Negros ceasefire holding

From the Visayan Daily Star (Dec 28): Negros ceasefire holding

The unilateral ceasefires declared by the Philippine government and the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People's Army appear to be initially holding, in the absence of insurgency-related incidents, before and after the 49th founding anniversary of the Communist Party of the Philippines on Dec. 26 in Negros Island.

But the Army's 3rd Infantry Division and the NPA's Leonardo Panaligan Command in central Negros traded accusations of human rights abuses and extortion activities.

The government and NPA unilateral ceasefires took effect Dec. 23 to 26 and will resume Dec. 30 to Jan. 2.

Local rebel spokesman Ka JB Regalado accused the 3ID and 303rd Infantry Brigade of being behind the alleged killing of nine civilians in Guihulngan City.

The NPA also accused the military of being opportunists, blaming them for the proliferation of solicitation letters with the name and logo of the CPP-NPA, asking for cash and rice.

Regalado condemned the AFP for such actions.

Capt. Ruel Llanes, Civil Military Operations officer of the 303rd Infantry Brigade, said “We all know how they (CPP-NPA) deceive people in the far-flung barangays”.
“Soldiers are not criminals like them. We protect the people from them who do extortion. We don't do such act,” Llanes added.

Capt. Eduardo Precioso, spokesman of the 3ID, dismissed the repeated accusations against them as a “desperate move” of the CPP-NPA.

Precioso stressed that the Army has been leading in the elimination of terrorists in the country, and that they have been trying to cut off the logistics of the CPP-NPA from extortion in the past decades.

We are very effective due to cooperation of the victims of extortion, murder, arson and other inhuman acts leading to terrorism, he added.

Most likely, the CPP-NPA have felt the effects of declaring them as a terrorist organization by the government, Precioso also said.

Most of their leaders are conducting extortion for their terrorism activities and personal advancement, he added.

Regalado, meanwhile, claimed that their strength rose by 20 percent. He also said they conducted 20 successful tactical offensives in central Negros, killing 21 government forces, including the six policemen in Guihulngan, and recovered 30 firearms and thousands of ammunition.

http://www.visayandailystar.com/2017/December/28/topstory3.htm