Forty thousand farmers, workers, Lumad, youth, women and church people gathered and marched around Davao City on June 29, Tuesday, to support the resumption of peace of talks between the Government of the Republic of the Philippines (GPH) and the National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP).
The march was attended by peace advocates from the five different regions in Mindanao.
According to labor leader and incoming Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) Undersecretary Joel Maglunsod, the march is the largest gathering for peace since 1984.
The march coincided with the commemoration of the 1st death anniversary of the martyred New People’s Army (NPA) commander Leoncio “Ka Parago” Pitao. (READ Nagulat ka ba sa Dami ng Nakilibing?)
“The root cause of the armed conflict should be addressed which include economic reforms especially genuine land reform and national industrialization,” said Rev. Jurie Jaime, spokesperson of Exodus for Justice and Peace, a broad alliance calling for a just and lasting peace.
Peace Forum
The alliance spearheaded a peace forum at the Almendras Gym after the march. Representatives of different sectors in Mindanao presented their agendas which comprised the Mindanao People’s Peace Agenda.
The agendas that were presented include the immediate pull-out of military and disarming of paramilitary groups in Lumad communities; resolution of cases of dismissed workers from Nakayama Technology Corporation, Nakashin Davao International Corporation and Radio Mindanao Network (RMN); release of Moro detainees wrongly accused as Abu Sayyaf members; and immediate pull-out of large scale and destructive mining in Mindanao.
The Mindanao People’s Peace Agenda was presented to NDFP Panel member Fidel Agcaoilli and GPH Panel Chair Silvestre Bello III who were present at the forum.
Both vowed to study the agenda to be considered in the drafting of the agreement for socio-economic reforms.
Resumption of peace talks
President-elect Rodrigo Duterte has expressed his willingness to resume the peace talks with the NDFP.
Duterte has sent his emissary composed of incoming Peace Adviser Jesus Dureza, GPH Panel Chair Silvestre Bello III and panel member Hernani Braganza to Oslo, Norway earlier this month for the preliminary talks with the NDFP panel.
After the June 1 4 to 15 talks, the incoming GPH panel and NDFP panel has signed a joint statement. The joint statement agreed to: affirm all previously signed agreements; accelerate the process for the negotiations including the timeline for the remaining substantive agenda; reconstitute the Joint Agreement on Safety and Immunity Guarantee (JASIG) list; Amnesty Proclamation for the release of all detained political prisoners, subject to the concurrence by Congress; and, mode of interim ceasefire.
The GPH panel also agreed in the statement to recommend to President-elect Duterte the immediate release of detained NDFP peace consultants and immediate release of political prisoners based on humanitarian grounds that include the sickly and the elderly.
According to NDFP panel member Fidel Agcaoilli, who was present at the march and forum, this is the first time that an incoming administration has expressed political will in achieving peace.
“We are optimistic that we can have agreements on socio-economic reforms, on political and constitutional reforms and hopefully the end of hostilities and disposition of troops in order to establish a government of national unity, peace and development,” said Agcaoilli.
