The Philippine government will consider the possibility of resuming peace talks with the anti-government rebel group, the National Democratic Front (NDF), after the leftist group hinted willingness to come back to the negotiating table with the government, local newspaper reported Monday.
Ricardo Saludo, Philippine cabinet secretary, said the armed forces and the government will not accept the NDF's peace talk proposal outright but will first see "how sincere they are before talks could begin," according to a report of the Manila Times.
Saludo said the peace panel will examine the proposal before drawing a conclusion, adding that the NDF must first agree to ceasefire.
NDF is the political wing of the Communist Party of the Philippines. Negotiations between the government and the leftist have been stalled since 2004 as the group wanted the exclusion from the U.S. and European government's list of "terrorist organizations" as a precondition.
The NDF is also accusing the Arroyo administration for not doing enough to bargain for the group's interests on international arena during previous talks.
National Security Adviser Norberto Gonzales on Sunday said the CPP, with its 7,000-member armed wing New People's Army, which have been waging a rebellion since 1969, should follow the lead of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), a Muslim separatist group which agreed to a truce with Manila in 2003 to pave the way for peace negotiations.
"We will determine whether this is just propaganda or really a genuine proposal," Saludo said.
Source:Xinhua
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