Surigao del Norte declared 'insurgency-free'

From the Philippine News Agency (Mar 15, 2024): Surigao del Norte declared 'insurgency-free' (By Alexander Lopez)

PEACE. Interior and Local Government Secretary Benjamin Abalos Jr. and Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. (6th and 7th from left) lead the declaration of Surigao del Norte province as insurgency-free on Friday (March 15, 2024). Thirty former rebels also recited oaths of allegiance to the government. (Photo courtesy of PIA-Surigao del Norte)

SURIGAO CITY – The province of Surigao del Norte is now free from insurgency, national and local officials declared Friday.

The Provincial Peace and Order Council and the Provincial Development Council of Surigao del Norte approved a joint resolution earlier this month, which led to the formal announcement.

Department of National Defense (DND) Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr., Department of the Interior and Local Government Secretary Benjamin Abalos Jr., National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict Executive Director Ernesto Torres Jr., Armed Forces of the Philippines Chief of Staff Gen. Romeo Brawner Jr. and Governor Roberto Lyndon Barbers joined the event.

"Just like in other areas in Mindanao, it's the people who openly declared that they no longer want insurgency. This is the most important thing that happened here, the declaration of the people," Teodoro said.

Barbers said the challenge remains to maintain and sustain the internal peace and security, "with the valuable support of the national government."

He led the oath of allegiance to the government of 30 former New People's Army (NPA) combatants.

Pablo Lugatiman, known in the underground movement as "Ka Lucas," made a testimony after the oathtaking, detailing how he was recruited by the NPA in 2004 until he surrendered in 2022.

Lugatiman lauded the government programs and services for the former rebels, saying that these have allowed them to renew their lives and settle back peacefully with their families in their communities.

With the support of local officials and government agencies, Teodoro said sustained government programs and services will help convince the remaining communist rebels to go back to mainstream society.

"This is also important for us because of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.'s mandate to the DND to create a multi-threat armed force capable of addressing both internal and external threats," Teodoro said.

DND is now concentrating on "reorienting, retraining, reequipping, and re-strategizing" the management and operations of the armed forces, he added.

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1220896