Manila's Arroyo offers amnesty to communist rebels

MANILA, Sep 7 (Reuters) Philippine President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo has offered amnesty to communist rebels, including those under detention for political crimes, in a bid to end a nearly 40-year rebellion in the south of the archipelago.

But the communist New People's Army rejected the offer, saying it was a political gimmick.

The amnesty would exclude those guilty of rape, torture, kidnapping and trafficking of drug, weapons and people, a presidential proclamation said.

''The amnesty would take effect as soon both houses of Congress issue a resolution concurring with the proclamation,'' Jesus Dureza, the government's peace adviser, said today.

Arroyo has set aside over million to coax members of the communist New People's Army (NPA) to drop their rebellion and encourage them to set up small businesses or farms.

Gregorio Rosal, alias Comrade Roger, a spokesman of the communist NPA rebels, criticised the amnesty programme as a ''political gimmick''.

''It will be totally ignored and roundly rejected by the revolutionary forces,'' Rosal said in a statement.

Since the late 1960s, the Philippines has been battling Muslim separatists in the south and Maoist-led rebels across the archipelago. The insurgencies have killed more than 160,000 people and stunted growth in the country.

Arroyo's three predecessors had tried to end the conflicts by offering amnesty to all dissidents, including rogue soldiers, who were accused of committing political crimes. Arroyo discontinued the amnesty programme when she came to power in 2001.

The 7,000-member NPA feeds off on an ever widening gap between the country's rich elite and its millions of rural poor. The group attacks remote army and police units and extorts money from companies involved in logging, mining, construction and telecommunications.

Before the last amnesty programmed expired in August 2001, about 2,600 rebels, including 1,500 Maoist-led guerillas, had pending amnesty applications.

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