Philippine President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo Tuesday ordered a comprehensive reassessment of the government's strategy in dealing with the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) and its armed wing, the New People's Army (NPA), as links between the revolutionary left and international organizations were growing.

Arroyo warned that intelligence reports showed growing links between the revolutionary left and international terrorist organizations.

"We must meet this threat internally and externally with allies," she said.

The President issued her instruction after she convened the National Security Group of the Cabinet to assess recent developments in the security front Tuesday morning.

She said that the reassessment of the government's strategy with the CPP-NPA would include a review of the negotiations with CPP's political arm, the National Democratic Front (NDF).

"There are pressing goals in the national security agenda. We aim to consolidate our development, diplomatic and political efforts to defeat insurgency and have a durable peace under full-blown democratic processes and the rule of law," said the President.

Arroyo also noted that review would be done in consultation with all concerned sectors and stakeholders, with political institutions being platforms for dissent bordering on sedition andcivil disobedience, and the labor and transport sectors being subjected to unrelenting agitation.

She asserted that ongoing reforms in the military and the amnesty program give the government a leading edge in the fight against insurgency.

"We have to get on with an amnesty program utilizing the influence and shared resources of the local government units," sheadded.

However, the President assured the nation that the government's"security programs are on track, alongside our efforts to meet theeconomic crisis."

The currently 8,600-strong NPA has been waging a rebellion since 1969 in remote areas of the country and it was branded as a terrorist group by the United States and the European Union after the Sept. 11, 2001 terror attacks on the United States.

A fresh round of negotiations between the Philippine governmentand the NDF, in Norway failed to push through in August due to theNDF's apparent dissatisfaction with the government's efforts to remove the NPA and CPP from the list of terrorist groups of the United States and the European Union.

Earlier this month, the NPA said that it would "launch bigger, more numerous and more frequent tactical offensives on isolated elements of the reactionary armed forces and police every time theopportunity presents itself".

Source: Xinhua