Razon says gov’t to pursue peaceful end of armed conflict
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MANILA, Oct. 1 – The road to peace is protracted and exacting journey, but the government is steadfast in its
effort to put an end to the long-drawn armed conflict besetting the country.
Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process Avelino I. Razon Jr. said reiterating the government’s policy to
achieve a comprehensive agreement with two major rebel groups through peaceful means.
Razon reiterated the government’s commitment in a speech at the Chief Justice Reynato S. Puno
Distinguished Lecture Series held at the Ateneo Law School Auditorium at Rockwell Center in Makati City on
Wednesday.
“Looking back on how the previous as well as the present government dealt the problem of armed conflict,
would reveal how our government had worked hard to address the structural causes of violent conflict and
negotiated for a peace settlement with the rebels.
The Philippines is facing a two-pronged insurgency war – one against the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF)
and the other against the New People’s Army (NPA), the armed component of the Communist Party of the
Philippines (CPP).
Fighting between the military and the Muslim rebels in Mindanao had killed over 120,000 since the armed
conflict broke out in 1973, while tens of thousands had been killed in the communist insurgency war the past
40 years.
Razon said the earnest effort to end the bloodshed by putting peace at the forefront is proof that the
government is serious of ending the armed conflict as soon as possible.
“But the foremost manifestation of government’s commitment to peace through peaceful means is the
government’s affirmation of the primacy of the peace process inspite of the legal setback, cycle of violence and
political opposition, especially during the MOA-AD (Memorandum of Agreement on Ancestral Domain) debacle
last year,” Razon said.
It may be recalled that the Supreme Court had struck down the MOA-AD as unconstitutional in August last year.
The aborted signing of the highly controversial document between the government peace panel and the MILF
in Kuala Lumpur, angered the MILF that latter launched of attacks in some parts of Central Mindanao,
prompting government forces to launch counter actions.
But the government pursued back-channeling talks even at the height of the fighting to show to the MILF that it
is ready to continue the peace talks.
Last month, the peace panels of both the government and the MILF agreed to tap an International Contact
Group (ICG) for the resumption of the stalled negotiations.
Razon said hopes are bright for the government and the MILF peace panels to return to the negotiating table.
In fact, Razon said the Philippine government is just awaiting words from Malaysia as a third party mediator for
the talks to resume.
In his speech, Razon said the government’s “peace policy was an offshoot of a nationwide and multi-sectoral
consultation, spearheaded by the National Unification Commission (then) chaired by the late Atty. Haide Yorac,
to determine the root causes of the armed conflict and to formulate policy measures to address them.”
He assured that the peace policy of the government “is a product of consultation and dialogue with our people
from the northernmost to southernmost part of the Philippine archipelago.
In fact, the consultation and dialogue included the various rebel groups such as the CPP/NPA; MILF; the Moro
National Liberation Front (MNLF) which later signed a peace accord with the government in 1996, and the
military rebels known as the RAM-SFP/YOU, he said.
Razon enumerated the six paths to peace being pursued by the government. These are:
- Pursuit of social and economic reforms
- Consensus-building and empowerment for peace
- Peaceful, negotiated settlement with the different rebel groups
- Programs for reconciliation, reintegration into mainstream society and rehabilitation of former rebels
- Addressing concerns arising from continuing armed hostilities, and
- Nurturing a climate conducive to peace
The lecture-forum was a joint project of Supreme Court, the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace
Process (OPAPP); and the Ateneo Law School.
Among the guests were Chief Justice Renato S. Puno; Justice Consuelo Ynares Santiago; Justice Antonio T.
Carpio; Justice Renato C. Corona; Justice Teresita De Castro and Justice Arturo D. Brion; and Justice Roberto
Abad; Chancellor Adolfo Azcuna of the Philippine Judicial Academy (PhilJa); and PhilJa Chancellor Emeritus
Ameorfina Herrera; and Justice Normandie Pizarro, Justice Sixto Marella Jr and Justice Michael P. Elbinias of
the Court of Appeals.
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