Back Truce, Manila’s Defense Chief Urges Military

Philippine Defense Minister Rafael Ileto, acknowledging a continued rift within the military, called Monday on the armed forces to give the cease-fire with Communist rebels a chance.

“If this breaks down,” he said of the 60-day truce, scheduled to begin Dec. 10, “that is when we have so much fear and uncertainty in the air, and that affects the morale and behavior of our soldiers as well as our entire populace.

“Let us have one policy line in matters of national security, and let everybody adhere to that line as far as the public is concerned,” he told his first command conference after succeeding Juan Ponce Enrile nine days ago.

Armed Forces Wary

Enrile, fired by President Corazon Aquino, was critical of the cease-fire worked out by civilian government negotiators, and a large segment of the armed forces remains wary.

While conceding that differences remain in the military, Ileto said: “I believe we must give the effort a chance.”

When the truce takes hold next week, he said, the armed forces will begin civic action programs aimed at helping the poor and winning their support.

“We cannot afford to be idle, spending our time cleaning our guns or just embarking on a 60-day rest and recreation,” Ileto said. “If we have the full support of the people, then we can easily defeat the insurgents.”

First Major Ambush

As he spoke in Manila, the government press agency reported the first major rebel ambush since the cease-fire agreement was signed last month. A town mayor and eight other people were wounded in the ambush in the southern province of Davao del Sur, according to authorities.

Meanwhile, the news agency reported that the government will sign another cease-fire today, with the Cordillera People’s Liberation Army, a leftist, ethnic guerrilla group in northern Luzon headed by a former priest, Conrado Balweg. There has been no recent fighting between government and Cordillera forces.

Monday night in Manila, Aquino addressed an international women’s business forum, but she made no mention of anticipated further changes in her Cabinet.

Besides Enrile, Aquino has replaced two other ministers since the armed forces, under Chief of Staff Fidel V. Ramos, squelched an incipient coup attempt late last month.

Her press spokesman, Teodoro Benigno, told reporters earlier in the day that two more changes are expected but that the president has yet to find qualified replacements.

He did not identify the ministers to be replaced, but speculation has centered on Labor Minister Augusto Sanchez and Local Governments Minister Aquilino Pimentel, both targets of some military circles for their leftist politics.