Insurgency: NPA Totally Defeated In Negros

The AFP has released another update on how many rebels have been neutralized so far this year. Let's take a look at those numbers. 

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1275944

A total of 654 New People's Army (NPA) rebels and their supporters were "neutralized" from Jan. 1 to May 21.

AFP spokesperson Col. Francel Margareth Padilla, in an interview on Tuesday afternoon, said the number consists of 568 who surrendered, 31 who were arrested, and 55 who killed in various military operations nationwide.

"Neutralized" is a military term that refers to the surrender, capture, or killing of enemy troops.

In the same period, a total of 454 firearms, along with 114 anti-personnel mines, were either seized or surrendered.

Padilla earlier said the high number of surrenders is a clear indication that a lot of the NPA remnants are choosing peace over conflict.

Last year, the military said its units had neutralized 2,018 NPA members and their supporters from Jan. 1 to Dec. 31 last year. Of this figure, 1,798 surrendered,  93 were arrested, and 127 were killed in various military operations nationwide.

"A total of 1,134 firearms and 531 anti-personnel mines were either seized or surrendered (during this period)," the AFP said.

It added that 149 NPA encampments were captured in 2025.

654 rebels and their supporters with no breakdown into how many actual rebels are included in the number. At last count there were 780 rebels which is close to 654. It seems the only thing that can be gleaned from these numbers is that there are way more supporters than rebels. How does that make any sense if the NPA is dwindling? The AFP has also said their support is dwindling yet the numbers show otherwise. 

According to the NTF-ELCAC the NPA is totally defeated in Negros. 

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1275717

Recent defeats of New People's Army (NPA) rebels in Toboso and Cauayan, Negros Occidental have shown the "irreversible collapse of the remaining communist terrorist infrastructure" in the region, a ranking National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) official said Sunday.

These losses, NTF-ELCAC executive director Undersecretary Ernesto Torres Jr. said, shatters the communist insurgents' long-running illusion of a so-called “people’s revolution” in Negros.

The defeats exposed what Torres described as a violent movement built on deception, fear, ideological exploitation, and the systematic manipulation of vulnerable sectors.

“But the people themselves have now rendered their verdict. Negrenses rejected terrorism as the path toward justice and reform,” Torres said.

The clashes in Toboso last April 19 and Cauayan on May 16 resulted in the death of 19 and five NPA members, respectively.

Torres said the April 19 clash, where 19 armed "communist terrorist group" (CTG another name for the NPA) members were killed, including longtime rebel leader Roger Fabillar, was a turning point that exposed the collapse of the remaining guerrilla network in Northern Negros.

“What collapsed in Toboso was not merely an armed unit. It was the last illusion of a movement already abandoned and despised by the very communities it falsely claimed to represent,” Torres said.

Despite decades of insurgency, Torres said Negros communities embrace peace, reintegration, democratic governance, and economic recovery.

He cited the growing number of areas placed under Stable Internal Peace and Security (SIPS) status, the dismantling of guerrilla fronts, and persona non grata declarations against the Communist Party of the Philippines- NPA- National Democratic Front across Negros as indicators that the insurgency has lost moral and political ground.

“Negros is no longer a symbol of insurgency. It is becoming a symbol of recovery, resilience, peace, and democratic renewal. The old chapter of deception, terror-grooming, and violence is closing before the eyes of the nation," he said. 

Torres, citing statements made by 3rd Infantry Division commander Maj. Gen. Michael Samson, said local officials and residents there appealed to authorities to end the rebels' terror in their area. 

He said Negros residents no longer shield the insurgency but are actively helping in dismantling it.  

Torres linked the public outrage against the NPA to the recent killing of charcoal maker Joseph Agustin, described by authorities as another victim of “spy-tagging” — an internal practice where individuals are branded as government informants and executed based on suspicion and paranoia.

“The killing of Joseph Agustin is a tragic reminder that paranoia, coercion, and violence remain embedded in the operational culture of the dying CPP-NPA-NDF movement,” he said.

Torres called on the Commission on Human Rights (CHR) to take a decisive stand against communist-linked violence, executions, terror-grooming, and spy-tagging.

“The time has come for the CHR to heed the growing call of the people of Negros and decisively help put an end to the violence. Human rights must never be selective, ideological, or distorted by propaganda," Torres said.

Torres said genuine human rights advocacy demands impartiality and the courage to condemn all forms of violence, regardless of ideology.

“It is high time for the CHR to put its foot down with resolve against executions, terror-grooming, intimidation, and spy-tagging killings that continue to victimize communities,” he added.

