NegOcc students urged: ‘Be critical of NPA’s deception’

From Panay News (Aug 28, 2019): NegOcc students urged: ‘Be critical of NPA’s deception’

BACOLOD City – Students must be critical thinkers to distinguish activism from supporting terrorism, Brigadier General Benedict Arevalo, commander of the Philippine Army’s 303rd Infantry Brigade (303IB) said.

Arevalo underscored this during a forum at the University of St. La Salle Coliseum here on Aug. 24.

He said that this is part of their awareness campaign against the recruitment strategies of the New People’s Army following reports of student organizations across the country being “infiltrated” by the communist rebels.

The government, according to Arevalo, respects the academic freedom and allows students to express what they want and critic the flaws they see in the society.

“However, when a person starts to take up arms or support terrorist organizations that is already against the law and the government will act upon it,” he said.

Invited by the said university as one of the speakers in a security forum, Arevalo showed to the students a 3-minute animated film “Pindoy”, which portrays how the communist rebels encroach universities; mislead, enrage students; and eventually turn them to become NPAs.

“Sadly, statistics tell us that many youth – who joined the NPAs – only perished during encounters with the military,” he said.

Arevalo added the true exercise of academic freedom starts when the military is also heard by the students and faculty about the lies, deceptions and manipulations of the Communist Party of the Philippines – New People’s Army (CPP-NPA).

Negros Occidental is considered a hotbed of insurgency, with the continued presence of the CPP-NPA cadres mainly in the first, fifth and six districts of the province; although the military said their number has dwindled in recent years.

https://www.panaynews.net/negocc-students-urged-be-critical-of-npas-deception/