AFP: War won’t be easy
20 NDF consultants placed under lookout order
The military yesterday said it is committed to defeat the New People’s Army (NPA), vowing to cripple its military capability and infrastructure as well as its will to fight.
But Marine Colonel Edgard Arevalo, chief of the Armed Forces of the Philippine-Public Affairs Office (AFP-PAO), said defeating the enemy won’t be an easy task, especially if they are holding on to communities to survive.
“This is not going to be an easy one. It’s not easy to fight your own people. It’s not easy to fight the NPA rebels who are trying to hold on to communities,” Arevalo said, following the order of President Duterte of an all-out war against the NPAs.
“But for all intents and purposes, if we are to attain a lasting peace, if we are to end this particular war that we have been fighting for more than four decades now then we have to defeat them and their capabilities and all other aspects of,” he said.
Arevalo said when talking about an all-out war, it only means the military will use all available assets of the AFP to accomplish their mission of defeating the enemy.
“By all-out, however, we do not mean we are going to be indiscriminate in our conduct of operations,” Arevalo said.
“Our operations will always and has always been focused and determined but we are not going to be indiscriminate,” he added.
Asked if the military has set a timeline in defeating the enemy, Arevalo said there is none.
“We don’t have any timeline given to ourselves and there is no timetable or timeframe that was given by the President,” he said.
“We will be deliberate, focused, and surgical with our operations. Our intention is to defeat the enemy... to defeat the New People’s Army, not only their military capability but also their infrastructure, the support system if there is still remaining,” Arevalo said.
“We will destroy the enemy’s will to fight, … we will encourage the surrender of most of their people who have already seen the light and are now wanting to be part of the mainstream citizens of our country,” he said.
Arevalo said that now that government has declared an all-out war against communist rebels, the AFP’s main focus will be in Northeastern Mindanao where the concentration of the CPP-NPA is located. Based on latest information, Arevalo said, the current strength of the communist guerrillas is 3,700.
“Our current concentration will be in Northeastern Mindanao. But there is no need to add additional troops at least as of today to augment our personnel currently operating there,” Arevalo said.
“As we have said, we already have enough personnel, equipment and units in those areas that we are now operating and we are thus far successful as manifested by the recent number of surrenderees,” he added.
Asked if there is a possibility that the CPP-NPA were able to recruit new members during the duration of the unilateral ceasefire and peace talks, Arevalo said they will not be surprised if that happened.
“We don’t have an actual report on that but we are not, we will not be surprised if they conducted recruitment. That is probably the reason they are angry if they see soldiers within communities because they will not have any opportunity to recruit and get public or mass base support,” Arevalo said. Safety of communities assured Arevalo assured the people of their safety and there will be no “collateral damage” in their all-out war against communist rebels.
“We understand the apprehension of the people that is why we are telling them they should not be afraid of their soldiers because your soldiers are actually there to ensure that you will have, that you will be free from fear, that no one will be harassing your daily activities, that you will be safe in your communities,” Arevalo said.
“We have been as we are always committed to surgical, deliberate planned operations. We will ensure that there will be no collateral damage in... at the most we can avoid it because that is exactly the reason or the principle behind a well-planned surgical and deliberate operations,” he added.
Arevalo said these instructions of AFP chief of staff General Eduardo Año has been cascaded or disseminated even to their units in the field.
NDF shrugs off ‘war’
As this developed, National Democratic Front (NDF) peace panel chairman Fidel Agcaoili brushed aside President Duterte’s order for an all-out war against communist rebels, defiantly saying “we are used to these threats.”
In a statement obtained by The Manila Bulletin yesterday, Agcaoili said it was not the first time that a president had ordered such an offensive against the insurgency group, which has been in conflict with the government for 78 years.
“(Former) President Cory Aquino did it in 1987 after the Mendiola massacre. (Former President Joseph) Estrada did it, too, after signing the VFA (Visiting Forces Agreement). We are used to these threats,” he said.
Agcaoili expressed confidence that “the revolutionary movement will persist and continue the struggle for the national and social liberation of the Filipino people to bring about a just and lasting peace in the country.”
Agcaoili, who is in Utrecht, The Netherlands, also acknowledged receiving through e-mail the formal letter of Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process Jesus Dureza, informing the NDF about the termination of the Joint Agreement on Safety and Immunity Guarantees (JASIG).
“We intend to acknowledge it today (Wednesday) to enable the 30-day grace period to run,” he said.
Agcaoili pointed out that he found it “odd” that Dureza’s letter only informed the NDF peace panel about the “termination of the JASIG and not the peace negotiations.”
“It is not like the written notice of termination sent by President Estrada before. But Dureza’s notice will do in effectively terminating the peace negotiations,” he said.
The acknowledgment effectively closes both the doors of the Philippine government (GRP) and the NDF, the political arm of the Communist Party of the Philippines-NPA (CPP-NPA), on what was the most successful round of talks spanning six presidents since the time of former President Ferdinand Marcos.
Interestingly, Agcaoili’s acknowledgment yesterday came on the 78th birthday of CPP founding chairman and NDF peace panel Chief Political Adviser Jose Maria Sison.
Lookout bulletin
Meanwhile, Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre III placed NDF consultants Tirso Lagoras Alcantara, Ma. Concepcion Araneta Bocala, Pedro Heyrona Codaste, Renante Macatangay Gamara, Alan Valera Jazmines, Ernesto Epino Lorenzo, Ma. Loida Tuzo Magpatoc, Alfredo Amparo Mapano, Ruben Abenir Saluta, Adelberto Albayulde Silva, Benito Enriquez Tiamzon, Wilma Austria Tiamzon, Ariel Mancao Arbitrario, Renato Maranga Baleros Sr., Kennedy Lao-ing Bangibang, Jaime Sevillano Doria Soledad, Rafael Baylosis, Alex Birondo, Winona Birondo, and Porferio Tuna under immigration lookout bulletin order (ILBO).
Once any of these persons are spotted, immigration officers were told by Aguirre to quickly inform the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Prosecutor General “to determine the appropriate course of action to be taken thereafter.”
Aguirre also told the Prosecutor General that “if it should be found that there is probable cause to criminally charge the respondents in court, to immediately file the case and obtain warrants for their arrest.”