Duterte to Communist Rebels: No Ceasefire, No Peace Talks

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has told communist rebels that if they want to resume peace negotiations, they should declare a ceasefire, months after he said he no longer wanted any talks with them.

RELATED: 
Philippine Communist Leader Vows to Fight ‘Puppet’ Duterte

“There will be no talks until you declare a ceasefire, period,” Duterte said in a speech in his home city of Davao. “And if you say you want another war, be my guest.”

Duterte ended peace talks with the Communist Party of the Philippines, CPP, in July after a series of attacks by its military wing, the New People’s Army, NPA, against government forces.

The president is "furious" about repeated attacks by the rebels, who he claims have killed many soldiers and police.

But the rebels’ chief negotiator, Luis Jalandoni, said the government’s demand to stop guerrilla attacks is “ridiculous” because soldiers are attacking villages where rebels are based.

On Thursday, Presidential Spokesman Ernesto C. Abella said at a press briefing that the administration’s relationship with communist groups is somewhat difficult to explain and is “complicated” at this point.  

This came after the legislature’s Commission on Appointments on Wednesday rejected the appointment of leftist Rafael Mariano as agrarian reform minister. It cited Mariano’s alleged bias toward farmers and purported links to the NPA, among others, as reasons for his rejection.

RELATED: 
Philippines NPA Attacks Elite Guard in Response to Martial Law Extension

Mariano’s exit came less than a month after the same panel ousted Judy Taguiwalo, another leftist, as social welfare minister, in what some commentators say is a move by Duterte’s allies to punish the CPP.

When he assumed power last year, Duterte gave two cabinet positions to left-wing activists recommended by the CPP to allegedly show his commitment to ending nearly five decades of conflict, in which more than 40,000 people have been killed.

In the Philippines, all ministers must be approved by the house panel, but the process can take more than a year.

Duterte’s office has expressed disappointment that the ministers had not been approved in both cases.