From the Philippine Star (Jan 18, 2020): Suspects in killing of Sulu cop slain, another arrested (By Roel Pareño, John Unson, Romina Cabrera)
COTABATO CITY, Philippines – Two suspects tagged in the killing of a police official and a civilian informant in a drug sting in Indanan, Sulu were slain in an encounter with law enforcers in Parang town on Thursday.
Ballong Kiyara, 29, and Aljinal Jinnull, 27, were riding a motorcycle when they fired at police officers who tried to pull them over in Barangay Saldang, according to Brig. Gen. Marni Marcos of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao.
Lt. Sali Aspi Salim of the Sulu police and the civilian informant, who was not identified, were shot by the cohorts of a drug suspect who resisted arrest after selling shabu to undercover agents on Sunday.
In Zamboanga City, Benhajar Salapuddin Alan, another suspect in the killing of Salim and the informant was arrested in the premises of the Philippine Ports Authority, also on Thursday.
Alan is said to be with the group of slain Abu Sayyaf sub-leader Albader Parad and involved in drug trafficking and contract killings in Zamboanga City and Sulu.
https://www.philstar.com/nation/2020/01/18/1985633/suspects-killing-sulu-cop-slain-another-arrested
Friday, January 17, 2020
Five fishermen kidnapped off Tambisan waters
Posted to the New Straits Times (Jan 18, 2020): Five fishermen kidnapped off Tambisan waters (By By Poliana Ronnie Sidom)
Esscom commander Datuk Hazani Ghazali said they received a report yesterday that the fishermen's boat went missing and deployed air and sea assets to locate the victims. NSTP/HAZSYAH ABDUL RAHMAN
SANDAKAN: Eastern Sabah Security Command (Esscom) confirmed five fishermen were kidnapped off Tambisan waters in Lahad Datu.
It is learned that the incident occurred on Wednesday but it was only reported yesterday.
Esscom commander Datuk Hazani Ghazali said they received a report yesterday that the fishermen's boat went missing and deployed air and sea assets to locate the victims.
The five missing persons were believed to be taken to Southern Philippine waters by six armed men.
"Last night we found the ship with three crew, while the rest were kidnapped. All of them are Indonesians,” he said, adding the vessel which is registered in Sandakan was found off Tangusu Bay.
The incident occurred three months after three Indonesian fishermen were also kidnapped off Tambisan waters on Sept 23.
The trio, who are family members, are Muhamad Farhan 27, Maharudin Lunani, 48, dan sepupunya, Samiun Maneu, 27, were rescued by Philippine army from Barangay village, Bato-Bato, Indanan from Abu Sayyaf group in Dec 22.
https://www.nst.com.my/news/nation/2020/01/557564/five-fishermen-kidnapped-tambisan-waters
Esscom commander Datuk Hazani Ghazali said they received a report yesterday that the fishermen's boat went missing and deployed air and sea assets to locate the victims. NSTP/HAZSYAH ABDUL RAHMAN
SANDAKAN: Eastern Sabah Security Command (Esscom) confirmed five fishermen were kidnapped off Tambisan waters in Lahad Datu.
It is learned that the incident occurred on Wednesday but it was only reported yesterday.
Esscom commander Datuk Hazani Ghazali said they received a report yesterday that the fishermen's boat went missing and deployed air and sea assets to locate the victims.
The five missing persons were believed to be taken to Southern Philippine waters by six armed men.
"Last night we found the ship with three crew, while the rest were kidnapped. All of them are Indonesians,” he said, adding the vessel which is registered in Sandakan was found off Tangusu Bay.
The incident occurred three months after three Indonesian fishermen were also kidnapped off Tambisan waters on Sept 23.
The trio, who are family members, are Muhamad Farhan 27, Maharudin Lunani, 48, dan sepupunya, Samiun Maneu, 27, were rescued by Philippine army from Barangay village, Bato-Bato, Indanan from Abu Sayyaf group in Dec 22.
https://www.nst.com.my/news/nation/2020/01/557564/five-fishermen-kidnapped-tambisan-waters
UPDATE: 5 fishermen confimed missing, feared kidnapped, while 3 'spared'
Posted to the Daily Express (Jan 18, 2020): UPDATE: 5 fishermen confimed missing, feared kidnapped, while 3 'spared' (By Zam Yusa)
Photo: recaap.org
LAHAD DATU: Eastern Sabah Security Command chief Datuk Hazani Ghazali clarified that five, not eight as previously reported, Indonesian fishermen went missing and are feared to have been kidnapped in Tambisan Island waters off Lahad Datu on Thursday.
Hazani on Saturday told Astro Wani that eight men had boarded the fishing boat before five of them are believed to have been kidnapped between 9pm and 10pm.
Esscom is currently collecting information from the three spared fishermen, Hazani said without elaborating on how the five went missing.
Earlier, it was reported that eight fishermen went missing on Friday in the waters where three Indonesians were abducted by gunmen from their fishing boat in September last year. The trio have been rescued by the Philippine military from their Abu Sayyaf captors in Sulu.
An Indonesian news site on Friday reported the boat in the latest incident has a registration number SSK.00543F and a skipper named Arsyad Abdullah who has a Malaysian government-issued identification document numbered AS 342119.
“During the incident, the boat had a letter authorising it to carry out fishing activities from Jan 6 to 21, 2020,” reported antaranews.com.
http://www.dailyexpress.com.my/news/146425/update-5-fishermen-confimed-missing-feared-kidnapped-while-3-spared-/
Hazani on Saturday told Astro Wani that eight men had boarded the fishing boat before five of them are believed to have been kidnapped between 9pm and 10pm.
Esscom is currently collecting information from the three spared fishermen, Hazani said without elaborating on how the five went missing.
Earlier, it was reported that eight fishermen went missing on Friday in the waters where three Indonesians were abducted by gunmen from their fishing boat in September last year. The trio have been rescued by the Philippine military from their Abu Sayyaf captors in Sulu.
An Indonesian news site on Friday reported the boat in the latest incident has a registration number SSK.00543F and a skipper named Arsyad Abdullah who has a Malaysian government-issued identification document numbered AS 342119.
“During the incident, the boat had a letter authorising it to carry out fishing activities from Jan 6 to 21, 2020,” reported antaranews.com.
http://www.dailyexpress.com.my/news/146425/update-5-fishermen-confimed-missing-feared-kidnapped-while-3-spared-/
Zachary Abuza on Insurgency and Terrorism in the Philippines
Posted to The Diplomat (Jan 14, 2020): Zachary Abuza on Insurgency and Terrorism in the Philippines (By By Prashanth Parameswaran)
A conversation on the state of domestic security issues in the Philippines in 2020 and beyond.
A conversation on the state of domestic security issues in the Philippines in 2020 and beyond.
Credit: Wikimedia Commons
The Philippines continues to face a range of serious internal security challenges under President Rodrigo Duterte, including insurgency and terrorism. These challenges bear careful watching not only for their own sake, but also in the context of wider trends and developments, including ongoing military modernization efforts, alignments with foreign powers including its treaty ally the United States, and domestic perceptions of the Duterte government out to the next general election in 2022.
To get a sense for these issues and more, The Diplomat’s senior editor, Prashanth Parameswaran recently spoke to Zachary Abuza, currently a professor at the National War College.
While the international attention on the Philippines may not be on the level of what it was during the Marawi siege, we have in fact nonetheless continued to see instances of terrorism occurring in the southern Philippines including in 2019, with an increased use of suicide bombings. How would you assess the current state of the terrorism threat in the Philippines, and are there any notable trends in this respect regarding the range of groups that operate in the Philippines, including the Maute Group, the Abu Sayyaf, and the Bangasmoro Islamic Freedom Fighters?
Terrorism in the Philippines remains a very persistent threat for a number of reasons. First, there is an alphabet soup of organizations that continue to fight the government and try to undermine the peace process between the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front. These groups, including the Abu Sayyaf, the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters, Islamic State Lanao (Maute Group), and Ansuar al-Khalifa Philippines, have all pledged bai’at to the Islamic State (IS). For the most part, they are geographically isolated and do not coordinate their activities, which is a good thing, because when they do, such as with the 2017 Marawi siege, they do so with devastating effect.
Second, the southern Philippines continues to be a magnet for foreign fighters, mainly from Southeast Asia, but sometimes from further afield. While there are pro-IS terrorist cells throughout the region, it is only in the Philippines that they can actually control physical space.
Third, these groups benefit from the fact that the Armed Forces of the Philippines are spread too thin, lack necessary resources, are poorly trained and equipped, and often fuel support for the militants by committing human rights abuses, such as intentionally targeting villages with mortar fire.
In terms of trends, the most important trend line to watch is the Abu Sayyaf’s use of suicide bombings. July 2018 saw the first suicide bombing in the Philippines. Since then, the tempo has increased. There have now been six individual suicide bombers in the southern Philippines. Three additional suspected would-be bombers – they had pipe bombs sewn into vests – were killed in a shootout with security forces. Security forces recovered 16 additional pipe bombs two days later, suggesting another wave of attacks. Although the majority of the bombers were foreign fighters, it did include at least two Filipinos. It is unclear whether other pro-IS groups will employ this tactic.
The Abu Sayyaf will continue their campaign of kidnap for ransoms, including renewed maritime operations into Malaysia’s Sabah state.ADVERTISEMENT
The Philippine government also continues to contend with challenge of the Communist Party of the Philippines despite earlier indications of potential talks. How do you see the trajectory of this challenge for the Philippines?
The Philippine government refuses to re-commence peace talks with the Communist Party of the Philippines, whose New People’s Army operates across the country, in almost all provinces. The New People’s Army (NPA) continues to operate on a national scale, despite a host of policies enacted under Executive Order 70 (2018) to counter them. 2019 saw increased operations in the Visayas, in particular on the islands of Negros and Samar, while the NPA has boosted their operations in Mindanao, moving westward from the Compostela valley. The NPA continues to extort revolutionary taxes and target mining and large-scale agricultural operations. The Philippine military is unable to quell the insurgency, and yet, the government has broken off peace talks, citing the CPP-NPA’s maximalist demands.
One of the positive trends has been that the Duterte government has been making inroads on the implementation of the peace process with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), including the establishment of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao. While it is still early days, how would you contextualize the significance of this development, and how is the interim government faring so far?
The peace process is one of the few bright spots in the southern Philippines. The one year anniversary of the establishment of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) is soon approaching. Though it has not been without problems, there have not been any major setbacks, either. Both sides remain committed to its implementation. There are obviously challenges for the MILF in terms of governance, making the transition from rebels to administrators. There is some concern that the appointed BARMM government is dominated by the MILF and does not have adequate representation from the Moro National Liberation Front and other groups. The block grants from the central government to the BARMM are now starting, so they should have more resources for public infrastructure projects.
The BARMM is being challenged every day by the pro-IS groups that seek to undermine the peace process. The MILF lost their internal policing authorities in the post-Mamasapano version of the implementing legislation. But now it seems as if Duterte wants to revisit that, and put the onus of internal security on the MILF. It is unclear whether the Philippine Congress would support that.
We’ll see how the interim BARMM government does in the coming year, ahead of elections in mid-2022.
We have also seen a number of external developments with respect to the terrorism landscape over the past year, including the losses incurred by the Islamic State and changes in the U.S. presence in the Middle East which continues to take shape. What is your sense of how these variables have played into developments in the southern Philippines, particularly amid ongoing hype and speculation on the potential return of foreign fighters and international links?
So the assumption was that as the Islamic State lost their Caliphate in Syria and Iraq, they would adopt a global insurgency model, that would include new fronts, such as Sri Lanka, as well as added salience in regions like Southeast Asia. I think that threat has always been overblown. IS remains Arab-dominated, focused in the Levant. Southeast Asia will always remain a peripheral front.
But the events in Syria have clearly impacted Southeast Asia in a few key ways. First, the ubiquitous IS propaganda, including in Bahasa, has largely dried up. That has really weakened their regional appeal. Second, the takedown of IS channels on social media platforms, in particular Telegram, have weakened IS messaging and the ability to organize. Third, all of the top Southeast Asian militants who were in Iraq and Syria have been killed. So their ability to organize, inspire, and recruit, has been dramatically weakened.
There was a concern that the abrupt and strategically inept withdrawal of US forces from the Kurdish region of Syria, followed by the Turkish invasion, would lead to the mass release of IS militants, including over a thousand Southeast Asian militants and their family members. Though some escaped, it was not in large numbers. And the fear that they would return to the region has not materialized. Those who escaped are most likely to fight in the region and not make the perilous overland tripe back. More importantly, the Malaysian and Indonesian governments have re-commenced negotiations with Turkish and Iraqi officials regarding the orderly return of their nationals.
We also continue to see anxiety about whether the southern Philippines could become a major center for the Islamic State or foreign terrorist groups looking to make Southeast Asia a key hub for their activities. While this has been a continuing fear that has yet to materialize, where do you think we are with respect to this threat or challenge?
This is a real concern because the southern Philippines remains the most permissive environment for their activities. IS cells in Malaysia or Indonesia can organize, but they can’t control territory. That remains a draw for people such as the Abu Sayyaf leaders such as Furuji Indama and Hatib Hajan Sawadjaan. Those foreign fighters have made up the majority of suicide bombers.
With the ongoing uncertain situation in Syria, my guess is that most Southeast Asian militants will continue to travel to the Southern Philippines to engage in Hijrah. This is why policing, both maritime and on land, in Malaysia’s Sabah state remains so critically important.
That said, even though successive Abu Sayyaf leaders have been declared the emirs of the Islamic State of East Asia, there is no discernible centralized command and control over all the pro-IS groups and cells in the region. It is still an archipelago of autonomous groups.
As we head further into 2020, what some other signposts and indicators that we should be watching closely for the rest of the year and beyond?
There are three things that warrant observation. First, the revival of Jemaah Islamiyah. Since 2010, it has been defunct as a militant organization, but been allowed to maintain its network of madrassas, mosques, social welfare organizations, and publishing houses. Its network is as large and resilient as it has ever been. The mid-2019 arrest of JI’s leader concerned Indonesian security officials who did not realize the scope of its operations, or streams of revenue. JI is poised to reclaim the mantle of terrorist leadership. It has never renounced violence; it has taken a tactical hiatus. Unlike the Middle East or South Asia, militant groups in Southeast Asia are very fluid, and people will switch to whichever group is in the ascendancy, especially if their patron leads.
Second, there will be a very large group of terrorist suspects, including the first Islamic State detainees, who will be released from prison in Indonesia in 2020. Indonesia has limited capacity to track these individuals. While recidivism rates in Indonesia are not high, nor are they low.
Third, the ongoing horrific treatment of Rohingya in Myanmar and Uyghurs in China could well be the catalyst for attacks. It is inconceivable to me that transnational jihadists don’t strike back in revenge at some point to defend their co-religionists.
[Prashanth Parameswaran is Senior Editor at The Diplomat based in Washington, D.C., where he produces analysis on Southeast Asian political and security issues, Asian defense affairs, and U.S. foreign policy in the Asia-Pacific.]
The Philippines continues to face a range of serious internal security challenges under President Rodrigo Duterte, including insurgency and terrorism. These challenges bear careful watching not only for their own sake, but also in the context of wider trends and developments, including ongoing military modernization efforts, alignments with foreign powers including its treaty ally the United States, and domestic perceptions of the Duterte government out to the next general election in 2022.
To get a sense for these issues and more, The Diplomat’s senior editor, Prashanth Parameswaran recently spoke to Zachary Abuza, currently a professor at the National War College.
While the international attention on the Philippines may not be on the level of what it was during the Marawi siege, we have in fact nonetheless continued to see instances of terrorism occurring in the southern Philippines including in 2019, with an increased use of suicide bombings. How would you assess the current state of the terrorism threat in the Philippines, and are there any notable trends in this respect regarding the range of groups that operate in the Philippines, including the Maute Group, the Abu Sayyaf, and the Bangasmoro Islamic Freedom Fighters?
Terrorism in the Philippines remains a very persistent threat for a number of reasons. First, there is an alphabet soup of organizations that continue to fight the government and try to undermine the peace process between the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front. These groups, including the Abu Sayyaf, the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters, Islamic State Lanao (Maute Group), and Ansuar al-Khalifa Philippines, have all pledged bai’at to the Islamic State (IS). For the most part, they are geographically isolated and do not coordinate their activities, which is a good thing, because when they do, such as with the 2017 Marawi siege, they do so with devastating effect.
Second, the southern Philippines continues to be a magnet for foreign fighters, mainly from Southeast Asia, but sometimes from further afield. While there are pro-IS terrorist cells throughout the region, it is only in the Philippines that they can actually control physical space.
Third, these groups benefit from the fact that the Armed Forces of the Philippines are spread too thin, lack necessary resources, are poorly trained and equipped, and often fuel support for the militants by committing human rights abuses, such as intentionally targeting villages with mortar fire.
In terms of trends, the most important trend line to watch is the Abu Sayyaf’s use of suicide bombings. July 2018 saw the first suicide bombing in the Philippines. Since then, the tempo has increased. There have now been six individual suicide bombers in the southern Philippines. Three additional suspected would-be bombers – they had pipe bombs sewn into vests – were killed in a shootout with security forces. Security forces recovered 16 additional pipe bombs two days later, suggesting another wave of attacks. Although the majority of the bombers were foreign fighters, it did include at least two Filipinos. It is unclear whether other pro-IS groups will employ this tactic.
The Abu Sayyaf will continue their campaign of kidnap for ransoms, including renewed maritime operations into Malaysia’s Sabah state.ADVERTISEMENT
The Philippine government also continues to contend with challenge of the Communist Party of the Philippines despite earlier indications of potential talks. How do you see the trajectory of this challenge for the Philippines?
The Philippine government refuses to re-commence peace talks with the Communist Party of the Philippines, whose New People’s Army operates across the country, in almost all provinces. The New People’s Army (NPA) continues to operate on a national scale, despite a host of policies enacted under Executive Order 70 (2018) to counter them. 2019 saw increased operations in the Visayas, in particular on the islands of Negros and Samar, while the NPA has boosted their operations in Mindanao, moving westward from the Compostela valley. The NPA continues to extort revolutionary taxes and target mining and large-scale agricultural operations. The Philippine military is unable to quell the insurgency, and yet, the government has broken off peace talks, citing the CPP-NPA’s maximalist demands.
One of the positive trends has been that the Duterte government has been making inroads on the implementation of the peace process with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), including the establishment of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao. While it is still early days, how would you contextualize the significance of this development, and how is the interim government faring so far?
The peace process is one of the few bright spots in the southern Philippines. The one year anniversary of the establishment of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) is soon approaching. Though it has not been without problems, there have not been any major setbacks, either. Both sides remain committed to its implementation. There are obviously challenges for the MILF in terms of governance, making the transition from rebels to administrators. There is some concern that the appointed BARMM government is dominated by the MILF and does not have adequate representation from the Moro National Liberation Front and other groups. The block grants from the central government to the BARMM are now starting, so they should have more resources for public infrastructure projects.
The BARMM is being challenged every day by the pro-IS groups that seek to undermine the peace process. The MILF lost their internal policing authorities in the post-Mamasapano version of the implementing legislation. But now it seems as if Duterte wants to revisit that, and put the onus of internal security on the MILF. It is unclear whether the Philippine Congress would support that.
We’ll see how the interim BARMM government does in the coming year, ahead of elections in mid-2022.
We have also seen a number of external developments with respect to the terrorism landscape over the past year, including the losses incurred by the Islamic State and changes in the U.S. presence in the Middle East which continues to take shape. What is your sense of how these variables have played into developments in the southern Philippines, particularly amid ongoing hype and speculation on the potential return of foreign fighters and international links?
So the assumption was that as the Islamic State lost their Caliphate in Syria and Iraq, they would adopt a global insurgency model, that would include new fronts, such as Sri Lanka, as well as added salience in regions like Southeast Asia. I think that threat has always been overblown. IS remains Arab-dominated, focused in the Levant. Southeast Asia will always remain a peripheral front.
