Stop Harassing and Threatening Luis Jalandoni, Chairperson of the NDFP Negotiating Panel

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Press Statement by Prof. Jose Maria Sison
Chief Political Consultant of the NDFP Negotiating Panel
June 3, 2015
Since the 1990s, Luis Jalandoni the chairperson of the Negotiating Panel  of the National Democratic Front of the Philippines has visited the Philippines a number of times for peace consultations and family visits  under the protection of the Joint Agreement on Safety and Immunity Guarantees (JASIG) . He  met and conversed with Presidents Ramos, Estrada and Arroyo.
Also since the 1990s, Jalandoni has acted as the Chairperson of the NDFP Negotiating Panel and as authorized representative of the NDFP, including the CPP and NPA, in facilitating the safe and orderly release of personnel of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and the Philippine National Police (PNP) in the custody of the NPA as prisoners of war.
In sharp contrast to previous regimes, the Aquino regime has emerged as the worst violator of the JASIG by harassing Jalandoni with an invalid  and improperly served subpoena and threatening to arrest and imprison him  on trumped up charges of nonbailable common crimes, such as “kidnapping and serious illegal detention of four named policemen (captured by the NPA on July 10, 2014 in Surigao del Norte and released on July 29, 2014) and violation of R.A. No. 9851 (Crime against Humanitarian Law and other Crimes against Humanity”.
The Aquino regime is the most malicious of all regimes by using its representatives (like DILG Secretary Mar Roxas and Nani Braganza) to seek the release of the aforesaid policemen with the help of Jalandoni on humanitarian grounds and now hurling against him false charges of common crimes as aforementioned.  Defense Secretary Gazmin and OPAPP Secretary Deles were with Secretary Mar Roxas during  the safe and orderly release of the aforesaid policemen.
It is reprehensible that the Aquino regime is acting viciously and maliciously by violating the safety and immunity guarantees that protect Luis Jalandoni and by misrepresenting  as a crime the facilitation done by Jalandoni to help realize the humanitarian act and goodwill measure of the NDFP in causing the release of the four policemen and seeking to improve the atmosphere for the resumption of formal talks in the GPH-NDFP peace negotiations.
It is unfortunate that the Aquino regime is making a vicious and malicious attack on the NDFP and the person of Jalandoni exactly at a time that he and I have  just recommended to the  NDFP Executive Committee to give permission to the NDFP Negotiating Panel to undertake exploratory talks prior to formal talks, despite the recent outburst of Aquino against the NDFP and the undersigned.
In order for the GPH and NDFP to engage in exploratory talks, as urged by the Royal Norwegian Government as third party facilitator and the many peace advocates,  the Aquino regime should respect the JASIG and allow the safe passage of Jalandoni to his negotiating post and office in The Netherlands.  Thus, the exploratory talks will proceed and not be disrupted by petty-minded and malicious obstructions. ###

Aquino Lacks Sincerity in Peace Negotiations and has Wantonly Violated Existing Agreements

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By Prof. JOSE MARIA SISON
NDFP Chief Political Consultant in Peace Negotiations with the GPH/GRP
The recent statement of BS Aquino III to Radyo Bombo and published in the Philippine Daily Inquirer attacking the National Democratic Front of the Philippines and seeking to impose on the NDFP his one-sided views has upset efforts to pave the way for the resumption of the GPH-NDFP peace negotiations.
It is Aquino who lacks sincerity in peace negotiations between the GPH* and NDFP.
He has wantonly violated the existing agreements, especially The Hague Joint Declaration, the Comprehensive Agreement on Respect for Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law (CARHRIHL), the Joint Agreement on Safety and Immunity Guarantees (JASIG), and the Joint Agreement on the Formation, Sequence and Operationalization of the Reciprocal Working Committees.
He is out of his mind if he thinks that he can get an agreement on indefinite ceasefire without complying with the aforesaid existing agreements and without a Comprehensive Agreement on Social and Economic Reforms at the same time.
He shows his bad faith, selfishness and incorrigible penchant for cruelty by putting in advance of formal talks his precondition that he will continue to violate JASIG and CARHRIHL, and further on by allowing the issuance of warrants of arrest against NDFP consultants in connection with the baseless and false Hilongos charge.
He seems to be obsessed with going down in history with a legacy of cruelty comparable to that of Marcos and Arroyo in collecting political prisoners and allowing the military, police and paramilitary in perpetrating forced disappearances, torture, mass dislocation, demolition of homes, and landgrabbing under Oplan Bayanihan.
Aquino has allowed OPAPP secretary Deles to sabotage every step in the so-called special track, from the time of Ronald Llamas to that of Hernani Braganza (who was brusquely laid aside by Deles only recently).
Now, Deles wants to humiliate and insult the NDFP by putting forward the self-proclaimed designer of Oplan Bayanihan as the chief negotiator of the GPH.
By his callous and malicious statement, probably advised by Deles, Aquino has made it necessary for the NDFP to consider again whether or not it is useful at all to negotiate with a lameduck regime which is obsessed with violating existing agreements and which is predetermined to leave a legacy of ruining the peace negotiations with the NDFP, and even messing up those with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front by committing the Mamasapano fiasco.

