The chief peace negotiator of the revolutionary umbrella group National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP) decried the arrest of alleged Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) Chair Benito Tiamzon, his wife and alleged CPP Secretary-General Wilma Austria, and five others in Brgy. Zaragosa, Aluginsan, Cebu as a violation of the Joint Agreement on Safety and Immunity Guarantees (Jasig).

Luis Jalandoni, head of the NDFP negotiating panel in the peace negotiations, said Tiamzon and Austria have been fulfilling “highly significant tasks in the peace negotiations” when they were arrested 3:15 PM on Saturday, March 22.

“The NDFP vigorously demands that Benito Tiamzon and Wilma Austria be immediately and unconditionally released,” stated Jalandoni. “This latest flagrant violation of the Jasig by the Aquino regime, in addition to so many other gross violations of the Jasig, most seriously prejudices the GPH-NDFP peace negotiations.”

Confirming arrest

AFP Chief-of-Staff Gen. Emmanuel Bautista on Saturday evening confirmed the arrest of the Tiamzons and five others “by virtue of a warrant of arrest for their crimes against humanity that include murder, multiple murders, and frustrated murder.” They were arrested by combined teams from the AFP and the Philippine National Police (PNP), said Bautista.

Defense Sec. Voltaire Gazmin also confirmed the arrest, and said Tiamzon, Austria, and the others were then undergoing “tactical interrogation” at the headquarters of the Central Command (Centcom) of the AFP in Camp Lapu-Lapu, Cebu City.

But human rights defenders under Karapatan and the lawyers group National Union of People’s Lawyers (NUPL) in Cebu that immediately dispatched a seven-man team to assist the arrested persons were stonewalled by soldiers at Camp Lapu-Lapu. They said that the soldiers also denied that Tiamzon, Austria and the five others were in their custody.

Dennis Abarrientos of Karapatan-Cebu said relatives of the arrested individuals contacted them to help in ascertaining the latter’s location.

Abarrientos said that in Camp Lapu-Lapu, a certain M/Sgt. Abuhan and someone in plain clothes who identified himself simply as an Army captain were the ones who denied custody of the arrested individuals.

When their lawyers asked for a written denial of custody, as per the Republic Act 10353, or the Anti-Enforced or Involuntary Disappearance Act of 2012, the said soldiers refused to give any, Abarrientos said.

Under RA 10353, arrested persons “deprived of liberty ” also have “absolute right…to have immediate access to any form of communication available in order for him or her to inform his or her family, relative, friend, lawyer or any human rights organization on his or her whereabouts and condition.”

“Sa ilalim ng batas, dapat ina-accomodate nila kami, papapasukin para makausap (ang mga naaresto). Ni hindi sa amin pinapakausap ang superior (officer) nila (Under the law, they should have accomodated us, allowed us inside the camp to speak to those arrested. They did not even allow us to speak with their superior officer),” Abarrientos said, in a telephone interview with Pinoy Weekly.

He said that aside from allegedly violating the Jasig, the AFP Centcom also violated the right of the arrested persons to counsel.

P5.6-Million bounty

“The arrest of Benito and Wilma Tiamzon is another victory for the combined efforts between the AFP, PNP and other stakeholders in pursuit of peace and security,” stated AFP’s Bautista, after the arrest.

But Jalandoni said that their arrest “most seriously prejudices the GPH-NDFP peace negotiations”.

“Wilma Austria is holder of NDFP Document of Identification ND978226 under her real name. She is holder of the Letter of Acknowledgment signed by then GRP Negotiating Panel Chairman Silvestre H. Bello III,” said Jalandoni.

Tiamzon, meanwhile, is a holder of NDFP Document of Identification ND 978227 under the assumed name “Crising Banaag”, and also holds a Letter of Acknowledgment from the government’s then chief negotiator Bello.

The NDFP, in November 2012, condemned the Aquino government’s announcement of placing bounties for the arrest of some 235 revolutionary leaders, including the Tiamzons who have been involved in the peace process.

“What are peace negotiations to the Aquino regime but a meaningless decorative piece when it demonizes and criminalizes the act of waging revolution and armed resistance against the oppressive and exploitative system?” the CPP said in Nov. 2012.

The Aquino administration, in Aug. 2012, announced that a P5.6-Million bounty existed for the capture of Benito Tiamzon, as well as other revolutionary leaders such as NDF-Mindanao spokesperson Jorge “Ka Oris” Madlos.

The bounty for the capture of NDFP leaders totaled P466.88-M, and was authorized under Joint Order No. 14-2012 of the Department of National Defense and Department of Interior and Local Government (DND-DILG).

“To list and target our consultants is an attack on the peace process. The NDFP wants to ensure that the JASIG is respected and not violated,” Jalandoni said in Nov. 2012.

Wilma Austria had previously been arrested in Oct. 1989. She escaped from a maximum security prison inside Camp Crame, Quezon City in Dec. of the same year.

The NDFP, which represents the revolutionary movement in the peace process, has been involved in talks with the Philippine government since the 1980s after the fall of the Marcos dictatorship. Among the landmark agreements between the two sides is Jasig, which guarantees safety and immunity from arrest and prosecution of all persons involved in the peace process.

The CPP, primarily through its armed wing the New People’s Army, has been waging an armed struggle to overthrow the existing Philippine political and economic system since its the late 1960s.