Government officials said yesterday they will not release two captured leaders of the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army (CPP-NPA), saying that their arrest did not violate the immunity agreement between the government and the National Democratic Front (NDF) since the two – Benito Tiamzon, CPP chairman, and his wife Wilma — are not covered by the pact.
Communist rebels have demanded the release of the two, claiming they were consultants in stalled peace talks who were granted temporary immunity from arrests under a 1995 accord with the government.
DEFIANT REBEL LEADERS – Communist Party of the Philippines Chairman Benito Tiamzon (in handcuffs, second from left) and his wife Wilma (center) raise their fists after having their biometrics taken at the Philippine National Police headquarters in Camp Crame, Quezon City, on March 23, 2014. (Michael Varcas)
Reading a statement of the government peace panel, Presidential Spokesman Edwin Lacierda said the two communist leaders’ claim to Joint Agreement on Safety and Immunity Guarantee (JASIG) protection was “ridiculous” and “outrageous.”
“The NDF represented by Mr. Luis Jalandoni has protested that the arrest is illegal since both Wilma and Benito are covered by JASIG. The GPH panel believes otherwise. There has been no violation of the JASIG in these cases,” Lacierda said over government radio.
The Tiamzon couple was arrested by military and police elements in Cebu on Saturday. They face charges of crimes against humanity, including murder.
Lacierda pointed out that the Tiamzon couple was not given immunity because there was a failure in the verification process of identities of supposed NDF consultants in the list of JASIG. The NDF was allegedly unable to open its files that supposedly contained the photos and true identities of their consultants.
“This failure had the effect of rendering the JASIG inoperative for those using aliases and those who are not directly involved in the peace process. If indeed Benito Tiamzon was listed under an alias, he is no longer covered by the JASIG,” the government panel said.
No JASIG Protection
Tiamzon’s wife, the secretary general of the party, is also ineligible for JASIG protection since she escaped custody in December 26, 1989 “when there were no peace talks, and six years before the JASIG came into effect.”
“The CPP/NPA is well aware of the effects of the failed verification. But they only have themselves to blame for rendering the JASIG inoperative for most of their alleged consultants,” the panel said.
The government peace panel also criticized the communist leaders for seeking JASIG protection while committing violence.
“To sustain their claim to JASIG protection is ridiculous because that would mean they can wage war and violence against government and when caught, claim JASIG protection and expect to be released,” the panel said.
“It is even more outrageous considering that the peace negotiations have not moved for over a year now,” it added.
The JASIG, signed by both panels in 1995, guarantees NDF members, consultants and staff who work with the negotiating team immunity from arrest. However, holders of the safe conduct pass must not engage in any criminal activity for the duration of the effective of the pact.
Damaged Diskettes
A list of 75 rebel consultants supposedly with pictures was jointly deposited by the Philippine government, the rebels and church witnesses in a Dutch vault in 1996 so it could serve as a future basis for identifying guerrilla consultants who could be immune from arrests.
Philippine officials and the rebels, however, discovered in 2011 that two diskettes containing the list have been damaged with the passage of time and its details could no longer be retrieved. It made it impossible for the government to verify rebel claims that some of their captured comrades were in the roster of guerrillas with immunity.
The government’s refusal to release those rebels led to the collapse of years-long peace talks, brokered by Norway. A recent wave of rebel attacks against government forces and foreign-owned mining companies and vast plantations in the south has also damaged efforts to revive the talks.
“We are happy to resume talks based on a clear, doable and time-bound agenda,” said presidential peace talks adviser Teresita Deles. “But when their public statements say that they’re working to bring down this government, how do we restart talks?”
The rebels have been fighting since 1969, accusing successive Philippine administrations of subservience to US interests and failing to improve the lives of the poor. Their numbers have dwindled amid battle setbacks, surrenders and factionalism but the resilient guerrillas remain the country’s most serious security threat.
Big Blow To CPP/NPA
The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) described the arrest of the Tiamzon couple as a big blow to the CPP/NPA, which it said is now faced with a vacuum in leadership.
According to the military, Benito, 63, is the center of gravity of the CPP-NPA-NDF here in the Philippines as the acting chairman in lieu of Jose Maria Sison who is in Utrecht as chairman emeritus. On the other hand, Wilma, 61, is the Maoist group’s secretary general.
“When you arrest the leader of any organization, it has an impact on the organization… it has a very telling effect on the rest of the organization because it provides the leadership, the cohesiveness,” said Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Chief of Staff Gen. Emmanuel T. Bautista in a press conference at Camp Gen. Emilio E. Aguinaldo.
He added that with the arrest of the no. 1 and no. 2 leaders of the CPP/NPA, they are hoping that “the rest of the organization will realize the futility of the armed struggle.”
Reiterating his earlier statement, the AFP chief said the arrest of the Tiamzon couple is another victory for the combined efforts between the military and the police, other stakeholders and the rest of the rest of the Filipino people in pursuit of peace and security.
He likewise called on the rest of the CPP/NPA members “to lay down their arms, abandon the armed struggle and return to the comfort of their families and join us in bringing peace and development to our nation.”
Bandit Groups
He noted that in many areas of the country, the insurgents have lost their ideological mooring and have degenerated into bandit groups primarily focused on extortion activities.
“Popular support to the insurgents has waned and people have been getting tired of armed violence,” said the AFP chief.
Even with the arrest of the Tiamzon couple, the AFP will continue to implement its Internal Peace and Security Plan (IPSP) “Bayanihan,” which he said is a continuing activity.
The Maoist rebellion has claimed 30,000 lives according to government estimates. Military records also show that the NPA’s strength is down to about 4,000 guerrillas from more than 26,000 in the late 1980s.
3 NPAs Killed
Meanwhile, at least three NPA rebels were killed while unaccounted number of other rebels were believed wounded when a fierce gunbattle erupted over the weekend at Sitio Nakadayas, Barangay Mahagsay, in San Luis town, Agusan del Sur province, a regional Army spokesman reported yesterday.
Capt. Christian Uy, spokesman of the Army’s 4th Infantry (Diamond) Division, said the rebels were believed to be regular fighters of guerilla-front Committee 88 of the CPP-NPA North-Central Mindanao Regional Committee operating in the hinterlands of Esperanza, San Luis and La Paz, all of Agusan del Sur province. (With reports from AP, Elena L. Aben and Mike U. Crismundo)