Aquino Lacks Sincerity in Peace Negotiations and has Wantonly Violated Existing Agreements

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MEDIA RELEASE
By Prof. JOSE MARIA SISON
NDFP Chief Political Consultant in Peace Negotiations with the GPH/GRP
15 May 2015
The recent statement of BS Aquino III to Radyo Bombo and published in the Philippine Daily Inquirer attacking the National Democratic Front of the Philippines and seeking to impose on the NDFP his one-sided views has upset efforts to pave the way for the resumption of the GPH-NDFP peace negotiations.
It is Aquino who lacks sincerity in peace negotiations between the GPH* and NDFP.
He has wantonly violated the existing agreements, especially The Hague Joint Declaration, the Comprehensive Agreement on Respect for Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law (CARHRIHL), the Joint Agreement on Safety and Immunity Guarantees (JASIG), and the Joint Agreement on the Formation, Sequence and Operationalization of the Reciprocal Working Committees.
He is out of his mind if he thinks that he can get an agreement on indefinite ceasefire without complying with the aforesaid existing agreements and without a Comprehensive Agreement on Social and Economic Reforms at the same time.
He shows his bad faith, selfishness and incorrigible penchant for cruelty by putting in advance of formal talks his precondition that he will continue to violate JASIG and CARHRIHL, and further on by allowing the issuance of warrants of arrest against NDFP consultants in connection with the baseless and false Hilongos charge.
He seems to be obsessed with going down in history with a legacy of cruelty comparable to that of Marcos and Arroyo in collecting political prisoners and allowing the military, police and paramilitary in perpetrating forced disappearances, torture, mass dislocation, demolition of homes, and landgrabbing under Oplan Bayanihan.
Aquino has allowed OPAPP secretary Deles to sabotage every step in the so-called special track, from the time of Ronald Llamas to that of Hernani Braganza (who was brusquely laid aside by Deles only recently).
Now, Deles wants to humiliate and insult the NDFP by putting forward the self-proclaimed designer of Oplan Bayanihan as the chief negotiator of the GPH.
By his callous and malicious statement, probably advised by Deles, Aquino has made it necessary for the NDFP to consider again whether or not it is useful at all to negotiate with a lameduck regime which is obsessed with violating existing agreements and which is predetermined to leave a legacy of ruining the peace negotiations with the NDFP, and even messing up those with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front by committing the Mamasapano fiasco.

