From the Philippine News Agency (Feb 15,2021): Tribal leader who stood up vs. NPA ‘lies’ passes away (By Marita Moaje)
Datu Ramon Bayaan, tribal leader of the Obo Manuvu tribe of Kidapawan
The National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) is mourning the death of what it described as one of the most courageous leaders of the Indigenous Peoples (IP) community who stood up against the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army-National Democratic Front (CPP-NPA-NDF) and the atrocities it committed to IPs.
Datu Ramon Bayaan, tribal leader of the Obo Manuvu tribe of Kidapawan, succumbed to Guillain-Barré syndrome, a rare neurological disorder, on Feb. 14.
"Today, our country lost one of its fiercest warriors –– Datu Ramon Bayaan, tribal leader of the Obo Manuvu tribe of Kidapawan that was targeted by the CPP-NPA-NDF for recruitment and radicalization by way of their legal fronts," the NTF-ELCAC said in a statement.
In 2019, Bayaan stood before the United Nations in New York City to correct the lies being spread by the CPP-NPA, as he relayed the experience of tribal communities in the hands of communist terrorist groups (CTGs).
‘Truth caravan’
Bayaan was head of delegation of the 2019 “Truth Caravan” composed of indigenous leaders from different tribes in Mindanao who personally relayed to the UN, for the first time, their side of the story and the situation of IPs where they claimed to have been lured by the CTGs into joining the armed struggle.
He presented before the UN an extensive list of the crimes and atrocities committed by the CPP-NPA NDF the indigenous communities.
"He had been deceived into joining this terrorist group and had become one of its leaders until it became clear to him that they were being used by these terrorists and their culture systemically destroyed then replaced with the violent ideology of the CPP-NPA-NDF: communism," the NTF-ELCAC said.
CPP-NPA atrocities
Bayaan said true tribal leaders who defend the community from the CPP-NPA are being killed while their children are turned into “child warriors, who, in their tender age, become experts in firearms and even participate in encounters with the military.”
As soon as he stood up against the CTGs, Bayaan said he returned to the fold of law and cooperated with the NTF-ELCAC to help IP communities stand up.
During one of the presentations with the Filipino community in the US, Bayaan encouraged them to be informed and not allow themselves to be deceived by the legal fronts of the CPP-NPA-NDF.
He urged the Fil-Am community to unite and help them fight the CPP-NPA to end the violence against their community, as he warned them that its legal fronts are already in the US.
“Sana wag nyo isipin (na) ang NPA wala pa dito. Andito na sila hindi nga lang mga armado, andito na sila, kita na natin, nakasama na natin kaya makikiusap ako sa inyo na sana nagkakaisa tayo, magkakaisa kayo at ipalaganap itong mga problema sa buong mundo, itong teroristang komunisatang NPA (Please don’t think that NPA members are not yet here. They are already here although they are unarmed. I appeal to you to join us spread the word with the rest of the Filipino communities in different parts of the world),” Bayaan told the Fil-Am community in Los Angeles after a group of protesters disrupted their talks.
Bayaan said the NPA has used their ancestral domain and turned them into their guerilla bases, with rebels raping women and turning children into warriors.
He said the CTGs’ legal fronts used the IPs to collect funds from the international community.
Bayaan served as vice chairman of the Mindanao Indigenous People’s Conference for Peace & Development (MIPCPD) and of the Mindanao Indigenous People’s Council of Elders & Leaders (MIPCEL).
“In the last years of his life, he had come to belong not just to his tribe but the entire Philippine nation. There is no price tag we can peg on Datu Ramon’s contributions to the country in advancing the rights of our indigenous peoples and in ending this 52-year insurgency,” the NTF-ELCAC said.
The CPP-NPA, which has been waging a five-decade armed struggle against the government, is listed as a terrorist organization by the United States, the European Union, the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the Philippines.
https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1130733
Datu Ramon Bayaan, tribal leader of the Obo Manuvu tribe of Kidapawan, succumbed to Guillain-Barré syndrome, a rare neurological disorder, on Feb. 14.
"Today, our country lost one of its fiercest warriors –– Datu Ramon Bayaan, tribal leader of the Obo Manuvu tribe of Kidapawan that was targeted by the CPP-NPA-NDF for recruitment and radicalization by way of their legal fronts," the NTF-ELCAC said in a statement.
In 2019, Bayaan stood before the United Nations in New York City to correct the lies being spread by the CPP-NPA, as he relayed the experience of tribal communities in the hands of communist terrorist groups (CTGs).
‘Truth caravan’
Bayaan was head of delegation of the 2019 “Truth Caravan” composed of indigenous leaders from different tribes in Mindanao who personally relayed to the UN, for the first time, their side of the story and the situation of IPs where they claimed to have been lured by the CTGs into joining the armed struggle.
He presented before the UN an extensive list of the crimes and atrocities committed by the CPP-NPA NDF the indigenous communities.
"He had been deceived into joining this terrorist group and had become one of its leaders until it became clear to him that they were being used by these terrorists and their culture systemically destroyed then replaced with the violent ideology of the CPP-NPA-NDF: communism," the NTF-ELCAC said.
CPP-NPA atrocities
Bayaan said true tribal leaders who defend the community from the CPP-NPA are being killed while their children are turned into “child warriors, who, in their tender age, become experts in firearms and even participate in encounters with the military.”
As soon as he stood up against the CTGs, Bayaan said he returned to the fold of law and cooperated with the NTF-ELCAC to help IP communities stand up.
During one of the presentations with the Filipino community in the US, Bayaan encouraged them to be informed and not allow themselves to be deceived by the legal fronts of the CPP-NPA-NDF.
He urged the Fil-Am community to unite and help them fight the CPP-NPA to end the violence against their community, as he warned them that its legal fronts are already in the US.
“Sana wag nyo isipin (na) ang NPA wala pa dito. Andito na sila hindi nga lang mga armado, andito na sila, kita na natin, nakasama na natin kaya makikiusap ako sa inyo na sana nagkakaisa tayo, magkakaisa kayo at ipalaganap itong mga problema sa buong mundo, itong teroristang komunisatang NPA (Please don’t think that NPA members are not yet here. They are already here although they are unarmed. I appeal to you to join us spread the word with the rest of the Filipino communities in different parts of the world),” Bayaan told the Fil-Am community in Los Angeles after a group of protesters disrupted their talks.
Bayaan said the NPA has used their ancestral domain and turned them into their guerilla bases, with rebels raping women and turning children into warriors.
He said the CTGs’ legal fronts used the IPs to collect funds from the international community.
Bayaan served as vice chairman of the Mindanao Indigenous People’s Conference for Peace & Development (MIPCPD) and of the Mindanao Indigenous People’s Council of Elders & Leaders (MIPCEL).
“In the last years of his life, he had come to belong not just to his tribe but the entire Philippine nation. There is no price tag we can peg on Datu Ramon’s contributions to the country in advancing the rights of our indigenous peoples and in ending this 52-year insurgency,” the NTF-ELCAC said.
The CPP-NPA, which has been waging a five-decade armed struggle against the government, is listed as a terrorist organization by the United States, the European Union, the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the Philippines.
https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1130733
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