatives (CLPI)
MANILA – Human rights group Karapatan expressed grave concern over the reported disappearance of James Jazmines, brother of National Democratic Front of the Philippines consultant Alan Jazmines.
