The AFP has been steadily fighting the NPA claiming to have shut down fronts, cleared provinces of rebels, and weakened morale among the remaining fighters. They claim the NPA is losing relevance to these crushing defeats.
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| https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1187875 |
The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) said the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People's Army-National Democratic Front (CPP-NPA-NDF) is losing its relevance as it continuously loses to the military.
"The CPP-NPA-NDF is losing not just tactical battles, but relevance as well. With the remaining 24 guerrilla fronts, 19 of which are weakened and inactive, this leaves the Communist Party with five fronts to pursue its violent means of achieving political objectives," AFP spokesperson Col. Medel Aguilar said in a statement late Sunday.
From a high of 89 NPA guerrilla fronts, these went down to 24 due to the government's ongoing civic and military campaign against the insurgents.
AFP chief-of-staff Lt. Gen. Bartolome Vicente Bacarro earlier said 19 out of these 24 remaining guerrilla fronts could be dismantled at the "soonest possible time".
Medel also said the relentless efforts by government security forces to defeat the NPA have also displaced its political units making them incapable of performing any party programs.
"With the relentless efforts of the government security forces to subdue insurgency, the CPP found its lower politico-military organs on the run, therefore incapable of implementing party programs, the lifeblood of its existence," he added.
While the AFP is encouraging all remaining NPA rebels and their allies to surrender and rejoin mainstream society peacefully, Medel said the military remains committed to sustaining the offensive against lawless violence.
"As the AFP calls for the remaining NPA members to return to the fold of the law, it also commits itself to sustain the offensive against lawless violence," he added.
With the insurgents no longer getting support, the AFP spokesperson said it is only a matter of time before the NPA is totally neutralized and defeated by government forces.
"With no mass bases to hide them, in no time the NPA will be destroyed by the combined strength of the government security forces. The CPP should accept that the battle is lost, that its programs need not be imposed with violence, and that it has the moral responsibility of saving its fighters from death and destruction," Medel said.
Medel, meanwhile, renewed his call to all Filipinos to help the military convey to the remaining rebels the government's message of unity and peace.
"Finally, we call on all the Filipino people to help us convey the message of unity and peace. Let the hatchet of hate be buried for our nation to move forward as one," he added.
Bury "the hatchet of hate?" Is he aware that the rebellion is not based on hate per se but on a desire to change the whole system? He says that nonsense after acknowledging that the because of the AFP's relentless operations the CPP has been unable to perform any of the party's programs. That is an interesting assertion which he sadly does not explain.
This week there was another display of the people showing their rejection of the NPA. Of course it was not spontaneous but was facilitated by the AFP.
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| https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1188080 |
More residents of remote villages in Calatrava town, Negros Occidental province have rejected the presence of the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army (CPP-NPA) while former militias surrendered their firearms during a peace rally held at the Barangay Marcelo covered court of the municipality on Monday.
The activity, which was facilitated by the Philippine Army’s 79th Infantry Battalion (IB), was participated by about 400 individuals who displayed placards condemning the NPA atrocities, took their oath of allegiance to the government, and burned replica flags of the CPP-NPA.
In a statement on Tuesday, Lt. Col. J-jay Javines, commanding officer of 79IB, commended the resolve of the barangay officials and residents to withdraw support from the communist-terrorist group.
“Their willingness in condemning them shows the people’s clamor and earnest desire to live in a place where there is peace and development. With their continued support to our campaign against insurgency, we can surely put an end to local armed conflict,” he added.
Mariane Lumanog, executive assistant of Mayor Marilyn Era, administered the oath to those who expressed their allegiance to the Philippine government.
“We express our appreciation to the Philippine Army and the Philippine National Police (PNP) for actively performing their role in preserving the peace and order of Calatrava,” the mayor said in her message delivered through Lumanog.
“Help the government in protecting your communities and cooperate with the authorities to be free from the influence of CPP-NPA,” she told the residents.
During the rally, former NPA Yunit Militia members surrendered five firearms to the authorities in exchange for a cash reward from the municipal government and sacks of rice from the PNP.
Turned over were a caliber .9mm Ingram pistol with 30 rounds of live ammunition and two magazines as well as two .38-caliber revolvers and two .357-caliber handguns.
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| https://www.dailyguardian.com.ph/army-npa-recruitment-in-schools-not-alarming/ |
As far as the Philippine Army’s 3rd Infantry Division, the New People’s Army (NPA) recruitment is not rampant in schools in Western Visayas.Major General Benedict Arevalo, 3rd ID commander, said that they don’t consider NPA’s clout in schools as alarming.
When asked how many schools are considered hotbeds of rebel recruitment, Arevalo said it’s just a handful.
But whether it’s alarming or not, Arevalo that they take it seriously.
“One student recruited is too much. One life is too much,” he said.
Almost two years ago, former Ilonggo activist and now National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) Jeffrey Celiz, or Ka Eric Almendras, tagged four schools as hotbeds of NPA recruitment.
But Arevalo did not confirm if these schools are still deemed as cradles of recruitment operations in Panay Island.
Negros is definitely where the AFP is concentrating a lot of its attention at the moment.
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| https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1188041 |
Additional slots for the Special Citizens Armed Forces Geographical Unit (CAFGU) Active Auxiliary (SCAA) for Negros Oriental are available for the proposed Tamlang Valley detachment in Santa Catalina town.
Lt. Col. Roderick R. Salayo, commanding officer of the Philippine Army's 11th Infantry Battalion (11IB) based in Siaton, told the Philippine News Agency on Tuesday that the 50 slots for the new SCAA, now known as CAA 2, will be funded by the provincial government.
