| Army tells village officials to talk to rebels |
| Written by Administrator | |
| Monday, 04 August 2008 | |
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A military commander told village officials to localize the peace efforts of the government through the conduct of a dialogue with leaders of the NPA rebels in their respective communities.
Major Lyndon Paniza, commander of the Army’s 39th Infantry Battalion (IB) said, during the city peace and order council (CPOC) conference the other week, the government will not always defeat its enemies head-on.
“Winning a war this big could also be achieved through a sincere dialogue with our enemies where village officials have the immediate access to talk to them before a firefight will flare up,” Paniza said.
Paniza also said local government officials at all times must exercise good governance to become a good example for his constituents and prevent them from embracing other ideologies that will induce divisiveness within the community.
“We have been into this war for 38 years. And yet nobody is winning the war which only means there is a need for us to bring this issue to the bargaining table to avoid further loss of lives,” Paniza said.
He said the army is ready to confront all threats against the security of the state, but like the police the military could not be there at all times to protect the people due to their limited number.
Mayor Arsenio Latasa, Digos City CPOC chairman has subscribed with Paniza’s idea of initiating a dialogue with the rebels to serve as a stepping stone to end the decades’ old conflict that pulled down the economy of the country, especially in Mindanao.
“I am willing to talk with their leaders to avoid further armed confrontation that could only destroy the peace and tranquility of the city,” Latasa said during an interview over the radio.
The army has identified at least six hinterland barangays out of 26 villages in the city as either NPA influenced areas or within their roadmap towards other mountain ranges in the province.
Most barangay officials also agreed with the proposal of the military commander saying if the rebels are willing to peacefully talk with them they would accept them with open hands.
However, some village chief said they are apprehensive to conduct a dialogue with the rebels knowing that the NPA have killed scores of barangay officials, especially those they have identified to be against their ideologies.
Paniza said the rebels are now active in regaining its mass base in remote barangays on its way to the urban center of the city – a scenario that had happened in the past.
The 39th IB (PA) is responsible for fighting communist rebels in the areas of Davao del Sur and Toril District in Davao City.
It has been tasked to confront five communist fronts within the area (FC-51, FC-71, FC-72, FC-74, and FC-76).
Paniza said the dialogue could spark peace and understanding between the rebels and the people in the community without the necessity of bloodshed.
He said they could always stay on top of the situation since the rebels have only a few members of its main regional guerilla unit (MRGU) but if the localized peace talk could be achieved it would be much better for the people.
Paniza said a law must be passed to give discretionary authority for local government unit to localize its peace effort since they are the only people who know the root cause of the problem that triggered local insurgency.
“There are around four to six thousand armed NPA guerillas in the country but embedded in that force is a mass base of two million that serve as its force multiplier” Paniza said.
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