Insurgency: Value Your Lives

The AFP continues to encourage the remaining NPA rebels to surrender. Lt. Gen. Fernando Reyeg, Visayas Command commander says any rebels who value their lives should give up the fight and return to the folds of the law while they have a chance. 

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1231965

The top military official in the Visayas called on the remaining members of the New People’s Army (NPA) on Monday to surrender and follow the path of reconciliation.

Lt. Gen. Fernando Reyeg, Visayas Command commander, made the statement after the death of three NPA members last week.

“If you value your lives and the future of your families, I urge you to lay down your arms and return to the folds of the law while you still have the chance,” Reyeg said, assuring them that the Armed Forces is committed to sustaining peace as they extend their hand of reconciliation.

Reyeg described the remaining NPA fighters as weary with battered morale.

It's not clear if Lt. Gen. Fernando Reyeg is referring to all the remaining NPA fighters as being weary with battered morale or just those in the Visayas. However. six rebels who surrendered in Agusan del Norte said they were exhausted due to lack of food and dwindling leadership. 

https://mb.com.ph/2024/8/29/6-communist-rebels-surrender-in-agusan-del-norte

Six New People’s Army (NPA) rebels surrendered to the military in Agusan del Norte on Wednesday, August 28.

Brig. Gen. Adonis Ariel G. Orio, commanding general of the Army 402nd Infantry (Stingers) Brigade based here, said they turned over four M16 Armalite rifles, one AK47 rifle, M203 grenade launcher, and bullets.

Orio said the rebel returnees were under the Communist Party of the Philippines-NPA North Central Mindanao Regional Committee (NCMRC). One of them was the secretary of the dismantled sub-regional committee 3 (SRC 3) of NCMRC and two were platoon commanders of the sub-regional Sentro de Grabidad Sagay of the same group.

They cited exhaustion, lack of food and other logistical support, and dwindling leadership in their decision to surrender, the 402nd Brigade commander said.

They also expressed a deep longing for safety and the opportunity to reunite with their families, Orio added.

The 402nd Brigade leader said they are currently under assessment for their enrollment in the government’s Enhanced Comprehensive Local Integration Program (ECLIP) that would enable them to avail of the government’s financial and livelihood assistance.

The six surrenderers are under the custody of the 23rd Infantry Battalion for proper documentation and debriefing.

“Our intensified focus military operations (FMOs) will carry on with the sustained support of other stakeholders, including local government units and communities,” Orio said.

These FMOs, he said, have severely restricted the movements of the remaining NPAs in the area. This left them with no other choice but to surrender, Orio said.

“These efforts have been also sustained by active stakeholder engagements through civil-military operations and the continuous monitoring of intelligence operations within its area of responsibility, and as a result, a series of encounters have occurred, severely restricting the NPA’s movements and efforts, leaving them with no choice but to surrender or face neutralization.”

Not only will these six be able to avail of the benefits program but perhaps they can also be recruited into helping the AFP convince more rebels to surrender. That is what is happening in Leyte. 

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1232022

The Philippine Army is counting on the participation of former rebels for the surrender of the remaining 26 active members of the New People’s Army (NPA) hiding in the mountains of Leyte Island.

Brig. Gen. Noel Vestuir, commander of the Army’s 802nd Infantry Brigade, is focusing on initiatives to reintegrate former rebels into their communities and encouraging remaining NPA combatants to embrace a peaceful life.

Vestuir said former rebels and family members of active NPA combatants have committed to convincing the active rebels to surrender.

“The program optimizes the local government’s efforts to link and convince the remaining NPA members through the active participation of the rebels’ families to work for the peaceful surrender of their loved ones and take advantage of the benefits through the Enhanced Local Integration Program,” Vestuir told the Philippine News Agency in a phone interview on Tuesday.

The initiative proved effective in Eastern Samar with the surrender of several members of the NPA's Apoy Platoon.

It can be recalled that upon deployment of the 802nd Infantry Brigade in Samar Island on June 1, 2023, the brigade was able to reduce the manpower of Apoy Platoon from 47 to just 11.

The official said they kicked off the initiative in Leyte through a reunion of 35 former rebels who belonged to the two platoons of the NPA's Island Committee (IC) Levox in a beach resort in Merida town on Aug. 25.

“We gathered them to celebrate their reunion as ordinary citizens, reaffirming their commitment to fostering lasting peace on Leyte Island,” he added.

The NPA’s two platoons in Leyte have been very weak, according to Vestuir, with only 26 remaining members.

Platoon 2, operating in the upland villages of northern Leyte, has only five members left. With 21 fighters, those belonging to Platoon 1 have been hiding in the upland areas in the southern part of Leyte Island.

Vestuir said the NPA’s IC Levox was once the primary NPA unit operating on the islands of Biliran and Leyte.

Villages, barangays, and other areas that have been cleared are receiving lots of aid to which they otherwise would not have had access.

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1232142

The government’s caravan of services benefited 277 residents of two barangays considered as End to Local Communist Armed Conflict (ELCAC) areas in the municipality of San Remigio in Antique on Wednesday.

The activity gathered residents of barangays Aningalan and Alegria at the Aningalan Multi-Purpose Gym, where different services were made available by the Department of Labor and Employment, Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA), Philippine Army, and Integrated Provincial Health Office of the Antique provincial government.

