Insurgency: Maute-Linked Terrorists Regrouping?

The AFP has been insistent that, much like the NPA, the Muslim insurgency is weakening and has become irrelevant. They have joyfully lauded the defeat of the Maute Group after the Battle of Marawi and especially with the death of a top leader last week. However it seems they are regrouping. 

https://www.philstar.com/headlines/2023/06/19/2274892/maute-linked-terrorists-regrouping-probe-sought

Sen. Ronald dela Rosa vowed to look into reports that the Maute group – behind the five-month siege of Marawi City in 2017 – was getting back together.

Dela Rosa said that according to National Commission on Muslim Filipinos (NCMF) chief of staff Manggay Guro Jr., it is not farfetched that the so-called Maute sympathizers are “regrouping and growing in number.”

“That can happen. They are extremists, they would just lay low (and attack again),” Dela Rosa told The STAR in a phone interview over the weekend.

He said the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and Philippine National Police (PNP) should take proactive measures to preempt and thwart any possible resurgence of attacks in, which was devastated amid fighting between the Maute group and government forces from May to October 2017.

The siege displaced thousands of residents, whose homes were totally destroyed.

“The AFP and the PNP should be proactive,” said Dela Rosa, who served as PNP chief from July 2016 to April 2018, and was at the helm of the PNP when the siege took place.

During Friday’s public hearing of the Senate committee on foreign affairs on the proposed temporary housing in the Philippines of special immigrant visa applicants from Afghanistan, chaired and presided over by Sen. Imee Marcos, Guro said there was an incident again in Marawi City last week.

“Just recently this Wednesday an incident happened in Marawi, again, concerning the same group who caused the Marawi siege,” Guro said, but did not elaborate.

“So, apparently, they are regrouping and they’re growing in numbers because of the continuous problems in Marawi that, up until now, most of those affected by the Marawi siege have not returned to their homeland or to their homes,” he added.

Dela Rosa explained that extremism and terrorism are universal and not isolated in the Philippines. “

The senator noted that there should be a whole of government approach to preempting a repeat of the devastating siege in Marawi City.

Right now this is rumor and speculation. Guro cannot even elaborate on his assertions. But Bato's statement "that there should be a whole of government approach to preempting a repeat of the devastating siege in Marawi City" is incredibly stupid. 

If you recall, the AFP and PNP, headed by Bato at the time, knew there as an impending attack and did nothing to stop it. They knew ISIS had been in the Philippines since 2014 and ignored the threat and lied about it to the public. To this day there has still been no investigation into the Marawi siege to determine its causes, the failures of the AFP and PNP as regards intelligence, and on how to prevent it form happening again. Will there be another Marawi siege? Only time can tell but with the bungling of the AFP and PNP it is not farfetched. 

The BIFF, who fought alongside the Maute Group in Marawi, also remains active in Mindanao. 

https://mb.com.ph/2023/6/19/biff-leader-6-followers-killed-in-maguindanao-clash

A leader of the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters and six followers were killed in a gun fight with security forces  in Datu Paglas, Maguindanao del Sur on Sunday, June 18.

Police Brig. Gen. Allan Nobleza, director of the Police Regional Office-Bangsamoro Autonomous Region, said the police and military were implementing a search warrant on the lair of BIFF leader Norjahid Husain in Barangay Demawato when the gunbattle occurred.

He said Husain and his armed followers shot it out with the operating team which resulted into death of seven members, including Husain.

One policeman was wounded in the encounter.

Authorities tagged Husain as a key leader of the local BIFF  which was responsible for the attack on the Datu Paglas public market on May 8, 2021 and the bombing of the  transmission tower of the National Grid Corp. of the Philippines in Carmen, Cotabato in September 2016.

Husain was trained on bomb-making by  Basit Usman, the late leader of the Jemaah Islamiyah terror group, and was also linked to Pentagon kidnap-for ransom group led by Tahir Alonto.

Security forces recovered one M-16 rifle and three .45 caliber pistols from the slain BIFF men.

The PNP blames a recent ambush on the BIFF.

https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/06/21/23/pnp-biff-nasa-likod-ng-ambush-sa-maguindanao-del-sur

The Philippine National Police (PNP) has identified the group behind the ambush in Barangay Poblacion in Shariff Aguak, Maguindanao del Sur that killed two policemen and injured four others, on June 14.

