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The Philippine Army will briefly put on hold its battle against
insurgents while political squabbling is also suspended as the
country prepares to cheer on boxer Manny Pacquiao in a world title
fight this weekend, news reports said Saturday.
Military chief General Hermogenes Esperon told
the Philippine Star newspaper that the armed forces would have a
unilateral ceasefire against the communist rebel New People’s Army
(NPA) from 8 am (0000 GMT) Sunday to the end of Pacquiao’s match.
“We will have a suspension of military
operations with the NPA, except when you have to act against (the)
enemy,” Esperon said.
He expressed hope that the NPA would
reciprocate. “They shouldn’t make trouble. Everybody wants to
witness another win of Pacquiao,” the Star quoted him as saying.
The nation is expected to come to a standstill
when Pacquiao tries to wrest the World Boxing Council (WBC)
superfeatherweight title from Mexico’s Juan Miguel Marquez in Las
Vegas.
Prominent officials and showbiz personalities,
including Vice-President Noli de Castro, are on their way to the
United States for the match, which will be aired live on television
here.
President Gloria Arroyo’s spokesman, Ignacio
Bunye, said she was extending her full support for Pacquiao,
recalling that during his past bouts traffic and crime virtually
ceased.
Arroyo’s chief aide, Executive Secretary
Eduardo Ermita said “there will be a ceasefire for a day”.
He added that this “might help reduce the
tension gripping the country today,” referring to the protracted
opposition campaign to unseat Arroyo on charges of corruption and
vote fraud.
The opposition, backed by civic groups and even
some Roman Catholic bishops, have been holding almost daily street
protests and congressional hearings aimed at ousting Arroyo, but the
president has refused to resign and vowed to finish her term, which
ends in 2010.
Pacquiao, who holds the separate WBC
international superfeatherweight belt, is considered a national
sports hero in the Philippines. He was even dubbed by Arroyo as the
pambansang kamao, “the national fist”, after his most recent
bout, a unanimous 12-round decision over Mexican Marco Antonio
Barrera in October.
A previous fight between Pacquiao and Marquez in
2004 ended in a draw, and the rematch is widely considered a grudge
fight.
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