But the events in Syria have clearly impacted Southeast Asia in a few key ways. First, the ubiquitous IS propaganda, including in Bahasa, has largely dried up. That has really weakened their regional appeal. Second, the takedown of IS channels on social media platforms, in particular Telegram, have weakened IS messaging and the ability to organize. Third, all of the top Southeast Asian militants who were in Iraq and Syria have been killed. So their ability to organize, inspire, and recruit, has been dramatically weakened.
There was a concern that the abrupt and strategically inept withdrawal of US forces from the Kurdish region of Syria, followed by the Turkish invasion, would lead to the mass release of IS militants, including over a thousand Southeast Asian militants and their family members. Though some escaped, it was not in large numbers. And the fear that they would return to the region has not materialized. Those who escaped are most likely to fight in the region and not make the perilous overland tripe back. More importantly, the Malaysian and Indonesian governments have re-commenced negotiations with Turkish and Iraqi officials regarding the orderly return of their nationals.
We also continue to see anxiety about whether the southern Philippines could become a major center for the Islamic State or foreign terrorist groups looking to make Southeast Asia a key hub for their activities. While this has been a continuing fear that has yet to materialize, where do you think we are with respect to this threat or challenge?
This is a real concern because the southern Philippines remains the most permissive environment for their activities. IS cells in Malaysia or Indonesia can organize, but they can’t control territory. That remains a draw for people such as the Abu Sayyaf leaders such as Furuji Indama and Hatib Hajan Sawadjaan. Those foreign fighters have made up the majority of suicide bombers.
With the ongoing uncertain situation in Syria, my guess is that most Southeast Asian militants will continue to travel to the Southern Philippines to engage in Hijrah. This is why policing, both maritime and on land, in Malaysia’s Sabah state remains so critically important.
That said, even though successive Abu Sayyaf leaders have been declared the emirs of the Islamic State of East Asia, there is no discernible centralized command and control over all the pro-IS groups and cells in the region. It is still an archipelago of autonomous groups.
As we head further into 2020, what some other signposts and indicators that we should be watching closely for the rest of the year and beyond?
There are three things that warrant observation. First, the revival of Jemaah Islamiyah. Since 2010, it has been defunct as a militant organization, but been allowed to maintain its network of madrassas, mosques, social welfare organizations, and publishing houses. Its network is as large and resilient as it has ever been. The mid-2019 arrest of JI’s leader concerned Indonesian security officials who did not realize the scope of its operations, or streams of revenue. JI is poised to reclaim the mantle of terrorist leadership. It has never renounced violence; it has taken a tactical hiatus. Unlike the Middle East or South Asia, militant groups in Southeast Asia are very fluid, and people will switch to whichever group is in the ascendancy, especially if their patron leads.
Second, there will be a very large group of terrorist suspects, including the first Islamic State detainees, who will be released from prison in Indonesia in 2020. Indonesia has limited capacity to track these individuals. While recidivism rates in Indonesia are not high, nor are they low.
Third, the ongoing horrific treatment of Rohingya in Myanmar and Uyghurs in China could well be the catalyst for attacks. It is inconceivable to me that transnational jihadists don’t strike back in revenge at some point to defend their co-religionists.
[Prashanth Parameswaran is Senior Editor at The Diplomat based in Washington, D.C., where he produces analysis on Southeast Asian political and security issues, Asian defense affairs, and U.S. foreign policy in the Asia-Pacific.]
Joma Sison says gov't broke promise to free political prisoners last Christmas
From CNN Philippines (Jan 17, 2020): Joma Sison says gov't broke promise to free political prisoners last Christmas (By CNN Philippines Staff)
The communist leader says he also agreed to meet with President Rodrigo Duterte in Hanoi, Vietnam but only after the approval of the Interim Peace Agreement. (FILE PHOTO)
The communist leader says he also agreed to meet with President Rodrigo Duterte in Hanoi, Vietnam but only after the approval of the Interim Peace Agreement. (FILE PHOTO)
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, January 17) — Communist leader Jose Maria Sison has revealed that the government agreed last year to release "sick and elderly" political prisoners for Christmas and New Year.
In a video statement sent to a forum in Quezon City on Friday, Sison, who is on self-exile in the Netherlands, said Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III and former congressman Hernani Braganza held informal talks with the National Democratic Front of the Philippines in Utrecht from December 7 to 9 and December 19 to 21, 2019. The NDFP represents the Communist Party of the Philippines in talks with the government.
Among the agreements reached during the informal talks, Sison said, was "the soonest release by the GRP (Government of the Republic of the Philippines) president of the sick and elderly political prisoners, especially the NDFP consultants, on humanitarian grounds and in the spirit of Christmas and the New Year."
"It should be noted that not a single political prisoner was released on humanitarian grounds in the spirit of Christmas and the New Year, contrary to expectations of the NDFP Negotiating Panel, the political prisoners and their families," Sison said.
PNP: Arrest warrant vs Joma Sison stands despite fresh peace talks
The release of political prisoners and NDFP consultants has always been a sore point in negotiations to end the five-decade insurgency of the CPP and its armed wing, the New People's Army. The rebels claim the NDFP consultants were being held in violation of the Joint Agreement on Safety and Immunity Guarantees — an agreement the government says no longer holds water since President Rodrigo Duterte walked away from the peace talks in 2017.
After allegations of ceasefire violations and back-and-forth tirades, Duterte finally reached out to the rebels again in December 2019 by sending Bello to talk to Sison.
Sison said that during their informal talks he also agreed to meet Duterte in Hanoi, Vietnam in April, but only after the signing of the Interim Peace Agreement, a much sought-after deal seen to lead to the end of the communist insurgency. The agreement covers general amnesty and release of all political prisoners, approval of the Comprehensive Agreement on Social Economic Reforms, and a coordinated unilateral ceasefire agreement.
Duterte on December 26, 2019 challenged Sison to a one-on-one talk in the Philippines but the CPP founding chairman said he would return to the country only after the resumption of formal peace negotiations and the signing of the Interim Peace Agreement.
Sison said Bello also agreed with the NDF to hold another informal meeting on the second or third week of January 2020 to pave the way for the much-awaited resumption of formal peace negotiations. The goal is to reaffirm previous deals, supersede presidential orders against the peace negotiations, and set the agenda for finalizing the Interim Peace Agreement.
So far, the only thing that has reached fruition among the agreements in the formal talks was the declaration of a holiday ceasefire, Sison said. However, this too, was marred by alleged violations.
Authorities said NPA fighters attacked government forces in Camarines Norte and Iloilo on December 23, 2019, leaving one soldier dead and six others wounded on the first day of the ceasefire. The NDF, however, said the rebels just defended themselves from attacks initiated by the police and military.
"On the whole, on a nationwide scale, the reciprocal unilateral ceasefire ran successfully from December 23, 2019 to January 7, 2020, despite a few incidents which became the subject of publicized complaints from the direction of the GRP and NDFP. These complaints ought to be submitted to the Joint Monitoring Committee under the Comprehensive Agreement on Respect for Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law," Sison said.
The Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process on Friday hit the CPP-NPA-NDF for pursuing its “own brand of peace talks” in insisting on the Comprehensive Agreement on Social Economic Reforms as a precondition to the negotiations. OPAPP Spokesperson Wilben Mayor stressed that what the rebels want was "flawed," and that talks should adhere to the Constitution.
On the other hand, Bello earlier suggested that the signing of these reform and peace agreements can be done in the country.
"We want that when he comes here, he will be prepared to sign a document – either the Comprehensive Agreement on Social and Economic Reforms, or better, the IPA, which is the Interim Peace Agreement. That would be the best reason for him to come here," Bello said in an interview with CNN Philippines' The Source on January 3.
In a video statement sent to a forum in Quezon City on Friday, Sison, who is on self-exile in the Netherlands, said Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III and former congressman Hernani Braganza held informal talks with the National Democratic Front of the Philippines in Utrecht from December 7 to 9 and December 19 to 21, 2019. The NDFP represents the Communist Party of the Philippines in talks with the government.
Among the agreements reached during the informal talks, Sison said, was "the soonest release by the GRP (Government of the Republic of the Philippines) president of the sick and elderly political prisoners, especially the NDFP consultants, on humanitarian grounds and in the spirit of Christmas and the New Year."
"It should be noted that not a single political prisoner was released on humanitarian grounds in the spirit of Christmas and the New Year, contrary to expectations of the NDFP Negotiating Panel, the political prisoners and their families," Sison said.
PNP: Arrest warrant vs Joma Sison stands despite fresh peace talks
The release of political prisoners and NDFP consultants has always been a sore point in negotiations to end the five-decade insurgency of the CPP and its armed wing, the New People's Army. The rebels claim the NDFP consultants were being held in violation of the Joint Agreement on Safety and Immunity Guarantees — an agreement the government says no longer holds water since President Rodrigo Duterte walked away from the peace talks in 2017.
After allegations of ceasefire violations and back-and-forth tirades, Duterte finally reached out to the rebels again in December 2019 by sending Bello to talk to Sison.
Sison said that during their informal talks he also agreed to meet Duterte in Hanoi, Vietnam in April, but only after the signing of the Interim Peace Agreement, a much sought-after deal seen to lead to the end of the communist insurgency. The agreement covers general amnesty and release of all political prisoners, approval of the Comprehensive Agreement on Social Economic Reforms, and a coordinated unilateral ceasefire agreement.
Duterte on December 26, 2019 challenged Sison to a one-on-one talk in the Philippines but the CPP founding chairman said he would return to the country only after the resumption of formal peace negotiations and the signing of the Interim Peace Agreement.
Sison said Bello also agreed with the NDF to hold another informal meeting on the second or third week of January 2020 to pave the way for the much-awaited resumption of formal peace negotiations. The goal is to reaffirm previous deals, supersede presidential orders against the peace negotiations, and set the agenda for finalizing the Interim Peace Agreement.
So far, the only thing that has reached fruition among the agreements in the formal talks was the declaration of a holiday ceasefire, Sison said. However, this too, was marred by alleged violations.
Authorities said NPA fighters attacked government forces in Camarines Norte and Iloilo on December 23, 2019, leaving one soldier dead and six others wounded on the first day of the ceasefire. The NDF, however, said the rebels just defended themselves from attacks initiated by the police and military.
"On the whole, on a nationwide scale, the reciprocal unilateral ceasefire ran successfully from December 23, 2019 to January 7, 2020, despite a few incidents which became the subject of publicized complaints from the direction of the GRP and NDFP. These complaints ought to be submitted to the Joint Monitoring Committee under the Comprehensive Agreement on Respect for Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law," Sison said.
The Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process on Friday hit the CPP-NPA-NDF for pursuing its “own brand of peace talks” in insisting on the Comprehensive Agreement on Social Economic Reforms as a precondition to the negotiations. OPAPP Spokesperson Wilben Mayor stressed that what the rebels want was "flawed," and that talks should adhere to the Constitution.
On the other hand, Bello earlier suggested that the signing of these reform and peace agreements can be done in the country.
"We want that when he comes here, he will be prepared to sign a document – either the Comprehensive Agreement on Social and Economic Reforms, or better, the IPA, which is the Interim Peace Agreement. That would be the best reason for him to come here," Bello said in an interview with CNN Philippines' The Source on January 3.
Rebels, gov’t troops clash in Manjuyod; 1 soldier slightly wounded
From the Philippine Daily Inquirer (Jan 18, 2020): Rebels, gov’t troops clash in Manjuyod; 1 soldier slightly wounded (By Florence Baesa)
DUMAGUETE CITY,Negros Oriental — A soldier was slightly wounded in an encounter with suspected members of the New People’s Army (NPA) in Sitio Mangasaha, Barangay Candabong, Manjuyod this province at 11 a.m. on Friday, January 17, 2020.
Lieutenant Colonel Randy Pagunuran, 94th Infantry (Mandirigma) Battalion commanding officer, told CDN Digital that Sergeant Richard Andrade suffered superficial wounds in his right thumb and left thigh due to shrapnels and was given proper medical attention.
A military report said the soldiers were conducting combat operations in the area when they chanced upon more or less seven NPAs which resulted to a five-minute running gun battle.
After which, the rebels withdrew towards a different direction.
“This encounter is the effort of the government troops to pursue intrnsified combat operations to End Local Communist Armed Conflict after the ceasefire ended last January 7, 2020,” Pagunuran said.
And although, the government troops have a wounded soldier during the encounter, the military report said that the rebels could have suffered casualties during the firefight.
The report said this was because bloodstains were found along the suspected rebels’ escape route and as what was reported by residents in the area.
Meanwhile, Candabong Barangay Captain Ben Cardiente said that the encounter happened two days after the village fiesta celebration.
“Possible ga agi-agi na sila diri. Bag-o ra man gud mi nagfiesta diri niadtong 15. Wala pud mi naka monitor tungod sa kadaghan sa mga tawo. Possible pud mamistahay ng uban ana mao ng na encouentro,” Cardiente said. (It’s possible that they were passing through our barangay. We did not notice them because we celebrated our fiesta on the 15th. There were so many people at that time. Perhaps, these rebels stopped by and joined our fiesta celebration.
https://cebudailynews.inquirer.net/282222/rebels-govt-troops-clash-in-manjuyod-1-soldier-slightly-wounded
DUMAGUETE CITY,Negros Oriental — A soldier was slightly wounded in an encounter with suspected members of the New People’s Army (NPA) in Sitio Mangasaha, Barangay Candabong, Manjuyod this province at 11 a.m. on Friday, January 17, 2020.
Lieutenant Colonel Randy Pagunuran, 94th Infantry (Mandirigma) Battalion commanding officer, told CDN Digital that Sergeant Richard Andrade suffered superficial wounds in his right thumb and left thigh due to shrapnels and was given proper medical attention.
A military report said the soldiers were conducting combat operations in the area when they chanced upon more or less seven NPAs which resulted to a five-minute running gun battle.
After which, the rebels withdrew towards a different direction.
“This encounter is the effort of the government troops to pursue intrnsified combat operations to End Local Communist Armed Conflict after the ceasefire ended last January 7, 2020,” Pagunuran said.
And although, the government troops have a wounded soldier during the encounter, the military report said that the rebels could have suffered casualties during the firefight.
The report said this was because bloodstains were found along the suspected rebels’ escape route and as what was reported by residents in the area.
Meanwhile, Candabong Barangay Captain Ben Cardiente said that the encounter happened two days after the village fiesta celebration.
“Possible ga agi-agi na sila diri. Bag-o ra man gud mi nagfiesta diri niadtong 15. Wala pud mi naka monitor tungod sa kadaghan sa mga tawo. Possible pud mamistahay ng uban ana mao ng na encouentro,” Cardiente said. (It’s possible that they were passing through our barangay. We did not notice them because we celebrated our fiesta on the 15th. There were so many people at that time. Perhaps, these rebels stopped by and joined our fiesta celebration.
https://cebudailynews.inquirer.net/282222/rebels-govt-troops-clash-in-manjuyod-1-soldier-slightly-wounded
4 men tagged as NPA ‘people’s militia’ arrested in Butuan City
From the Manila Bulletin (Jan 17, 2020): 4 men tagged as NPA ‘people’s militia’ arrested in Butuan City (By Mike Crismundo)
BUTUAN CITY – Four men tagged by Metro Butuan City Police Office (BCPO) as “militia ng bayan” (MB) or “people’s militia” of the New People’s Army (NPA) were arrested in separate operations in far-flung areas in Butuan City Thursday.
In an exclusive interview with The Manila Bulletin on Thursday, BCPO City Director Canilo A. Fuentes said those arrested were members of Guerilla Front 4-A of the CPP-NPA Northeastern Mindanao Regional Committee.
Their identities were temporarily withheld pending tactical interrogation.
“All of them (suspects) were completely surprised when our implementing police force and Army arrived in their respective areas in San Mateo and Tungao,” Col. Fuentes said.
Elements of BCPO, 13th Regional Mobile Force and Army’s 23rd Infantry Battalion served warrants of arrest to the suspects for the crime of arson issued by the local court here at the villages of San Mateo and Tungao, both this city.
The suspects were among those who burned five motorcycles owned by Army soldiers in June 2018, the BCPO city director said.
“BCPO will continue to intensify its campaign against wanted persons especially those who are members of CPP-NPA terrorists group to give long and lasting peace to the Butuanons,” Col. Fuentes added.
BUTUAN CITY – Four men tagged by Metro Butuan City Police Office (BCPO) as “militia ng bayan” (MB) or “people’s militia” of the New People’s Army (NPA) were arrested in separate operations in far-flung areas in Butuan City Thursday.
In an exclusive interview with The Manila Bulletin on Thursday, BCPO City Director Canilo A. Fuentes said those arrested were members of Guerilla Front 4-A of the CPP-NPA Northeastern Mindanao Regional Committee.
Their identities were temporarily withheld pending tactical interrogation.
“All of them (suspects) were completely surprised when our implementing police force and Army arrived in their respective areas in San Mateo and Tungao,” Col. Fuentes said.
Elements of BCPO, 13th Regional Mobile Force and Army’s 23rd Infantry Battalion served warrants of arrest to the suspects for the crime of arson issued by the local court here at the villages of San Mateo and Tungao, both this city.
The suspects were among those who burned five motorcycles owned by Army soldiers in June 2018, the BCPO city director said.
“BCPO will continue to intensify its campaign against wanted persons especially those who are members of CPP-NPA terrorists group to give long and lasting peace to the Butuanons,” Col. Fuentes added.
Kalinaw News: Army’s 402nd Brigade continues offensives against Reds as truce expires
Posted to Kalinaw News (Jan 11, 2020): Army’s 402nd Brigade continues offensives against Reds as truce expires (By 402nd Infantry (Stingers) Brigade)
Bancasi, Butuan City – The 402nd Infantry (Stingers) Brigade continuedits offensive operations against the CPP-NPA Terrorists (CNTs) in its Area of Responsibility (AOR) after the holiday ceasefire between the Government of the Republic of the Philippines (GRP) and the CPP-NPA-NDF expired at midnight of January 7, 2020.
President Rodrigo Duterte declared a nationwide unilateral ceasefire from 12AM of December 23, 2019 to 11:59PM of January 7, 2020 as a confidence-building measure before the resumption of the formal peace talks.
402nd Brigade Commander, Brigadier General Maurito L Licudine, said in his statement that his troops adhered and respected the ceasefire as no military offensives were conducted during the holiday truce.
“We adhered to the provisions of the ceasefire and saw to it that no violations will be committed by our troops. We maintained our position and continuedour support to Law Enforcement Operations of our PNP counterparts to prevent lawless elements from spoiling the serenity of the celebration of theyuletide season”.
However, it cannot be denied that in some parts of the country, the NPA elements have committed violation when attacks happened in Labo, Camarines Norte on December 23, 2019, Compostela Valley on December 30, 2019 and in Cabanglasan, Bukidnon on January 4 this year while the truce is still in effect.
“With the ceasefire officially terminated, our troops will continue our hunt for the CNTs as they have never ceased inflicting sufferings to our people. The burning of civilian trucks at Brgy Libertad, Prosperidad, Agusan del Sur and recently the ruthless killing of Datu Bontola Tinaghao Mansinugdan in the same province, are among the incidents to consider if we could really trust the CPP-NPA-NDF to keep their promises”, BGen Licudine added.
The Army Commander in Caraga reiterated the call of the National Government that the Communist Terrorist Group must prove their sincerity if they are to go back to the peace table. “We reiterate our statement that the government hasgone the extra mile several times as a sign of goodwill but we have yet to see the same level of sincerity on the part of the CPP-NPA-NDF. They must walk-the-talk first so that innocent lives will be spared and a lasting peace can be attained”, BGen Licudine ended.
Bancasi, Butuan City – The 402nd Infantry (Stingers) Brigade continuedits offensive operations against the CPP-NPA Terrorists (CNTs) in its Area of Responsibility (AOR) after the holiday ceasefire between the Government of the Republic of the Philippines (GRP) and the CPP-NPA-NDF expired at midnight of January 7, 2020.
President Rodrigo Duterte declared a nationwide unilateral ceasefire from 12AM of December 23, 2019 to 11:59PM of January 7, 2020 as a confidence-building measure before the resumption of the formal peace talks.
