THE National Democratic Front said the May 23 declaration of martial law in Mindanao would affect its peace negotiations with the government.
The peace negotiations panels are set to hold the fifth round of talks today up to June 2 in The Netherlands.
In a statement released Thursday, or two days before the talks, the NDF maintained the martial law declared by President Duterte is not only against the New People’s Army (NPA) but also against people in general because “it curtails their civil and political rights.”
The NDF was reacting to a statement by GRP chief negotiator Silvestre Bello, who said that the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) “made a false reading of the intents of President Duterte in placing Mindanao under martial law.”
Bello maintained the martial law was not directed against NPA combatants.
“There was a need to restore law and order, protect the lives of the citizens and preserve private and state properties. The President, in no uncertain terms, categorically declared he was not after the New People’s Army,” he said.
But the NDF countered by saying it was Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana himself who cited the NPA as one of the of the government’s “problems” for placing the entire Mindanao under military rule when the skirmishes happened only in Marawi City between military and local terrorist Maute Group.
Bello asked the CPP to recall its order on the NPA to carry out offensives.
But the NDF said “it is imperative for the NPA to take action to oppose and fight it in order to defend the people’s rights and interests.”
The NDF expressed concern that martial law would result in human rights abuses to be committed by soldiers who they alleged have been behind occupation of civilian communities, extrajudicial killings, abductions and detentions under its Oplan Kapayapaan.
“Under martial law, it is the military, these notorious abusers of human rights, who rule,” it said.
The NDF said the government “must be made to answer for these gross violations of the Comprehensive Agreement on Respect for Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law. These are in addition to the outstanding issues of close to 500 political prisoners who remain detained under the Duterte government, as well as the growing list of human rights violations perpetrated by the AFP under its Oplan Kapayapaan.”
The NDFP cited the Davao City where people in some communities are being rounded up.
It claimed close to 300 people have already been arrested by the military for “failing to comply with the arbitrarily rules imposed by the military and the militarist-minded bureaucrats,” apparently referring to Davao City’s “Oplan Bolabog” where police conducted a house-to-house verification in Mini Forest, Barangay 23-C, to weed out criminals and suspects terrorists.
Davao police spokesperson Senior Insp. Maria Teresita Gaspan said some 161 individuals were taken to police headquarters for “questioning” and “profiling” for failure to present valid identifications (IDs) to authorities.
None of them, however, were arrested or detained, she said, contrary to the NDFP’s claim.
Gaspan maintained the police conducted the operation to strengthen their monitoring mechanism on nonesidents entering the city.
Duterte also suspended the writ of habeas corpus, which allows for a warrantless arrest, in light of his declaration of martial law. (antonio colina IV of mindanews)
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