No matter how long it takes, we will hunt down notorious criminals until the end of the line.

The Abu Sayyaf is a spent force, but we must mop it up completely by relentlessly going after its most incorrigible leaders, and fighting poverty in the communities that breed its recruits.

The full force of the law shall be brought to bear upon these criminals as we shall hunt down terrorists in other places.

The suspension of offensive military operations against the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP), NPA and the National Democratic Front (NDF) is a recommendation of the defense and military organizations as a sign of their support for the peace process.

We realize only too well that while our soldiers are ever prepared to go after insurgents, we must find means to give respite to civilian communities affected by conflict, especially in the spirit of the Christmas season.

The determination of guilt for those convicted of capital offenses is capped by a full and comprehensive review by the Supreme Court.

The role of the Executive Branch is to enforce the law and this is what we intend to do.

Foreign Affairs Secretary Blas Ople today said that the two-day Commemorative Summit between the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and the government of Japan, which opens in Tokyo Thursday, is a "watershed event" because it will be the first time that ASEAN heads of state will hold a summit outside of the ASEAN region.

In a statement, Ople said meetings with an ASEAN dialogue partner are normally held in ASEAN countries in conjunction with the annual ASEAN Summit.

Ople said that the ASEAN-Japan Summit caps the ASEAN-Japan Exchange Year 2003, a year-long celebration of three decades of friendly relations between Japan and the ASEAN member-countries.

President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, who will leave Thursday, heads the Philippine delegation to ASEAN-Japan Summit. She will be joined by nine other ASEAN leaders.

During the summit, Japan is expected to announce its continued support for ASEAN and to promote sincere and open partnership with all member countries, Ople said.

ASEAN and Japan are expected to sign a declaration that will reaffirm the basic direction of future ASEAN-Japan cooperation and give a broad guideline of ASEAN-Japan relationship.

According to Ople, specific measures towards its enactment, as well as efforts to initiate formal negotiations on a Comprehensive Economic Partnership (CEP) with Thailand, the Philippines and Malaysia, are also expected to be discussed.

The summit will cover cooperation in the political-security, development, economic, and social and cultural fields, Ople said.

In his speech concluding his visits to the Philippines, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia and Singapore in January 2002, Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi proposed five initiatives to strengthen Japan’s cooperative relationship with ASEAN based on the spirit of "act together, advance together."

These initiatives are the promotion of education and human resources development among ASEAN countries, a Japan-ASEAN CEP, the Initiative for Development in East Asia, the strengthening of ASEAN-Japan security cooperation on transnational issues such as terrorism, and the designation of 2003 as the ASEAN-Japan Exchange Year.

The exchange year aims to increase mutual understanding, enhance friendly relations, and generate awareness on the growing maturity of ASEAN-Japan relations through the promotion of exchanges in a wide range of areas.

The first ASEAN-Japan Summit was held in 1977, ten years after the establishment of ASEAN.

Along with the United States, Japan is the largest trading partner of ASEAN and the biggest source of investment and tourists from outside the region.

The suspension of offensive military operations (SOMO) could be a prelude to the resumption of the peace talks between the government and the Communist Party of the Philippines-New Peoples’ Army-National Democratic Front (CPP-NPA-NDF), Malacaņang said today.

This unilateral SOMO declared by President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo is a signal that we are opening the doors for talks with them, Presidential Spokesman Ignacio Bunye said this morning in a radio interview.

"We hope that the CPP-NPA-NDF really considers this as a gesture that we really want reconciliation and that they would take the appropriate steps," Bunye said.

"If the other side responds to this gesture, it will be better for all. I hope this will pave the way for the start of talks with the other side," Bunye added.

President Macapagal-Arroyo announced the ceasefire Monday, effective December 10 to January 6.

"The suspension of offensive military operations against the Communist Party of the Philippines, NPA and the National Democratic Front is a recommendation of the defense and military organizations as a sign of their support for the peace process," the President said in a statement this morning.

She said that while our soldiers are ever prepared to go after insurgents, we must find means to give respite to civilian communities affected by conflict, especially in the spirit of Christmas.

"This goes with our firm commitment to a principled pursuit of peace negotiations and the resolution of conflict through non-violent means," she said.

The President has ordered Armed Forces of the Philippines Chief of Staff Gen. Narcisio Abaya to draft guidelines for the SOMO.

In line with the observance of the 55^th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo today reaffirmed the government’s commitment to protect and promote human rights.

At the same time, the President declared a unilateral suspension of offensive operations (SOMO) effective tomorrow, December 10 until January 6, 2004, and ordered a speedy review of cases involving political prisoners for their possible release from detention.

"I have directed the Department of Justice (DOJ) to fast-track the review of cases of alleged political offenders for their possible release on bail, recognizance or pardon," Mrs. Macapagal-Arroyo said.

She gave the DOJ until December 25 to submit its report on the review of the cases.

The President said her gestures would demonstrate the government’s commitment to continuously implement goodwill and confidence-building measures for the furtherance of peace talks with the communist rebels.

"In line with this, I also reaffirm the government’s commitment to secure legislation which will indemnify the victims of human rights violations under the Marcos regime. We are closely coordinating this effort with Congress," the President said.

Malacanang appealed today to journalists to refrain from interviewing death convicts in compliance with the laws governing judicial execution of criminals.

Presidential Spokesman Ignacio Bunye cited Article 82 of the Revised Penal Code which provides that even the subject prisoner could be notified about his forthcoming execution only after sunrise of the designated date.

"In other words, there should be no premature disclosure of the names of the parties to be subjected to capital punishment," Bunye said.

Bunye likewise adverted to Section 11 of Republic Act No. 8177, also known as An Act Designating Lethal Injection as the Method of Carrying Out Capital Punishment, which prohibits media interviews of the death convicts.

"We ask for the cooperation of members of media in observing this guidelines," he said. "We would appeal to the media practitioners to kindly cooperate."

President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo lifted on Friday the moratorium on the death penalty as a deterrent to the perpetration of heinous crimes and to give justice to the victims.

"The President has arrived at this decision after much deliberation, after much prayer and contemplation. And we appeal for the understanding of other parties concerned," Bunye said.