PPCRV seeks peace pact with barangay, SK bets

The Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting (PPCRV), a Church-based poll watchdog group, is seeking to forge peace covenants with candidates of the barangay (village) and Sangguniang Kabataan (youth council) elections on October 25. PPCRV, the officially-accredited citizens’ arm of the Commission on Elections (Comelec), for the October 25 polls, said the peace covenants are needed to prevent possible poll-related violence. “Doon sa areas na masyado ang labanan, the campaign might lead to election-related violence ... so doon dapat magkaroon ng peace covenant signing," PPCRV chairwoman Henrietta de Villa said in an article posted Monday evening on the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) news site. (In areas where political tension is high, the campaign may lead to election-related violence. So we must prioritize the peace covenants there.)," (http://www.cbcpnews.com/?q=node/13398). She admitted that having such agreements cannot guarantee violence-free elections. “Alam naman natin ang mga candidates pumipirma ng peace covenant pero hindi naman ginagawa pero (what is important is) to be able to create that environment even with a minimum effect," she said. (We know some candidates sign peace covenants but do not follow them. What is important is to at least create an environment of peace)," she said. On Friday, Comelec identified some 2,301 villages as election hotspots due to the presence of intense political rivalries or threats by armed groups. The Comelec said there are two categories in its Election Watchlist Areas (EWA). Groups under Category 1 are areas with existing intense political rivalries and where poll-related violence occurred during the May 2010 elections. Villages under Category 2 are areas with serious armed threats stemming from the New People’s Army and secessionist groups, particularly in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao. The regions in Category 1 with high number of EWAs are: