Philippines OKs Cease-Fire With Rebels

The Philippine government said Friday it has reached a cease-fire deal with a Muslim rebel group and will drop arrest warrants against its leaders to pave the way for peace talks.

Foreign Affairs Secretary Blas Ople had said Thursday that negotiations with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front could reopen in Malaysia as early as next week.

“There is now an agreement with the MILF to have a mutual cessation of hostilities, meaning starting tomorrow, there will be no fighting,” presidential spokesman Ignacio Bunye said. “Related to this, our armed forces will just do active defense. They’re now in punitive operations mode.”

Bunye said arrest warrants against members of the rebel group “who will serve as panelists in the negotiating table have also been suspended.”

Rewards for their capture also will be dropped and they will be given safe-conduct passes to attend the talks in Kuala Lumpur.

The MILF had insisted that the warrants, issued for a string of bombings in the troubled south, be lifted before it would participate in negotiations. The government wanted the MILF to petition the court for the suspensions, but the rebels don’t recognize the Philippine constitution or justice system.

Bunye said President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo appreciated the help of Malaysia and the United States in advancing the peace process.

The government had talked about abandoning talks after a bomb killed three and wounded 26 others earlier this month in the south. But Arroyo also has said the bombing won’t deter the government from preparing for negotiations with rebels unless the group is proven to be involved.

The 12,000-strong group has been fighting for an independent Muslim territory for about three decades and has been blamed for deadly bombings and other terrorist activities.

Ople said he expects the United States, through the Washington-based Institute for Peace, to support Malaysia in facilitating the talks. He said the U.S. Congress has allocated $30 million for financial and diplomatic support to the peace process.