The whole of Davao has been declared insurgency free but that does not mean the AFP will be breaking camp. They are there to stay.
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| https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1187580 |
The chief of the Army’s 10th Infantry Division (10ID) assured Wednesday that not a single military field detachment will be pulled out despite the declaration of an insurgency-free Davao region.In a press briefing here, Maj. Gen. Nolasco Mempin, the 10ID chief, said there will be no movement of deployed military units in various communities formerly influenced with communist New People's Army (NPA) rebels."It doesn't mean that since we are insurgency-free, we will leave the communities. The people are still healing from the atrocities brought by the NPA, and they are still rebuilding their trust in the government, so there is no need to leave them," Mempin said.On Oct. 12, the region was declared insurgency-free after the military’s series of successful peace and order initiatives, in coordination with local government units, resulted in the dismantling of NPA remnants in the area."If we pull out the detachments and patrol bases, there is a tendency that the NPA will regroup and harass the leaders in the communities," Mempin said.
If they pull out and the NPA regroups that would mean that Davao is not insurgency free! In fact the peace in Davao is being described as "fragile."
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| https://www.sunstar.com.ph/article/1945126/davao/local-news/peace-in-davao-still-fragile---army-official |
DESPITE being declared insurgency-free, 10th Infantry Division (10ID) Commander Major General Nolasco Mempin said the peace situation in Davao Region is “fragile” if programs promoting peace are not sustained.
“If we will not sustain the programs that we are currently implementing, as well the actions taken to address the issues from the ground, there’s a big chance of resurgence),” Mempin said.
He said for the past five decades of insurgency, several campaigns and programs have been implemented.
“The AFP already created different campaigns to fight insurgency, there were instances when an area has already been cleared but later on a resurgence of influence from CTG is again noted,” Mempin said.
Mempin said the participation of the local government units (LGUs) will help them in sustaining peace and order in the region.
“I hope our fellow Dabawenyos will cooperate with us. All of us should take responsibility for the security of the Davao Region,” Mempin said.
Funny how Mempin notes that after previous declarations of an area being declared insurgency-free there was a resurgence and then says the security of the Davao Region is everyone's responsibility. He is at the ready to shift the blame to the public and LGUs if there is a resurgence in Davao.
The AFP says 19 more Communist fronts are set to be dismantled soon.
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| https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1187654 |
The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) on Thursday said it foresees 19 guerrilla fronts of the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army (CPP-NPA) dismantled “at the soonest possible time.”
AFP chief of staff Lt. Gen. Bartolome Vicente Bacarro said there used to be 89 guerrilla fronts, but they were reduced to 24 as of recent data.
“We are happy to report that right now out of that 89, 24nalang na guerrilla front ang kino-confront natin (we are only confronting 24 guerrilla fronts). And out of 24 guerrilla fronts, 19 are already weakened and we foresee that these 19 guerrilla fronts will be dismantled at the soonest possible time,” Bacarro said in an online press conference after the second National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) executive meeting.
He said the AFP has also reduced members of the NPA to 2,112 and firearms to 1,800.
Bacarro said the AFP is currently addressing five active guerrilla fronts in the areas of Northern Samar and South Cotabato.
“Now, we are focusing on those five active guerrilla fronts with only about 157 or 154 barangays…It’s not actually a challenge, but those are the things that we need to address right now,” he said.
Meanwhile, Bacarro said the AFP is expecting more areas in the country to be declared insurgency-free after Davao Region.
“The next areas that will be declared as insurgency-free are in the areas of Sarangani, Sultan Kudarat, and South Cotabato,” Bacarro said.
“Yung top leadership na matagal na nating hinahabol-habol doon (The top leadership that we have long been pursuing) was recently neutralized. And by this, we see a degradation in the terms of leadership and you know wala nang leader (there’s no more leader) so it will create a vacuum and we foresee some surrenderees in the coming days,” he added.
The AFP says there are only about 2,112 NPA fighters and 1,800 firearms left with which to contend. That is the same number given back in September and July of this year. That indicates that despite the AFP's hard work neutralizing top leadership, numerous surrenders, and the declaration of several areas as being insurgency free the number of NPA fighters remains static. Does that mean recruitment efforts have been effective? Or is the AFP lying about surrenders and making up statistics about how many NPA may or may not be left?
Bacarro says the AFP is dealing with only 24 guerrilla fronts but back in July the AFP said there were 23 guerrilla fronts left.
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| https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1623551/afp-npa-down-to-2000-fighters-guerrilla-fronts-slashed-by-74-percent |
“We have achieved significant gains in the conduct of military operations against the threat, I’m referring to the armed threat and [the dismantled guerrilla fronts are] almost 74 percent. There used to be 89 guerrilla fronts when President Duterte assumed office in 2016 but as of June 30 this year they were reduced to 23,” Aguilar said.