ITANONG MO KAY PROF: Podcast on Peace Talks – GPH and NDFP & GPH and MILF

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Panayam ni Ms. Sonia Capio ng Kodao Productions kay Prof. Jose Maria Sison, NDFP Chief Political Consultant hinggil sa kalagayan ng usapang pangkapayapaan sa pagitan ng GPH at NDFP at GPH at MILF.
April 9, 2015
Mga Tanong para sa peace talks sa pagitan ng GPH at NDFP at GPH at MILF
1. Ano po ang update sa usapang pangkapayapaan sa pagitan ng GPH at NDFP? Matutuloy pa rin po ba ito bago pa matapos ang termino ni Pangulong Noynoy Aquino?
JMS: Patuloy na handang makipag-usap ang NDFP. Pero ang GPH ang hindi handa. Kung gayon, nagiging malabo na ang resumption ng formal talks ng GPH  at NDFP.  Sabi ng Malakanyang na nakabuhos ang atensyon nila sa pagtutulak ng BBL at paghahabol ng peace with  MILF.
Hanggang ngayon walang maliwanag na negotiating panel at chairman ng GPH para makipag-usap sa NDFP.  Lumilitaw na sa buong panahon  ng rehimeng Aquino wala talagang interes sa peace talks kundi paggamit ng dahas laban sa kilusang rebolusyonaryo.
2. Ano po ang inyong masasabi sa usapang pangkapayapaan sa pagitan naman ng GPH at MILF? Tila nagkahati-hati po ang mga pananaw ng mga nasa pamahalaan at matindi ang mga banggaan sa usapin ng Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL) at ang kawastuhan kung dapat pa bang ituloy ang pakikipag-usap nila sa MILF o hindi na.
JMS: Sa loob at labas ng GPH, lumakas ang sumasalungat sa BBL dahil sa Mamasapano at constitutional issues. Tiyak na maraming susog ang gagawin sa Kongreso, laluna sa Senado, hanggang sa posibleng ayaw na ng MILF ang lalabas na final draft ng BBL.
Kahit tanggapin ng MILF ang anumang BBL na aprubahan ng Kongreso, may mga magdadala pa rin ng constitutional issues sa Korte Suprema. Baka mauuntol ang BBL hanggang maubos na ang termino o buhok ni Penoy Bugok.
3. Ano po ang inyong pagtingin sa Bangsamoro Basic Law o BBL?
JMS: May constitutional issues na nakasalang sa  Kongreso ng GPH. Hanggang ngayon, walang pinal na anyo ng BBL dahil susugan nang susugan pa yan sa Kongreso. Habang wala pang pinal na anyo ng BBL, mahirap mangahas ng opinion ng pagkatig o pagtuligsa sa kabuuan ng BBL.

Interview with Prof. Jose Maria Sison on New Year’s Day 2015

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January 01, 2015
Prof. Jose Maria Sison
Chief Political Consultant
NDFP National Democratic Front of the Philippines
By Nikko Dizon
Philippine Daily Inquirer
Niko Dizon (ND): Happy New Year sir! I read your Q&A with the NDCP executive course students
Prof Jose Maria Sison (JMS): Happy 2015 and best wishes!
ND: I was struck by your answers because one, some of the policies you mentioned if you would become president are the same policies being followed now by government.
JMS: The general titles of the policies that I have mentioned and proposed are indeed similar to those used by the GPH and are used as subjects for the agenda of the peace negotiations. But the GPH and NDFP differ in substantiating the titles or subjects. For instance, the NDFP points out under the rubric of national sovereignty and independence the need to do away with unequal treaties, agreements and arrangements with foreign powers. Under the rubric of economic development, the NDFP stresses Filipino-owned industrialization and genuine land reform. The differences in the substantiation of policies is subject to negotiations and consensus for the benefit of the Filipino people.
ND: And also, you mentioned the need to strengthen the nation’s military to defend itself.
JMS: The assumption for this statement is hypothetical and is used by the interviewer to draw what I think is best for the country and people under conditions that I become president. The essential premise is that there is already a just and lasting peace agreement which requires the GPH and NDFP to cooperate in defending national sovereignty and territorial integrity. Nevertheless, the NDFP has always upheld, defended and promoted the national sovereignty of the people and the territorial integrity of the Philippines.
ND: You also have a scathing description of President Aquino and Sec. Deles. But they are the two main decision makers in any peace nego for the government. How then is a resumption of the talks with the two of them playing key roles, possible?
JMS: So long as there is yet no peace agreement, not even a resumption of formal talks between the GPH and NDFP negotiating panels, you can expect that certain circumstances can arise now and then which motivate one side to make scathing remarks against the other side or both side to exchange scathing remarks. Aquino and Deles also make scathing remarks against the NDFP, CPP or NPA now and then. At any rate, any word war is much lighter than the civil war or armed conflict that has necessitated the peace negotiations.
It is not always the case that I make scathing remarks. Right now, Deles is making scathing remarks in the press against the NPA for launching certain tactical offensives within the time scale of the unilateral SOMO of the AFP. But the CPP, NPA and NDFP are bound only by its own unilateral ceasefire declaration which has ceasefire dates different from those of the AFP unilateral ceasefire. When the ceasefire dates of the NPA and AFP coincide, the NPA has not made any tactical offensive and has even gone to the extent of releasing its prisoners of war in contrast to the GPH hoarding 14 NDFP consultants and 500 other political prisoners on multiplied charges of rebellion and common crimes.
The mix up and multiplication of charges of rebellion and common crimes are in violation of the Hernandez political offense doctrine and the basic right against being put in jeopardy of being punished twice or so many times for one and the same alleged crime of seeking the overthrow of the GPH or the Manila government. I say the Manila government to emphasize the fact that the revolutionary movement is building in the countryside a new government in the form of the local organs of political power.###