"Residents no longer shield the insurgency?" And yet the opposite  is exactly what the number 654 proves. Note that totally defeated doesn't mean actually and really totally defeated. It just means they have suffered loses. The exact nature of those losses remains to be seen as there are still rebels in Negros. 

It is Negros which is the epicenter of NPA spy-tagging killings according to the NTF-ELCAC. 

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/2234973/ntf-elcac-negros-epicenter-of-npa-spy-tagging-killings

The National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-Elcac) on Tuesday disclosed that Negros Island has become the epicenter of alleged “spy-tagging” killings of civilians attributed to the Communist Party of the Philippines, New People’s Army and National Democratic Front of the Philippines (CPP-NPA-NDFP).

In a statement, NTF-Elcac Executive Director Undersecretary Ernesto Torres Jr. said that from 2021 to May 2026, at least 59 documented cases of spy-tagging killings and summary executions have been recorded nationwide, with 51 of these victims reported in the Negros Island Region—41 in Negros Occidental and 10 in Negros Oriental.

Torres called on the Commission on Human Rights (CHR) to fulfill its mandate, demand accountability, and investigate the killings instead of allowing them to be obscured by propaganda.

“The CHR must … demonstrate equal resolve in condemning and investigating these executions. Human rights are not exclusive to armed rebels, activists, or ideological allies,” he said.

Torres added: “Human rights belong equally to poor farmers, church workers, tricycle drivers, laborers, former rebels, barangay officials, and ordinary civilians murdered in remote communities.”

He said data showed that of the 51 civilians killed in Negros over the past five years, 49 occurred between January 2025 and May 2026 alone, comprising 39 victims in Negros Occidental and 10 in Negros Oriental.

Torres noted that nearly nine out of every 10 victims recorded nationwide from 2025 to the present were killed in Negros.

Spy-tagging killings occur when the victims were allegedly accused of being military “informants” and condemned by so-called “kangaroo courts,” leading to their executions.” 

Why must the CHR investigate these killings when they are a government watch-dog? Why not have the PNP investigate these killings? How about the DOJ? Where are they? Where is the AFP military police?

Kalinga was recently declared insurgency free and the local government says that status will propel economic development. 

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1275757

Kalinga Governor James Edduba said the declaration of the province as "insurgency-free" will surely redound to progress, as he asked residents to help sustain this feat.

“Together with all sectors of our society, we will protect and preserve the peace we now enjoy. We commit ourselves to remain united in strengthening peace and order, promoting inclusive development,” Edduba said in a recent exclusive interview with the Philippine News Agency.

The governor said that with the declaration, investors can start to come in.

“Hopefully, these signals will encourage investors to come in and tourists to come in, knowing that our place is safe. We can also invite both investors and tourist arrivals will also increase,” he added.

With the recent declaration, Edduba said the last 20 villages that were once rebel-infested will benefit from various government projects.

“There is an initial PHP8 million for their priority projects. Together with the government line agencies, mayors and barangays, we will identify their priorities, and we will identify where we can come in with line agencies for projects needing bigger funds,” the governor said.

In January last year, Kalinga, known as the Cordillera's rice granary, was upgraded as a second-class province from the previous third-class level in terms of income classification under Republic Act 111964 or the Automatic Income Classification of LGUs Act.

Last May 12, local officials, military leaders, and the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) formalized the declaration of the “State of Stable Internal Peace and Security” (SSIPS) following the passage of Sangguniang Panlalawigan (Provincial Board) Resolution 2006-203, which certified that Kalinga has successfully cleared communist insurgency threats.

The governor said that many rebels have voluntarily surrendered, while the last six members of the New People's Army (NPA) Ilocos-Cordillera Regional Committee, who are operating in Kalinga and Abra, were arrested in Tarlac last March.

“Our work now is sustainability of the peace, and we will work with the security forces who will work with the community and us,” he said.

Meanwhile, Col. Gilbert Fati-ig, Kalinga police provincial office director, said they will continue to drum up police community relations activities with the communities and the young people, in and out of school.

“Even if our barangays are now insurgency-free, we will not be lax and will not allow the leftist community to again recruit our people using their sweet words that entice especially the young people," he said in Ilocano.

Fat-ig, who hails from Tinglayan town, said part of their efforts is the promotion of the different government uniformed-service academies—Philippine Military Academy (PMA), Philippine National Police Academy (PNPA) and the Philippine Merchant Marine Academy (PMMA), encouraging the youth to enter these institutions.

“This will not just allow our youth to develop patriotism but also encourage them to be educated with full government scholarship and automatic employment upon graduation,” he said.

He said that part of their advocacy is not just to monitor the former rebels who have voluntarily surrendered, but also the members of the left-leaning community.