Around 200 residents got free haircuts or availed eye and dental check-ups.

San Remigio Municipal Mayor Margarito Mission Jr. said his constituents are recipients of Driving National Certificate (NC) II and Shielded Metal Arc Welding (SMAW) training.

“During the caravan of services, the trainees were able to receive tool kits and allowances,” Mission said.

TESDA Antique acting Provincial Director Agnes Dimzon said 55 trainees of the Driving NC II received tool kits consisting of hydraulic jack and combination wrench, while 22 SMAW trainees received their allowances.

“The 22 beneficiaries or trainees of SMAW were able to receive a total of PHP59,840, which is 50 percent of their allowance given for their 34 days of training,” Dimzon said.

Tool kits, money, haircuts, eye check ups, and dental exams. Too bad it took a declaration from the NTF-ELCAC for them to get those benefits. 

A village in Negros received the same kind of support from civic groups. 

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1232188

The remote community of Sitio Madaha in Barangay Buenavista, Himamaylan City received more support from various civic organizations to help improve their lives after becoming a conflict-cleared area or free from the influence of the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army.

Led by the Association of Negros Producers (ANP) and the Philippine Army’s 94th Infantry Battalion (IB), representatives of the Felix G. Yusay Foundation Inc. and Hope Builders Organization Negros Island Inc. brought various assistance to residents on Aug. 24 after almost a day of travel, passing through the bounders of Negros Occidental and Negros Oriental.

“This is the first time we’ve seen such a large number of stakeholders visit Sitio Madaha. It’s a testament to the growing commitment to support this community,” Sybel Nobleza, ANP officer-in-charge-external affairs manager, said in a statement on Thursday.

The foundation’s executive director Sharon Jornadal led the distribution of 90 packs of relief goods and school supplies.

“We will also provide support for the light materials needed to establish one classroom for the students in Sitio Madaha,” she said.

Hope Builders Organization Negros Island Inc., led by founder Kenneth Bacala, organized activities for children such as storytelling, interactive dance, and parlor games.

Members of the Central Philippines State University Comrades held hygiene awareness sessions, while personnel of the Department of Agrarian Reform Negros Occidental-II South distributed seeds to the Madaha Hand Weavers Association.

Nobleza said the ANP also distributed 90 packs of school supplies and conducted product monitoring in preparation for the 38th Negros Trade Fair in Manila on Sept. 17 to 22.

The ANP has been helping the community’s “tikog” weavers in marketing their products, such as sleeping mats, table runners, coin purses, hats, and fans with traditional patterns unique to Madaha.

Nobleza said the Barangay Council of Buenavista would allocate PHP1 million to put up a concrete annex school building in Sitio Madaha.

In a statement, Lt. Col.  Ziegfred Tayaban, 94IB chief, underscored the importance of collaborative efforts to address the needs of marginalized communities.

“The stakeholders’ visit and community support activities bring hope and encouragement to the residents of Sitio Madaha, a once rebel-infested community,” he said.

Food, school supplies, materials to build a classroom, and help marketing locally weaved products. What id the government distributed this kind of aid regularly and not just because a village has been declared conflict-free?

Panay Island will soon be declared a Stable Internal Peace and Security (SIPS) zone due to sustained efforts to neutralize the NPA.

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1232261

The significant gains in the campaign against insurgency in Panay prompted the 3rd Infantry Division (3ID) of the Philippine Army to seek the support of the Regional Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict-Western Visayas (RTF-ELCAC 6) in declaring the island as a Stable Internal Peace and Security (SIPS) zone by September.

“The declaration of SIPS is expected to further bolster development initiatives, attract investments, and create a more conducive environment for peace and prosperity in this part of the country,” Maj. Gen. Marion Sison, 3ID commander and co-chair of the Peace, Law Enforcement, and Development Support cluster of the RF-ELCAC 6, said in a statement on Friday.

At a full council meeting of the RTF-ELCAC 6 on Aug. 28, the 3ID presented the proposal, citing the recent neutralization of key leaders of the Kilusang Rehiyon-Panay (KR-P) and central front of the New People’s Army and focused military operations that would satisfy the criteria for the dismantling of the front, paving the way for achieving the SIPS zone.

The 3ID said there was a decrease in manpower from 184 to 181 and firepower from 242 to 109 from the first quarter of 2023 to the second quarter of 2024.

Further, 11 key leaders and members of the communist groups in Panay were neutralized in a series of encounters from July 1, 2024, to present.

They included KR-P regional secretary Vicente Hinojales, deputy secretary Maria Concepcion Araneta Bocala, and Central Front secretary Vivian Torato Teodosio.

The province of Antique is also gearing up for the SIPS status, with the Provincial Joint Peace and Security Coordinating Council to make the declaration next month.

“This declaration is a testament to the collaborative efforts, hard work, and dedication of RTF-ELCAC 6, local government units, and stakeholders, signifying a significant milestone in our collective endeavors to achieve lasting peace and security,” Sison added.

Looks like Antique will also soon be joining the list of Stable Internal Peace and Security (SIPS) zones. Hopefully then the locals will receive the aid they need.