ILPS Welcomes Release of all Cuban and Normalization of US-Cuba Relations

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By Prof. Jose Maria Sison

Chairperson, International League of Peoples’ Struggle

December 22, 2014

 

We, the International League of Peoples’ Struggle, share with the Cuban people and their leadership the great joy of celebrating the  release of the remaining 3 of the Cuban 5 and the  return of all these anti-terrorist heroes to their homeland. We demanded their freedom for a long time and we  are elated that they are free.  They were unjustly imprisoned in the US for more than 16 years.

 

We also welcome the decision of the Cuban and US governments to reestablish diplomatic relations and to work for their normalization. It is the prerogative of any independent state, be it socialist or not, to establish and develop normal diplomatic and trade relations with other countries, irrespective of ideology or social system.  We  demand the immediate and complete lifting  of  the economic, commercial and financial blockade that the US has imposed on Cuba for more than 50 years.

 

It is a great victory for the Cuban people and their leadership that because of their protracted revolutionary struggle against imperialism the US government  has finally admitted the failure of its policy of hostility and blockade.  We share with all the peoples, forces and movements in solidarity with the Cuban people the joy in celebrating such historic victory.

 

We have confidence that the Cuban people and their leadership will continue to uphold, defend and promote their national sovereignty and independence and their socialist ideals.  We continue to stand in solidarity with them and support them in fending off attempts of the US to demand the unbridled license of US corporations, agencies and imperialist-funded NGOs in exchange for the lifting of the blockade.  There are indeed risks and dangers to reckon with.

 

History has shown that revolutionary states can maintain their independence, their own principles and social system, even as they have normal diplomatic and trade relations with other states of whatever ideology and social system. The Cuban people have their firm revolutionary principles, historical experience and continuing revolutionary will, vigilance and militancy to be able to counter any trap or trick of  the imperialists and their reactionary agents.###

