Insurgency: Closer to Communist-Free Status

According to the AFP the Western and Central Visayas are inching closer to communist-free status. The problem is dealing with isolated groups of remnants.

https://mb.com.ph/2025/2/6/western-central-visayas-inch-closer-to-communist-free-status

Brig. Gen. Michael Samson, the new chief of the 3rd Infantry Division of the Philippine Army, said Western and Central Visayas are inching closer to becoming free from the New People’s Army (NPA).

“But before we could finally declare Western Visayas and Central Visayas as communist insurgency-free, we have to first deal with the remnants of a group of isolated armed rebels who survive by hiding and evading out pursuing government troops,” said Samson after taking command of the 3rd ID after the retirement of Major Gen. Marion Sison.

Samson, during his tenure as commander of the 301st Infantry Brigade in Panay Island, dismantled the 

Southern Front Committee in Panay Island operating in the southern portion of Iloilo province and Antique.

His leadership at the 301st IB also toppled the NPA Central Front Committee in Capiz, Aklan, and Iloilo.

With a bigger scope as 3rd ID commander, Samson said it is crucial to continue the gains against the NPA in other parts of the two regions such as Negros Island, Cebu, and Bohol.

Samson said  that their combat operations against the NPA is not to kill.

“We want to pressure them to give up the armed struggle and make them realize that fighting the government is useless and futile. We want them to go back to mainstream society as productive citizens of this country,” Samson said. 

This is an incredible admission. The AFP says "their combat operations against the NPA is not to kill." What is the point of combat if not to kill? "Pressuring them to give up the armed struggle" is part of psychological operations, NOT combat operations. The NPA sure doesn't have any trouble killing AFP soldiers. 

https://mb.com.ph/2025/2/4/soldier-killed-in-clash-with-npa-in-samar

Matuguinao, Samar Mayor Aran Boller condemned the death of a soldier in an encounter with the New People’s Army in the hinterlands of Barangay San Roque, Matuguinao recently.

Killed-in-action was Corporal Bobby Barocaboc.

He was deployed as part of the Alpha Company of the 19th Infantry Battalion securing Barangay San Roque to facilitate the delivery of social and basic services in the community considered a Geographically Isolated and Disadvantaged Area. Troops engaged about 10 communist rebels.

"I challenge you, if you really are for the people and genuine to your goal, then you should support the government in its pursuit for just and lasting peace," Boller said.

Major Gen. Adonis Ariel Orio, head of the 8th Infantry Division, condoled with the family of Barocaboc.

"Corporal Barocaboc has paid an ultimate sacrifice for the people of Eastern Visayas. His death fuels us to continue what we have started."

Orio  assured that they will never cease in pursuing the remaining insurgents to achieve lasting peace and progress in the community.

But even though the AFP's combat operations are not meant to be deadly they can end in death. 

https://mb.com.ph/2025/2/6/2-communist-rebels-killed-in-samar-clash

Two New People’s Army rebels were killed and an arms cache was seized in an encounter with the military in Barangay Santo Niño, Paranas, Samar, on Wednesday, Feb. 5.

Troops launched an operation after residents reported a group of armed men conducting extortion activities in the area.

The first clash erupted at around 5 a.m. when the 33rd Special Forces Company engaged members of the Yakal Platoon of the  Eastern Visayas Regional Party Committee.

The communist rebels fled but three hours later at around 8 a.m., troops from the 87th Infantry Battalion encountered them, triggering a three-minute gun battle where two guerillas were killed and an M16 rifle, a caliber .45 pistol, two anti-personnel mines, a rifle grenade, assorted magazines, and ammunition were recovered.

Brig. Gen.  Lenart Lelina, commander of the 801st Infantry Brigade, condoled with the families of the slain rebels.

He urged their comrades  to surrender and embrace the government's reintegration programs for a more peaceful and progressive future. 

Major Gen. Adonis Ariel Orio of the 8th Infantry Division attributed the success of the operation to the community's concern and eagerness to assist the government in eradicating the NPA  in Samar.

"This is our strong response to the wishes of our people to be free from the continuous threats of the remaining terrorists. We will continue to scour every mountain of Eastern Visayas until we get rid of the last CTG member,” Orio said. 

The AFP was so sad they killed these rebels they sent a Brigadier General to condole with their families. How touching. Maybe the families received some benefits? 

The 232 ex-rebels who surrendered in Davao de Orio are going to receive many benefits from the Philippine taxpayer. 

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1243521

The Philippine Army’s 10th Infantry Division presented 232 former New People’s Army (NPA) members during a public event at their headquarters here Thursday, marking a significant step towards peace in the region.

The group included 189 regular NPA members and 43 members of the Milisya ng Bayan (People’s Militia). They also surrendered 31 high-powered and 43 low-powered firearms.

Special Assistant to the President Antonio Ernesto Lagdameo Jr., the event’s guest of honor, praised the former rebels, now referred to as "friends rescued," for choosing peace.

“It is a great honor to meet you all today as we celebrate an important step toward peace and harmony. We are not just celebrating success but also valuing the change in each of your lives and our community,” Lagdameo said.

He conveyed President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.’s gratitude to all those involved in the achievement, emphasizing that true peace is built on unity, understanding, and cooperation.

“This reminds us that success is not just for the few but for everyone. True peace is not just the absence of chaos but the presence of unity,” he added.

