Ex-rebel shares experience in recruitment of students in CDO

From the Mindanao Examiner (Sep 4, 2019): Ex-rebel shares experience in recruitment of students in CDO

A former rebel confessed that students are being recruited from various schools in Northern Mindanao to join the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army (CPP-NPA).

During the Talakayan on PIA, Lalaine (not her real name), 33, revealed that legal front organizations such as the League of the Filipino Students, College Editors Guild of the Philippines, Student Christian Movement of the Philippines (SCMP), and Kabataan Partylist are being used in NPA recruitment.

Lalaine narrated that she was recruited when she was studying in Cagayan de Oro College (COC) through the Anak ng Bayan party list.
She said she became a team leader of Anak ng Bayan in her school and was given a lecture on “Maikling Kurso sa Lipunan at Rebolusyong Pilipino” (MKLRP). She and other nine students were later brought to a beach for “panunumpa” and oriented on Kabataang Makabayan.

“Doon sa orientation, sinabi na ang Kabataang Makabayan, NDF, at NPA ay may koneksyon sa isa’t-isa,” Lalaine confessed.

Lalaine said she also underwent a three-day education on Araling Aktibista (ARAK) and one-week urban poor immersion where she used issues on wage increase and benefits to agitate workers.

She further revealed that in 2005 she went to Agusan del Sur for a three-month exposure saying that it is mandatory for the Kabataang Makabayan to integrate into the countryside.

After her integration, Lalaine disclosed that she was tasked as a youth sector organizer in Agusan. However, her personality was compromised in 2007 prompting her to move to Cagayan de Oro where she recruited students from COC, Capitol University, Liceo University, Don Mariano University, and Xavier University under the organization SCMP.

According to her, they borrowed PE uniforms and used fake identification cards to get inside the universities.

Lalaine voluntarily surrendered to the government in January, this year.

The Talakayan sa PIA was conducted upon the request of the Peace, Law Enforcement, and Development Support (PLEDS) task group of the Regional Task Force on Ending Local Communist Armed Conflict (RTF-ELCAC) in Northern Mindanao.

Brigadier General Edgardo de Leon, commander of the Army’s 403rd Infantry Brigade and co-chairperson of the PLEDS task group, said they referred the case of Lalaine to the PIA to intensify the information drive on NPA propaganda.“Kahit anong ganda ng programa ng gobyerno, sisiraan yan sa pamamagitan ng propaganda. Dito sa Talakayan, maipapaliwanag natin yung mga totoong nangyayari sa lipunan,” he said.

De Leon said Lalaine volunteered to share her personal experience to help in the information drive against NPA youth recruitment.

“Namumulat sila at nakita nila na malaki ang kanilang maitututlong sa public information kaya sila mismo ang humiling kung pwede ba silang lumitaw. Titingnan pa natin yung mga dating rebelde kung may gusto pang mag volunteer na susunod sa ginawa ni Lalaine,” he added.

https://mindanaoexaminer.com/ex-rebel-shares-experience-in-recruitment-of-students-in-cdo/