402nd Brigade Commander, Brigadier General Maurito L Licudine, said in his statement that his troops adhered and respected the ceasefire as no military offensives were conducted during the holiday truce.
“We adhered to the provisions of the ceasefire and saw to it that no violations will be committed by our troops. We maintained our position and continuedour support to Law Enforcement Operations of our PNP counterparts to prevent lawless elements from spoiling the serenity of the celebration of theyuletide season”.
However, it cannot be denied that in some parts of the country, the NPA elements have committed violation when attacks happened in Labo, Camarines Norte on December 23, 2019, Compostela Valley on December 30, 2019 and in Cabanglasan, Bukidnon on January 4 this year while the truce is still in effect.
“With the ceasefire officially terminated, our troops will continue our hunt for the CNTs as they have never ceased inflicting sufferings to our people. The burning of civilian trucks at Brgy Libertad, Prosperidad, Agusan del Sur and recently the ruthless killing of Datu Bontola Tinaghao Mansinugdan in the same province, are among the incidents to consider if we could really trust the CPP-NPA-NDF to keep their promises”, BGen Licudine added.
The Army Commander in Caraga reiterated the call of the National Government that the Communist Terrorist Group must prove their sincerity if they are to go back to the peace table. “We reiterate our statement that the government hasgone the extra mile several times as a sign of goodwill but we have yet to see the same level of sincerity on the part of the CPP-NPA-NDF. They must walk-the-talk first so that innocent lives will be spared and a lasting peace can be attained”, BGen Licudine ended.
[Kalinaw News is the official online source of information on the pursuit for peace in the Philippines This website is a property of the Civil-Military Operations Regiment, Philippine Army located at Lawton Avenue, Fort Bonifacio, Taguig City Contact us: kalinawnews@cmoregiment.com]
NDF/Sison: Repeated offer of Duterte for one-on-one in Manila is a trap and is aimed at preventing peace negotiations
Jose Maria Sison propaganda statement posted to the National Democratic Front Philippines (NDFP and NDF) Website (Jan 17, 2020): Repeated offer of Duterte for one-on-one in Manila is a trap and is aimed at preventing peace negotiations
Jose Maria Sison
NDFP Chief Political Consultant
The repeated offer of Duterte for me to have a one-on-one meeting with him in Manila is done in bad faith. It is either a malicious scheme to put me in a lethal trap or an equally malicious maneuver to prevent peace negotiations upon rejection of his offer by me and the NDFP as an unacceptable precondition.
Knowing that I am experienced and intelligent enough to recognize what is a trap, Duterte is using his offer only to do a bit of psywar and to prevent the resumption of the GRP-NDFP peace negotiations.
There are three reasons why Duterte is being malicious about his offer of a one-on-one meeting in Manila:
First, he wants me to drop the legal protection that I have under the Refugee Convention and Article 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights and to put myself under the control and disposition of his butcher regime upon my arrival in Manila.
Second, he wants me to violate my principles by submitting and surrendering myself to the tyrannical regime and to the actions that he has taken to terminate and prevent the peace negotiations between authorized panels of the GRP and NDFP.
Third, he wants to preempt the absolutely necessary formal meeting that has to be held in a neutral venue abroad in order to resume the peace negotiations by reaffirming the joint GRP-NDFP agreements since 1992 and by superceding the presidential issuances that he has made to terminate and prevent peace negotiations.
Duterte is making the fake offer of one-on-one meeting in Manila as an unacceptable precondition which invites rejection by me and by the NDFP and thereby prevents the peace negotiations. I do not think that he actually believes that I would take his bait or he is unintelligent enough not to appreciate my ability to discern what is mere trickery from him and his military advisors.
He should be intelligent enough to understand that neither I nor the NDFP negotiating panel can go to the Philippines before there is a formal resumption of the peace negotiations and substantial progress in the negotiation of social and economic reforms in a neutral venue abroad beyond the duress, control, manipulation or sabotage by his butcher generals.###
https://ndfp.org/repeated-offer-of-duterte-for-one-on-one-in-manila-is-a-trap-and-is-aimed-at-preventing-peace-negotiations/
Jose Maria Sison
NDFP Chief Political Consultant
The repeated offer of Duterte for me to have a one-on-one meeting with him in Manila is done in bad faith. It is either a malicious scheme to put me in a lethal trap or an equally malicious maneuver to prevent peace negotiations upon rejection of his offer by me and the NDFP as an unacceptable precondition.
Knowing that I am experienced and intelligent enough to recognize what is a trap, Duterte is using his offer only to do a bit of psywar and to prevent the resumption of the GRP-NDFP peace negotiations.
There are three reasons why Duterte is being malicious about his offer of a one-on-one meeting in Manila:
First, he wants me to drop the legal protection that I have under the Refugee Convention and Article 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights and to put myself under the control and disposition of his butcher regime upon my arrival in Manila.
Second, he wants me to violate my principles by submitting and surrendering myself to the tyrannical regime and to the actions that he has taken to terminate and prevent the peace negotiations between authorized panels of the GRP and NDFP.
Third, he wants to preempt the absolutely necessary formal meeting that has to be held in a neutral venue abroad in order to resume the peace negotiations by reaffirming the joint GRP-NDFP agreements since 1992 and by superceding the presidential issuances that he has made to terminate and prevent peace negotiations.
Duterte is making the fake offer of one-on-one meeting in Manila as an unacceptable precondition which invites rejection by me and by the NDFP and thereby prevents the peace negotiations. I do not think that he actually believes that I would take his bait or he is unintelligent enough not to appreciate my ability to discern what is mere trickery from him and his military advisors.
He should be intelligent enough to understand that neither I nor the NDFP negotiating panel can go to the Philippines before there is a formal resumption of the peace negotiations and substantial progress in the negotiation of social and economic reforms in a neutral venue abroad beyond the duress, control, manipulation or sabotage by his butcher generals.###
https://ndfp.org/repeated-offer-of-duterte-for-one-on-one-in-manila-is-a-trap-and-is-aimed-at-preventing-peace-negotiations/
NDF/Sison: On the prospect of peace negotiations during the time of Duterte or thereafter
Jose Maria Sison propaganda statement posted to the National Democratic Front Philippines (NDFP and NDF) Website (Jan 17, 2020): On the prospect of peace negotiations during the time of Duterte or thereafter
By Jose Maria Sison
NDFP Chief Political ConsultantAssembly for Peace, Quezon City
Dear Peace Advocates,
Thank you for inviting me to your assembly. I wish to discuss recent and current circumstances pertinent to the prospect of resuming the GRP-NDFP peace negotiations and then I shall try to estimate whether such a prospect will be realized before the end of the Duterte regime. I shall also make suggestions pertaining to the role of the peace advocates during and after the Duterte regime.
I. Recent Circumstances Pertinent to Peace Negotiations
Since November 23, 2017, GRP President Duterte had issued proclamations and executive orders (especially Proclamation Nos. 360 and 374 and Executive Order No. 70) to terminate and further prevent peace negotiations between the authorized negotiating panels of the GRP and the NDFP. But on December 5, 2019, he publicly ordered Secretary Bello to meet me in Utrecht in order to explore the resumption of peace negotiations.
As it is the consistent NDFP policy to be open to peace negotiations with the GRP, I readily agreed to meet Secretary Bello. Thus, from December 7 to 9, 2019, Secretary Bello and Nani Braganza held informal talks in Utrecht with a team of the NDFP, including panel chairperson Fidel Agcaoili and senior adviser Luis Jalandoni, myself and a few others. Further informal talks occurred from December 19 to 21.
In the presence of a representative of the special envoy of the Royal Norwegian Government, Katrina Lie Revheim, the following agreements were made as a result of the informal talks:
First: The reciprocal unilateral ceasefire to run from December 23 to January 7 on the mutual understanding that it is a measure of goodwill and confidence-building to pave the way for the resumption of peace negotiations as well as the soonest release by the GRP president of the sick and elderly political prisoners, especially the NDFP consultants, on humanitarian grounds and in the spirit of Christmas and the New Year.
Second: The informal meeting on the second or third week of January 2020 to pave the way for the first formal meeting to resume the peace negotiations with the following tasks, to reaffirm the joint agreements since 1992 and to supersede the presidential issuances terminating and preventing the peace negotiations and to set the agenda for further formal meetings for the finalization of the Interim Peace Agreement (IPA), previously drafted jointly by back-channel teams of the GRP and NDFP.
The Interim Peace agreement is a package of agreements on a) general amnesty and release of all political prisoners, b) approval of the articles of Comprehensive Agreement on Social and Economic Reforms (CASER), on 1) agrarian reform and rural development and 2) national industrialization and economic development, and c. coordinated unilateral ceasefire agreement.
Third: I agreed to meet Duterte in April in Hanoi after the mutual approval of the IPA and to meet him in the Philippines after the mutual approval of CASER.
On the whole, on a nationwide scale, the reciprocal unilateral ceasefire ran successfully from December 23, 2019, to January 7, 2020, despite a few incidents which became the subject of publicized complaints from the direction of the GRP and NDFP. These complaints ought to be submitted to the Joint Monitoring Committee under the Comprehensive Agreement on Respect for Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law (CARHRIHL).
It should be noted that not a single political prisoner was released on humanitarian grounds in the spirit of Christmas and the New Year, contrary to expectations of the NDFP Negotiating Panel, the political prisoners and their families.
II. Current Circumstances Pertinent to Peace Negotiations
Even before the ceasefire ended, certain GRP officials (including national security adviser Esperon, Defense Secretary Lorenzana, DILG secretary Año, OPAPP secretary Galvez and ultimately the newly appointed AFP chief of staff Santos) took turns in opposing the resumption of the peace negotiations between the duly authorized panels of the GRP and the NDFP.
They harped on the following points:
1. They can destroy the CPP and NPA before the end of the Duterte regime despite the failure of all previous regimes to destroy the people’s revolutionary movement and the repeated failure of the current Duterte regime to comply with its deadlines for destroying said movement.
2. They oppose peace negotiations in a neutral venue abroad but favor negotiations for the surrender of the CPP, the NPA and entire revolutionary movement to the unchanged tyrannical regime in a Philippine venue under the control and manipulation of said regime and its armed minions.
3. They have rendered peace negotiations at the national level unnecessary and superfluous because they are already destroying the revolutionary movement and are successfully staging fake localized peace talks, despite the glaring fact that all organs of the CPP and commands of the NPA at all levels have publicly rejected and condemned such fakery.
4. They are supposedly making their own reforms and consider as unnecessary the social, economic and political reforms proposed by the NDFP and those already agreed upon by the GRP and NDFP negotiating panels in order to realize full independence, democracy, social justice, and all-round development and they are most vehemently against genuine land reform and national industrialization.
5. They are satisfied with and enjoy the escalating conditions of oppression and exploitation under the semi-colonial and semifeudal ruling system of big compradors, landlords and corrupt bureaucrats who are servile to the imperialist powers, their banks and monopoly firms.
Esperon and Galvez have been the most vicious in opposing the CASER, which has long been considered by the broad masses of the people like the meat or even the heart and soul of the peace negotiations. They use disinformation and outright lies to deny the hard work and achievements of the GRP and NDFP negotiating panels and their reciprocal working committees on social and economic reforms in negotiating and jointly drafting provisions of CASER.
They misrepresent CASER as the sole product of the NDFP and accuse the NDFP of being one-sidedly responsible for formulating the provisions already agreed upon by the reciprocal working committees of the GRP and the NDFP. In effect, they are sabotaging the resumption of the peace negotiations and the prospect of formalizing the Interim Peace Agreement, which carries the mutual approval of the articles on land reform and national industrialization in CASER.
The statement of the NDFP Reciprocal Working Committee on Social and Economic Reforms (RWC SER) titled “Military Hawks Sabotage Peace Talks and Oppose Social and Economic Reforms”, dated January 14, 2020, gives you an accurate picture of the process of negotiating and drafting the CASER and debunks the false claims of Esperon and Galvez who are hell-bent on sabotaging the peace negotiations and carrying an all-out war against the people and the revolutionary movement.
President Duterte has allowed his subordinates with a militarist hawk mindset to speak publicly against the resumption of the peace negotiations and against the negotiations on CASER. He has so far disallowed his civilian peace emissaries, Bello and Braganza, from coming to Utrecht in the second or third week of January as promised in order to engage in an informal meeting to prepare the formal meeting for the resumption of peace negotiations.
On Friday, January 10, 2020, Duterte spoke to the press that he would like to have a one-on-one meeting with me in Manila before the resumption of the peace negotiations. I have refused the invitation in the following terms:
The repeated offer of Duterte for me to have a one-on-one meeting with him in Manila is done in bad faith. It is either a malicious scheme to put me in a lethal trap or an equally malicious maneuver to prevent peace negotiations upon rejection of his offer by me and the NDFP as an unacceptable precondition.
There are three reasons why Duterte is being malicious about his offer of a one-on-one meeting in Manila:
First, he wants me to drop the legal protection that I have under the Refugee Convention and Article 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights and to put myself under the control and disposition of his butcher regime upon my arrival in Manila.
Second, he wants me to violate my principles by submitting and surrendering myself to the tyrannical regime and to the actions that he has taken to terminate and prevent the peace negotiations between authorized panels of the GRP and NDFP.
Third, he wants to preempt the absolutely necessary formal meeting that has to be held in a neutral venue abroad in order to resume the peace negotiations by reaffirming the joint GRP-NDFP agreements since 1992 and by superseding the presidential issuances that he has made to terminate and prevent peace negotiations.
Duterte is making the fake offer of a one-on-one meeting in Manila as an unacceptable precondition that invites rejection by me and by the NDFP and thereby prevents the peace negotiations. I do not think that he actually believes that I would take his bait or he is unintelligent enough not to appreciate my ability to discern what is mere trickery from him and his military advisors.
III. Prospects of Resuming the Peace Negotiations
In view of the foregoing circumstances, I do not think Duterte is serious about resuming the peace negotiations. The prospect of resuming the peace negotiations before the end of the Duterte regime is close to nil or already nil.
There is no sign from him whatsoever that peace negotiations are to be resumed by reaffirming the joint agreements made by the GRP and NDFP since 1992, by superseding the presidential issuance that has terminated and prevented peace negotiations and by taking up the Interim Peace Agreement.
Previously, when I responded positively to his offer of resuming the peace negotiations on December 5, 2019, I gave him the benefit of a doubt that he would be interested in leaving a legacy that is not as ignominious as it has already taken shape. So far, he has not done anything to assure the people that his regime is not treasonous, tyrannical, genocidal, corrupt and mendacious.
It appears that he still overestimates his capabilities of clinging to power and that he does not need any peace negotiations with the NDFP. He continues to let his political agents in Congress push charter change for installing a fascist dictatorship as Marcos did in the past or for choosing a successor that will protect him from possible prosecution for human rights violations, plunder, and other grave crimes.
It is absolutely clear that Duterte is responsible for terminating and preventing peace negotiations. To him belongs the responsibility for accepting or refusing the consistent openness of the NDFP for peace negotiations.
By refusing to negotiate with the NDFP, it is absolutely clear that he is fixed on pursuing his all-out war against the Filipino people and their revolutionary forces. It is therefore entirely just for the sovereign people and their revolutionary movement to defend themselves and wage all forms of struggle against the Duterte regime.
But despite the counterrevolutionary violence, arrogance, and intransigence of the Duterte regime, the NDFP remains open to resuming the peace negotiations. It holds the view that peace negotiations might reduce or stop the human rights violations being perpetrated by the regime or might even lead to substantial reforms that contribute to laying the basis for a just peace.
But of course, time is fast running out for the Duterte regime to make agreements and implement these. It is now in its twilight years if the regime respects the 1987 Constitution of the GRP and does not amend it to install a fascist dictatorship. But I think that there is enough time to make CASER and implement it to a sufficient and dramatic extent before the Duterte regime ends if Duterte can give up his scheme of fascist dictatorship and can prevail upon his anti-peace and anti-CASER military subordinates not to sabotage the efforts to resume the peace negotiations.
What can the peace advocates do in the face of the current circumstances and what I estimate as to the dismal prospect for resuming peace negotiations before the end of the Duterte regime? I think that it remains their moral duty to persevere in the noble task of peace advocacy and to try to persuade or prevail upon the Duterte regime to engage the NDFP in peace negotiations. Most important of all, peace advocates must work to unify the people on the necessity of addressing the roots of the armed conflict and laying the foundation for a just peace through economic, social and political reforms agreed upon in the peace process.
Like the NDFP, the peace advocates cannot do anything to persuade the Duterte regime to negotiate if for whatever reason it refuses all the way to its very end. But the work is done and agreements made in previous negotiations since 1992 and the continuance and intensification of peace advocacy keep open the prospect of peace negotiations if not in the time of the Duterte regime, in the time of the next regime.
The previous achievements, in the form of agreements and accumulated experience and expertise in peace negotiations, remain on record and are not lost. In the future, they shall be the foundation for renewed peace negotiations between the NDFP and a new regime that is truly determined to strive for a just peace through economic, social and political reforms that address the roots of the armed conflict. Thank you.
https://ndfp.org/on-the-prospect-of-peace-negotiations-during-the-time-of-duterte-or-thereafter/
By Jose Maria Sison
NDFP Chief Political ConsultantAssembly for Peace, Quezon City
Dear Peace Advocates,
Thank you for inviting me to your assembly. I wish to discuss recent and current circumstances pertinent to the prospect of resuming the GRP-NDFP peace negotiations and then I shall try to estimate whether such a prospect will be realized before the end of the Duterte regime. I shall also make suggestions pertaining to the role of the peace advocates during and after the Duterte regime.
I. Recent Circumstances Pertinent to Peace Negotiations
Since November 23, 2017, GRP President Duterte had issued proclamations and executive orders (especially Proclamation Nos. 360 and 374 and Executive Order No. 70) to terminate and further prevent peace negotiations between the authorized negotiating panels of the GRP and the NDFP. But on December 5, 2019, he publicly ordered Secretary Bello to meet me in Utrecht in order to explore the resumption of peace negotiations.
As it is the consistent NDFP policy to be open to peace negotiations with the GRP, I readily agreed to meet Secretary Bello. Thus, from December 7 to 9, 2019, Secretary Bello and Nani Braganza held informal talks in Utrecht with a team of the NDFP, including panel chairperson Fidel Agcaoili and senior adviser Luis Jalandoni, myself and a few others. Further informal talks occurred from December 19 to 21.
In the presence of a representative of the special envoy of the Royal Norwegian Government, Katrina Lie Revheim, the following agreements were made as a result of the informal talks:
First: The reciprocal unilateral ceasefire to run from December 23 to January 7 on the mutual understanding that it is a measure of goodwill and confidence-building to pave the way for the resumption of peace negotiations as well as the soonest release by the GRP president of the sick and elderly political prisoners, especially the NDFP consultants, on humanitarian grounds and in the spirit of Christmas and the New Year.
Second: The informal meeting on the second or third week of January 2020 to pave the way for the first formal meeting to resume the peace negotiations with the following tasks, to reaffirm the joint agreements since 1992 and to supersede the presidential issuances terminating and preventing the peace negotiations and to set the agenda for further formal meetings for the finalization of the Interim Peace Agreement (IPA), previously drafted jointly by back-channel teams of the GRP and NDFP.
The Interim Peace agreement is a package of agreements on a) general amnesty and release of all political prisoners, b) approval of the articles of Comprehensive Agreement on Social and Economic Reforms (CASER), on 1) agrarian reform and rural development and 2) national industrialization and economic development, and c. coordinated unilateral ceasefire agreement.
Third: I agreed to meet Duterte in April in Hanoi after the mutual approval of the IPA and to meet him in the Philippines after the mutual approval of CASER.
On the whole, on a nationwide scale, the reciprocal unilateral ceasefire ran successfully from December 23, 2019, to January 7, 2020, despite a few incidents which became the subject of publicized complaints from the direction of the GRP and NDFP. These complaints ought to be submitted to the Joint Monitoring Committee under the Comprehensive Agreement on Respect for Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law (CARHRIHL).
It should be noted that not a single political prisoner was released on humanitarian grounds in the spirit of Christmas and the New Year, contrary to expectations of the NDFP Negotiating Panel, the political prisoners and their families.