CBCP as Peace Talks Mediator is Presumptuous – Sison

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November 13, 2014
Prof. Jose Maria Sison
Chief Political Consultant
NDFP National Democratic Front of the Philippines
By Roselle Valerio
Liberation International
Roselle Valerio: In a message issued on 10 November 2014, Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines President, Bishop Socrates B. Villegas speaks about a request made for the CBCP to mediate in the peace talks between the government of the Republic of the Philippines (GPH) and the National Democratic Front of the Philippines. Bishop Villegas did not reveal who made that request. Did the NDFP ever make such a request for the CBCP to mediate in peace talks?
Jose Maria Sison: The NDFP never made a request to the CBCP or the CBCP President to mediate in peace negotiations between the NDFP and the GPH. It cannot make such a request to the CBCP because there is a clear secular framework for peace negotiations laid down by The Hague Joint Declaration, signed by both parties in 1992. The NDFP has a high sense of the modern democratic principle of the separation of church and state.
RV: In the ongoing peace negotiations, the Royal Norwegian Government is the Third Party Facilitator. In none of the previous agreements is there mention of a “mediator”. What do you think would be the role of the CBCP or Bishop Villegas as “mediator”?
JMS: Only Archbishop Villegas can say who told him to consider making the CBCP mediator. Perhaps, the term is being played with by persons who do not know the meaning of mediator in peace negotiations under international law. The term “mediator” is a highly elevated term for a third party state or interstate agency which has powers sometimes going up to the level of arbitration between two belligerent parties. The NDFP is extra careful about having a mediator.
RV: In his message, Bishop Villegas reveals that his information comes from the GPH panel and he echoes the acknowledged source. What is your comment on the notion that NDFP representatives in Utrecht are out of touch with developments in the field?
JMS: Archbishop Villegas should review the most authoritative public statements of the central leading organs of the CPP and NDFP, and the central command of the New People’s Army, that the leadership of the revolutionary forces is based in the Philippines. The NDFP Negotiating Panel and its members have nothing to do with leading and administering the revolutionary movement in the Philippines. On the other hand, the NDFP Negotiating Panel is duly-authorized to perform the task of peace negotiations and as such, may request the NPA and other revolutionary organization in the Philippines for information that may be relevant to the performance of this task.
RV: Bishop Villegas attacks the NDFP as being insincere in the peace negotiations, claiming that it uses for its sole benefit the ceasefires and the safe conduct passes for its negotiators and consultants. He also claims that the peace negotiations have not borne substantial fruit. How do you respond to these claims?
JMS: Archbishiop Villegas needs to become better informed about the peace negotiations. He can start by conversing with both panels – the GPH and the NDFP – and not with just one. He does not have to meet them at the same time. The worst and most shocking part of his statement is that the peace negotiations have not borne substantial fruit, practically dismissing as worthless the hard work done by both sides in producing more than ten major agreements, including the framework of peace negotiations, the substantive agenda, the methods for making the comprehensive agreements, and the Comprehensive Agreement on Respect for Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law.
RV: Notwithstanding Bishop Villegas’ attacks on the NDFP and the revolutionary movement, can the CBCP become a mediator in the peace negotiations? What sort of roles can Bishop Villegas, the Roman Catholic Church, and other religious institutions play in fostering peace in the country?
JMS: It is gratuitous, if not extremely presumptuous, for the CBCP to imagine that it can ever become a mediator in the GPH-NDFP peace negotiations. What the NDFP has welcomed is the role of religious leaders as peace advocates who serve as moral bridge builders and promoters of the peace negotiations. Thus, the NDFP has always appreciated the work of Catholic bishops and other religious leaders in the Philippine Ecumenical Peace Platform (PEPP), the Ecumenical Bishops Forum on Peace, and the like.
RV: Bishop Villegas opines that the “long-festering insurgency” is the problem, and that socialist societies are “impractical”. What’s your reaction to these views?
JMS: The revolutionary struggle of the Filipino people for national liberation and democracy is not the problem but is the solution to the long running problem of foreign and feudal domination. The struggle is well-grounded and is of great importance and consequence. It has gone on since 1896 and will proceed until it gains complete victory.
It cannot be discouraged or deterred by any anti-socialist or anti-communist statements. The prolonged and worsening crisis of the world capitalist system is once more generating the conditions for the rise of powerful anti-imperialist and socialist movements. It is reactionary for anyone to preach that capitalism is forever and can only be accepted and improved.
RV: At the concluding part of his message, Bishop Villegas categorically states that the CBCP “cannot take in the role of initiating, convening, mediating or presiding over a dialogue” between representatives of the NDFP and the GPH, and that, “under the present circumstances”, this “dialogue” cannot be part of the CBCP’s ecclesial mandate as an episcopal conference. What is your own concluding response?
JMS: The NDFP completely agrees that the CBCP is not at all qualified to take in the role of initiating, convening, mediating or presiding over the peace negotiations of the GPH and NDFP. The lack of competence is underscored by the CBCP President merely echoing the positions of the GPH, and exposing his ignorance of basic information surrounding the negotiations. It is fine that Bishop Villegas is aware of the CBCP’s limitations under its ecclesial mandate. The CBCP President should have been aware of this in the first place and avoided making a statement of presumptuous claims and outright attacks against the NDFP.
RV: Do you think that the views of Bishop Villegas on the peace negotiations and the social conflict in the country are shared by the Roman Catholic Church hierarchy and their constituency? What should be the attitude of the revolutionary forces in confronting the reactionary and ignorant views of the Roman Catholic Church in the Philippines?
JMS: The views of Bishop Villegas reflect the conservative character of the Roman Catholic Church as an institution of colonial origin, with substantial property interests in land and corporate stocks under the current ruling system of big compradors and landlords. But there can be a variety of views among the bishops, the lower clergy, and the church people in general because of the conflicting demands of the ruling classes and the masses of exploited and oppressed people who also belong to the church.
It is good that within the Church there are church leaders and church people who describe themselves as Christians for National Liberation and strive to build a church that serves the exploited and oppressed people and not the dominant foreign power, the local ruling classes and the institutional interests in the ownership of land and shares of stocks in corporations and banks.
The revolutionary forces should be patient and be persuasive in explaining their position to the bishops. They can take issues with any bishop by presenting the facts and arguments, and with due respect to their religious belief and sensibilities. In recent times, the people have seen how some church leaders can be so reactionary while others are so progressive. They have also seen how an increasing number of church leaders and church people have opted for the just path of national and social liberation. ###

