Amid ceasefire, NPA rebels continue extortion activities, Army says

From the Philippine News Agency (Oct 2): Amid ceasefire, NPA rebels continue extortion activities, Army says

The Philippine Army accused the New People’s Army (NPA) rebels of continued extortion activities affecting communities despite the unilateral ceasefire that the government and the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) declared in August this year.

The army’s 73rd Infantry Battalion, in a statement to the media on Saturday, said NPA rebels continue to invite small businessmen and store owners in the upland barangays of Sarangani and Davao Occidental provinces and demand cash.

The invitations, the army added, were disguised as dialogues but in reality were means to call the attention of businessmen and store owners in said provinces and demand for money.

“They also force selected residents to pay them in exchange of the NPAs tactical defeat during their encounters against government forces last year. The rebels accordingly demand cash from those being invited as payment for not giving financial and material support to the rebels for a long time since these areas had not been visited by them as a result of their tactical debacle,” the army’s 73rd IB said.

The NPAs are also demanding for payment in moves that earlier barangay officials in the area made by declaring them as persona non grata in villages.

The 73rd IB particularly reported of one incident that took place last Sept. 25 in Barangay Datalanggas, Alabel, Sarangani Province where two village councilors identified only by their family names Calibay and Baan were fetched by a certain Arnel Culano, a known NPA sympathizer in the area.

The report said that Culano guided the two barangay councilors towards Sitio Tangis of the same barangay for a dialogue with rebels led by a certain Alias Joey.

The army said both Calibay and Baan were threatened by Alias Joey and forced them to produce PHP25,000 each and an M16 rifle.

The demanded money and gun, the army added, were forms of payment as the NPAs accused both councilors of providing information to government troopers that led to an encounter in February last year, where 12 high-powered firearms were recovered by the army from the rebels, and the killing of Alias Brigol, the acting secretary of guerrilla front 75 and six other rebels.

The two councilors were also accused of supporting the move to declare the NPAs persona non grata in their barangay.

In a separate incident last Sept. 27, another barangay councilor identified as Romeo Mansiguil from Barangay Datal Anggas in Alabel was also abducted by the NPAs led by a certain Alias L3, the 73rd IB said.

The councilor was also released on the same day after he promised to give PHP50,000 within a period of one week.

A store owner identified only as Mr. Ompong from Barangay Little Baguio, Malita, Davao Occidental was also invited by the NPAs for a dialogue sometime in the third week of August this year in Sitio Akbual, Upper Suyan, Malapatan, Sarangani.

The army said the store owner was prevented by the rebels to go back home unless he could raise PHP20,000. His family only managed to produce PHP12,000 but the rebels released him after days in captivity.

In the midst of the series of extortion activities of the NPAs, the 73rd IB is calling on the rebels to stop their illegal activities.

“We are calling on the rebels in the provinces of Sarangani and Davao Occidental to stop the kidnapping and extortion of the poor residents and elected officials in the area,” Lt. Col. Ronnie Babac, commander of 73rd IB, said in the statement.

Babac added that the continued illegal activities of the NPAs will put in jeopardy the spirit of the unilateral ceasefire declared by the National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP).

http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=2&sid=&nid=2&rid=928132