II. Current Circumstances Pertinent to Peace Negotiations
Even before the ceasefire ended, certain GRP officials (including national security adviser Esperon, Defense Secretary Lorenzana, DILG secretary Año, OPAPP secretary Galvez and ultimately the newly appointed AFP chief of staff Santos) took turns in opposing the resumption of the peace negotiations between the duly authorized panels of the GRP and the NDFP.
They harped on the following points:
1. They can destroy the CPP and NPA before the end of the Duterte regime despite the failure of all previous regimes to destroy the people’s revolutionary movement and the repeated failure of the current Duterte regime to comply with its deadlines for destroying said movement.
2. They oppose peace negotiations in a neutral venue abroad but favor negotiations for the surrender of the CPP, the NPA and entire revolutionary movement to the unchanged tyrannical regime in a Philippine venue under the control and manipulation of said regime and its armed minions.
3. They have rendered peace negotiations at the national level unnecessary and superfluous because they are already destroying the revolutionary movement and are successfully staging fake localized peace talks, despite the glaring fact that all organs of the CPP and commands of the NPA at all levels have publicly rejected and condemned such fakery.
4. They are supposedly making their own reforms and consider as unnecessary the social, economic and political reforms proposed by the NDFP and those already agreed upon by the GRP and NDFP negotiating panels in order to realize full independence, democracy, social justice, and all-round development and they are most vehemently against genuine land reform and national industrialization.
5. They are satisfied with and enjoy the escalating conditions of oppression and exploitation under the semi-colonial and semifeudal ruling system of big compradors, landlords and corrupt bureaucrats who are servile to the imperialist powers, their banks and monopoly firms.
Esperon and Galvez have been the most vicious in opposing the CASER, which has long been considered by the broad masses of the people like the meat or even the heart and soul of the peace negotiations. They use disinformation and outright lies to deny the hard work and achievements of the GRP and NDFP negotiating panels and their reciprocal working committees on social and economic reforms in negotiating and jointly drafting provisions of CASER.
They misrepresent CASER as the sole product of the NDFP and accuse the NDFP of being one-sidedly responsible for formulating the provisions already agreed upon by the reciprocal working committees of the GRP and the NDFP. In effect, they are sabotaging the resumption of the peace negotiations and the prospect of formalizing the Interim Peace Agreement, which carries the mutual approval of the articles on land reform and national industrialization in CASER.
The statement of the NDFP Reciprocal Working Committee on Social and Economic Reforms (RWC SER) titled “Military Hawks Sabotage Peace Talks and Oppose Social and Economic Reforms”, dated January 14, 2020, gives you an accurate picture of the process of negotiating and drafting the CASER and debunks the false claims of Esperon and Galvez who are hell-bent on sabotaging the peace negotiations and carrying an all-out war against the people and the revolutionary movement.
President Duterte has allowed his subordinates with a militarist hawk mindset to speak publicly against the resumption of the peace negotiations and against the negotiations on CASER. He has so far disallowed his civilian peace emissaries, Bello and Braganza, from coming to Utrecht in the second or third week of January as promised in order to engage in an informal meeting to prepare the formal meeting for the resumption of peace negotiations.
On Friday, January 10, 2020, Duterte spoke to the press that he would like to have a one-on-one meeting with me in Manila before the resumption of the peace negotiations. I have refused the invitation in the following terms:
The repeated offer of Duterte for me to have a one-on-one meeting with him in Manila is done in bad faith. It is either a malicious scheme to put me in a lethal trap or an equally malicious maneuver to prevent peace negotiations upon rejection of his offer by me and the NDFP as an unacceptable precondition.
There are three reasons why Duterte is being malicious about his offer of a one-on-one meeting in Manila:
First, he wants me to drop the legal protection that I have under the Refugee Convention and Article 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights and to put myself under the control and disposition of his butcher regime upon my arrival in Manila.
Second, he wants me to violate my principles by submitting and surrendering myself to the tyrannical regime and to the actions that he has taken to terminate and prevent the peace negotiations between authorized panels of the GRP and NDFP.
Third, he wants to preempt the absolutely necessary formal meeting that has to be held in a neutral venue abroad in order to resume the peace negotiations by reaffirming the joint GRP-NDFP agreements since 1992 and by superseding the presidential issuances that he has made to terminate and prevent peace negotiations.
Duterte is making the fake offer of a one-on-one meeting in Manila as an unacceptable precondition that invites rejection by me and by the NDFP and thereby prevents the peace negotiations. I do not think that he actually believes that I would take his bait or he is unintelligent enough not to appreciate my ability to discern what is mere trickery from him and his military advisors.
III. Prospects of Resuming the Peace Negotiations
In view of the foregoing circumstances, I do not think Duterte is serious about resuming the peace negotiations. The prospect of resuming the peace negotiations before the end of the Duterte regime is close to nil or already nil.
There is no sign from him whatsoever that peace negotiations are to be resumed by reaffirming the joint agreements made by the GRP and NDFP since 1992, by superseding the presidential issuance that has terminated and prevented peace negotiations and by taking up the Interim Peace Agreement.
Previously, when I responded positively to his offer of resuming the peace negotiations on December 5, 2019, I gave him the benefit of a doubt that he would be interested in leaving a legacy that is not as ignominious as it has already taken shape. So far, he has not done anything to assure the people that his regime is not treasonous, tyrannical, genocidal, corrupt and mendacious.
It appears that he still overestimates his capabilities of clinging to power and that he does not need any peace negotiations with the NDFP. He continues to let his political agents in Congress push charter change for installing a fascist dictatorship as Marcos did in the past or for choosing a successor that will protect him from possible prosecution for human rights violations, plunder, and other grave crimes.
It is absolutely clear that Duterte is responsible for terminating and preventing peace negotiations. To him belongs the responsibility for accepting or refusing the consistent openness of the NDFP for peace negotiations.
By refusing to negotiate with the NDFP, it is absolutely clear that he is fixed on pursuing his all-out war against the Filipino people and their revolutionary forces. It is therefore entirely just for the sovereign people and their revolutionary movement to defend themselves and wage all forms of struggle against the Duterte regime.
But despite the counterrevolutionary violence, arrogance, and intransigence of the Duterte regime, the NDFP remains open to resuming the peace negotiations. It holds the view that peace negotiations might reduce or stop the human rights violations being perpetrated by the regime or might even lead to substantial reforms that contribute to laying the basis for a just peace.
But of course, time is fast running out for the Duterte regime to make agreements and implement these. It is now in its twilight years if the regime respects the 1987 Constitution of the GRP and does not amend it to install a fascist dictatorship. But I think that there is enough time to make CASER and implement it to a sufficient and dramatic extent before the Duterte regime ends if Duterte can give up his scheme of fascist dictatorship and can prevail upon his anti-peace and anti-CASER military subordinates not to sabotage the efforts to resume the peace negotiations.
What can the peace advocates do in the face of the current circumstances and what I estimate as to the dismal prospect for resuming peace negotiations before the end of the Duterte regime? I think that it remains their moral duty to persevere in the noble task of peace advocacy and to try to persuade or prevail upon the Duterte regime to engage the NDFP in peace negotiations. Most important of all, peace advocates must work to unify the people on the necessity of addressing the roots of the armed conflict and laying the foundation for a just peace through economic, social and political reforms agreed upon in the peace process.
Like the NDFP, the peace advocates cannot do anything to persuade the Duterte regime to negotiate if for whatever reason it refuses all the way to its very end. But the work is done and agreements made in previous negotiations since 1992 and the continuance and intensification of peace advocacy keep open the prospect of peace negotiations if not in the time of the Duterte regime, in the time of the next regime.
The previous achievements, in the form of agreements and accumulated experience and expertise in peace negotiations, remain on record and are not lost. In the future, they shall be the foundation for renewed peace negotiations between the NDFP and a new regime that is truly determined to strive for a just peace through economic, social and political reforms that address the roots of the armed conflict. Thank you.
https://ndfp.org/on-the-prospect-of-peace-negotiations-during-the-time-of-duterte-or-thereafter/
CPP: Larab | January 11, 2020
CPP-Eastern Visayas propaganda publication posted to the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) Website (Jan 15, 2020): Larab | January 11, 2020
JANUARY 15, 2020
JANUARY 15, 2020
CPP/NDF-Southern Tagalog: Hinggil sa pagputok ng Bulkang Taal
NDF-Southern Tagalog propaganda statement posted to the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) Website (Jan 14, 2020): Hinggil sa pagputok ng Bulkang Taal
PATNUBAY DE GUIA
NDF-SOUTHERN TAGALOG
NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC FRONT OF THE PHILIPPINES
JANUARY 14, 2020
Ang National Democratic Front of the Philippines-Southern Tagalog (NDFP-ST) ay nananawagan sa lahat ng mga kasaping organisasyon nito at mga kaibigan at kaalyado sa rehiyon na magsagawa ng mga relief operation at tumulong sa paglilikas ng iba pa nating mga kababayan na nasa baybaying bayan na nakapalibot sa Taal Lake na kinaroonan ng nag-aalburotong Taal Volcano. Itinaas na ng Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Philvocs) ang babala sa level 4 at nagsabi na anumang oras o araw ay magkaroon ng mapanganib na pagsabog ang bulkang Taal at kapag nasa alert level 5, ayon sa Philvocs, ay maaaring magdulot din ng volcanic tsunami ang pagputok ng bulkang Taal. Dahil sa ganitong sitwasyon, kailangan nating makapagmobilisa, sa mabilis na paraan na kakayanin, ng mga boluntir para agarang magsagawa ng mga paglilikas sa ating mga kababayan sa probinsya ng Batangas at kaalinsabay magpatupad ng mga relief operations sa mga pagdadalhang evacuation areas.
Inaatasan din ang lahat ng mga kasaping organisasyon na magbuo ng mga task forces na siyang magsisilbing coordinating body para pamunuan ang paglilikas at pagsasagawa ng mga relief operations. Ang iba naman ay dapat sumentro sa pangangalap ng mga damit, pagkain, gamot, tubig at ibang materyal na gagamitin sa mga evacuation areas.
May mga nauna na tayong plano at mga standard operating procedures (SOP) na otomatikong pinatutupad sa panahon ng mga kalamidad. Kailangan na lang itong balikan at rebyuhin ng bawat kasaping organisasyon ng NDFP-ST upang maisakatuparan ang mabilis, puspusan at episyenteng relief operations at iba pang humanitarian missions.
Maaaring sa darating pang mga araw ay lalong titindi pa ang pag-aalboruto ng bulkang Taal kaya ang ating mga pagsisikap sa pagtulong at pag-alalay sa ating mga kababayan ay magpapatuloy habang patuloy ding gumagampan ng ating mga rebolusyonaryong gawain. Dapat laging ipauna ang kapakanan at kagalingan ng taumbayan lalo na ang mga kababayan natin sa Batangas na ngayon ay nahaharap sa matinding panganib dulot sa posibilidad na anumang oras o araw, ayon sa Philvocs, ay maaaring mangyari ang isang malakas at mapaminsalang pagputok ng bulkang Taal. Bigyan natin ng nararapat na tugon at atensyon ang kanilang pangangailangan sa kagyat.
Ngayon pa lamang ay malawak na ang naging pinsala sa pananim at kabuhayan ng ating mga kababayang magsasaka at mangingisda sa mga bayan na nakapalibot sa Taal Lake, sa iba pang bayan ng Batangas at maging sa mga karatig probinsya ng Batangas dahil sa makapal na abo at buhangin na ibinuga mula sa pagputok ng bulkang Taal. Matindi ang gagawing rehabilitasyon sa mga lupaing agrikultural at lawa ng Taal na nabalot ng makakapal na abo at buhangin na binuga ng pagputok ng bulkang Taal. Dapat nating paghandaan at matamang pagplanuhan, sa mga susunod na mga araw, kung ano ang ating mga susunod na hakbang para makatulong sa rehabilitasyon ng mga nasirang kabuhayan ng ating mga kababayan sa Batangas.
Pinapaalalahanan din ang lahat na laging maging alerto at mapagmatyag sa patraydor na mga pag-atake ng reaksyunaryong tropa ng AFP at PNP, na walang pinipiling panahon kung umatake, kahit panahon ng mga kalamidad. Ugali na ng AFP at PNP na militarisasahin at birahin ang anumang mga humanitarian missions na isinasagawa ng rebolusyonaryong kilusan at maging ng mga progresibong organisasyon at grupo, ng mga grupong sibiko at taong simbahan dahil sa hindi nila kinikilala ang Comprehensive Agreement on the Respect of Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law (CARHRIHL) na pinirmahan ng GRP at NDFP nuong 1998 kabilang ang iba pang makataong batas sa ilalim ng international humanitarian law ng United Nations.###
https://cpp.ph/statement/hinggil-sa-pagputok-ng-bulkang-taal/
Ang National Democratic Front of the Philippines-Southern Tagalog (NDFP-ST) ay nananawagan sa lahat ng mga kasaping organisasyon nito at mga kaibigan at kaalyado sa rehiyon na magsagawa ng mga relief operation at tumulong sa paglilikas ng iba pa nating mga kababayan na nasa baybaying bayan na nakapalibot sa Taal Lake na kinaroonan ng nag-aalburotong Taal Volcano. Itinaas na ng Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Philvocs) ang babala sa level 4 at nagsabi na anumang oras o araw ay magkaroon ng mapanganib na pagsabog ang bulkang Taal at kapag nasa alert level 5, ayon sa Philvocs, ay maaaring magdulot din ng volcanic tsunami ang pagputok ng bulkang Taal. Dahil sa ganitong sitwasyon, kailangan nating makapagmobilisa, sa mabilis na paraan na kakayanin, ng mga boluntir para agarang magsagawa ng mga paglilikas sa ating mga kababayan sa probinsya ng Batangas at kaalinsabay magpatupad ng mga relief operations sa mga pagdadalhang evacuation areas.
Inaatasan din ang lahat ng mga kasaping organisasyon na magbuo ng mga task forces na siyang magsisilbing coordinating body para pamunuan ang paglilikas at pagsasagawa ng mga relief operations. Ang iba naman ay dapat sumentro sa pangangalap ng mga damit, pagkain, gamot, tubig at ibang materyal na gagamitin sa mga evacuation areas.
May mga nauna na tayong plano at mga standard operating procedures (SOP) na otomatikong pinatutupad sa panahon ng mga kalamidad. Kailangan na lang itong balikan at rebyuhin ng bawat kasaping organisasyon ng NDFP-ST upang maisakatuparan ang mabilis, puspusan at episyenteng relief operations at iba pang humanitarian missions.
Maaaring sa darating pang mga araw ay lalong titindi pa ang pag-aalboruto ng bulkang Taal kaya ang ating mga pagsisikap sa pagtulong at pag-alalay sa ating mga kababayan ay magpapatuloy habang patuloy ding gumagampan ng ating mga rebolusyonaryong gawain. Dapat laging ipauna ang kapakanan at kagalingan ng taumbayan lalo na ang mga kababayan natin sa Batangas na ngayon ay nahaharap sa matinding panganib dulot sa posibilidad na anumang oras o araw, ayon sa Philvocs, ay maaaring mangyari ang isang malakas at mapaminsalang pagputok ng bulkang Taal. Bigyan natin ng nararapat na tugon at atensyon ang kanilang pangangailangan sa kagyat.
Ngayon pa lamang ay malawak na ang naging pinsala sa pananim at kabuhayan ng ating mga kababayang magsasaka at mangingisda sa mga bayan na nakapalibot sa Taal Lake, sa iba pang bayan ng Batangas at maging sa mga karatig probinsya ng Batangas dahil sa makapal na abo at buhangin na ibinuga mula sa pagputok ng bulkang Taal. Matindi ang gagawing rehabilitasyon sa mga lupaing agrikultural at lawa ng Taal na nabalot ng makakapal na abo at buhangin na binuga ng pagputok ng bulkang Taal. Dapat nating paghandaan at matamang pagplanuhan, sa mga susunod na mga araw, kung ano ang ating mga susunod na hakbang para makatulong sa rehabilitasyon ng mga nasirang kabuhayan ng ating mga kababayan sa Batangas.
Pinapaalalahanan din ang lahat na laging maging alerto at mapagmatyag sa patraydor na mga pag-atake ng reaksyunaryong tropa ng AFP at PNP, na walang pinipiling panahon kung umatake, kahit panahon ng mga kalamidad. Ugali na ng AFP at PNP na militarisasahin at birahin ang anumang mga humanitarian missions na isinasagawa ng rebolusyonaryong kilusan at maging ng mga progresibong organisasyon at grupo, ng mga grupong sibiko at taong simbahan dahil sa hindi nila kinikilala ang Comprehensive Agreement on the Respect of Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law (CARHRIHL) na pinirmahan ng GRP at NDFP nuong 1998 kabilang ang iba pang makataong batas sa ilalim ng international humanitarian law ng United Nations.###
https://cpp.ph/statement/hinggil-sa-pagputok-ng-bulkang-taal/
CPP/NPA-Negros Island: Negrosanons realize the 3ID’s foolishness
NPA-Negros Island propaganda statement posted to the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) Website (Jan 14, 2020): Negrosanons realize the 3ID’s foolishness
JUANITO MAGBANUA
NPA-NEGROS ISLAND
APOLINARIO GATMAITAN COMMAND
NEW PEOPLE'S ARMY
JANUARY 14, 2020
The Philippine Army’s 3rd Infantry Division is a standing joke with its claim of resuming military operations as the holiday ceasefire ended last January 8, 2020. It never stopped spreading terror and harm in the countryside through military operations even during the recent ceasefire.
The Apolinario Gatmaitan Command of the New People’s Army (AGC-NPA) Regional Operational Command in Negros Island have immediately exposed the Armed Forces of the Philippines’ (AFP) defiance of their own suspension of military operations in Negros after the expiration of the ceasefire. In fact, there are additional reports from the field of more incidents of AFP violations during the ceasefire period.
The 3ID clearly underestimates the intelligence and wisdom of the Negrosanons and the Filipino people. While its top dogs and spin doctors desperately push their tale of NPA betrayal during ceasefire, the people are already aware of their deception.
All efforts of the 3ID are in vain as they gear towards impending failure. The US-Duterte regime shamelessly announced another extension of its pipedream of decimating the NPA to the end of Duterte’s term in 2022.
The US-Duterte regime is on a losing end but the people are not because they have their genuine army, the NPA, fighting for their aspirations for national liberation and democracy.
Capt. Cenon Pancito III of the 3ID go as far as putting a spin on NDFP senior adviser Luis Jalandoni’s words regarding ceasefire to sound knowledgeable of peace matters but his cluelessness is glaring.
Revolutionary armed struggle is growing strong along with the people’s struggles for their democratic rights and welfare exactly why Duterte is left with no choice but to entertain peace negotiations. In the absence of armed struggle, without the NPA, the Filipino people especially the broad toiling masses have no weapon against the ruling class of big compradors and landlords represented by Duterte.
The revolutionary movement and peace-loving people push for the resumption of peace talks to address the roots of armed conflict. Peace talks between the Government of the Republic of the Philippines (GRP) and the National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP) was sabotaged when panels of both parties were already discussing the heart of peace talks, the Comprehensive Agreement of Social and Economic Reforms.
In contrary, Duterte and militarist hawks in his cabinet peddles peace talks to coopt the revolutionary movement. They are surely foolish to think the Negrosanons and the Filipino people do not see beyond their treacherous schemes.
The NPA and the entire revolutionary forces have already shunned localized peace talks from the beginning. The AFP/PNP insists on it anyway because it is a huge source of corruption. Recycling the RPA-ABB as surrenderees is a show of defeat by the AFP like their digitally altered surrenderees in Bicol.
If the US-Duterte regime is insincere in peace talk efforts, the NPA and the entire revolutionary movement will continue to wage armed struggle to overthrow this tyrannical, fascist, traitorous and corrupt regime.
https://cpp.ph/statement/negrosanons-realize-the-3ids-foolishness/
The Apolinario Gatmaitan Command of the New People’s Army (AGC-NPA) Regional Operational Command in Negros Island have immediately exposed the Armed Forces of the Philippines’ (AFP) defiance of their own suspension of military operations in Negros after the expiration of the ceasefire. In fact, there are additional reports from the field of more incidents of AFP violations during the ceasefire period.