“It is commendable that the province of Negros Oriental has sustained its efforts and support over the years in providing funds for these paramilitary forces because they are important for peace and security purposes, and also to help protect critical infrastructure,” Salayo said in mixed English and Filipino.
Meanwhile the M I L F and AFP are fighting once again.
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| https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1188140 |
Skirmishes between government troops and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (M I L F) members backed by lawless elements are ongoing sporadically in Basilan province's hinterlands, a top military official said Wednesday.
Brig. Gen. Domingo Gobway, 101st Infantry Brigade commander, said troops from the Army's 64th Infantry Battalion stationed in the detachment in Barangay Ulitan, Ungkaya Pukan, Basilan, are on the defensive position as fighting continues.
“As of now, the troops are on the defensive position since the MILF are the ones attacking,” Gobway said in a text message.
The firefight broke out at 12:30 p.m. Tuesday when a soldier stationed at a detachment in Barangay Ulitan was slightly bruised by sniper fire from an area occupied by MILF members and lawless elements.
Gobway said the M I L F members involved in the gunfight are led by a certain Commander Huram, whose group entered the village fully-armed, in violation of the conditions previously set by the Army unit based in the area to keep lawless elements at bay.
Huram’s group, which is now holed up in Barangay Ulitan, allowed the lawless group to stay with them, the Army official alleged.
Gobway said the lawless individuals have provided reinforcements for Huram’s group in the ongoing firefight.
Let's not kid ourselves that there was ever an honest ceasefire. The leader of the BARMM said as much:
“We have not given up on our struggle.”
“We are not surrendering. Decommissioning is not tantamount to surrendering,” said Ebrahim, who is also Chief Minister of the interim Bangsamoro government.
“I would like to emphasize that the decommissioning doesn’t mean we have given up on what we used to fight for,” Ebrahim emphasized.
https://philippinefails.blogspot.com/2019/09/martial-law-insurgent-free.html
Remember, the M I L F is still fighting for the whole of Mindanao as being their ancestral domain. That is and will always be the end goal.
Senator Cayetano made an interesting admission in the Senate this week while descrying debating defense agencies' budgets.
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| https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1692021/alan-peter-cayetano-wary-about-open-discussion-of-defense-agencies-budgets |
Senator Alan Peter Cayetano does not see the point in openly deliberating the budgets of defense agencies.
According to Cayetano, it will be easy for groups who want to overthrow the government if defense agencies funds would be available to the public.
“Why is it that we make it so easy for those who want to topple the government to show the budget of the DND (Department of National Defense), the AFP (Armed Forces of the Philippines), the PNP (Philippine National Police)?” he asked during the Senate plenary session on Thursday.
He noted that Senate hearings and sessions are covered by the media and streamed on social media where people may “figure out strategically” what the departments have and do not have.
On the other hand, defense departments do not have an idea on the budget of the New People’s Army, the armed wing of the Communist Party of the Philippines, said Cayetano.
Contrary to Cayetano's statement the AFP has released a lot of information about the money the CPP collects. The AFP claims the CPP has billions and continues to rack in the money from overseas funding and local "taxes" or extortion fees.
Thank goodness Sara Duterte is Vice President. Listen to this bring brained genius tell us all the key to ending war: good governance.
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| https://mb.com.ph/2022/11/11/vp-sara-says-good-governance-is-antidote-to-war/ |
Vice President Sara Duterte has pointed out in a speaking engagement before Mindanaoans that good governance is key to resolving conflicts.
She recognized the efforts on 1996 peace agreement between the Moro National Liberation Front and the government under the late President Fidel V. Ramos, and the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro signed between the Moro Islamic Liberation Front and the Philippine government under the leadership of the late President Benigno Aquino in 2014, which made “Mindanao considerably quiet for quite a time now.”
She further said it is now “peace harvest season” in Mindanao, but will always demand for “collective” and “constant” attention.
“Harvest time — peace time — is a good time for us. It allows the government to address problems that, if not given appropriate attention, could be exploited by terror groups to foment anger and incite people to resist the government, resort to violence and join their cause,” Duterte said.
“Peace is a delicate, fragile beauty. It needs constant attention. In the case of Mindanao, it does not only need our continuous attention. It needs our constant, collective attention,” she added.
The Vice President also called on every Mindanaoan to always acknowledge the sacrifices of fellow Mindanaoans who fought against rebel groups to secure Mindanao and provide safety to the people.
“The seeds of peace that you have planted all these years, the seeds of peace watered by the blood of Filipino martyrs who fought against each other, the seeds of peace nurtured by your sacrifices and bravery and that undying fire I see in your eyes — they have grown and their flowers now in bloom,” she said.
“You have all the reasons to be proud of the tremendous job that you have done for Mindanao and your fellow Mindanaoans,” she added.
Believing that the “Mindanao Agenda is a Philippine Agenda,’ the Vice President said the Department of Education (DepEd), which she heads in a concurrent capacity, is eyeing to incorporate National Culture of Peace in the curriculum to further strengthen the advocacy of peace protection and sustainable development among schoolchildren.
"The sacrifices of fellow Mindanaoans who fought against rebel groups to secure Mindanao and provide safety to the people?" Does she mean people like her father who gave the NPA millions of pesos, told others to pay the NPA extortion taxes, and thanked them for his presidency? Or perhaps she means the Muslims who know what other militant Muslims are up to but decline to say anything because they think they will be spared? One thing is for sure, with a terrorist state in the midst of Mindanao, the BARMM, peace is remains a pipe dream.
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