Thousands Join March to Show Aquino Support

Thousands of chanting backers of President Corazon Aquino marched through the financial district today to support her in the dispute with her defense minister over how to deal with communist insurgents.

Aquino’s brother-in-law, Agapito Aquino, spoke to the rain-drenched crowd, accusing Defense Minister Juan Ponce Enrile of “destabilizing the government” with his “daily tirades” and suggesting that he resign.

“If he cannot go with the policies of President Aquino, then he had better resign,” he declared, noting that it was the supporters of Aquino who had rushed to support Enrile when he helped lead a military revolt that ousted Ferdinand E. Marcos.

Showered With Confetti

Despite a heavy rain, the chanting crowd--estimated at 8,000 to 10,000--marched down the Makati financial district’s main Ayala Boulevard, showered with yellow confetti from bank and insurance buildings festooned with yellow ribbons and banners.

Trumpets blared as the marchers gathered at a main intersection, some carrying signs that read “Give Peace a Chance” and “Rambo Go to Hawaii,” suggesting that Enrile join Marcos in exile. The rally was cut short by rain, and an outdoor mass was canceled.

“This Minister Enrile,” Agapito Aquino said, drawing some boos from the crowd, “he knows that when he was in trouble we were the people who protected him. His daily tirades are destabilizing the government.”

Source of Tension

Aquino hopes to negotiate a peace settlement with the Communist Party, whose 17,000-member New People’s Army has battled the government since the 1970s. This is one of the sources of tension between her and Enrile, who favors a hard-line military solution to the insurgency.

Attorney Romeo Capulong, who represents the Communist panel negotiating with the government on a cease-fire, said another round of peace talks was held today and said a key preliminary accord may be signed soon.

Capulong said the two sides are about to agree on a comprehensive safety and immunity guarantee to allow rebel negotiators to surface “so that the peace talks can take off . . . and move to the substantive stage of the negotiations.”