The 3ID clearly underestimates the intelligence and wisdom of the Negrosanons and the Filipino people. While its top dogs and spin doctors desperately push their tale of NPA betrayal during ceasefire, the people are already aware of their deception.
All efforts of the 3ID are in vain as they gear towards impending failure. The US-Duterte regime shamelessly announced another extension of its pipedream of decimating the NPA to the end of Duterte’s term in 2022.
The US-Duterte regime is on a losing end but the people are not because they have their genuine army, the NPA, fighting for their aspirations for national liberation and democracy.
Capt. Cenon Pancito III of the 3ID go as far as putting a spin on NDFP senior adviser Luis Jalandoni’s words regarding ceasefire to sound knowledgeable of peace matters but his cluelessness is glaring.
Revolutionary armed struggle is growing strong along with the people’s struggles for their democratic rights and welfare exactly why Duterte is left with no choice but to entertain peace negotiations. In the absence of armed struggle, without the NPA, the Filipino people especially the broad toiling masses have no weapon against the ruling class of big compradors and landlords represented by Duterte.
The revolutionary movement and peace-loving people push for the resumption of peace talks to address the roots of armed conflict. Peace talks between the Government of the Republic of the Philippines (GRP) and the National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP) was sabotaged when panels of both parties were already discussing the heart of peace talks, the Comprehensive Agreement of Social and Economic Reforms.
In contrary, Duterte and militarist hawks in his cabinet peddles peace talks to coopt the revolutionary movement. They are surely foolish to think the Negrosanons and the Filipino people do not see beyond their treacherous schemes.
The NPA and the entire revolutionary forces have already shunned localized peace talks from the beginning. The AFP/PNP insists on it anyway because it is a huge source of corruption. Recycling the RPA-ABB as surrenderees is a show of defeat by the AFP like their digitally altered surrenderees in Bicol.
If the US-Duterte regime is insincere in peace talk efforts, the NPA and the entire revolutionary movement will continue to wage armed struggle to overthrow this tyrannical, fascist, traitorous and corrupt regime.
https://cpp.ph/statement/negrosanons-realize-the-3ids-foolishness/
CPP/NPA-Negros Island: Police action sang Mt. Cansermon Command-NPA
NPA-Negros Island propaganda statement posted to the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) Website (Jan 14, 2020): Police action sang Mt. Cansermon Command-NPA
DIONESIO MAGBUELAS
NPA-NEGROS ISLAND
MT. CANSERMON COMMAND
NEW PEOPLE'S ARMY
JANUARY 14, 2020
GINDIS-ARMAHAN nga wala sang lupok sang NPA – Mt. Cansermon Command si Lorenzo Zayco Varela sadtong Enero 10, alas 8 sang gab-i sa iya nga balay sa Sitio Lower Balicaocao, Brgy. Urong, Kabankalan City, bangud sa iya nga kaso nga pagpalupok, pagpaniro gamit ang armas kag pagpamahog sa pumuluyo sa palibot.
Nakuha sa iya nga residensya ang 1 ka .22 kalibre nga riple, 2 ka shotgun, 2 ka 9mm nga pistola, 1 ka .357 cal nga pistola, 2 ka hand grenade, gatusan ka mga bala sa nagakalain-lain nga armas, kag mga iban pa nga kagamitan militar.
Sa amo nga panghitabo, wala ginhilabtan sang mga pulang hangaway ang mga personal nga kagamitan kaangay sang kwarta kag cellphone, lain sa mersenaryong AFP kag PNP nga luwas sa pagdakop sa mga inosenteng sibilyan, nagakuha pa gid sang libu-libo nga kwarta halin sa mga pumuluyo sa madamo nga higayon sa lain-lain nga bahin sa Negros kag sa bilog pungsod. ###
https://cpp.ph/statement/police-action-sang-mt-cansermon-command-npa/
GINDIS-ARMAHAN nga wala sang lupok sang NPA – Mt. Cansermon Command si Lorenzo Zayco Varela sadtong Enero 10, alas 8 sang gab-i sa iya nga balay sa Sitio Lower Balicaocao, Brgy. Urong, Kabankalan City, bangud sa iya nga kaso nga pagpalupok, pagpaniro gamit ang armas kag pagpamahog sa pumuluyo sa palibot.
Nakuha sa iya nga residensya ang 1 ka .22 kalibre nga riple, 2 ka shotgun, 2 ka 9mm nga pistola, 1 ka .357 cal nga pistola, 2 ka hand grenade, gatusan ka mga bala sa nagakalain-lain nga armas, kag mga iban pa nga kagamitan militar.
Sa amo nga panghitabo, wala ginhilabtan sang mga pulang hangaway ang mga personal nga kagamitan kaangay sang kwarta kag cellphone, lain sa mersenaryong AFP kag PNP nga luwas sa pagdakop sa mga inosenteng sibilyan, nagakuha pa gid sang libu-libo nga kwarta halin sa mga pumuluyo sa madamo nga higayon sa lain-lain nga bahin sa Negros kag sa bilog pungsod. ###
https://cpp.ph/statement/police-action-sang-mt-cansermon-command-npa/
CPP/NPA-Southern Panay: Ambush sang NPA sa mersenaryo nga RPA-ABB, madinalag-on nga natigayon
NPA-Southern Panay propaganda statement posted to the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) Website (Jan 14, 2020): Ambush sang NPA sa mersenaryo nga RPA-ABB, madinalag-on nga natigayon
ILAYA KANAWAY
NPA-SOUTHERN PANAY
NEW PEOPLE'S ARMY
JANUARY 14, 2020
Gin-ambush sang isa ka yunit sang New People’s Army, sa idalum sang Mt. Napulak Command sang Larangan 11, sa sur nga bahin sang Panay ang isa ka iskwad sang RPA-ABB. Nagalakat ang mga ini pabalik sa ila ginaistaran nga balay sa Brgy. Jawod, San Joaquin matapos magpakitang-gilas sa fiesta sang Brgy. Camia, San Joaquin, Iloilo, mga alas 4 ang takna sa hapon. Naglawig sang 7 ka minutos ang pagbayluhayanay sang lupok. Nagresulta ini sa 4 ka kaswalidad sa bahin sang RPA-ABB kun sa diin 3 ang pilason kag 1 ang patay. Sa nagkalapilasan, 2 ang nakilal-an nga sanday Ramie Cataluna Y Carnaje, 34 anyos sang Brgy. Danao, Janiuay, Iloilo kag ang isa ginatawag nga si Chief Nilo. Ang isa nga napatay gindala sa isa ka punerarya sa banwa sang San Joaquin kag gintago ang identidad sini. Samtang sa bahin sang NPA, matapos ang halos isa ka oras nga pag-clear sang erya, nakakuha sang granada, magazine kag mga bala kag hilway nga naka-atras nga wala man sang nasamaran.
Ang ini nga aksyon militar amo ang sabat sa mabaskog nga demanda sang pumuluyo nga silutan ang RPA-ABB sa malawig na nila nga rekord sang kalainan nga ginpanghimo. Lakip na diri ang pagpamahog, pagpanakit, mga malala nga kaso sang pagpangawat sang kasapatan sang masang mangunguma pareho sang baka kag karabaw, pagpanglugos sa isa ka babayi nga menor de edad kag madamo nga kaso sang pagpamatay.
Sa nasambit nga hitabo, may pipila nga nakulbaan nga balikan sang RPA-ABB apang mas matunog ang hinugyaw sang mga masa nga nagakinalipay sa sini nga kadalag-an.
Ang ini nga aksyon militar sang NPA nagapaabot sang mabaskog nga mensahe nga indi san-o man maga-ekseher ang mga kontra pumuluyo nga mga grupo kaangay sang RPA-ABB samtang ang New People’s Army padayon nga magapanindugan sa kahustuhan kag magadampig sa interes sang malapad nga pumuluyong ginapigos kag ginahimuslan.
https://cpp.ph/statement/ambush-sang-npa-sa-mersenaryo-nga-rpa-abb-madinalag-on-nga-natigayon/
Gin-ambush sang isa ka yunit sang New People’s Army, sa idalum sang Mt. Napulak Command sang Larangan 11, sa sur nga bahin sang Panay ang isa ka iskwad sang RPA-ABB. Nagalakat ang mga ini pabalik sa ila ginaistaran nga balay sa Brgy. Jawod, San Joaquin matapos magpakitang-gilas sa fiesta sang Brgy. Camia, San Joaquin, Iloilo, mga alas 4 ang takna sa hapon. Naglawig sang 7 ka minutos ang pagbayluhayanay sang lupok. Nagresulta ini sa 4 ka kaswalidad sa bahin sang RPA-ABB kun sa diin 3 ang pilason kag 1 ang patay. Sa nagkalapilasan, 2 ang nakilal-an nga sanday Ramie Cataluna Y Carnaje, 34 anyos sang Brgy. Danao, Janiuay, Iloilo kag ang isa ginatawag nga si Chief Nilo. Ang isa nga napatay gindala sa isa ka punerarya sa banwa sang San Joaquin kag gintago ang identidad sini. Samtang sa bahin sang NPA, matapos ang halos isa ka oras nga pag-clear sang erya, nakakuha sang granada, magazine kag mga bala kag hilway nga naka-atras nga wala man sang nasamaran.
Ang ini nga aksyon militar amo ang sabat sa mabaskog nga demanda sang pumuluyo nga silutan ang RPA-ABB sa malawig na nila nga rekord sang kalainan nga ginpanghimo. Lakip na diri ang pagpamahog, pagpanakit, mga malala nga kaso sang pagpangawat sang kasapatan sang masang mangunguma pareho sang baka kag karabaw, pagpanglugos sa isa ka babayi nga menor de edad kag madamo nga kaso sang pagpamatay.
Sa nasambit nga hitabo, may pipila nga nakulbaan nga balikan sang RPA-ABB apang mas matunog ang hinugyaw sang mga masa nga nagakinalipay sa sini nga kadalag-an.
Ang ini nga aksyon militar sang NPA nagapaabot sang mabaskog nga mensahe nga indi san-o man maga-ekseher ang mga kontra pumuluyo nga mga grupo kaangay sang RPA-ABB samtang ang New People’s Army padayon nga magapanindugan sa kahustuhan kag magadampig sa interes sang malapad nga pumuluyong ginapigos kag ginahimuslan.
https://cpp.ph/statement/ambush-sang-npa-sa-mersenaryo-nga-rpa-abb-madinalag-on-nga-natigayon/
CPP/NPA-Abra: Sibilyan iti Sallapadan,Abra liplipiten ken alallilawen ti Joint AFP-PNP Oplan Kapanatagan!
NPA-Abra propaganda statement posted to the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) Website (Jan 16, 2020): Sibilyan iti Sallapadan,Abra liplipiten ken alallilawen ti Joint AFP-PNP Oplan Kapanatagan!
FLORENCIO BALUGA
JANUARY 17, 2020
Nainget a kondenaren ti kabaroanan manen a panangliplipit ti AFP-PNP kadagiti umili ti Bgy. Ud-udiao, Bgy. Bazar, ken Bgy. Naguilyan Sallapadan, Abra. Dagiti 17 a sibilyan ket saan a kameng ti NPA-Milisyang Bayan. Isuda ket sibilyan a sigud Bgy. Kapitan, Bgy. Kagawad, tanod, pastor ti relihiyon, ken kameng dagiti tradisyonal nga organisasyon ti mannalon ken kababaihan.
Saan a makatao ti aramid ti 24th IB ken Abra PNP kadagiti sibilyan. Babaen iti Oplan-Kapanatagan – EO70 – NTF-ELCAC gapu ta piliten, allilawen, ken pangtaan da dagiti sibilyan tapno aklonen ti awanan basaran a pammabasol kas NPA inggana iparang isuda kas surenderi. Nayon pay, dakkel a pagkurakotan daytoy dagiti opisyal ti militar ken pulis babaen iti bilyon a pondo ti E-CLIP.
Agarup dinominggo a papaayaban da dagiti sibilyan tapno mainteroga ken kariyan da ti “cash grant” tapno agsurender, sa da awisen nga agisuko ti paltog ken agbalin a CI. Uray dagiti kameng ti LGU ken sibilyan nga ahensya ti gubyerno ket pinagbalin ti militar kas instrumento ti panangiyablat ti ranggas ken kurap nga E-CLIP.
Ti New People’s Army ket nabayagen lumablaban iti narungsot a gubyerno a tengngel dagiti agum nga imperyalista, apo’t daga, ken burukrata-kapitalista. Ti NPA ket mangirusruswat ti armado a pannakidangadang tapno lappedan dagiti gangganaet a kumpanya ti minas, dam, logging ken geothermal. Nainkalintegan ti ilablaban ti NPA!
Apay a kayat ti gubyerno a pasurenderen ti NPA? Ken apay a liplipiten ti gubyerno dagiti umili? Tapno awanen ti mangdillaw iti kurapsyon, tapno makontrol da amin a natural a kinabaknang ti Kordilyera ken intero a Pilipinas, sa da ilako kadagiti amo da nga imperyalista.
Ngarud, ti panawagan ti ABC-NPA-Abra kadagiti umili ken makabayan a pulitiko iti Abra ket reppeten ti panagkaykaysa, irupir ti karbengan-tao, ibutaktak ken supyaten ti pasista a turay ni Duterte!
Ti kinadamsak ti rehimen US-Duterte ken dagiti ramramay na ket nasken laeng a singeren ken dusaen babaen iti rebolusyonaryo nga hustisya!
LABANAN KEN PAAYEN TI OPLAN- KAPANATAGAN!!!
IBAGSAK TI PASISTA A TURAY A US-DUTERTE!!!
IPINGET KEN IYABANTE TI GUBAT TI UMILI, INGGANA’T BALLIGI!!!
TUMIPON ITI ARMADO A DANGADANG!!!
SUMAMPA ITI NEW PEOPLE’S ARMY!!!
https://cpp.ph/statement/sibilyan-iti-sallapadanabra-liplipiten-ken-alallilawen-ti-joint-afp-pnp-oplan-kapanatagan/
SPOKESPERSON
NPA-ABRA
NEW PEOPLE'S ARMY
JANUARY 17, 2020
Nainget a kondenaren ti kabaroanan manen a panangliplipit ti AFP-PNP kadagiti umili ti Bgy. Ud-udiao, Bgy. Bazar, ken Bgy. Naguilyan Sallapadan, Abra. Dagiti 17 a sibilyan ket saan a kameng ti NPA-Milisyang Bayan. Isuda ket sibilyan a sigud Bgy. Kapitan, Bgy. Kagawad, tanod, pastor ti relihiyon, ken kameng dagiti tradisyonal nga organisasyon ti mannalon ken kababaihan.
Saan a makatao ti aramid ti 24th IB ken Abra PNP kadagiti sibilyan. Babaen iti Oplan-Kapanatagan – EO70 – NTF-ELCAC gapu ta piliten, allilawen, ken pangtaan da dagiti sibilyan tapno aklonen ti awanan basaran a pammabasol kas NPA inggana iparang isuda kas surenderi. Nayon pay, dakkel a pagkurakotan daytoy dagiti opisyal ti militar ken pulis babaen iti bilyon a pondo ti E-CLIP.
Agarup dinominggo a papaayaban da dagiti sibilyan tapno mainteroga ken kariyan da ti “cash grant” tapno agsurender, sa da awisen nga agisuko ti paltog ken agbalin a CI. Uray dagiti kameng ti LGU ken sibilyan nga ahensya ti gubyerno ket pinagbalin ti militar kas instrumento ti panangiyablat ti ranggas ken kurap nga E-CLIP.
Ti New People’s Army ket nabayagen lumablaban iti narungsot a gubyerno a tengngel dagiti agum nga imperyalista, apo’t daga, ken burukrata-kapitalista. Ti NPA ket mangirusruswat ti armado a pannakidangadang tapno lappedan dagiti gangganaet a kumpanya ti minas, dam, logging ken geothermal. Nainkalintegan ti ilablaban ti NPA!
Apay a kayat ti gubyerno a pasurenderen ti NPA? Ken apay a liplipiten ti gubyerno dagiti umili? Tapno awanen ti mangdillaw iti kurapsyon, tapno makontrol da amin a natural a kinabaknang ti Kordilyera ken intero a Pilipinas, sa da ilako kadagiti amo da nga imperyalista.
Ngarud, ti panawagan ti ABC-NPA-Abra kadagiti umili ken makabayan a pulitiko iti Abra ket reppeten ti panagkaykaysa, irupir ti karbengan-tao, ibutaktak ken supyaten ti pasista a turay ni Duterte!
Ti kinadamsak ti rehimen US-Duterte ken dagiti ramramay na ket nasken laeng a singeren ken dusaen babaen iti rebolusyonaryo nga hustisya!
LABANAN KEN PAAYEN TI OPLAN- KAPANATAGAN!!!
IBAGSAK TI PASISTA A TURAY A US-DUTERTE!!!
IPINGET KEN IYABANTE TI GUBAT TI UMILI, INGGANA’T BALLIGI!!!
TUMIPON ITI ARMADO A DANGADANG!!!
SUMAMPA ITI NEW PEOPLE’S ARMY!!!
https://cpp.ph/statement/sibilyan-iti-sallapadanabra-liplipiten-ken-alallilawen-ti-joint-afp-pnp-oplan-kapanatagan/
CPP/NDF-Ilocos: Dinastiyang Marcos, binabaluktot ang kasaysayan sa tulong ng rehimeng Duterte
NDF-Ilocos propaganda statement posted to the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) Website (Jan 16, 2020): Dinastiyang Marcos, binabaluktot ang kasaysayan sa tulong ng rehimeng Duterte
KA ROSA GUIDON
JANUARY 16, 2020
Sagadsaring reaksyunaryo at rebisyunista ang muling pamamayagpag ng pamilyang Marcos na baguhin ang mga aral ng kasaysayan ngunit ang rebolusyonaryong pwersang Pilipino ang muling makikibaka para ituwid at hadlangan ang kanilang mga maniobra.
Sa pagpasok ng taong 2020, matapos ang bigong panukala noong nakaraang taon na ipangalan sa kriminal-diktador na si Ferdinand Marcos ang Mariano Marcos State University sa Ilocos Norte, muling umaatungal si Bongbong Marcos na dapat palitan ang itinuturo sa mga libro ng kasaysayan sa dahil biktima sila diumano ng kasinungalingan. Hindi makakalampas sa pagsusuri ng mamamayang Pilipino ang desperadong hakbang na ito nina Bongbong at Imee Marcos. Una sa lahat, sa panukala pa lamang ng senadora noong 2019 na palitan ang pangalan ng nasabing mayor na pamantasan, malinaw nang hindi simpleng pangalan ang gustong babuyin ng mga Marcos. Kaakibat nito ay ang layuning ipasa sa mga kabataang estudyante ang isang nirebisang bersyon ng kasaysayan.
Sa pamamagitan ng pangkolehiyong edukasyon at ng ‘iwinastong’ mga aklat ng kasaysayan, nalilikha ng mga Marcos ang pagkakataon para sistematikong ‘linisin’ ang kanilang pangalan. Sinimulan na nila ito noong Diktadurang Marcos, kabilang ang paglilinis sa pangalan ng lolo nilang si Mariano Marcos na kilalang nakipagsabwatan sa mga mananakop na Hapones kung kaya pinarusahan ng mga rebolusyonaryong Pilipino. Ngunit hindi mapagtakpan ng mga institusyon at imprastrukturang ipinangalan sa kanya ang kanyang kataksilan, lalo dahil tuloy-tuloy ang pagsasamantala ng kanyang angkan sa malawak na masa ng Ilocandia.
Bigong pakana din ng pamilya ng magnanakaw na likhain ang ilusyon ng isang Solid North sa pamamagitan ng dalawang pamantasan, isa sa Ilocos Norte at isa sa La Union, na nakapangalan sa pamilyang Marcos. Ngunit matagal nang nabasag ang ilusyong ito. Bukod sa iba’t ibang pampulitikang dinastiya ang umiiral at nagbabanggaan sa rehiyon ng Ilocos, tumitindi at lumalawak ang paglaban ng mamamayang Ilokano sa pamilyang Marcos na nagdulot at patuloy pa din nagdudulot ng pangekonomyang kahirapan at pampulitikang panunupil sa kanila.
