Think of the gains and what could be lost

The Citizens Alliance for Just Peace urges President Duterte to reconsider his decision to suspend the peace talks between the Philippine government (GRP) and the National Democratic Front (NDF).

As peace advocates, we urge both parties to allow hopeful and sober thinking to guide their actions. Scuttling the peace talks would be a monumental disappointment for those striving to build a just and enduring peace in our land. The significant gains of the peace talks are at stake—peace is for everyone, though most especially for those who live in grinding poverty; they have the most to gain from a more just and equitable society.

Respecting and implementing agreements signed between the government and the NDF, like the Comprehensive Agreement on Respect for Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law (Carhrihl), will go a long way in moving the peace negotiations forward. Carhrihl’s supplemental guidelines—just signed in Rome, Italy, before the third round of talks under the Duterte administration—should be robustly

engaged to address human rights violations in communities. The absence of reciprocal, unilateral ceasefires should not unhinge our efforts for building peace.

Likewise, the negotiations for a Comprehensive Agreement on Socio-Economic Reforms (Caser) are intended to take seriously issues like land reform and national industrialization; these issues have been identified as essential in addressing the root causes of the armed conflict.

The peace talks should wholeheartedly prioritize achieving the substantive agreements that both parties have agreed to pursue. The gains that have been achieved through the talks are significant; and the energy has been markedly positive and productive in the first three rounds of the peace talks under the Duterte administration.

The voice of every peace-loving Filipino is greatly needed at this time to convey our collective hope for the peace talks to prosper toward the attainment of a just and lasting peace in the Philippines.  Gains toward a just peace must not be imprudently sacrificed—we must exercise a unified resolve to fastidiously overcome every obstacle to building peace in our nation.

In addressing the root causes of the armed conflict through the substantive agenda of the GRP-NDF peace talks, as well as in honoring and implementing the agreements that have been successfully forged, the peace negotiations can continue to flourish.

We rise above doomsday declarations to urge President Duterte to keep his eyes on the horizon of hope and work for the Filipino people’s peace and prosperity.

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Bishop Deogracias Iñiguez Jr., DD, Philippine Ecumenical Peace Platform; Rechie Tugawin, Waging Peace; Joeven Reyes, Sulong Carhrihl, Rev. Irma Balaba, Pilgrims for Peace