Mindoro insurgents surrender
As government efforts to eradicate local communist armed conflict in Southern Tagalog continue, eight more New People’s Army (NPA) members yielded to security forces in Bulalacao, Oriental Mindoro.
The surrender was the result of localized peace negotiation involving government agencies, Armed Forces of the Philippines, Philippine National Police and communist insurgents.
Lt. Col. Alexander Arbolado, 4th Infantry Battalion commanding officer, identified the surrenderers as alias Tikling, Damang, Urang, Malata, Kagang, Birjak, Udang and RJay.
Their true identities were withheld as part of the security protocol against reprisals of their former comrades. They belonged to the NPA’s Kilusang Larangang Gerilya MAV.
Arbolado said the former rebels will undergo Enhanced Comprehensive Local Integration Program (E-CLIP) enrolment process, including needs assessment, profiling and counseling by health professionals in preparation for their reintegration to society led by the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD).
Under the program, each former rebel will receive cash assistance of P15,000. They are also eligible for additional compensation in the form of educational grants, health services, employment and housing, among others.
To date, the military, particularly the 2nd Infantry Division which has jurisdiction over the CALABARZON Region, has listed 234 militias that voluntarily surrendered, raising the number of total NPA surrenders to 674 since the E-CLIP was implemented in 2016 in Southern Tagalog.
In Negros Occidental, hours after the
Philippine Army 62nd Infantry Battalion clashed with members of the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army in Canlaon City, elements of the 94th and 11th Infantry Battalion had a separate encounter with at least a dozen communist-terrorists at Sitio Amian in Barangay Tan-awan, Kabankalan City, over the weekend.
The incident happened while the military was conducting clearing combat operations in response to reports from residents about the presence of insurgents doing recruitment activities in the mountainous area of Kabankalan City and in adjacent Ayungon town.
The successive encounters should not suggest a worsened peace and order situation in the island of Negros but an indication that our units have been hitting them very effectively.
The firefight lasted for about nearly half an hour with rebels retreating later on. No casualties were reported from the government side.
Recovered from the encounter site were high-powered firearms, assorted magazines with ammunitions, three mobile phones, a solar panel, assorted medicines and medical paraphernalia, subversive documents and personal belongings.
“The successive encounters should not suggest a worsened peace and order situation in the island of Negros but an indication that our units have been hitting them very effectively. Our soldiers intend to pursue them wherever they are in order to free the communities from their illegal activities,” Maj. Gen. Eric Vinoya, commander of the 3rd Infantry Division, said.