Pangalawa, kasabay ng mga pagsisikap na ito ng mga Marcos, sunod-sunod na ibinasura ng Sandiganbayan noong 2019 ang mga plunder case laban sa kanila. Pinakahuli dito ang Php200 bilyong kaso na panglima sa inabswelto ng Sandiganbayan sa loob ng limang buwan. Ang pahayag ng mga Marcos na napatunayan nang ‘inosente’ ang kanilang pamilya ay isang malaking insulto sa milyon-milyong biktima ng kanilang pandarambong.
Matagal nang malinaw sa mamamayang Pilipino na mailap ang katarungan sa isang lipunang bulok at pinaghaharian ng iilan. Hindi sinasalamin ng mga desisyon ng Sandiganbayan ang katotohanang nasa 10 bilyong dolyar ang ninakaw ng pamilyang Marcos at kanilang mga kroni mula sa kabang bayan noong panahon ng diktadurang Marcos. Lalong hindi sinasalamin ng mahinang ebidensya ng Presidential Commission on Good Government ang maigting na pakikibaka ng mamamayang Pilipino para mapanagot ang pamilyang Marcos—hindi lamang sa usapin ng pandarambong kundi maski sa paglabag nito sa karapatang pantao ng laksang masa kabilang na ng rehiyon ng Ilocos. Hindi katotohanan at katarungan ang sinasalamin ng mga kapasyahang ito, sampu ng pagpanig ng rehimeng Duterte sa kanyang kapwa pasista-kriminal, kundi ang pagsisikap ng pamilyang Marcos na palabasing sila ang biktima ng kasaysayan.
Pangatlo, patuloy ang paggigiit ng talunang si Bongbong na makaupo bilang bise-presidente ng bulok na gobyerno sa pamamagitan ng isang electoral protest. Kung papaboran ng Korte Suprema, tuluyan nang makakapanumbalik sa pwesto ang pamilyang Marcos kung saan pinakapaborable ang posisyon para pabanguhing muli ang kanilang apelyido.
Malinaw na malaki ang kagyat at pangmatagalang ganansya ng pamilyang Marcos sa pakikipagkaibigan nito sa rehimeng Duterte. Sa kabilang banda, may signipikante din namang mapapala si Rodrigo Duterte sa pagbabalik ng pamilyang Marcos sa kapangyarihan, pinakamahalaga na ay ang garantiyang hindi siya malilitis sa kanyang mga kasalanan kung papalit bilang pangulo ng bansa si Bongbong Marcos.
Mahigit tatlong dekada bago ngayon, pinalayas na ng masang Pilipino ang diktador na si Ferdinand Marcos. Niloloko ng pamilyang Marcos at ni Duterte ang kanilang mga sarili kung iniisip nilang hindi magbabalikwas ang mamamayan laban sa kasalukuyan nilang mga pakana. Sa mismong rehiyon ng Ilocos, kung saan ipinipilit ng mga Marcos na mayroong Solid North, marami ang bumabatikos sa kanilang pampulitikang dinastiya. Halimbawa, maraming pamilyang nagtatanim ng tabako ang tumutuligsa sa pandarambong ni Imee Marcos sa pamamagitan ng pork barrel na P-IMEE o Programang Ikauunlad ng Mamamayan Ekonomya at Ekolohiya. Kasabay nito, hindi wastong naipapamahagi sa mga magsasaka ang excise fund mula sa buwis sa tabako, gayundin ang calamity fund para sa mga biktima ng sunod-sunod na bagyo noong nakaraang taon. May sariling tatak ng pandarambong ang kasalukuyang henerasyon ng mga Marcos.
Pilit na binubura ng mga Marcos at ni Duterte ang mga aral ng kasaysayan ngunit nakahanda ang masang Pilipino na bigyan sila ng leksyon. Sasalubungin ng pagkilos ang bawat pagpabor ni Duterte sa pamilya ng idolo niyang pasista-diktador. Magpapatuloy ang mga protesta para bigyang-linaw ang bawat kasinungalingang lumalabas sa bibig ng pamilyang Marcos. Bubuhos sa kalsada ang laksa-laksang mamamayan para tutulan ang kalokohang makatapak muli sa Malacañang ang pamilyang tumatangging pagbayaran ang kanilang mga kasalanan sa taumbayan. At sa tiyak na ganting panunupil ng rehimen laban sa mamamayan, nakahanda ang Bagong Hukbong Bayan na paputukin ang mga taktikal na opensiba para iguhit ang aral na may rebolusyonaryong hukbo na magtatanggol sa masang Pilipino.
Malinaw na naiguhit sa kasaysayan na lagi’t laging hahakbang ang mamamayan para wakasan ang pandarambong at paglabag sa kanilang mga karapatang sibil at pantao. At sa pangalawang pagkakataon, hindi mangingiming ulitin ng masang Pilipino ang aral na ito para tuluyang makamit ang katarungan na hanggang ngayon ay kanilang kolektibong ipinaglalaban. ###
https://cpp.ph/statement/dinastiyang-marcos-binabaluktot-ang-kasaysayan-sa-tulong-ng-rehimeng-duterte/
TAGAPAGSALITA
NDFP ILOCOS
NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC FRONT OF THE PHILIPPINES
JANUARY 16, 2020
Sagadsaring reaksyunaryo at rebisyunista ang muling pamamayagpag ng pamilyang Marcos na baguhin ang mga aral ng kasaysayan ngunit ang rebolusyonaryong pwersang Pilipino ang muling makikibaka para ituwid at hadlangan ang kanilang mga maniobra.
Sa pagpasok ng taong 2020, matapos ang bigong panukala noong nakaraang taon na ipangalan sa kriminal-diktador na si Ferdinand Marcos ang Mariano Marcos State University sa Ilocos Norte, muling umaatungal si Bongbong Marcos na dapat palitan ang itinuturo sa mga libro ng kasaysayan sa dahil biktima sila diumano ng kasinungalingan. Hindi makakalampas sa pagsusuri ng mamamayang Pilipino ang desperadong hakbang na ito nina Bongbong at Imee Marcos. Una sa lahat, sa panukala pa lamang ng senadora noong 2019 na palitan ang pangalan ng nasabing mayor na pamantasan, malinaw nang hindi simpleng pangalan ang gustong babuyin ng mga Marcos. Kaakibat nito ay ang layuning ipasa sa mga kabataang estudyante ang isang nirebisang bersyon ng kasaysayan.
Sa pamamagitan ng pangkolehiyong edukasyon at ng ‘iwinastong’ mga aklat ng kasaysayan, nalilikha ng mga Marcos ang pagkakataon para sistematikong ‘linisin’ ang kanilang pangalan. Sinimulan na nila ito noong Diktadurang Marcos, kabilang ang paglilinis sa pangalan ng lolo nilang si Mariano Marcos na kilalang nakipagsabwatan sa mga mananakop na Hapones kung kaya pinarusahan ng mga rebolusyonaryong Pilipino. Ngunit hindi mapagtakpan ng mga institusyon at imprastrukturang ipinangalan sa kanya ang kanyang kataksilan, lalo dahil tuloy-tuloy ang pagsasamantala ng kanyang angkan sa malawak na masa ng Ilocandia.
Bigong pakana din ng pamilya ng magnanakaw na likhain ang ilusyon ng isang Solid North sa pamamagitan ng dalawang pamantasan, isa sa Ilocos Norte at isa sa La Union, na nakapangalan sa pamilyang Marcos. Ngunit matagal nang nabasag ang ilusyong ito. Bukod sa iba’t ibang pampulitikang dinastiya ang umiiral at nagbabanggaan sa rehiyon ng Ilocos, tumitindi at lumalawak ang paglaban ng mamamayang Ilokano sa pamilyang Marcos na nagdulot at patuloy pa din nagdudulot ng pangekonomyang kahirapan at pampulitikang panunupil sa kanila.
Pangalawa, kasabay ng mga pagsisikap na ito ng mga Marcos, sunod-sunod na ibinasura ng Sandiganbayan noong 2019 ang mga plunder case laban sa kanila. Pinakahuli dito ang Php200 bilyong kaso na panglima sa inabswelto ng Sandiganbayan sa loob ng limang buwan. Ang pahayag ng mga Marcos na napatunayan nang ‘inosente’ ang kanilang pamilya ay isang malaking insulto sa milyon-milyong biktima ng kanilang pandarambong.
Matagal nang malinaw sa mamamayang Pilipino na mailap ang katarungan sa isang lipunang bulok at pinaghaharian ng iilan. Hindi sinasalamin ng mga desisyon ng Sandiganbayan ang katotohanang nasa 10 bilyong dolyar ang ninakaw ng pamilyang Marcos at kanilang mga kroni mula sa kabang bayan noong panahon ng diktadurang Marcos. Lalong hindi sinasalamin ng mahinang ebidensya ng Presidential Commission on Good Government ang maigting na pakikibaka ng mamamayang Pilipino para mapanagot ang pamilyang Marcos—hindi lamang sa usapin ng pandarambong kundi maski sa paglabag nito sa karapatang pantao ng laksang masa kabilang na ng rehiyon ng Ilocos. Hindi katotohanan at katarungan ang sinasalamin ng mga kapasyahang ito, sampu ng pagpanig ng rehimeng Duterte sa kanyang kapwa pasista-kriminal, kundi ang pagsisikap ng pamilyang Marcos na palabasing sila ang biktima ng kasaysayan.
Pangatlo, patuloy ang paggigiit ng talunang si Bongbong na makaupo bilang bise-presidente ng bulok na gobyerno sa pamamagitan ng isang electoral protest. Kung papaboran ng Korte Suprema, tuluyan nang makakapanumbalik sa pwesto ang pamilyang Marcos kung saan pinakapaborable ang posisyon para pabanguhing muli ang kanilang apelyido.
Malinaw na malaki ang kagyat at pangmatagalang ganansya ng pamilyang Marcos sa pakikipagkaibigan nito sa rehimeng Duterte. Sa kabilang banda, may signipikante din namang mapapala si Rodrigo Duterte sa pagbabalik ng pamilyang Marcos sa kapangyarihan, pinakamahalaga na ay ang garantiyang hindi siya malilitis sa kanyang mga kasalanan kung papalit bilang pangulo ng bansa si Bongbong Marcos.
Mahigit tatlong dekada bago ngayon, pinalayas na ng masang Pilipino ang diktador na si Ferdinand Marcos. Niloloko ng pamilyang Marcos at ni Duterte ang kanilang mga sarili kung iniisip nilang hindi magbabalikwas ang mamamayan laban sa kasalukuyan nilang mga pakana. Sa mismong rehiyon ng Ilocos, kung saan ipinipilit ng mga Marcos na mayroong Solid North, marami ang bumabatikos sa kanilang pampulitikang dinastiya. Halimbawa, maraming pamilyang nagtatanim ng tabako ang tumutuligsa sa pandarambong ni Imee Marcos sa pamamagitan ng pork barrel na P-IMEE o Programang Ikauunlad ng Mamamayan Ekonomya at Ekolohiya. Kasabay nito, hindi wastong naipapamahagi sa mga magsasaka ang excise fund mula sa buwis sa tabako, gayundin ang calamity fund para sa mga biktima ng sunod-sunod na bagyo noong nakaraang taon. May sariling tatak ng pandarambong ang kasalukuyang henerasyon ng mga Marcos.
Pilit na binubura ng mga Marcos at ni Duterte ang mga aral ng kasaysayan ngunit nakahanda ang masang Pilipino na bigyan sila ng leksyon. Sasalubungin ng pagkilos ang bawat pagpabor ni Duterte sa pamilya ng idolo niyang pasista-diktador. Magpapatuloy ang mga protesta para bigyang-linaw ang bawat kasinungalingang lumalabas sa bibig ng pamilyang Marcos. Bubuhos sa kalsada ang laksa-laksang mamamayan para tutulan ang kalokohang makatapak muli sa Malacañang ang pamilyang tumatangging pagbayaran ang kanilang mga kasalanan sa taumbayan. At sa tiyak na ganting panunupil ng rehimen laban sa mamamayan, nakahanda ang Bagong Hukbong Bayan na paputukin ang mga taktikal na opensiba para iguhit ang aral na may rebolusyonaryong hukbo na magtatanggol sa masang Pilipino.
Malinaw na naiguhit sa kasaysayan na lagi’t laging hahakbang ang mamamayan para wakasan ang pandarambong at paglabag sa kanilang mga karapatang sibil at pantao. At sa pangalawang pagkakataon, hindi mangingiming ulitin ng masang Pilipino ang aral na ito para tuluyang makamit ang katarungan na hanggang ngayon ay kanilang kolektibong ipinaglalaban. ###
https://cpp.ph/statement/dinastiyang-marcos-binabaluktot-ang-kasaysayan-sa-tulong-ng-rehimeng-duterte/
CPP/NDF-Southern Tagalog: Bukas na liham sa mga mamamayan sa Batangas na nasalanta ng pagputok ng bulkang Taal
NDF-Southern Tagalog propaganda statement posted to the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) Website (Jan 15, 2020): Bukas na liham sa mga mamamayan sa Batangas na nasalanta ng pagputok ng bulkang Taal
JANUARY 15, 2020
Para sa mahal naming mga kababayan sa Batangas at mga karatig probinsya nito:
Ang National Democratic Front of the Philippines-Southern Tagalog (NDFP-ST) at mga kaalyadong organisasyon nito sa rehiyon ay karamay at kaisa ng mga kababayan nating nasalanta at naapektuhan ng pagputok ng bulkang Taal. Tagos sa aming puso’t isipan ang hirap at sakit na inyong nadarama sa kasalukuyan at maging ang labis ninyong pag-aalala sa inyong mga naiwang ari-arian, mga alagang hayop, pananim at iba pang kabuhayan. Sa pamamagitan ng mga kaalyadong organisasyon at mga kaibigan ng NDFP-ST, gumawa ito ng mga paraan paano makakatulong mula sa aktwal na paglilikas, pangangalap ng mga pagkain, tubig, gamot, materyal at iba pang pangangailangan ng mga nagsilikas nating mga kababayan. Ang mga naorganisang boluntir ng NDFP-ST ay naruon na sa lugar at sa kasalukuyang naghahatid ng tulong sa mga nasalanta nating kababayan.
Umaapela na rin ang NDFP-ST sa lahat ng ating mga kababayan na magkaloob ng anumang tulong para sa mga nasalanta at naapektuhan ng pagputok ng bulkang Taal. Higit sa anupaman ay sumalig tayo sa sariling lakas, pagsasama-sama at pagdadamayan upang harapin at makabangon mula sa trahedyang dulot ng natural na kalamidad.
Patuloy pang nakataas ang babala ng Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Philvocs) na sa anumang oras o mga araw maaaring mapanganib na pumutok ang bulkang Taal at magdulot pa ito ng tinatawag ng Philvocs na volcanic tsunami. Pinapayuhan namin ang lahat ng ating mga kababayan na agaran nang magsilikas lalo na ang mga naninirahan sa tinaguriang mapanganib na mga lugar (danger zones). Ang iba pang mga boluntir ng NDFP-ST ay nagsitungo na rin sa lugar upang tumulong at maisagawa ang organisadong paglilikas sa ating mga kababayan na naiipit pa sa mga mapanganib na lugar dahil sa mabagal na pagdating ng tulong mula sa gubyernong Duterte at kakapusan naman ng mga lokal na gubyerno.
Sa harap ng kainutilan ng gubyernong Duterte na mabilis na ihatid ang tulong sa mga nasalanta ng pagputok ng bulkang Taal, nauna pang magpadala ang lokal na pamahalaan ng Pampanga ng 50 sasakyang convoy ng mga medical volunteers at rescue teams, mga gamot, 8,000 food packs at iba pang pangangailangan ng mga biktima habang si Gobernador Suarez ng Quezon ay isang 7-kataong rescue team lamang ang ipinagmamalaking naipadala nya.
Ang pagputok ng bulkang Taal ay may pangmatagalang epekto sa pananim at iba pang kabuhayan ng mga magsasaka, manggagawang bukid, mangingisda at iba pa lalo na yaong umaasa ang kabuhayan sa lawa ng Taal gayundin sa komersyo at iba pang pang-ekonomiyang aktibidad sa probinsya. Ang abo at buhangin na ibinuga ng pagputok ng bulkang Taal ay sisira sa kabahayan, sa libong ektarya ng pananim ng mga magsasaka hindi lamang sa mga bayang nakapalibot sa lawa ng Taal kundi maging sa kalapit na bayan sa loob ng probinsya ng Batangas, mga bayan sa hangganan ng Cavite, Laguna, Quezon at sa islang probinsya ng Mindoro. Napakalaki na din ang dinulot na pinsala sa mga fishpens/fish cages na nasa sa lawa ng Taal kung saan libong mangingisda ang apektado ang kabuhayan. May ulat na apektado din ang kita ng mga mangingisda sa mga baybaying dagat sa kanlurang Batangas hanggang sa dulong norte ng dalawang probinsya ng Mindoro dulot ng buga ng abo at buhangin ng pagputok ng bulkang Taal.
Sa ganitong kalagayan, hindi lamang nakatuon ang pansin ng NDFP-ST sa kagyat na pagtulong sa paglilikas at pagsasagawa ng mga relief operations sa mga nasalanta ng kalamidad dulot ng pagputok ng bulkang Taal. Nakatuon na rin ang atensyon ng NDFP-ST sa kasunod na yugto—ang rehabilitasyon. Sa katunayan, may mga inisyal na plano nang nabuo ang pamunuan ng NDFP-ST at mga magkakaalyadong organisasyon sa ilalim nito kung paano makakatulong sa gagawing pangmatagalang rehabilitasyon at pagbabangon muli ng kabuhayan ng mga nasalanta sa pagputok ng bulkang Taal.
Titiyakin ng rebolusyonaryong kilusan, sa abot ng kanyang makakaya, na maihatid sa taumbayang nasalanta at naapektuhan ng pagputok ng bulkang Taal ang mga kinakailangang tulong para sa rehabilitasyon ng kanilang mga nasirang kabahayan at kabuhayan. Batid namin na napakabigat na pasanin ang usapin ng rehabilitasyon. Bilyong halaga ang kailangan. Pero naniniwala kami na kapag malakas at masigla ang pagtutulungan at damayan nating lahat, kabilang ng iba pa nating mga kababayan sa Luzon, Visayas, Mindanao at mga nasa ibayong dagat, kakayanin nating makaalpas at makabangon muli sa pinsalang dulot ng pagputok ng bulkang Taal.
Subalit kailangan nating kumilos at makibaka upang ipanawagan at igiit sa gubyernong Duterte na laanan ng malaking pondo ang pagtulong at rehabilitasyon sa mga nasalanta at naapektuhan ng pagputok ng bulkang Taal. Ipanawagan na ibaling ang pondong nakalaan sa militar at kapulisan tungong pondo sa relief at rehabilitation programs nito. Nasasayang lang ang pondo ng bayan na nakalaan sa AFP at PNP sa bigong gyera kontra iligal na droga nito at sa pondong ginagamit sa mga operasyong militar ng mga ito na ang tanging napipinsala ay mga inosenteng sibilyan at kabuhayan ng mamamayan.
Kailangan ding itaas ang pagmamatyag ng mamamayan sa mga tiwaling pulitiko at upisyal ng reaksyunaryong gubyerno na sasamantalahin ang kalamidad na ito upang magkaroon ng opurtunidad na ibulsa ang milyun-milyong calamity fund na para sa mamamayan.