The National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) on Thursday appealed to the Senate to support the measure seeking to provide amnesty to communist rebels.“For the communist terrorist group, it is still pending at the Senate. That's why we appealed for the concurrence of the Senate for this to be approved so that we can proceed with the amnesty program for the communist terrorist group,” Office of the Presidential Adviser on Peace, Reconciliation and Unity Undersecretary Isidro Purisima said at a press conference.Purisima was referring to Proclamation No. 1093, signed by former President Rodrigo Duterte in 2021, which seeks to grant amnesty to former communist rebels who have committed crimes punishable under the Revised Penal Code and Special Penal Laws in furtherance of their political beliefs.Meanwhile, Purisima said President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. just approved the appointment of some officials to the National Amnesty Commission.The commission also had a meeting last week, according to him.The grant of amnesty requires an admission of guilt on the part of beneficiaries and the concurrence of both the Senate and the House of Representatives.
How exactly will this amnesty work? Will anyone who surrenders be eligible despite the crimes they have committed? The AFP says the NPA's human rights violations are piling up, this after discovering the shallow graves of five persons executed recently.
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| https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1689702/remains-found-in-shallow-graves-in-agusan-del-norte-were-executed-by-npa-afp |
The five sets of human remains recently found in a shallow grave in Santiago, Agusan del Norte were allegedly executed by the communist New People’s Army, the Armed Forces of the Philippines said on Saturday.
AFP said the bodies were found in shallow graves last October 30 by the local police. Two of them were members of the AFP’s Citizen Armed Force Geographical Unit (Cafgu), while the three others were civilians, the armed forces also said.
“The AFP earlier condemned the execution of two (2) Cafgu members and three (3) civilians whose bodies were found in shallow graves on October 30 in Santiago, Agusan Del Norte,” the AFP said in a statement.
AFP points to a certain Myrna Sularte, also known as Maria Malaya, as one of the suspects. The other suspect, identified as Rolando Leyson Jr., was already killed in an encounter with government troops on September 14 this year.
The AFP also called the incident a violation of human rights and international humanitarian law.
“It is an act of terror that deserves judicial action. It is a crime against humanity that calls for international condemnation,” said the AFP in their statemen
Earlier in the year the AFP claimed the NPA has over 4,000 human rights violations since 1968.
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| https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1676430/afp-submits-to-chr-list-of-npas-over-4000-human-rights-violations |
The New People’s Army (NPA) purportedly committed over 4,000 human rights violations since its founding, causing over 2,300 deaths and 400 injuries, the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) said on Thursday.
AFP Center for Law on Armed Conflict Director Brig. Gen. Joel Alejandro Nacnac submitted the recorded human rights violations before the Commission on Human Rights (CHR), a move which the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) call a “publicity stunt.”
“These reports would show that from 1968 to the 1st semester of 2022, at least a total of 4,329 violations were committed,” Nacnac said in a statement.
AFP said there were 2,443 human rights violations from 1968 to 2009 and 1,886 other violations reported from 2010 until the first quarter of 2022.
Of the 2,443 recorded violations from 1968 to 2009, 40 are child fighters’ employment cases; 432 incidents of destruction of civilian-owned properties; 72 uses of anti-personnel mines or improvised explosive devices; 1,606 cases of alleged willful killings, and 293 other human rights abuses, according to authorities.
Nacnac also pointed out that there are a lot of human rights and international humanitarian law violations that have not been recorded.
“These atrocities should not be left with impunity,” the official said.
With amnesty on the table and with the e-clip program how is there not anything but impunity? These rebels are being given millions in aid upon surrendering.
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| https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1187816 |
A total of 77 former New People’s Army (NPA) rebels in Bukidnon province have received PHP4.3 million worth of assistance through the government’s Enhanced Comprehensive Local Integration Program (E-CLIP).
In a statement issued Saturday, the Philippine Army's 403rd Infantry Brigade (403rd IBde) said the turnover of assistance, held in Camp Osito D. Bahian, in Malaybalay City, Bukidnon on Friday, was highlighted by the turnover of the former rebels’ firearms and the release of livelihood assistance, immediate assistance, reintegration assistance, and firearm remuneration.
The amount of E-CLIP assistance was coursed through the Department of the Interior and Local Government.
Col. Ted B. Dumosmog, acting 403Rd IBde commander, led the former rebels in taking the Oath of Allegiance to the Republic of the Philippines.
“The Bukidnon Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict, through the Enhanced Comprehensive Local Integration Program and Amnesty Cluster, will always be at your service to facilitate the assistance that the government had promised to those who returned to the fold of the law. May this activity serve as an inspiration to those NPA members who want to avail of the government’s integration program," Dumosmog said in his speech after the turnover ceremony.
Here the AFP says they want this program to "serve as an inspiration" so that other NPA members will avail of the E-clip program but they also say that the NPA's human rights violations "should not be left with impunity." But the E-clip program is the very definition of impunity. They can't have it both ways.
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