Task force for localized peace talks in S. Cotabato pushed

GENERAL SANTOS CITY -- The Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) in South Cotabato is pushing for the creation of a special task force that will spearhead sustained peace and development initiatives in a bid to end the communist insurgency in the province.

Lawyer Michelle Viejo, acting provincial director of DILG-South Cotabato, said Tuesday the move is in line with the national government's "whole-of-nation" approach and based on President Rodrigo R. Duterte's Executive Order 70 that created the "National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict."

Viejo said they have already crafted an action plan to institutionalize the implementation of the "whole-of-nation" approach to attain inclusive and sustainable peace.

She said the action plan consists of a local version of the strategies that seek to curb the rebels' atrocities, while recognizing that insurgencies and other armed conflict are not only military and security concerns.

“The government believes that each province has its own reasons for communist armed conflict. We have to create a task force that will focus on the localized peace process,” Viejo said during the provincial peace and order council meeting in Koronadal City.

The local task force will be composed of concerned government agencies, local government units, and civil society groups, she said.

Viejo said they will present the plan next month to new South Cotabato Gov. Reynaldo Tamayo Jr. for proper action.

The "whole-of-nation" approach mandates all concerned agencies of government to work in a holistic and integrated manner to deliver much-needed services to underdeveloped, conflict-affected communities.

The approach seeks to "utilize localized peace engagements, wherein local government units (LGU) and other community members situated in conflict-affected areas will take the lead in providing solutions to best resolve the nation’s insurgency problem."

In connection with the initiative, Lt. Col. Jones Otida, commanding officer of the Army's 27th Infantry Battalion, urged LGUs to prioritize the conduct of more outreach activities to areas that are prone to armed conflict.

In South Cotabato, Otida said the areas with problems on communist armed conflict are situated in the municipalities of Lake Sebu, Banga, Tampakan, and Tboli.

However, he said the entire province remains generally peaceful and the activities of the New People's Army have been affected by the declining support from residents. (PNA)