Kailangang magkaisa, kumilos at makibaka ang taumbayan para ipanawagan ang matagalang moratorium sa pagbabayad ng mga magsasaka sa upa sa lupa sa mga panginoong maylupa, sa taunang pagbayad sa certificate of land ownership award (CLOA) sa ilalim ng bogus na repormang agraryo ng pasistang rehimeng US-Duterte at sa pagbayad ng kanilang pagkakautang at paniningil mula sa mga institusyong pinansyal at financial cooperatives. Lalong kailangang ngayon ng kilusang masa na isulong at i-pursige ang mga pakikibaka para sa pagkakaroon ng trabaho, disenteng hanapbuhay, nakabubuhay na sahod, libre at murang pabahay, pagpapababa ng presyo ng mga pangunahing bilihin at mura at abot kamay na serbisyong pampubliko.
Mahalaga ding ipanawagan sa gubyerno ang moratorium sa pagbabayad ng dayuhang utang at pagsasantabi sa mga kwestyunableng utang na pinasok ng mga nakaraang rehimen at ng rehimeng Duterte sa bansang China at sa iba pang mga imperyalistang bansa lalo na sa Estados Unidos. Ang ibabayad sa utang ay dapat ilaan bilang pondo sa rehabilitasyon at tulong pangkabuhayan sa mga nasalanta at naapektuhan ng pagputok ng bulkang Taal.
Higit sa lahat, dapat kumilos at makibaka ang taumbayan para igiit sa pasistang rehimeng US-Duterte na itigil na ang pagpapatupad ng mga anti-mamamayang patakaran at polisiya na lalong nagpapahirap sa taumbayan dahil sa masugid na pagsunod nito sa mga imperyalistang imposisyon sa bansa ng US sa anyo ng neoliberalistang programa na pribatisasyon, deregularisasyon, liberalisasyon at denasyunalisasyon. ###
https://cpp.ph/statement/bukas-na-liham-sa-mga-mamamayan-sa-batangas-na-nasalanta-ng-pagputok-ng-bulkang-taal/
PATNUBAY DE GUIA
NDF-SOUTHERN TAGALOG
NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC FRONT OF THE PHILIPPINES
JANUARY 15, 2020
Para sa mahal naming mga kababayan sa Batangas at mga karatig probinsya nito:
Ang National Democratic Front of the Philippines-Southern Tagalog (NDFP-ST) at mga kaalyadong organisasyon nito sa rehiyon ay karamay at kaisa ng mga kababayan nating nasalanta at naapektuhan ng pagputok ng bulkang Taal. Tagos sa aming puso’t isipan ang hirap at sakit na inyong nadarama sa kasalukuyan at maging ang labis ninyong pag-aalala sa inyong mga naiwang ari-arian, mga alagang hayop, pananim at iba pang kabuhayan. Sa pamamagitan ng mga kaalyadong organisasyon at mga kaibigan ng NDFP-ST, gumawa ito ng mga paraan paano makakatulong mula sa aktwal na paglilikas, pangangalap ng mga pagkain, tubig, gamot, materyal at iba pang pangangailangan ng mga nagsilikas nating mga kababayan. Ang mga naorganisang boluntir ng NDFP-ST ay naruon na sa lugar at sa kasalukuyang naghahatid ng tulong sa mga nasalanta nating kababayan.
Umaapela na rin ang NDFP-ST sa lahat ng ating mga kababayan na magkaloob ng anumang tulong para sa mga nasalanta at naapektuhan ng pagputok ng bulkang Taal. Higit sa anupaman ay sumalig tayo sa sariling lakas, pagsasama-sama at pagdadamayan upang harapin at makabangon mula sa trahedyang dulot ng natural na kalamidad.
Patuloy pang nakataas ang babala ng Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Philvocs) na sa anumang oras o mga araw maaaring mapanganib na pumutok ang bulkang Taal at magdulot pa ito ng tinatawag ng Philvocs na volcanic tsunami. Pinapayuhan namin ang lahat ng ating mga kababayan na agaran nang magsilikas lalo na ang mga naninirahan sa tinaguriang mapanganib na mga lugar (danger zones). Ang iba pang mga boluntir ng NDFP-ST ay nagsitungo na rin sa lugar upang tumulong at maisagawa ang organisadong paglilikas sa ating mga kababayan na naiipit pa sa mga mapanganib na lugar dahil sa mabagal na pagdating ng tulong mula sa gubyernong Duterte at kakapusan naman ng mga lokal na gubyerno.
Sa harap ng kainutilan ng gubyernong Duterte na mabilis na ihatid ang tulong sa mga nasalanta ng pagputok ng bulkang Taal, nauna pang magpadala ang lokal na pamahalaan ng Pampanga ng 50 sasakyang convoy ng mga medical volunteers at rescue teams, mga gamot, 8,000 food packs at iba pang pangangailangan ng mga biktima habang si Gobernador Suarez ng Quezon ay isang 7-kataong rescue team lamang ang ipinagmamalaking naipadala nya.
Ang pagputok ng bulkang Taal ay may pangmatagalang epekto sa pananim at iba pang kabuhayan ng mga magsasaka, manggagawang bukid, mangingisda at iba pa lalo na yaong umaasa ang kabuhayan sa lawa ng Taal gayundin sa komersyo at iba pang pang-ekonomiyang aktibidad sa probinsya. Ang abo at buhangin na ibinuga ng pagputok ng bulkang Taal ay sisira sa kabahayan, sa libong ektarya ng pananim ng mga magsasaka hindi lamang sa mga bayang nakapalibot sa lawa ng Taal kundi maging sa kalapit na bayan sa loob ng probinsya ng Batangas, mga bayan sa hangganan ng Cavite, Laguna, Quezon at sa islang probinsya ng Mindoro. Napakalaki na din ang dinulot na pinsala sa mga fishpens/fish cages na nasa sa lawa ng Taal kung saan libong mangingisda ang apektado ang kabuhayan. May ulat na apektado din ang kita ng mga mangingisda sa mga baybaying dagat sa kanlurang Batangas hanggang sa dulong norte ng dalawang probinsya ng Mindoro dulot ng buga ng abo at buhangin ng pagputok ng bulkang Taal.
Sa ganitong kalagayan, hindi lamang nakatuon ang pansin ng NDFP-ST sa kagyat na pagtulong sa paglilikas at pagsasagawa ng mga relief operations sa mga nasalanta ng kalamidad dulot ng pagputok ng bulkang Taal. Nakatuon na rin ang atensyon ng NDFP-ST sa kasunod na yugto—ang rehabilitasyon. Sa katunayan, may mga inisyal na plano nang nabuo ang pamunuan ng NDFP-ST at mga magkakaalyadong organisasyon sa ilalim nito kung paano makakatulong sa gagawing pangmatagalang rehabilitasyon at pagbabangon muli ng kabuhayan ng mga nasalanta sa pagputok ng bulkang Taal.
Titiyakin ng rebolusyonaryong kilusan, sa abot ng kanyang makakaya, na maihatid sa taumbayang nasalanta at naapektuhan ng pagputok ng bulkang Taal ang mga kinakailangang tulong para sa rehabilitasyon ng kanilang mga nasirang kabahayan at kabuhayan. Batid namin na napakabigat na pasanin ang usapin ng rehabilitasyon. Bilyong halaga ang kailangan. Pero naniniwala kami na kapag malakas at masigla ang pagtutulungan at damayan nating lahat, kabilang ng iba pa nating mga kababayan sa Luzon, Visayas, Mindanao at mga nasa ibayong dagat, kakayanin nating makaalpas at makabangon muli sa pinsalang dulot ng pagputok ng bulkang Taal.
Subalit kailangan nating kumilos at makibaka upang ipanawagan at igiit sa gubyernong Duterte na laanan ng malaking pondo ang pagtulong at rehabilitasyon sa mga nasalanta at naapektuhan ng pagputok ng bulkang Taal. Ipanawagan na ibaling ang pondong nakalaan sa militar at kapulisan tungong pondo sa relief at rehabilitation programs nito. Nasasayang lang ang pondo ng bayan na nakalaan sa AFP at PNP sa bigong gyera kontra iligal na droga nito at sa pondong ginagamit sa mga operasyong militar ng mga ito na ang tanging napipinsala ay mga inosenteng sibilyan at kabuhayan ng mamamayan.
Kailangan ding itaas ang pagmamatyag ng mamamayan sa mga tiwaling pulitiko at upisyal ng reaksyunaryong gubyerno na sasamantalahin ang kalamidad na ito upang magkaroon ng opurtunidad na ibulsa ang milyun-milyong calamity fund na para sa mamamayan.
Kailangang magkaisa, kumilos at makibaka ang taumbayan para ipanawagan ang matagalang moratorium sa pagbabayad ng mga magsasaka sa upa sa lupa sa mga panginoong maylupa, sa taunang pagbayad sa certificate of land ownership award (CLOA) sa ilalim ng bogus na repormang agraryo ng pasistang rehimeng US-Duterte at sa pagbayad ng kanilang pagkakautang at paniningil mula sa mga institusyong pinansyal at financial cooperatives. Lalong kailangang ngayon ng kilusang masa na isulong at i-pursige ang mga pakikibaka para sa pagkakaroon ng trabaho, disenteng hanapbuhay, nakabubuhay na sahod, libre at murang pabahay, pagpapababa ng presyo ng mga pangunahing bilihin at mura at abot kamay na serbisyong pampubliko.
Mahalaga ding ipanawagan sa gubyerno ang moratorium sa pagbabayad ng dayuhang utang at pagsasantabi sa mga kwestyunableng utang na pinasok ng mga nakaraang rehimen at ng rehimeng Duterte sa bansang China at sa iba pang mga imperyalistang bansa lalo na sa Estados Unidos. Ang ibabayad sa utang ay dapat ilaan bilang pondo sa rehabilitasyon at tulong pangkabuhayan sa mga nasalanta at naapektuhan ng pagputok ng bulkang Taal.
Higit sa lahat, dapat kumilos at makibaka ang taumbayan para igiit sa pasistang rehimeng US-Duterte na itigil na ang pagpapatupad ng mga anti-mamamayang patakaran at polisiya na lalong nagpapahirap sa taumbayan dahil sa masugid na pagsunod nito sa mga imperyalistang imposisyon sa bansa ng US sa anyo ng neoliberalistang programa na pribatisasyon, deregularisasyon, liberalisasyon at denasyunalisasyon. ###
https://cpp.ph/statement/bukas-na-liham-sa-mga-mamamayan-sa-batangas-na-nasalanta-ng-pagputok-ng-bulkang-taal/
CPP/NPA-North Central Mindanao: AFP, padayong galunsad og operasyon taliwala sa ceasefire
NPA-North Central Mindanao propaganda statement posted to the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) Website (Jan 15, 2020): AFP, padayong galunsad og operasyon taliwala sa ceasefire
MALEM MABINI
SPOKESPERSON
NPA-NORTH CENTRAL MINDANAO
NEW PEOPLE'S ARMY
JANUARY 15, 2020
Garapalan nga ginalapas ni Lt. Col. Ronald Illana , kumander sa 8th Infantry Battalion, ang gideklarang hunong-buto sa gobyerno sa Pilipinas pinaagi sa pagpasugok sa iyang mga pwersa sa mga kabukiran sa Impasug-ong. Gikatakdang matapos ang maong deklarasyon sa Enero 7, 2020. Apan sukad pa lang niadtong Disyembre 23, 2019, platun-platun sa mga sundalo ang naglunsad og operasyong militar.
Kahinumduman nga niadtong Disyembre 23, sa mismong unang adlaw sa hunong-buto, gisulong sa mga grupong paramilitar ang kampo sa NPA sa Brgy. San Vicente, Esperanza, Agusan del Sur.
Pagka-sunod adlaw dayon, Disyembre 24, adunay duha ka sakyanan nga dunay sakay nga sundalo gikan sa kampo sa Impasug-ong ang niagi sa Kaanibungan, Brgy. Calabugao, Impasug-ong, Bukidnon ug nisulod sa Brgy. Hagpa, sa susamang munisipyo.
Niadtong Enero 2, 2020, nagsakay usab og upat ka sakyanan ang mga sundalo nga misulod sa Sityo Mahagwa, Brgy. Hagpa ug duna usay laing usa ka platun sa Sityo Magawa, Brgy. Bulonay, pareho sa susamang munisipyo. Sa susamang adlaw usab, gimontar ang duha ka kanyon sa Brgy. Hagpa ug duha usab sa Brgy. Calabugao.
Pagka-sunod adlaw, duna na usay presensya sa kasundaluhan sa KM90, Brgy. Hagpa. Duna na usay nisulod nga laing duha ka sakyanan sa Sityo Mahagwa. Nasayran nga mokabat sa 40 ang pwersa sa sundalo ug nagpundo kini sa eskwelahan sa maong sityo.
Sa Brgy. Tagbalili, Esperanza, Agusan del Sur, nisulod usab ang mga sakop sa 26th IB sakay sa tag-lima ka motor matag adlaw sukad Enero 2 hangtud 4.
Pagka-Enero 4, nagtuyuk-tuyok na ang surveillance drone sa Sityo Mahagwa.
Pagka-uhaw-sa-dugo ug pagka-kamaliputon ang padayong paglutos sa AFP sa mga Pulang manggugubat. Ginapamatud-an lamang ni Illana ang pagka-mersenaryo sa armadong kusog sa nasud nga, kung asa, dayagan niining ginalapas ang mga napatik nga kasabutan tali sa rebolusyonaryong pwersa sa kaalaot sa usa ka makatarunganong gubat.
https://cpp.ph/statement/afp-padayong-galunsad-og-operasyon-taliwala-sa-ceasefire/
Garapalan nga ginalapas ni Lt. Col. Ronald Illana , kumander sa 8th Infantry Battalion, ang gideklarang hunong-buto sa gobyerno sa Pilipinas pinaagi sa pagpasugok sa iyang mga pwersa sa mga kabukiran sa Impasug-ong. Gikatakdang matapos ang maong deklarasyon sa Enero 7, 2020. Apan sukad pa lang niadtong Disyembre 23, 2019, platun-platun sa mga sundalo ang naglunsad og operasyong militar.
Kahinumduman nga niadtong Disyembre 23, sa mismong unang adlaw sa hunong-buto, gisulong sa mga grupong paramilitar ang kampo sa NPA sa Brgy. San Vicente, Esperanza, Agusan del Sur.
Pagka-sunod adlaw dayon, Disyembre 24, adunay duha ka sakyanan nga dunay sakay nga sundalo gikan sa kampo sa Impasug-ong ang niagi sa Kaanibungan, Brgy. Calabugao, Impasug-ong, Bukidnon ug nisulod sa Brgy. Hagpa, sa susamang munisipyo.
Niadtong Enero 2, 2020, nagsakay usab og upat ka sakyanan ang mga sundalo nga misulod sa Sityo Mahagwa, Brgy. Hagpa ug duna usay laing usa ka platun sa Sityo Magawa, Brgy. Bulonay, pareho sa susamang munisipyo. Sa susamang adlaw usab, gimontar ang duha ka kanyon sa Brgy. Hagpa ug duha usab sa Brgy. Calabugao.
Pagka-sunod adlaw, duna na usay presensya sa kasundaluhan sa KM90, Brgy. Hagpa. Duna na usay nisulod nga laing duha ka sakyanan sa Sityo Mahagwa. Nasayran nga mokabat sa 40 ang pwersa sa sundalo ug nagpundo kini sa eskwelahan sa maong sityo.
Sa Brgy. Tagbalili, Esperanza, Agusan del Sur, nisulod usab ang mga sakop sa 26th IB sakay sa tag-lima ka motor matag adlaw sukad Enero 2 hangtud 4.
Pagka-Enero 4, nagtuyuk-tuyok na ang surveillance drone sa Sityo Mahagwa.
Pagka-uhaw-sa-dugo ug pagka-kamaliputon ang padayong paglutos sa AFP sa mga Pulang manggugubat. Ginapamatud-an lamang ni Illana ang pagka-mersenaryo sa armadong kusog sa nasud nga, kung asa, dayagan niining ginalapas ang mga napatik nga kasabutan tali sa rebolusyonaryong pwersa sa kaalaot sa usa ka makatarunganong gubat.
https://cpp.ph/statement/afp-padayong-galunsad-og-operasyon-taliwala-sa-ceasefire/
CPP/NDF-Negros/NPANegros Island: MCC-NPA confiscates firearms in Kabankalan City
NDF-Negros/NPANegros Island propaganda statement posted to the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) Website (Jan 15, 2020): MCC-NPA confiscates firearms in Kabankalan City
BAYANI OBRERO
JUANITO MAGBANUA
JANUARY 15, 2020
The Apolinario Gatmaitan Command of the New People’s Army (AGC-NPA) Regional Operation Command in Negros Island commended its South-Central Negros Guerrilla Front for a successful police action in Kabankalan City, Negros Occidental.
The Mt. Cansermon Command in a statement claimed of disarming Lorenzo Zayco Varela without firing even a single shot last January 10, 8 o’clock in the evening at his residence in Sitio Lower Balicaocao, Barangay Orong, Kabankalan City due to cases of firing gunshots, shooting using firearms and intimidating his neighbors.
A .22 caliber rifle, two shotguns, two 9mm pistols, a .357 caliber pistol, two hand grenades, hundreds of ammunition of different firearms, and many other military hardware were confiscated from Varela’s residence.
“The NPA performs police actions in line with decisions of the people’s revolutionary court,” said Ka Juanito Magbanua of the AGC-NPA.
“These are based on complaints and cases filed by the people and thoroughly investigated by the NPA,” he added.
According to Ka Dionesio Magbuelas, MCC-NPA spokesperson, the Red fighters did not take hold of Varela’s personal belongings like money and a cellphone unlike the mercenary AFP and PNP who, apart from arresting innocent civilians, have many times stolen thousands of money from the people in different parts of Negros and the whole country.###
https://cpp.ph/statement/mcc-npa-confiscates-firearms-in-kabankalan-city/
SPOKESPERSON
NDF-NEGROS
NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC FRONT OF THE PHILIPPINES
NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC FRONT OF THE PHILIPPINES
JUANITO MAGBANUA
NPA-NEGROS ISLAND
APOLINARIO GATMAITAN COMMAND
NEW PEOPLE'S ARMY
NEW PEOPLE'S ARMY
JANUARY 15, 2020
The Apolinario Gatmaitan Command of the New People’s Army (AGC-NPA) Regional Operation Command in Negros Island commended its South-Central Negros Guerrilla Front for a successful police action in Kabankalan City, Negros Occidental.
The Mt. Cansermon Command in a statement claimed of disarming Lorenzo Zayco Varela without firing even a single shot last January 10, 8 o’clock in the evening at his residence in Sitio Lower Balicaocao, Barangay Orong, Kabankalan City due to cases of firing gunshots, shooting using firearms and intimidating his neighbors.
A .22 caliber rifle, two shotguns, two 9mm pistols, a .357 caliber pistol, two hand grenades, hundreds of ammunition of different firearms, and many other military hardware were confiscated from Varela’s residence.
“The NPA performs police actions in line with decisions of the people’s revolutionary court,” said Ka Juanito Magbanua of the AGC-NPA.
“These are based on complaints and cases filed by the people and thoroughly investigated by the NPA,” he added.
According to Ka Dionesio Magbuelas, MCC-NPA spokesperson, the Red fighters did not take hold of Varela’s personal belongings like money and a cellphone unlike the mercenary AFP and PNP who, apart from arresting innocent civilians, have many times stolen thousands of money from the people in different parts of Negros and the whole country.###
https://cpp.ph/statement/mcc-npa-confiscates-firearms-in-kabankalan-city/
Kalinaw News: Army troops participate in Arabic schools festival
From Kalinaw News (Jan 17, 2020): Army troops participate in Arabic schools festival (By 6th Infantry Division)
CAMP SIONGCO, Awang, Datu Odin Sinsuat, Maguindanao – The Army’s 2nd Mechanized Infantry Battalion (2MIBn) participated in the opening of Maguindanao’s Provincial Arabic Schools Festival last January 9, 2010 at Barangay Old Maganoy, Datu Abdullah Sangki, Maguindanao.
This year’s annual school festival was organized by the local government of Datu Abdullah Sangki with the support from the Province of Maguindanao in a bid to further advance the advocacy in strengthening the Madaris schools in Maguindanao and promote Madaris not only as a center for Arabic literacy but an institute for culture, sports and values education.
The activity was anchored on the theme “Strengthening and Developing Madaris Schools through Culture and Sports” attended by teachers and students of the different Madrasah school of the province.