According to PNP spokesperson P/Col, the authorities are preparing the relevant document to file a complaint against the persons of interest they first identified. Jean Fajardo.

"Based on our relationship with the regional director of the [Police Regional Office-Bangsamoro Autonomous Region], there are witnesses who have been able to identify and provide information as to the identity of these possible suspects behind the ambush... I understand, member. they are from the [Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters]," said Fajardo.

Maybe if the goverment built some roads the BIFF would relent? That is allegedly the case with the NPA in northern Samar. 

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1203953

Officials have expressed confidence that the completion of the new road in Northern Samar after five years of construction would help end insurgency in Silvino Lubos, one of the poorest towns in the country.

The inauguration of the Suba Bridge within the new road that connects the town to a highway in Mondragon town signals the full completion of the PHP238.31 million project.

“This road will connect people and businesses which was hardly possible in the past. This will undoubtedly open up opportunities for everyone. Economic development is vital to the growth and prosperity of Northern Samar,” said Charlito Carlobos, district engineer of the Department of Public Works and Highway (DPWH) Northern Samar 2nd engineering district office in a statement shared by the Philippine Army to reporters on Wednesday.

The 3.25-kilometer road and bridge network has reduced the usual 12-hour boat ride to the town to just one hour and 30 minutes by land.

For Silvino Lubos Mayor Leo Jarito, the project is key to ending insurgency in their town and nearby areas. They have been waiting for this project for five decades.

“This is the most awaited moment for the town to finally get connected to the capital and other municipalities in Northern Samar. It has already been five decades since the people of Silvino Lubos had waited for such progress,” Jarito said.

“If there is infrastructure, the New People’s Army becomes irrelevant since the basic needs of people are being addressed. In the case of our town, it will be easier for our people to transport our products to the market,” the mayor added.

Maj. Gen. Camilo Ligayo, commander of the Philippine Army’s 8th Infantry Division, said the project will boost their campaign to wipe out the NPA in Northern Samar.

“I am optimistic that the three brigades with nine battalions deployed here in Samar Island, we can eradicate the communist terrorist group and will soon welcome socio-economic development most especially in the areas which were once exploited by the terrorists,” Ligayo said.

If infrastructure can make the NPA irrelevant then why hasn't the government been busy building infrastructure for he past five decades!? Surely they could have been able to secure a few construction sites in the name of ending the insurgency, right? 

The insurgency continues to rage on in the Visayas. VISCOM says they are open to localized peace talks. 

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1203926

The Visayas Command (Viscom) on Tuesday vowed to support localized peace initiatives to generate trust from the remnants of the New People’s Army (NPA) and persuade them to go back to the fold of the law.

Lt. Gen. Benedict Arevalo, Viscom commander, said engaging in localized talks on peace and development would entice more members of the Communist Party of the Philippines and its armed wing, NPA, to surrender.

“This incessant peace initiative hurts the terrorist group as much as our focused military operations, as it further demoralized their ranks and significantly contribute to degrading their manpower and armed capability,” Arevalo said in a statement.

He said that engaging directly in the grassroots level in providing development support programs along with the local and national government agencies, non-government organizations, and various stakeholders would build confidence from the remnants of the left-leaning organizations.

Arevalo reiterated his call to the remaining NPA fighters, especially those who are left without leaders, to lay down their arms and abandon their armed struggle, assuring them of the government support and assistance so that they can live a peaceful and progressive life with their family.

"Demoralized thier ranks?"  They are still fighting! Their manpower and armed capability may have been degraded but they continue to fight which means they are not demoralized.

Negros Occidental, which is part of the Visayas, has renewed its commitment to end the insurgency.

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1204167

The Negros Occidental provincial government renewed its commitment to end the decades-long communist insurgency during the two-day transformation program planning workshop for local peace stakeholders with the Office of the Presidential Adviser on Peace Reconciliation and Unity (OPAPRU) in Talisay City.

Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson, chairperson of the Provincial Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (PTF-ELCAC), said the workshop is “an important step in developing a thorough and successful plan that will serve as the roadmap for our efforts in the next months and years.”

“Foremost, we want to put an end to local communist armed conflict, which has caused distress and instability in our communities. This challenge necessitates multi-faceted approach that includes law enforcement, socio-economic development, and community empowerment,” Lacson said in his message at the close of the workshop on Friday at Nature’s Village Resort.

