Excellencies,
Members of the Diplomatic Corps,
Fellow Officials,
Members of the Press,

I wish to thank you all for graciously responding to our invitation to this afternoon’s briefing on developments in the stalled peace talks of the Government with the National Democratic Front (NDF).

I would like to thank Secretary Nieves Confesor, Chairperson of the Peace Panel for talks with the NDF, and Undersecretary Rene Sarmiento, Acting Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process, for being with us this afternoon.

They shall be providing a briefing later on the status of the peace talks with the NDF/CPP/NPA, the status of the Joint Agreement on Safety and Immunity Guarantees (JASIG) after the NDF’s recent decision to withdraw from formal peace talks.

The Philippine Government desires nothing more but to attain a true and lasting peace with all parties concerned, including the NDF.  The Government has worked diligently and vigorously on human rights and socio-economic reform, even after the NDF’s unilateral postponement of negotiations back in August 2004.

I believe that Norway, our partner in peace and third country facilitator for the peace talks with the NDF, has indeed done everything it can to push the peace talks forward.  We thank Norway, along with the EU and the rest of the International Community, for the unwavering support to our ongoing quest for peace.

We assure you that your efforts to advance the cause of peace will not be in vain.  We will continue to pursue, with vigor and commitment, the Government’s peace agenda – foremost of which is the support for peace initiatives of local government units, communities and civil society.

The JASIG is a major confidence-building measure in the peace negotiations that has provided 97 members of the NDF with safe conduct passes to facilitate their participation in the talks.
 
The Philippine Government assures the international community that the rights of all members of the NDF, the CPP and the NPA who may be apprehended shall be fully protected under the law.

The agreements reached with the NDF, such as the Comprehensive Agreement on Respect for Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law or the CARHRIHL, which provides for the adherence of the GRP and the NDF to common standards of human rights protection and International Humanitarian Law continue to be in force.

Before we begin the briefing, let me once again express my thanks to the diplomatic community, as well as to the friendly countries and peoples you represent, for the substantial contribution to bringing us closer to peace.

May I now request Secretary Confesor and Undersecretary Sarmiento to brief further the diplomatic corps on the GRP peace efforts with the NDF/CPP/NPA.

Thank you. END