Reds reject peace overture (tags)
The Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) yesterday rejected a ceasefire offered by the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Chief of Staff Gen. Hermogenes Esperon Jr. in a bid to revive stalled peace talks. CPP founder Jose Maria Sison, in a statement from the Netherlands, where he is in self-exile, said the group will only return to the negotiating table when the Philippine government moves to have it removed from a terrorist blacklisting in the United States and Europe. He stressed the Arroyo administration must also show it is sincere about stopping the military from carrying out political killings, while also indemnifying victims of human rights violations.
Ermita raises possibility of political pardon to Honasan, Trillanes (tags)
Malacañang yesterday floated the possibility of Presi-dent Arroyo granting senators-elect Gregorio Honasan and Antonio Trillanes IV political amnesty in the spirit of reconciliation, good governance and national progress, the Philippine News Agency (PNA) quoted Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita as saying yesterday. In his regular media briefing this afternoon in Malacañang, Ermita was said to have cited the President’s policy of extending her hand of reconciliation to detractors of her administration, including armed rebels and political leaders.