'Government moving to revive peace talks with MILF'

MANILA, Philippines - Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process Avelino Razon Jr. yesterday said the Arroyo administration is working hard to address all stumbling blocks in its peace efforts with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) and the Communist Party of the Philippines-National Democratic Front-New People’s Army (CPP-NDF-NPA).

Razon said the challenge for them now is to resume the stalled talks with the rebels and make 2009 a comeback year for peace negotiations.

“The challenge for us now is to go back to the negotiating table, move the peace process forward and assure our countrymen that the government is doing its job and doing it well in bringing peace to the nation,” Razon said in a speech delivered at the conference of 16 regional advisers for peace which aims to fast-track peace efforts in their respective areas.

“We hope to move the peace process forward to finally achieve the President’s and every Filipino’s desire to make 2009 a comeback year for peace, prosperity and progress,” Razon said.

He also said there is a need for concerted and collective effort to move the peace process forward and end the decades-old conflict in Mindanao and other insurgency-affected areas in the country.

Razon also reiterated the importance of sustaining peace-building efforts to enhance the government’s new peace paradigm, which focuses on authentic dialogue with stakeholders and communities and the pursuit of peace negotiations with rebel groups.

He said the government has repeatedly expressed its readiness to resume the stalled peace talks with the MILF and CPP-NDF-NPA for lasting and genuine peace in the country.

Peace talks have been stalled with the MILF due to the ancestral domain issue, and with the communists after they were listed as international terrorists.

“The Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process or OPAPP is committed to ensure the efficient and effective implementation of this paradigm and achieve positive results not only in Mindanao, but in all other parts of the country where peace has remained elusive these past many years,” Razon said.

For their part, the regional heads said that various projects for peace have been completed in 2008 through the Kalayaan Barangays Program (KBP) and the Social Integration Program (SIP), particularly barangay infrastructure projects, livelihood projects, peace education and medical missions, among others, in conflict-affected areas.