Waves of rebel surrender expected in Palawan

From the Philippine News Agency (Feb 14): Waves of rebel surrender expected in Palawan

A top ranking military officer in Palawan is optimistic that waves of surrender will happen in the next few weeks following the demoralization of the remaining armed members of the CPP-NPA, whose top leader had been captured by elements of the Provincial Police Office (PPO).

The top ranking military officer, who requested anonymity for the meantime, said that with the arrest of Sonny Gonzales, alias Gilbert Silagan, Ka Marlon, and Ka Glenn, and his wife Alma Moreno, alias Ka Carol, had reportedly caused major demoralization in the little Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army (CPP-NPA) group in the province per their intelligence report.

“The surrender a few weeks ago of two rebels, who were awarded livelihood support by the province, and the capture of Silagan, have reportedly caused major demoralization among the remaining rebels in the province per our intelligence gathering. This gives us optimism that in the following days, or weeks, there will be more surrenders, and we are ready to welcome them back to the government,” the top ranking military leader said.

Silagan’s and Moreno’s capture and the earlier surrenders, he said, also mean that their efforts in conducting incessant focused military operations, which is described as a balance among intelligence, civil military activities, information campaign, and constant presence of troops from the Philippine Marine Corps (PMC) have paid off as mandated by the Armed Forces of the Philippines’ (AFP) “Internal Peace and Security Plan (IPSP)-Bayanihan.”

The IPSP-Bayanihan is the AFP’s and the multi-sector’s “overall peace framework, anchored on the national security guidance, and national defence policies in harmony with other government policies for peace, security and development. It is a paradigm shift where the government military force embraces the wider frame of humanity and gives equal focus to its twin role as the protector of the people and the protector of the state“

The military officer also gave credit to the support that military and police authorities in Puerto Princesa and Palawan are getting from the surrounding communities, and the local government units (LGUs).

“More than our own activities in the field, credit should be given to the people of Palawan, and the LGUs that are helping positively, like the provincial government that now has a livelihood support program for rebel returnees. These are what are needed to finally convince our brothers and sisters in the rebel movement to lay down their arms now, and end their struggle in the mountains,” the ranking military official told the Philippine News Agency (PNA) Friday.

Early this week, Palawan Governor Jose Alvarez announced that the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) have helped with P3 billion funds for the Arm-to-Farm Program to support rebel returnees, their families, and the communities where they will choose to live their lives anew.

Prior to the announcement, two rebel returnees have already been awarded by his the provincial government with livelihood support amounting to P5,000 each.

Also earlier this week, PPO Senior Superintendent David Martinez said around 20 charges for arson, murder, attempted murder, robbery, and other cases will be filed against Silagan and his wife Moreno.

In an interview also Friday morning with the PNA, Martinez said aside from the cases, there are still standing warrants against Silagan, which gives them the legality to hold him in custody until all have been completed for filing.

“They have other standing warrants of arrest that give us the legal hold over him and his wife. As soon as everything has been served, we will turn him over to the local court,” he said.

As if confirming the intuition of the top ranking military official, Martinez told the PNA that since Silagan’s and Moreno’s arrests, a rebel has surrendered to them, and more are sending fillers that they want to surrender.

He also added that Silagan and his wife are now cooperating with them to convince other members of the leftist movement to surrender.

http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=2&sid=&nid=2&rid=616134