Most Hearfelt Condolences to Families and Comrades, Highest Honors to the Lacub Martyrs

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By JOSE MARIA SISON

Founding Chairman, Communist Party of the Philippines

Chief Political Consultant, NDFP Negotiating Panel

 

I join the people and revolutionary force in expressing most heartfelt condolences to the families and comrades of the leading cadres of the Communist Party of the Philippines, Red fighters of the New People’s Army and civilian victims whose valiant lives were snuffed out by the fascist agents of the US-Aquino regime on 4 September in Lacub, Abra.

 

The highest honors are deservedly accorded to Arnold ‘Ka Mando’ Jaramillo, Recca Noelle ‘Ka Tet’ Monte, Brandon ‘Ka Sly’ Madranga, Robert ‘Ka Dawyan’ Beyao, Ricardo ‘Ka Tubong’ Reyes, Pedring ‘Ka Jess’ Banggao, and Robert ‘Ka Limbo’ Perez, as well as to the two civilians Engr. Fidela Salvador and Noel Viste, who have all put their lives on the line and made the ultimate sacrifice in the service of the people.

 

I join the family, comrades and friends of the Lacub Martyrs in condemning the savagery of the 41st Infantry Battalion soldiers under the command of 2Lt. Joe Mari S. Landicho and Capt. Deo Martinez and in demanding their prosecution and punishment as murderers and war criminals.

 

Based on initial investigation, the NPA fighters had been rendered hors de combat by the AFP troops. Instead of treating their wounds and holding them as prisoners of war, the Red fighters were brutally tortured and slaughtered, and their lifeless bodies mutilated. Comrade Mando’s body, in particular, was riddled with bullets, with at least one gunshot wound inflicted at point blank range.

 

The fascist troops also arbitrarily arrested Engr. Salvador and accused her of being an NPA guerrilla, before she was tortured and summarily executed. Lacub resident Noel Viste was one of the numerous civilians who were forced by the military to act as their guides and human shields. He was also tortured and executed by the AFP troops. We join calls for justice against these brutalities.

 

The Lacub Martyrs are all models of being proletarian revolutionaries who took up the challenge of self-less sacrifice and dedicated struggle in the service of the exploited and oppressed classes. They came from different class backgrounds, and they underwent the process of remoulding themselves in order to contribute to the revolutionary struggle for national liberation and genuine democracy. In the various functions that they undertook, they showed unrelenting dedication to fulfilling their tasks however great the difficulties and sacrifices.

 

Their supreme sacrifice will inspire countless people, especially the youth, to follow their footsteps in the service of the oppressed and exploited. Let us honor the memory of the Lacub Martyrs by carrying on with greater resoluteness and militancy the revolutionary struggle for national democracy and socialism.

Jose Ma. Sison Calls for Resumption of Peace Talks

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By Delfin T. Mallari Jr.
Reposted from Inquirer.net 27 March 2014
LUCENA CITY, Philippines—To break the current impasse on the peace talks between the government and communist rebels, exiled Communist Party of the Philippines Jose Ma. Sison on Wednesday has proposed that both parties should meet again to pave the way for the resumption of the aborted peace negotiation.

“The teams of the GPH (Government of the Philippines) and NDFP (National Democratic Front of the Philippines) should have informal talks to pave the way for the formal talks,” Sison said in an online interview Wednesday afternoon.
He said NDFP has already agreed to the proposal of Royal Norwegian Government to host another round of peace negotiation in the next few months.

Short of demanding the replacement of chief government peace negotiator Alexander Padilla and Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process Teresita “Ging” Deles, Sison called the two as “arrogant and lazy.” Asked for his basis, Sison has yet to reply though.

Sison said the government side should be represented by the likes of former government negotiating panel chairman and now 1-Bap partylist Rep. Silvestre H. Bello III and the late Tarlac Rep. Jose Yap.