“We do not want them to re-group, and we do not want them to entice our youth to join their lost advocacies,” the police colonel added. 

It's another case of good governance being a counter-insurgency program instead of the status quo! Note that they say they will not remain lax but be on the look out for leftists recruiting young people. Seems like Kalinga's is not 100% rebel free if they have to look out for NPA recruiters. 

A few voices have called for peace talks with the Reds but the has rejected that for action. 

https://mb.com.ph/2026/05/24/cops-choose-action-vs-reds-amid-peace-talks-calls

The Philippine National Police (PNP) does not want to do a lot of talking in dealing with communist rebels and instead vowed to sustain intensified operations to permanently dismantle their remaining operational units.

PNP chief Gen. Jose Melencio C. Nartatez, Jr. said the police organization remains aligned with the government’s position that the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army (CPP-NPA) no longer holds the capacity to justify renewed national negotiations. 

“Our operational approach remains unyielding: we will continue to launch aggressive, targeted operations against the remnants of the CPP-NPA to permanently dismantle their remaining operational units,” Nartatez said.

“The goal is to finally bring peace and development to communities and far-flung areas that have long experienced threats and intimidation,” he added.

Calls for renewed peace talks were floated after the incident in Negros Occidental wherein among those killed were student leaders who were believed to have been recruited by the NPA.

While some groups are calling for justice, Department of National Defense Gilbert Teodoro maintained that all the 19 fatalities were communist rebels, adding that there is no proof that they are innocent civilians.

Nartatez said the PNP will keep close coordination with the Armed Forces of the Philippines as authorities move to prevent armed groups from regrouping in insurgency-affected areas, particularly in parts of Negros Island and nearby provinces.

“There is no room for complacency. The PNP, in coordination with the AFP, will maintain maximum pressure on these lawless groups to ensure they can no longer threaten our communities or hinder local development,” he said.

Nartatez also ordered regional and provincial police offices to intensify intelligence monitoring against armed communist groups. 

He also directed local police units to strengthen community-based programs focused on youth recruitment prevention and anti-radicalization efforts.

“The PNP remains committed to upholding the rule of law and protecting the constitutional rights of every Filipino. Our operations are directed against armed lawless elements, not lawful dissent,” he said. 

Kill 'em all and let God sort 'em out right? What happened to pleading with them to surrender so they don't have to shed Filipino blood? 

The OPAPRU says their transformation program is vital in ex-rebels' reintegration. 

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1275750

The Office of the Presidential Adviser on Peace, Reconciliation and Unity (OPAPRU) has said its Transformation Program is a vital initiative in the reintegration of former rebels (FRs) into mainstream society.

OPAPRU Secretary Mel Senen Sarmiento, in a statement Sunday night, said the Transformation Program's value can be highlighted by success stories of FRs like 32-year-old Aljun Intano, who rebuilt his life with the help of the Transformation Program and local stakeholders.

“The story of Mr. Intano reflects the very heart of the Transformation Program of OPAPRU. His journey from fear and conflict to becoming a peace advocate demonstrates that transformation is not only possible, but sustainable when supported by genuine opportunities and trust-building on the ground,” he added.

Before becoming a community leader and president of the "United Caraganon For Peace and Development Federation Incorporation (UCPDFI), the OPAPRU said Intano and his wife were guerrilla fighters for the New People’s Army (NPA) in Surigao del Sur, surviving numerous armed conflicts.

Living in constant fear and isolation in the mountains, they decided to abandon the armed struggle in 2017 and surrendered with the help of local indigenous leaders, from which their transition to a peaceful mainstream society began.

Sarmiento said Intano’s journey, as well as other FRs, captured what it meant to face “a test of faith” for peace advocates in Surigao del Sur.

“For FRs, this test is not only about leaving behind the past, but about holding on to the promise that the support extended by the PLGU (provincial local government units), national agencies, and local stakeholders will endure. It is ensuring that the path they have chosen leads not back to conflict, but forward to lasting peace and dignity,” he said.

Sarmiento also noted that the strong collaboration among the military, local government leaders, and Indigenous Peoples’ representatives creates an enabling environment for trust, reintegration, and inclusive growth.

He stressed that this convergence of efforts ensures that transformation goes beyond policy, translating into tangible opportunities such as livelihood support, social services, and community participation.

Sarmiento added that the success of the Transformation Program lies in a collective effort.

“When local stakeholders unite, we not only transform individuals like Mr. Intano, but we also transform entire communities into spaces of peace, resilience, and shared progress," he concluded.

From rebel to community leader and peace advocate. How much money did he get to start his life all over again?