The former rebels will be enrolled in the government’s Enhanced Comprehensive Local Integration Program (E-CLIP), which supports their reintegration into society and provides opportunities to rebuild their lives.

Lagdameo highlighted that the mass surrender demonstrates the effectiveness of the government’s peace programs and the strong collaboration between national and local agencies, the military, and communities.

One of the former rebels, alias "Dinesa," shared her experiences, recalling the hardships she faced while in the NPA. She said her husband joined the armed struggle first and persuaded her to follow.

“I realized it was all wrong. When our children were sick, we couldn’t even bring them to the hospital,” she said in the vernacular.

Dinesa vowed never to return to the armed struggle, acknowledging that it offered no future for her family.

If only 189 were actually NPA members then how many NPA rebels are left? At last count approximately 1,500 remained.

The AFP has warned voters against electing insurgents. It turns out that one party-list nominee is not only a former NPA commander but is also wanted for a murder committed in 1992. At least the warrant of arrest is dated 1992. 

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1243226

Magsasaka party-list member Lejun dela Cruz was arrested in Pasig City on Sunday because of a murder case as the Philippine National Police (PNP) refuted allegations of abduction and assassination tries.

In a press briefing at Camp Crame in Quezon City on Monday, PNP spokesperson Brig. Gen. Jean Fajardo said officers arrested dela Cruz armed with an arrest warrant for murder issued by a Las Piñas court in 1992.

The police attempted to arrest the former commander of the Alex Boncayao Brigade, which is the urban assassination unit of the communist New People’s Army, but he attempted to escape. The chase ended in Pasig.

Dela Cruz’s camp said he was forced to flee after the police officers, who were not in proper uniform, tried to accost him and even fired shots at him.

Fajardo said it should be dela Cruz who needs to explain as his escape attempt damaged four vehicles and a motorcycle.

"There is no truth to the assassination attempt against the life of Mr. dela Cruz. On the contrary it was him who poked a gun at and bumped one of our police officers who is now confined. The officer has a fracture in the pelvis after he was bumped by the accused,” she said.

The police officers were in civilian clothing because it was a discreet operation, Fajardo said.

“Remember this is a service of warrant. If our personnel are in uniform, the operation can be botched. What’s important is our police officers introduced themselves and they have officers in uniform as backup,” she added.

Dela Cruz is now under the custody of the Eastern Police District, specifically in a detention facility in Marikina City.

Fajardo said the service of the arrest warrant would have been hassle-free had dela Cruz cooperated with the arresting officers.

She said the PNP is filing additional charges against dela Cruz, including violation of the election gun ban, malicious mischief and illegal possession of firearms.

After an attempted escape the fugitive was finally captured. But of course he is still on the ballot.

The Coordinating Council of Private Educational Associations has quit the NTF-ELCAC. The reason? Red-tagging.

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/2031129/cocopea-quits-ntf-elcac-cites-academic-freedom

Barely three months after it joined the government’s anticommunist task force, the Coordinating Council of Private Educational Associations (Cocopea), which has a membership of 1,500 private schools nationwide, announced its withdrawal from the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-Elcac) to “preserve the essentiality of academic freedom and the vital role it plays in a democratic society.”

“It was an internal decision which was driven primarily by our setting of priorities in terms of our core advocacy which is education; and secondly, we wanted to preserve the independence of Cocopea as an NGO (nongovernmental organization) in engaging government on many issues, including academic freedom of our institutions,” Cocopea legal counsel Joseph Noel Estrada told the Inquirer in a text message on Monday.

The NTF-Elcac itself had tapped the Cocopea to be one of its members, which was approved in November last year by President Marcos as task force chair.

The task force said then that it was planning to conduct an “information awareness campaign” in private schools as a way to counter the “terror grooming of organizations like the [Communist Party of the Philippines, New People’s Army and National Democratic Front].”

Cocopea’s inclusion in NTF-Elcac was widely criticized because of the task force’s propensity for Red-tagging, or linking activists and rights groups to the communist movement, prompting calls for its abolition.

Before the formation of the task force, retired military Gen. Antonio Parlade Jr. launched a massive anticommunist campaign in 2018 as he accused 20 private universities and colleges of being “breeding grounds for communists” but without presenting evidence to back his claim.

This particular incident was among those considered by Cocopea in its decision to formally withdraw its membership from NTF-Elcac, according to Estrada.

“No attribution specifically to the task force, but certainly that time in 2018 when around 20 private universities and colleges were tagged as breeding grounds for communists without proper validation and this endangered the security of students and undermined the integrity of these educational institutions …; [this] was considered in our decision,” he told the Inquirer.

“Although there was still no NTF-Elcac then, we do not want to be placed in that situation again and not be able to speak out independently,” he added.

In a statement on Sunday night, the Cocopea said it formally asked the President on Jan. 30 to withdraw its membership from the anticommunist task force.

“After further consultation among its member associations, and upon review of its core advocacies, Cocopea has opted to strengthen its education initiatives by preserving its collaborative role outside of a formal membership in the NTF-Elcac,” the group added.

But it stressed that it “remains one” with the task force, particularly in its “mission to achieve unity, peace, security and socioeconomic development.”

The task force, for its part, said it respected the group’s decision, calling it an “internal matter.”

And the AFP says there is no such thing as read-tagging. Note that the COCOPEA still remains united with the stated mission of the NTF-ELCAC. They simply want to retain their academic freedom to speak out.