Military to stay in rebel-infested areas in Misamis Oriental

From the Philippine News Agency (Jun 16): Military to stay in rebel-infested areas in Misamis Oriental

Government troops deployed in the villages in Misamis Oriental would remain until the areas are declared “insurgency free,” the military said Thursday.

Capt. Patrick Martinez, spokesperson of the Army’s 4th Infantry Division, said that soldiers were camped about a kilometer away from the villages and do not hamper the movement of the villagers.

Community residents of Camansi and Tapol, all parts of the mountain village of Banglay town in Lagonglong, Misamis Oriental, evacuated from their homes when soldiers from the 58th Infantry Battalion arrived in the community a few days ago.

Nenita Helogon, secretary general of the Tagtabolon, a tribal group, said that the villagers moved out of their homes for fear of getting caught in the gun battle between the communist New People’s Army (NPA) and the government troops in the area.

Martinez, however, said the presence of the government soldiers in the area did not violate any human rights law since the military were simply following the mandate as the lead role in the counterinsurgency operations.

“I believe the military did not violate any law, but are just performing the mandate. The mere presence [of the soldiers] is not a violation, in fact, it is in compliance with the mandate to suppress insurgency under Republic Act No. 8551,” he said.

He said that the military has knowledge of the extortion activities of the NPA in the area, which prompted the deployment of the government troopers under the Army’s 58IB.

Martinez said that any military action they have conducted is a product of deliberate planning, taking into consideration the legal aspects of their operations before deploying their troops to the area.

http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=2&sid=&nid=2&rid=895901