Bishop appeals to Duterte: Don't declare martial law in Negros, 'sending 300 SAF commandos won't bring peace.'

San Carlos Bishop Gerardo Alminaza photo from Inquirer (ctto)

San Carlos Bishop Gerardo Alminaza appealed on Friday to President Rodrigo Duterte not to place Negros Oriental under martial law, claiming it would not solve the problems there but just worsen the violence.

“We also appeal to the President not to declare ‘Martial Law’ in Negros, as Presidential Spokesperson Salvador Panelo insinuated that the President will use his emergency powers to ‘quell lawless violence… and crush all forms of threat’,” Bishop Alminaza said in a statement.

“Martial Law is neither the answer to the centuries-old agrarian problem nor to the decades of armed rebellion. Martial rule during the Marcos era did not lead to genuine peace; instead, it worsened the insurgency problem,” he added.

He also urged the government to address the roots of armed conflict for a just and lasting peace.

Instead of declaring martial law, Alminaza urged the government to address the roots of armed conflict in a bid for a just and lasting peace.

“As we pray for justice and for the souls of our dear departed who became victims of the Negros “killing fields”, once more, we fervently express our people’s longing for peace and our urgent cry to end the killings,” Alminaza said.

“We are saddened that instead of negotiating for an end to armed hostilities, the government has recently deployed 300 elite police Special Action Force commandos in the Negros island,” the bishop added.

Alminaza said the military rule has never been and will never be the solution against violence and killings. And that peace will not be achieved by engaging in combat.

"We remind both sides of the armed conflict that genuine peace can never be achieved through military adventurism and tit-for-tat conflict. We reiterate our call for integral peace, one that addresses the roots of social injustice," Alminaza said.

“We believe that the first step to integral peace is the continuation of peace negotiations between the Government of the Republic of the Philippines (GRP) and National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP),” He added.

Bishop Alimanza urged both sides to declare a unilateral ceasefire and embrace the right direction to peace such as addressing socio-economic reforms such as land reform, national industrialization, and the provision of social services like health, education, and housing.

News reports said at 17 people were fatally shot from July 18 to July 27, 2019, including the four policemen who were allegedly executed in front of villagers in Barangay Mabato, Ayungon town by suspected members of the Communists Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army (CPP-NPA).

The CPP-NPA is tagged as a terrorist group by the United States, the European Union, the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the Philippines.

Source: Politiko