Formal peace talks between the Philippine government and communist rebels are set to resume in October in Norway, an official said Sunday, dpa reported. Philippine presidential peace adviser Avelino Razon said the negotiations would resume in the last week of October in Oslo. "There has been an agreement and a specific date on when the formal talks will resume," he said. "It is now clear that the process is moving forward." In July, the Philippine government announced it was restoring safe conduct passes for members and consultants of the communist rebel negotiating panel. Peace talks between the Philippine government and the communist rebels have been suspended since August 2005 when the guerrillas withdrew from the negotiations. The talks bogged down over the rebels' insistence that Manila work on removing them from the list of terrorists of the United States, the European Union and other foreign countries. The rebels also refused to negotiate with President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, who was then facing her worst political crisis over allegations she rigged the 2004 presidential elections. Communist rebels have been fighting the Philippine government since the late 1960s, making the movement one of the longest-running leftist insurgencies in Asia. -- SPA
