PBBM’s amnesty proclamation is for rebels’ transformation – Galvez

JG August 14, 2023

Presidential Adviser on Peace, Reconciliation and Unity of the Philippines (OPAPRU) Secretary Carlito Galvez Jr. yesterday said President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s proclamation of amnesty will “accelerate transformation of former rebels.”

In a press conference hosted by the National Task Force to End Local Communists Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC), Galvez revealed the proposed National Amnesty Commission (NAC) is determined to fast-track the implementation of the government’s amnesty program for qualified members of revolutionary organizations, including secessionist Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF).

He said the amnesty would not only “give former rebels relief for the crimes they have committed, but will provide an opportunity for them to rebuild their lives.”

“Nakikita nila (former rebels) ang sincerity ng government, offering civil protection while their offenses will also be extinguished (through this amnesty),” Galvez explained.

Galvez, who is also an amnesty recipient in 1989 for joining a military coup against the late Pres. Corazon Aquino, believed that aside from transforming former rebels’ lives, amnesty gives socio-economic programs that will help them sustain and improve their quality of life.

NTF-ELCAC Executive Director Undersecretary Ernesto Torres Jr., on the other hand, said amnesty will be the country’s “vehicle towards the path of final victory” against insurgency.

With only an estimated 1,865 remaining listed members of the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army- National Democratic Front (CPP-NPA-NDF), Torres said these Communist Terrorist Groups (CTGs) will embrace the amnesty because of the “leadership vacuum” with the death of Jose Maria Sison or Joma and other top cadres, some of whom were already either perished or arrested in military and police encounters.

The local peace engagement (LPE), according to Torres, is also giving the CPP-NPA-NDF a hard time in taking back the support of residents whom they call it “mass bases” in far-flung barangays, as the government is already pouring basic social services for peace and development

The two officials believed that the road to lasting peace is already at hand as the Marcos administration is determined to move forward through inclusive and sustainable development under the principle of “whole-of-nation” approach.

August 1, 2023