PNoy orders threat assessment following attacks on mining firms

President Benigno Aquino III has ordered his security officials to conduct a nationwide threat assessment following Monday’s successive attacks by communist rebels on three mining firms in Surigao del Norte. A review of operational procedures by security forces was also ordered as Malacañang condemned the “atrocities" committed by New People’s Army (NPA) rebels. “We condemn the atrocities," said presidential spokesperson Edwin Lacierda at a press briefing Tuesday. “We condemn the violence but peace is a better alternative to war." Lacierda said Aquino immediately convened his security officials after receiving information on the NPA attack Monday afternoon. He said the President continued to monitor the situation while meeting the economic cluster on another matter later in the day. It was Executive Secretary Paquito Ochoa Jr. who implemented the instructions of the President, Lacierda said. Vulnerable targets Lacierda said Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin has asked Armed Forces chief Gen. Eduardo Oban Jr. to, among others, identify vulnerable targets by NPA rebels. “In the process we are also going to assess the relationship of our field units with the communities concerned. So that’s one way of making sure that we are in touch with the community and we would be able to identify the different threat assessments," he said. He said the apparent lapse in security was one of the reasons President Aquino ordered a review on operational procedures. He said they have yet to determine the motive behind the attack, although NPA rebels are known to attack companies that do not give in to their extortion demands. “So we have no report of extortion other than the fact that they destroyed equipment in those mining firms," Lacierda said, adding that Malacañang is thankful that there were no casualties in the incident. Peace talks still better option Lacierda said despite the NPA attacks, the Aquino administration is still committed to the peace process. “We will continue our efforts to pursue the peace negotiations because that is we believe the better option," he said. He said government peace negotiators will raise the issue with their counterparts in the National Democratic Front of the Philippines, the political front of the country’s communist movement. Pursuit operations against the attackers, however, will continue. “We will raise this up again with the other side but while we are doing this raising up with the other side, our security forces are in pursuit. We will continue to prosecute and go after those who are guilty of this crime," Lacierda said. He said the government will not be held hostage by the communist rebels who reportedly threatened to do another attack. “We will provide security not only to the firms that they are threatening but also to the local communities. And so, this is the firm commitment of our government, of our administration, and we will defend our people." Lacierda called on the leadership of the Communist Party of the Philippines and the NPA to urge their troops to exercise restraint as part of confidence-building measures towards the peace process, as he admitted that the attacks on the mining firms had undermined the peace process and made it difficult to pursue negotiations. “However, we remain determined to fulfill our people’s aspirations for peace. We hope that the rebels will do likewise. The communities in Surigao were the greatest victims here: the attack has affected their employment and safety," he said. Some 4,000 to 5,000 employees are affected by the incident. “Disconnect" In a press statement, presidential adviser on the peace process Teresita Deles admitted that peace talks are more difficult when there is no accompanying ceasefire on the ground as the attack undermined people's confidence in the peace process. She said Monday’s attacks created a “disconnect" between agreements made on the peace table and what is happening on the ground. “It begins to look like just another game being played by the parties," Deles said. “Without people’s strong support, negotiations become more difficult and a peace settlement more elusive." She also reiterated that the government remains committed to the peace process as they continue to look for peaceful resolution to all armed conflict and hope the other party will listen more to the people's aspirations for peace and devote more energies on making the peace table work. - KBK, GMA News