Without a doubt, there is urgent need to resume peace negotiations between the National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP) and the Government of the Republic of the Philippines (GRP). This is because the social and economic problems and political repression which underlie the civil war continue to worsen under the Marcos puppet and fascist regime. They demand urgent attention and resolution.

The majority of the Filipino people are plagued with incessant increases in the prices of basic commodities and services, low wages, lack of income, widespread joblessness and low quality of employment, land grabbing, dispossession of livelihood and other social ills. Extrajudicial killings, unlawful arrests and prolonged detentions, abductions and disappearances, torture, anti-communist witchhunting, militarization and hamletting of rural communities, anti-union activities and other forms of repression remain unabated.

The lack of social justice and absence of genuine democracy continue to force people to take up arms to defend their rights and fight for their aspirations of a brighter future. The New People’s Army continues to wage revolutionary armed struggle across the country with the deep and wide support of the people. While waging armed resistance, the Party and revolutionary forces welcome the possibility of resuming peace negotiations in order to serve as an additional platform for the people to assert their aspirations for social justice and genuine democracy.

At this point, the prospect of the NDFP-GRP peace negotiations moving forward depend greatly on how strong the Filipino people can raise their voices and collectively push the Marcos government to heed the long-standing clamor for genuine land reform and national industrialization and the demand for an end to the abuses of human rights and international humanitarian law. Peace negotiations are not just about ending the armed conflict. They are, more importantly, about resolving the problems that give rise to the civil war.

However, the dissonant voices within the Marcos cabinet are disconcerting. Some officials claim that “nothing will come out” of the NDFP-GRP peace talks, while other say they are “very optimistic.” In any case, the NDFP maintains a policy of keeping its doors open to any offer from the GRP to talk peace in accordance with mutually acceptable principles of national sovereignty, democracy and social justice.

We are fully confident that the Negotiating Panel of the National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP) will continue to represent these aspirations and bring these to the negotiating table.