“Dapat mga negotiators katulad nila Apeng Yap at Bebot Bello. May tindig sila sa panig ng GRP pero marunong sumalubong sa mga demands ng kilusang rebolusyonaryo alang-alang sa kabutihan ng mga mamamayan,” (It should be negotiators like Apeng Yap and Bebot Bello who are committed to the government side but know how to respond to the demands of the revolutionary movement for the sake of the people‘s welfare) said Sison.

He added: “Dahil kina Bebot at Apeng sa isang panig at si Louie Jalandoni sa kabila nagkaroon ng 10 agreements sa panahon ni Ramos. Pagkatapos nito, mga negotiators ng GRP o GPH ay mga arogante at antemano gusto nilang patawan ng surender at pasipikasyon ang kilusang rebolusyonaryo.” (Because of Bebot and Apeng on one side and Louie Jalandoni on the other side there were 10 agreements made during the time of Ramos. But the negotiators after them were arrogant and insistent at once on imposing surrender and pacification of the revolutionary movement.)

Sison recalled that during the term of former President Fidel Ramos, the two parties made headway in the peace negotiation by forging 10 agreements that served as the foundation for further peace talks.

Sison assailed the present policy of the Aquino administration with regards to the future of the peace negotiation. Sison alleged that the Aquino government is determined to kill the peace negotiations “by always trying to attack and destroy the linkage between the NDFP Negotiating Panel and the revolutionary forces in the field.”

“It is consistent but stupid for them to claim falsely a disconnect between the NDFP Negotiating Panel and the forces in the field and to realize their own self-fulfilling prophesy by negating the JASIG (Joint Agreement and Safety Immunity Guarantees)-protected individuals who act as peace consultants and support the peace negotiations,” Sison said.
Sison warned that if the detained NDFP political consultants are not released, “the Aquino regime will only be killing the peace negotiations and inciting the NPA and other revolutionary forces to intensify the people’s war.”
“Is that what Aquino and his bureaucratic and military subordinates really want?” Sison asked.

Sison argued that the peace negotiation is still ongoing with the absence of formal notice of termination from both parties as mandated under Jasig signed in 1995.

“Kailangan ang formal talks para pag-usapan at pagkasunduan ang social and economic reforms, kasunod ng CARHRIHL, alinsunod sa substantive agenda. At saka lang puedeng pag-usapan ang posibilidad ng truce and cooperation kahit batay lamang sa isang general statement of common intent tungkol sa mga pundamental na problema ng bayan,” he said.
(After the Carhrihl [Comprehensive Agreement on Respect for Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law] there is need for formal talks to discuss and agree on social and economic reforms which would follow the substantive agenda. Only then can the possibility of truce and cooperation be discussed even if only based on a general statement of common intent about the fundamental problems of the people).

Sison recalled that he had agreed to meet with Mr. Aquino since November 2012. But in the Amsterdam meeting of the government and NDFP delegations, Sison said the task to simply prepare the communique for a prospective meeting in Hanoi in April 2013 “was fouled up by a premature demand of Office of Presidential Affairs for Peace Process for a confused and baseless ‘indefinite unilateral simultaneous ceasefires’ instead of a possible truce and cooperation agreement to be worked out within three months after my supposed meeting with Aquino.”

“This aborted meeting had been presented to me by Political Adviser Ronald Llamas as a historic moment, similar to the Aquino-Murad meeting in Tokyo in August 2011. But Alex Padilla as agent of Deles sabotaged the delegation headed by Llamas by drawing attention away from the task of drafting the aforesaid communique in advance,” Sison said.

The Revolution is Free To Grow in Strength and Advance – Prof. Sison

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On the arrest of Benito Tiamzon and Wilma Austria

Interview with Prof. JOSE MARIA SISON
Founding Chairman, Communist Party of the Philippines

By ROSELLE VALERIO
Liberation International

Roselle Valerio (RV): What was your immediate reaction to the arrest of Benito Tiamzon and Wilma Austria?

Jose Maria Sison (JMS): I thought immediately that the arrest of these two NDFP consultants in the peace negotiations is in violation of the Joint Agreement on Safety and Immunity Guarantees (JASIG). They are holders of the document of identification under JASIG and are protected from surveillance, harassment and arrest.

RV: Is it true, as Alex Padilla, the military and other Aquino government officials claim, that you are on opposite sides with the Tiamzon couple regarding peace negotiations? That Tiamzon and Austria are “hardliners” and “war freaks” and that they are at odds with you and the NDFP negotiating panel?