Present during the opening program as a guest of honor was Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) 118 Base Command Commander Wahid Tundok.
In his message, Tundok said that he was thankful for the great improvement on the peace and order situation in the area. He also encouraged the members of the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighter to abandon their armed struggle and return to the fold of law for a better and brighter future of the province.
“Makikita niyo ang pagsasama ng mga sundalo at MILF sa pagpapatuloy ng maunlad at payapang pamayanan. Hinihikayat ko ang mga kapatid natin sa BIFF na ibaba na ang inyong mga baril at bumalik na sa gobyerno. Umalis na kayo sa mga kinikilala ninyong mga lider na nagtuturo ng maling paniniwala sa islam. Ang gyera ay natapos na kaya sumama na tayo sa gobyernong may malasakit sa atin, at para sa pag unlad ng ating bayan,”Tundok said.
Joint Task Force Central Commander, Maj. Gen. Diosdado C. Carreon, conveyed his message of gratitude to the MILF members led by Commander Tundok for their gesture in undertaking the peace initiatives for the development and progress of Maguindanao through participating in the government activities together with the Army.
[Kalinaw News is the official online source of information on the pursuit for peace in the Philippines This website is a property of the Civil-Military Operations Regiment, Philippine Army located at Lawton Avenue, Fort Bonifacio, Taguig City Contact us: kalinawnews@cmoregiment.com]
https://www.kalinawnews.com/army-troops-participate-in-arabic-schools-festival/
CAMP SIONGCO, Awang, Datu Odin Sinsuat, Maguindanao – The Army’s 2nd Mechanized Infantry Battalion (2MIBn) participated in the opening of Maguindanao’s Provincial Arabic Schools Festival last January 9, 2010 at Barangay Old Maganoy, Datu Abdullah Sangki, Maguindanao.
This year’s annual school festival was organized by the local government of Datu Abdullah Sangki with the support from the Province of Maguindanao in a bid to further advance the advocacy in strengthening the Madaris schools in Maguindanao and promote Madaris not only as a center for Arabic literacy but an institute for culture, sports and values education.
The activity was anchored on the theme “Strengthening and Developing Madaris Schools through Culture and Sports” attended by teachers and students of the different Madrasah school of the province.
Present during the opening program as a guest of honor was Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) 118 Base Command Commander Wahid Tundok.
In his message, Tundok said that he was thankful for the great improvement on the peace and order situation in the area. He also encouraged the members of the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighter to abandon their armed struggle and return to the fold of law for a better and brighter future of the province.
“Makikita niyo ang pagsasama ng mga sundalo at MILF sa pagpapatuloy ng maunlad at payapang pamayanan. Hinihikayat ko ang mga kapatid natin sa BIFF na ibaba na ang inyong mga baril at bumalik na sa gobyerno. Umalis na kayo sa mga kinikilala ninyong mga lider na nagtuturo ng maling paniniwala sa islam. Ang gyera ay natapos na kaya sumama na tayo sa gobyernong may malasakit sa atin, at para sa pag unlad ng ating bayan,”Tundok said.
Joint Task Force Central Commander, Maj. Gen. Diosdado C. Carreon, conveyed his message of gratitude to the MILF members led by Commander Tundok for their gesture in undertaking the peace initiatives for the development and progress of Maguindanao through participating in the government activities together with the Army.
[Kalinaw News is the official online source of information on the pursuit for peace in the Philippines This website is a property of the Civil-Military Operations Regiment, Philippine Army located at Lawton Avenue, Fort Bonifacio, Taguig City Contact us: kalinawnews@cmoregiment.com]
https://www.kalinawnews.com/army-troops-participate-in-arabic-schools-festival/
Kalinaw News: Marawi liberator now leads Army’s 1ID
From Kalinaw News (Jan 17, 2020): Marawi liberator now leads Army’s 1ID (By Kalinaw News)
CAMP SANG-AN, Labangan, Zamboanga del Sur – The former 103rd Infantry Brigade Commander and who took part in liberating Marawi city in year 2017 now leads the 1st Infantry (TABAK) Division, after the change of command ceremony held here, Friday, January 17, 2020.
Brig. Gen. Generoso “Gene” Ponio, succeeded Maj. Gen. Roberto T. Ancan, who now assumed as the commander of the Central Command, Armed Forces of the Philippines, based in Cebu City.
Lt. Gen. Gilbert I. Gapay, the Commanding General of the Philippine Army, who presided the ceremony thanked Maj. Gen. Ancan for the inspirational leadership and stalwart service which have made lasting impact on the Tabak Division and the people it serves.
Lt. Gen. Gapay also challenged the new commander to build on the gains of the 1ID for lasting peace and sustainable development.
“Let us be guided by our over-all direction, which is to sustain the momentum in capacitating the Army towards greater mission effectiveness”, said Gapay.
Maj. Gen. Roberto T. Ancan, during his speech, thanked the leaderships for the trust and confidence as well as the stakeholders of 1ID area of responsibility for the support during his stint.
While Brig. Gen. Ponio During his remarks, vowed to focus and gear towards the marching order for the AFP to be above all in efforts to end all the threats to national security by 2022.
“As the team captain of the Tabak Division, we must jell and develop a potent force capable of performing any kind of missions with varying degrees and capacities”, said Ponio.
“Whatever challenges lies ahead of us, be it in the communist insurgency, terrorism, climate change, nation building, territorial integrity preservation, let us rise on the occasion as best as we can”, Ponio added.
A Glimpse of the new Commander’s Profile:
Brig. Gen. Ponio is a proud member of Philippine Military Academy “Maringal” Class of 1988. An Airborne Ranger and well-rounded military officer with expertise in operations, intelligence, training and managerial acumen.
He is a graduate of Command and General Staff Course in AFP Command and General Staff College; Senior Executive Course on National Security in Department of National Defense, National Defense College of the Philippines; and US Army Ranger Course in Fort Benning, Georgia, USA.
Prior to his post, Ponio was the Deputy Commander for Operations of the Western, Mindanao Command, AFP.
He also served as the Deputy Brigade Commander of the 103rd Infantry Brigade and commander of the Joint Task Force Ranao, during and after the Marawi Siege which makes him best-fitted to stir the helms of the Division for being accustomed to the sociological and security situation in the area and had already established “teamwork” for peace and development with local governments units.
Ponio also served as the commander of the 45th Infantry Battalion of the 5th Infantry Division, based in Isabela province.
The battalion he commanded was then deployed to Maguindanao to help the Philippine Army restore normalcy in the troubled province which became popular because of the Nov. 23 massacre of 57 people, where 30 of whom were journalists.
[Kalinaw News is the official online source of information on the pursuit for peace in the Philippines This website is a property of the Civil-Military Operations Regiment, Philippine Army located at Lawton Avenue, Fort Bonifacio, Taguig City Contact us: kalinawnews@cmoregiment.com]
https://www.kalinawnews.com/marawi-liberator-now-leads-armys-1id/
CAMP SANG-AN, Labangan, Zamboanga del Sur – The former 103rd Infantry Brigade Commander and who took part in liberating Marawi city in year 2017 now leads the 1st Infantry (TABAK) Division, after the change of command ceremony held here, Friday, January 17, 2020.
Brig. Gen. Generoso “Gene” Ponio, succeeded Maj. Gen. Roberto T. Ancan, who now assumed as the commander of the Central Command, Armed Forces of the Philippines, based in Cebu City.
Lt. Gen. Gilbert I. Gapay, the Commanding General of the Philippine Army, who presided the ceremony thanked Maj. Gen. Ancan for the inspirational leadership and stalwart service which have made lasting impact on the Tabak Division and the people it serves.
Lt. Gen. Gapay also challenged the new commander to build on the gains of the 1ID for lasting peace and sustainable development.
“Let us be guided by our over-all direction, which is to sustain the momentum in capacitating the Army towards greater mission effectiveness”, said Gapay.
Maj. Gen. Roberto T. Ancan, during his speech, thanked the leaderships for the trust and confidence as well as the stakeholders of 1ID area of responsibility for the support during his stint.
While Brig. Gen. Ponio During his remarks, vowed to focus and gear towards the marching order for the AFP to be above all in efforts to end all the threats to national security by 2022.
“As the team captain of the Tabak Division, we must jell and develop a potent force capable of performing any kind of missions with varying degrees and capacities”, said Ponio.
“Whatever challenges lies ahead of us, be it in the communist insurgency, terrorism, climate change, nation building, territorial integrity preservation, let us rise on the occasion as best as we can”, Ponio added.
A Glimpse of the new Commander’s Profile:
Brig. Gen. Ponio is a proud member of Philippine Military Academy “Maringal” Class of 1988. An Airborne Ranger and well-rounded military officer with expertise in operations, intelligence, training and managerial acumen.
He is a graduate of Command and General Staff Course in AFP Command and General Staff College; Senior Executive Course on National Security in Department of National Defense, National Defense College of the Philippines; and US Army Ranger Course in Fort Benning, Georgia, USA.
Prior to his post, Ponio was the Deputy Commander for Operations of the Western, Mindanao Command, AFP.
He also served as the Deputy Brigade Commander of the 103rd Infantry Brigade and commander of the Joint Task Force Ranao, during and after the Marawi Siege which makes him best-fitted to stir the helms of the Division for being accustomed to the sociological and security situation in the area and had already established “teamwork” for peace and development with local governments units.
Ponio also served as the commander of the 45th Infantry Battalion of the 5th Infantry Division, based in Isabela province.
The battalion he commanded was then deployed to Maguindanao to help the Philippine Army restore normalcy in the troubled province which became popular because of the Nov. 23 massacre of 57 people, where 30 of whom were journalists.
[Kalinaw News is the official online source of information on the pursuit for peace in the Philippines This website is a property of the Civil-Military Operations Regiment, Philippine Army located at Lawton Avenue, Fort Bonifacio, Taguig City Contact us: kalinawnews@cmoregiment.com]
https://www.kalinawnews.com/marawi-liberator-now-leads-armys-1id/
Kalinaw News: 4ID Golden Founding Anniversary celebrations kick-off with Barrio PEACE-TA Opening
From Kalinaw News (Jan 15, 2020): 4ID Golden Founding Anniversary celebrations kick-off with Barrio PEACE-TA Opening (By 4th Infantry Division)
CAMP EVANGELISTA, Cagayan de Oro City – The peace-loving people of Cagayan de Oro city joined the 4th Infantry “Diamond” Division during the kick-off ceremony of its 50th Founding Anniversary with the opening of the “Barrio PEACE-TA sa Kampo 2020” earlier this morning January 15, 2020 at Headquarters 4ID, Patag, Cagayan de Oro City.
The ceremony was attended by Hon. Oscar Moreno, City Mayor of Cagayan de Oro and currently the Northern Mindanao RPOC chairperson, MGen Franco Nemesio Gacal, Commander of 4ID, tourism officers headed by Dir. Marie Elaine Unchuan of DOT-X, MSAB members headed by the Vice-Chairperson Dir. Mylah Faye Aurora Cariño, NEDA-X, unit commanders, other officers, enlisted personnel, civilian employees, dependents and visitors who came to the opening of the Barrio PEACE-TA.
Mayor Moreno said, “I am honored and happy to be here to witness the result of the convergence of the military and the civilian sector. This is essential in our pursuit of peace and development for there’s no team military and team civilian; we are all members of one team with one goal, PEACE.”
Barrio PEACE-TA is a three-week open-street merriment from January 15 to February 5, 2020 which is open from 8:00 o’clock in the morning to 10:00 o’clock in the evening where all soldiers, dependents, partner stakeholders and other civilians can enjoy, relax and take part in the celebration of the Golden Anniversary of 4ID.
MGen Gacal also said, “The Barrio PEACE-TA sa Kampo 2020 is a way of giving back to our partner stakeholders and local communities for their continued support and trust to 4ID. It is a one-stop-venue with booths of 4ID units promoting the local products and tourist destinations of Northern Mindanao and Caraga Region in coordination with the local tourism office.” “The 4ID invites everyone to join us as we celebrate our Golden Founding Anniversary. You will be able to have fun together with our troops, you will be able to experience and reminisce ‘bayle’ and you will see and buy the different local products within our area,” Gacal added
The 4ID Barrio PEACE-TA has numerous “tiangge” booths manned by dependents and civilian stakeholders with various products and food for sale. Also, every night there will be a “Night Café” with live band from 6:00 o’clock to 10:00 o’clock in the evening to entertain the soldiers, dependents and civilian visitors. One of the highlights of the Barrio PEACE-TA is the “baylehan” or benefit dance every Saturdays, to enliven and add color to the fiesta celebration.
CAMP EVANGELISTA, Cagayan de Oro City – The peace-loving people of Cagayan de Oro city joined the 4th Infantry “Diamond” Division during the kick-off ceremony of its 50th Founding Anniversary with the opening of the “Barrio PEACE-TA sa Kampo 2020” earlier this morning January 15, 2020 at Headquarters 4ID, Patag, Cagayan de Oro City.
The ceremony was attended by Hon. Oscar Moreno, City Mayor of Cagayan de Oro and currently the Northern Mindanao RPOC chairperson, MGen Franco Nemesio Gacal, Commander of 4ID, tourism officers headed by Dir. Marie Elaine Unchuan of DOT-X, MSAB members headed by the Vice-Chairperson Dir. Mylah Faye Aurora Cariño, NEDA-X, unit commanders, other officers, enlisted personnel, civilian employees, dependents and visitors who came to the opening of the Barrio PEACE-TA.
Mayor Moreno said, “I am honored and happy to be here to witness the result of the convergence of the military and the civilian sector. This is essential in our pursuit of peace and development for there’s no team military and team civilian; we are all members of one team with one goal, PEACE.”
Barrio PEACE-TA is a three-week open-street merriment from January 15 to February 5, 2020 which is open from 8:00 o’clock in the morning to 10:00 o’clock in the evening where all soldiers, dependents, partner stakeholders and other civilians can enjoy, relax and take part in the celebration of the Golden Anniversary of 4ID.
MGen Gacal also said, “The Barrio PEACE-TA sa Kampo 2020 is a way of giving back to our partner stakeholders and local communities for their continued support and trust to 4ID. It is a one-stop-venue with booths of 4ID units promoting the local products and tourist destinations of Northern Mindanao and Caraga Region in coordination with the local tourism office.” “The 4ID invites everyone to join us as we celebrate our Golden Founding Anniversary. You will be able to have fun together with our troops, you will be able to experience and reminisce ‘bayle’ and you will see and buy the different local products within our area,” Gacal added
The 4ID Barrio PEACE-TA has numerous “tiangge” booths manned by dependents and civilian stakeholders with various products and food for sale. Also, every night there will be a “Night Café” with live band from 6:00 o’clock to 10:00 o’clock in the evening to entertain the soldiers, dependents and civilian visitors. One of the highlights of the Barrio PEACE-TA is the “baylehan” or benefit dance every Saturdays, to enliven and add color to the fiesta celebration.
[Kalinaw News is the official online source of information on the pursuit for peace in the Philippines This website is a property of the Civil-Military Operations Regiment, Philippine Army located at Lawton Avenue, Fort Bonifacio, Taguig City Contact us: kalinawnews@cmoregiment.com]
https://www.kalinawnews.com/4id-golden-founding-anniversary-celebrations-kick-off-with-barrio-peace-ta-opening/
https://www.kalinawnews.com/4id-golden-founding-anniversary-celebrations-kick-off-with-barrio-peace-ta-opening/
Kalinaw News: 12 BIFF members surrender in Maguindanao
From Kalinaw News (Jan 14, 2020): 12 BIFF members surrender in Maguindanao (By 6th Infantry Division)
CAMP SIONGCO, Awang, Datu Odin Sinsuat, Maguindanao – Twelve members of the outlawed Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF) have surrendered to the security forces of JTFC and 6ID in Sultan Sa Barongis, Maguindanao yesterday (January 13, 2020).
The rebels surrendered to 33rd Infantry Battalion under Bungos faction, namely: Wazire Talib Kumpas, Carlo Talib Maon, Alamansa Makungay Talib, Pair Andongan Makapagal, Tomy Maslayboto Mato, Mama Daud Jainudin, Jomar Masla Boy, Muhamad Saylila, Urasay Badi, Ben Saptula, Usman Gandang and Agar Mangatug.
The surrenderers also handed over 3 homemade cal. 50 sniper rifle, one homemade M203 grenade launcher, one homemade M79, one homemade rocket propelled grenade, one homemade 5.56mm single shot rifle, one cal. 30 Mosin Nagant, 3 Garrand converted to M14 rifle, one cal .30 M1 Garrand rifle, 1 RPG ammunition and 3 improvised explosive devices.
Lt. Col. Elmer M. Boongaling, 33rd IB Commanding Officer, presented the surrenderers to 601st Infantry Brigade Commander Col. Jose H. Narciso and Sultan Sa Barongis Mayor Al-fizzar Allandatu M. Angas Sr.
One of the surrenderers said that he realized the futility of their cause and were encouraged by the unit’s purposive stakeholder’s engagement and observance of human rights and rule of law.
Moreover, they saw the sincerity of the unit in dealing with the former rebels citing the unit’s effort in its previous area of operations with the hopes to return to the mainstream of the community with the necessary assistance and livelihood from the government.
Major General Diosdado C Carreon, Joint Task Force Central and 6th Infantry Division Commander, is very thankful to the support and cooperation of the civil government in our journey of bringing long and lasting peace in Central Mindanao.
Said surrenderers and firearms were brought to 33rd IB Headquarters for custodial debriefing and proper disposition.
[Kalinaw News is the official online source of information on the pursuit for peace in the Philippines This website is a property of the Civil-Military Operations Regiment, Philippine Army located at Lawton Avenue, Fort Bonifacio, Taguig City Contact us: kalinawnews@cmoregiment.com]
https://www.kalinawnews.com/12-biff-members-surrender-in-maguindanao/
CAMP SIONGCO, Awang, Datu Odin Sinsuat, Maguindanao – Twelve members of the outlawed Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF) have surrendered to the security forces of JTFC and 6ID in Sultan Sa Barongis, Maguindanao yesterday (January 13, 2020).
The rebels surrendered to 33rd Infantry Battalion under Bungos faction, namely: Wazire Talib Kumpas, Carlo Talib Maon, Alamansa Makungay Talib, Pair Andongan Makapagal, Tomy Maslayboto Mato, Mama Daud Jainudin, Jomar Masla Boy, Muhamad Saylila, Urasay Badi, Ben Saptula, Usman Gandang and Agar Mangatug.
The surrenderers also handed over 3 homemade cal. 50 sniper rifle, one homemade M203 grenade launcher, one homemade M79, one homemade rocket propelled grenade, one homemade 5.56mm single shot rifle, one cal. 30 Mosin Nagant, 3 Garrand converted to M14 rifle, one cal .30 M1 Garrand rifle, 1 RPG ammunition and 3 improvised explosive devices.
Lt. Col. Elmer M. Boongaling, 33rd IB Commanding Officer, presented the surrenderers to 601st Infantry Brigade Commander Col. Jose H. Narciso and Sultan Sa Barongis Mayor Al-fizzar Allandatu M. Angas Sr.
One of the surrenderers said that he realized the futility of their cause and were encouraged by the unit’s purposive stakeholder’s engagement and observance of human rights and rule of law.
Moreover, they saw the sincerity of the unit in dealing with the former rebels citing the unit’s effort in its previous area of operations with the hopes to return to the mainstream of the community with the necessary assistance and livelihood from the government.
Major General Diosdado C Carreon, Joint Task Force Central and 6th Infantry Division Commander, is very thankful to the support and cooperation of the civil government in our journey of bringing long and lasting peace in Central Mindanao.
Said surrenderers and firearms were brought to 33rd IB Headquarters for custodial debriefing and proper disposition.
[Kalinaw News is the official online source of information on the pursuit for peace in the Philippines This website is a property of the Civil-Military Operations Regiment, Philippine Army located at Lawton Avenue, Fort Bonifacio, Taguig City Contact us: kalinawnews@cmoregiment.com]
https://www.kalinawnews.com/12-biff-members-surrender-in-maguindanao/
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