The activity was also attended by Undersecretary Ernesto Torres Jr., executive director of the National TF-ELCAC, and gathered members of the regional and provincial TF-ELCAC, representatives of the Philippine National Police and the Philippine Army and civil society organizations, and former rebels (FRs).

The OPAPRU has identified Negros Occidental as the pilot area for the implementation of the transformation program in Western Visayas.

“As the pilot province for the transformation program implementation, Negros Occidental will be crucial in demonstrating the program’s success. The efforts of the provincial government in the pursuit of peace and inclusive progress are evident in our programs, services and policies, and we will zealously continue to do such measures until such time our collective goals for progress and peace are achieved,” Lacson said.

In recent months, armed encounters between government troops and fighters of the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army (CPP-NPA) in Negros Occidental have claimed the lives of rebels, injured soldiers, and displaced thousands of residents in affected areas, especially in Himamaylan City and Moises Padilla town.

Lacson himself has led the call for those still in the armed struggle to return to the fold of the law like many of their former comrades, who have already chosen the path of peace and availed of government programs.

According to the OPAPRU, the transformation program seeks to address the needs of FRs, their families, and communities to aid them in their transformation, as well as strengthen their resiliency against the recovery efforts of the CPP-NPA.

The transformation program is designed to complement the local peace engagement (LPE), which is among the 12 lines of effort under the NTF-ELCAC and is considered one of the most effective ways of dealing with the communist groups.

The war is on against the NPA on every front.  Even the DepEd is fighting hard against the NPA! Well, the ACT.

https://www.philstar.com/headlines/2023/06/23/2276032/deped-begins-identifying-teachers-part-act

The Department of Education has issued an internal memorandum directing all regional and division offices to name all public school teachers part of the Alliance of Concerned Teachers — a teachers group that has complained to an international body about being red-tagged by the education secretary.

According to a memorandum issued by Undersecretary for Operation Revsee Escobedo on June 14, all regional directors and school division superintendents were required to submit a list of ACT-affiliated teachers that are part of the department's Automatic Payroll Deduction System.

DepEd set a deadline of June 21 for all submissions. 

"All submissions must be consolidated at the regional level, verified and signed by the Regional Director," the memorandum stated.

A copy of the submission template obtained by Philstar.com shows that the DepEd offices are required to provide the division, school, name and position of the teachers deemed to be "ACT Union-affiliated.”

ACT is the country’s largest organization for teachers and serves as the sole negotiating union for several public school teachers in Metro Manila and other regions. It also regularly conducts surveys among teachers to gather feedback and build consensus on pressing education issues, the most recent being a survey on the stifling heat felt inside classrooms during the dry season.

DepEd under former Secretary Leonor Briones moved to protect teachers from a similar profiling act conducted by the Philippine National Police in 2019. It asked one of its division offices to recall a letter directing the inventory of ACT-affiliated teachers, with former DepEd chief Leonor Briones citing DepEd’s compliance with the Data Privacy Act.

This is Sara's way of "fighting the NPA" and no doubt she will be cheered by some but really how does this move fight the insurgency?  It doesn't but it looks good on Twitter!

Another province has been declared insurgency free.

https://www.philstar.com/nation/2023/06/23/2276065/military-says-tarlac-province-now-insurgency-free

Tarlac province is now “free” from the presence of the communist underground movement, according to the military.

The Provincial Peace and Order Council Resolution No. 02 series of 2023 categorized the province as "cleared and unaffected" by the communist insurgency and is relatively peaceful, the Northern Luzon Command (NOLCOM) of the Armed Forces of the Philippines declared Friday.

Nolcom spokesman Major Al Anthony Pueblas said Tarlac was once a hotbed of insurgency for being the birthplace of the New People's Army (NPA) in 1969.

Pueblas added that the latest declaration makes Tarlac the first province in Region 3 to achieve a state of “stable internal peace and security”.

He explained that the PPOC resolution indicated that the presence of Leftist fighters operating in Tarlac province, particularly the Komiteng Larangang Gerilya-Tarlac-Zambales (TARZAM) that was officially declared weakened in 2022, have been significantly reduced.

Of course Tarlac is not actually insurgency free. The insurgents have been "significantly reduced." That is par for the course for the AFP!