MANILA: The Philippine government and communist rebels Tuesday reopened peace talks in Oslo, Norway on a sour note following the arrest of a top guerrilla leader on the eve of the talks. The Communist Party of the Philippines immediately condemned the arrest of Allan Jazmines, one of its top leaders, by combined military and police forces in Baliwag, Bulacan province on Monday afternoon. The arrest came as rebel and government negotiators were preparing to restart formal peace talks in the Norwegian capital after a six-year hiatus to try and end a decades-old conflict that has already claimed thousands of lives and is considered one of Asia's longest-running rebellions. But even before the two sides could sit together, the rebels accused Manila of treachery by arresting one of their leaders, calling it a “gross violation” of their earlier agreement on the safety and immunity of rebel leaders participating in the talks. Jazmines is a consultant of the National Democratic Front, the political arm of the CPP, in the Oslo talks. The rebels said Jazmines was the second NDF consultant arrested by Philippine authorities in less than two months. Last January 4, troops arrested NDF consultant Tirso “Ka Bart” Alcantara in Quezon province. The NDF demanded the unconditional release of two of its leaders, warning that the arrests could disrupt the talks in Olso. Previous talks, also hosted by Norway, collapsed in 2004.
