REUNITED. A couple who are former members of the New People’s Army reunites with their nine-month-old son at his adoptive parents' house in Alabel, Sarangani, on Wednesday (April 1, 2020). The couple, identified only as Bruno and Clara, was deprived of their son’s custody since birth because of the rebels' rule not to allow mothers in their ranks to keep their newborns. (Photo courtesy of 73IB)
A couple who are former members of the New People’s Army (NPA) was reunited with their nine-month-old son at his adoptive parents' house in Alabel, Sarangani, on Wednesday.
Lt. Col. Ronaldo G. Valdez, commander of the Army's 73rd Infantry Battalion (73IB), told the Philippine News Agency (PNA) in an interview Wednesday that the couple -- identified only as Bruno and Clara -- was deprived of their son’s custody since birth.
After Clara gave birth, their son was given to a certain family in Alabel, Saranggani, Valdez said.
Since the child was reunited with his biological parents, the Army official said, the former rebels vowed never to allow anyone to keep their child away from them again.
Valdez said that according to Bruno, when an NPA member bears a child, the newborn is immediately taken away from her and will be given to the supporters of the communist rebels in the lowlands.
Bruno also said he knows other guerrilla couples who were also deceived into giving away their children for the terrorist cause, according to the Army official.
"Due to this security reason and dictate of the communist terrorist leadership, the couple was forced to leave their newborn child to ‘Cheche’, who then gave the child to the communist terrorist contact in the lowlands,” Valdez said.
Valdez said it is common within the NPA to take away newborns from their mothers to ensure they remain "functional" within the organization.
Bruno and Clara, he said, have denounced the "communist terrorist group for their deceptive scheme in convincing them to let go of their child so that they can perform their task and fight for a failed communist ideology."
Valdez said the military will further investigate the practice, citing the possibility that the newborns of NPA couples are also being groomed to join the NPA.
Valdez said Bruno and Clara have vowed to help other NPA couples retrieve their children back by convincing them to surrender and to return to the fold of the law.
Valdez said Bruno and Clara surrendered to the 73IB on March 11, bringing with them two M16 rifles, a .45-caliber pistol, and other belongings.
Valdez said that the couple decided to yield after being tired of hiding from the government troops who are conducting combat operations in their area.
“They also decided to return to the fold of the law so that they will be able to see and take care of their son,” he added.
Immediately after their surrender, the 73IB arranged for the reunification of the couple with their son, which involved negotiations with the family who took care of the child.
“Bruno and Clara was the third couple who surrendered to the 73 IB since January this year. The two other couples are staying at the battalion’s Bahay Kalinga in General Santos,’ he said.
The couples are awaiting their livelihood assistance and have been enrolled with the government's Enhanced Comprehensive Local Integration Program (ECLIP).
“They were also enrolled in a cash-for-work program by the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD),” Valdez added.
The NPA is listed as a terrorist organization by the United States, European Union, the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, and New Zealand.
https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1098535
Lt. Col. Ronaldo G. Valdez, commander of the Army's 73rd Infantry Battalion (73IB), told the Philippine News Agency (PNA) in an interview Wednesday that the couple -- identified only as Bruno and Clara -- was deprived of their son’s custody since birth.
After Clara gave birth, their son was given to a certain family in Alabel, Saranggani, Valdez said.
Since the child was reunited with his biological parents, the Army official said, the former rebels vowed never to allow anyone to keep their child away from them again.
Valdez said that according to Bruno, when an NPA member bears a child, the newborn is immediately taken away from her and will be given to the supporters of the communist rebels in the lowlands.
Bruno also said he knows other guerrilla couples who were also deceived into giving away their children for the terrorist cause, according to the Army official.
"Due to this security reason and dictate of the communist terrorist leadership, the couple was forced to leave their newborn child to ‘Cheche’, who then gave the child to the communist terrorist contact in the lowlands,” Valdez said.
Valdez said it is common within the NPA to take away newborns from their mothers to ensure they remain "functional" within the organization.
Bruno and Clara, he said, have denounced the "communist terrorist group for their deceptive scheme in convincing them to let go of their child so that they can perform their task and fight for a failed communist ideology."
Valdez said the military will further investigate the practice, citing the possibility that the newborns of NPA couples are also being groomed to join the NPA.
Valdez said Bruno and Clara have vowed to help other NPA couples retrieve their children back by convincing them to surrender and to return to the fold of the law.
Valdez said Bruno and Clara surrendered to the 73IB on March 11, bringing with them two M16 rifles, a .45-caliber pistol, and other belongings.
Valdez said that the couple decided to yield after being tired of hiding from the government troops who are conducting combat operations in their area.
“They also decided to return to the fold of the law so that they will be able to see and take care of their son,” he added.
Immediately after their surrender, the 73IB arranged for the reunification of the couple with their son, which involved negotiations with the family who took care of the child.
“Bruno and Clara was the third couple who surrendered to the 73 IB since January this year. The two other couples are staying at the battalion’s Bahay Kalinga in General Santos,’ he said.
The couples are awaiting their livelihood assistance and have been enrolled with the government's Enhanced Comprehensive Local Integration Program (ECLIP).
“They were also enrolled in a cash-for-work program by the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD),” Valdez added.
The NPA is listed as a terrorist organization by the United States, European Union, the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, and New Zealand.
https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1098535
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