Maost communist rebels have killed two soldiers in an ambush in a predominantly Christian province in southern Philippines despite peace overtures from president-in-waiting Rodrigo Duterte.
The military said the soldiers of the Philippine Army's 28th Infantry Battalion were ambushed by suspected members of the New People’s Army in Barangay Calapagan in Lupon town, Davao Oriental at around 6:45 a.m. on Friday.
According to said Lt. Col. Ramon Zagala, commanding officer of the 28th Infantry Battalion, the two soldiers were onboard a motorcycle heading toward the said village when they were shot by communist rebels.
“They were not there for combat mission. What we see here is an act of treachery of attacking unarmed and in civilian clothes personnel. These are members of peace and development outreach program teams who are just there trying to build a community,” Philippine Daily Inquirer quoted Zagala as saying.
The identities of the slain soldiers, with a rank of corporal and private first class, were withheld pending notification of their families, said Zagala.
Zagala said they would file murder charges against the perpetrators. “We won’t let this pass. We will continue our operations against them.
On Thursday, four suspected high-ranking members of the communist insurgent group were arrested in Butuan, Agusan del Norte, also in southern Philippines.
GMA's Unang Balita television reported that the four rebels were trapped during a joint police and military operation on a targeted NPA safe-house in Butuan.
Government forces said they recovered from the scene of the operation assorted firearms, ammunition, explosives, and subversive documents.
The four suspects are facing multiple charges, including frustrated murder, robbery, attempted murder, frustrated homicide, homicide, and violation of the Comelec gun ban for the May polls.
Last week Duterte met a communist negotiator about reopening the talks three years after outgoing President Benigno Aquino ended them.
The insurgency has claimed 30,000 lives over almost half a century, according to military estimates.
Aquino revived talks soon after taking office in 2010 but shelved them in 2013, accusing the rebels of insincerity.
Earlier this month, communist revolutionary leaders said that stalled peace talks could resume in July, while warning that their demand for the expulsion of US troops was “non-negotiable.”
Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) negotiator Fidel Agcaoili told a Manila press conference that the rebels would meet representatives of newly elected President Rodrigo Duterte’s government in Europe this month to discuss the resumption of talks after years of hiatus.
He said the CPP would also negotiate an end to the 1999 Visiting Forces Agreement allowing the US to hold large-scale military exercises.
President-elect Duterte, who takes office on June 30, has offered two cabinet posts to allies of the CPP.
Meanwhile, incoming presidential peace adviser Jesus Dureza left the country for Oslo, Norway, on Friday night to discuss with self-exiled communist leader Jose Maria Sison the possibility of an "early resumption" of the peace negotiations.
In a statement on Facebook, Dureza said he is flying tonight (Friday) to Paris enroute to Oslo, Norway for an informal meeting with the CPP headed by Mr. Jose Ma. Sison upon instructions from Mr. Duterte to work for the early resumption of the stalled peace negotiations.
Dureza was accompanied by incoming Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III and former Pangasinan Rep. Hernani Braganza, who also served as a government emissary to the CPP under the Aquino administration.
"We look forward to a fruitful meeting under the auspices of the Norwegian government in the sidelines of the 'Oslo Forum'," Dureza said.
The Oslo Forum is where senior conflict mediators, high level decision makers, and key peace process actors convene in a series of informal and discreet retreats to share experiences, identify challenges, and reflect on mediation practice.
In an interview with reporters on Thursday night, Dureza said the next administration is committed to end the decades-old insurgency as soon as possible.
Sison has earlier expressed confidence that peace negotiations between the CPP's political wing, the National Democratic Front of the Philippines, and the Duterte administration will be successful. MGP News
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