JMS: The Tiamzon couple are in support of the peace negotiations. That’s why they are consultants in the peace negotiations. The claims of high officials and military officers of the reactionary government that the Tiamzon couple are at odds with the CPP founding chairman and the NDFP Negotiating Panel is a malicious intrigue. They should read the official declarations of the CPP Central Committee supporting the work of the NDFP Negotiating Panel and its consultants, including myself.

RV: How well do you know Benito Tiamzon and Wilma Austria?

JMS: I knew them as excellent cadres of the Manila-Rizal regional committee of the Communist Party of the Philippines in the early 1970s. Then Benny Tiamzon became secretary of the Eastern Visayas regional committee of the CPP in the mid-1970s onwards. He was outstanding for his comprehensive ability in ideology, politics and organization. Wilma was also outstanding. It is not surprising that they would rise to the highest central positions in tne CPP.

RV: What do you know of Tiamzon’s involvement and role in the CPP in the 1990s, in the Second Great Rectification Movement?

JMS: Tiamzon played a leading role in the Second Great Rectification Movement, which started in 1992. This was an educational campaign that reaffirmed basic revolutionary principles and resulted in the rectification of serious subjectivist and opportunist errors and the revitalization and resurgence of the CPP, NPA, the mass base and the people’s democratic government. The CPP cadres and members held on to the general line of democratic revolution through protracted people’s war, while a few rabid opponents became NGO racketeers, yellow labor dealers, bureaucrats of the reactionary government and even spies and psywar experts of the military

RV: What do you know of the Tiamzon couple’s current roles in the CPP and their activities in the Visayas when they were arrested?

JMS: My reliable source of information regarding the current roles of the Tiamzons is the CPP official statement published in Ang Bayan. They are described as senior leaders of the CPP paying close attention to the plight and rehabilitation of the communities and families victimized by the supertyphoon Haiyan (Yolanda) in the Visayas.

RV: What will be the impact of the arrest of the Tiamzon couple on the CPP leadership? The military say that without Tiamzon the CPP will suffer from a vacuum of leadership.

JMS: Leadership in the CPP is collective. It does not depend on any single leader no matter how excellent. When I was arrested in 1977, I was the CPP Central Committee chairman. But the armed revolution continued, grew in strength and became a major factor in the overthrow of Marcos despite his boast that he had finished off the CPP upon my arrest.

Like me and Julie when we were arrested in 1977, Benny Tiamzon and Wilma Austria will be replaced automatically by comrades. To use basketball parlance, I say that the CPP has a deep bench. The Central Committee is replenished and further strengthened by the increasing number of national cadres as well as regional cadres from some 17 regions.

RV: What will be the impact on the New People’s Army and the people’s war?

JMS: The NPA will become even more determined to wage people’s war. The ground is fertile for people’s war because of the system of oppression and exploitation that subjects the people to intolerable suffering. The people desire the overthrow of the rotten system of big compradors and landlords servile to US imperialism.

RV: What was the status of the NDFP-GPH peace negotiations before the arrest of the Tiamzon couple? What will now be consequences to the peace negotiations?

JMS: Before the arrest of the Tiamzon couple, the peace negotiations were paralyzed by the Aquino regime’s noncompliance with and violations of existing agreements between the NDFP and the Manila government. The imprisonment of JASIG-protected consultants has had adverse consequences to the peace negotiations.

RV: Do you have a message you would like to convey to Benito Tiamzon, Wilma Austria, and their five companions?

JMS: Luis Jalandoni and the NDFP Negotiating Panel are working hard to demand their release in accordance with the JASIG. But the Aquino regime is extremely reactionary, narrow-minded and short- sighted. I told Marcos in 1977: you have imprisoned me but the revolutionary movement is free to grow in strength and advance. Imprisonment is an opportunity to perform an important form of service to the people. By manifesting their defiance, revolutionary prisoners can inspire the people to fight more fiercely for their national and social liberation.

RV: What is your message to the Aquino regime?

JMS: Respect the The Hague Joint Declaration and the JASIG and release the NDFP peace consultants. Respect the Comprehensive Agreement on Respect for Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law (CARHRIHL) and release the political prisoners imprisoned on trumped-up common crimes. Thus, there will be a sound basis for resuming the peace negotiations.