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Philippine government's peace talks with leftist rebels resume in Rome

Xinhua, January 19, 2017 Adjust font size:

Talks to end Asia's longest leftist insurgency in the Philippines resumed in Rome, Italy, the government said Thursday.

Peace negotiators will discuss a string of issues during the third round of talks, including the release of at least 392 political prisoners in Philippine jails and a ceasefire agreement that both sides plan to sign.

"Towards these agenda, the (government) panel has come prepared to exchange and discuss our drafts on said agreements," Silvestre Bello, chair of the government panel, said in a statement.

The leftist rebel panel has been demanding the release of its cadres. But Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte said that he was not inclined to free more prisoners, saying he had already released 20, including two highest-ranking rebel leaders before the talks kicked off in Oslo, Norway last August.

Norway is helping broker the talks. Both sides have conducted two rounds of talks so far in August and October last year.

"Our joint signed commitment to stay at the table and complete the negotiations within a specific timeframe, provided us the needed momentum to discuss the remaining substantive agenda of the negotiations," said Bello, also the Philippine labor secretary.

Like previous governments, the Duterte administration also wants to seal peace deals with all rebel groups in the Philippines, including the leftist and Muslim rebels.

Since 1986, the government has been trying to reach a peace deal with the leftist rebels but failed to make any headway.

The leftist rebellion began in 1969 and reached its peak in 1987 when it boasted 26,000 armed guerrillas.

However, the movement has since dwindled due to differences in strategy and tactics and the arrests of many of its top leaders in the late 1980s.

At present, the military estimates the leftist armed rebels at around 4,000. Endit