Key Philippine Military and Insurgency-Related Events: 10th ID: Tribal village cries foul over NPA deception, Army operations uncover communist-terrorist haven in Bukidnon

Sunday, March 17, 2019

10th ID: Tribal village cries foul over NPA deception, Army operations uncover communist-terrorist haven in Bukidnon

Posted to the 10th Infantry "Agila" Division Facebook page (Mar 15, 2019):
Tribal village cries foul over NPA deception, Army operations uncover communist-terrorist haven in Bukidnon

Asuncion, DDN – Following a recent run of military operations in the hinterland tri-boundary of Bukidnon, Agusan del Sur, and Davao del Norte provinces, the Army’s 60th Infantry Battalion discovered the Ata Manabo tribal village of Sitio Tapayanon which has been used by the CPP-NPA Terrorists as their run-to ‘haven’ in Cabanglasan town, Bukidnon.

NPA’s Harboring Site

Upon conducting civil-military operations in the area, the tribal leaders of Sitio Tapayanon revealed that their village has been used by the different units of the CPP-NPA terrorists as its harboring area for several years.

“At first, we thought they are the government. Whenever they are here, they would order us (leaders) and our sons to man security posts while they order our wives to plant and collect food for their consumption. When they decide to move to the next village (sitio), they bring with them our children to carry their supplies, backpacks, and magazines/ammunition. For a long time, our tribe haven’t had the slightest idea that we were being ran by communist terrorists,” Datu Bansing Balanban, the village’s Tribal Chieftain, said in the vernacular during a community dialogue initiated by 60IB.

The 60IB assessed that the village, being geographically isolated, has little or no access to mainstream society, thus, has become a very easy and convenient target for the CPP-NPA terrorists’ exploitation. Datu Bansing Balanban himself has once joined the Manilakbayan, a series of protest rallies organized by the CNT’s legal fronts supposedly to raise awareness on the indigenous peoples’ plight in Mindanao.

Confirmation

During the initial run of focused military operations in the area, 60IB recovered five (5) firearms and discovered four (4) CPP-NPA terrorist hideouts in the vicinity of the village, confirming the tribal leaders’ claim.

The discovered hideouts may have been abandoned for as recent as a week ago and could have accommodated around 30 to 80 persons at any one time. Other items found in the area include improvised tables and beds, rice husks, and fresh food wastes.

NPA Regulars Surrender

Several days after 60IB’s initial engagement with the tribal villagers, on March 9 (Saturday), four (4) members of the CNT’s Guerilla Front 6 (GF 6) led by a certain Alfredo Banawan alias “Alab/Bogs” surrendered to the troops, further affirming the CPP-NPA’s influence in the village. Three (3) of the surrenderees are of minor age.

Alias Lyn, female, 15 years old, a resident of Sitio Tapayanon, and medic on-training of GF 6, claims that she has been under the ‘care’ of the CPP-NPA since she was a child. A certain alias Toto, her team leader in the NPA, took her in when she was only three years old. Lyn, however, also claims that she has only joined as a regular member and been issued her own firearm in 2018.

Meanwhile, alias Weng, male, 14 years old; alias MJ (Lyn’s older sister), 16 years old; and her husband, alias Bran, 23 years old, were all forced to join the CPP-NPA in February this year after Lyn’s father asked Bran to fetch Lyn from Toto. Bran, who asked MJ and Weng to accompany him, never returned to his father-in-law and were forced to join GF 6 after Toto threatened their life if they insist to leave.

Ready to Cooperate

Two days later, on March 11 (Monday), after another round of dialogue with the tribal leaders, the villagers voluntarily revealed the identities of their Militiang Bayan (MB) and surrendered eleven (11) more NPA-issued firearms to 60IB. Datu Bansing Balanban said this is their way of expressing that they are 100% ready to cooperate with the government especially if this means real peace and development for their village and the end of the CPP-NPA’s exploitation of their tribe.

A Challenge and an Opportunity

60IB Commander, Lt. Col. Gilbert Ombos, says that this ‘discovery’ is both a challenge and an opportunity considering the on-going implementation of Executive Order No. 70 or the ‘Whole-of-Nation’ Approach to end the insurgency.

With the help of the various Local Government Units within 60IB’s Area of Operations, 60IB was able to bring an initial P200,000.00 worth of aid to Sitio Tapayanon (i.e. Medicine, Rice, Canned Goods, Noodles, Coffee, Corn Seeds, and Assorted Vegetable Seeds).

Ten (10) tribal chieftains from Kapalong town, Davao del Norte also visited Sitio Tapayanon to initiate dialogues among the tribal leaders and between the tribe and the government forces.

On March 13 (Wednesday), the 10th Infantry Division Medical Team led by Major Raul Sasuca (Medical Corps) conducted a medical civic action program there, benefitting around 300 residents of Tapayanon. Datu Bansing Balanban says this is the first time a real medical (and military) doctor has ever reached their village.

60IB is currently liaising with the concerned LGUs, other government agencies, and non-government organizations to also send aid and initiate other interventions for Sitio Tapayanon.

Meanwhile, under the Enhanced Comprehensive Local Integration Program (E-CLIP), 60IB is also facilitating the proper disposition and turn-over of the minor-aged former rebels to the local social welfare and development office.

Human Rights Violators

While CPP-NPA legal fronts continue to accuse government forces of violating Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law, more and more incidents of outright violations perpetrated by their communist-terrorist units continue to be exposed by the very communities they say they serve. As revealed in former rebel’s testimonies, the CPP-NPA deliberately recruits and organizes vulnerable sectors that they can use not only in their propaganda but also in their terroristic acts. In 60IB’s Area of Operation alone, 8 out of 10 former rebels are indigenous peoples while 4 out of 10 are youths. Records also show that many of the former rebels were recruited when they were still of minor age.

Ready to Serve Full-time

“What we wish to show the enemy is [that] we don’t have mercy for those who insist to fight. But [that] we are gentle and forgiving to those who yield and choose peace. Our government is here and ready to serve full-time whether they [CPP-NPA] like it or not,” Ombos adds.

Around 40 of the former rebels who surrendered to 60IB in 2018 are from the boundary villages of Bukidnon, Agusan del Sur, Davao del Norte, and Compostela Valley Province. Most of them are indigenous peoples and a considerable number were either minors upon surrendering or were minors when recruited by the NPA.

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