Major General Antonio Parlade, Jr., Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Deputy Chief-of-Staff for Civil-Military Operations (PNA File photo)
MANILA -- A ranking official of the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF ELCAC) dismissed claims that he was ordered out of a forum in Quezon City last November 27 to stop him from peddling lies and misinformation about militant groups.
"This is a rejoinder to claims of Makabayan bloc that I had an agenda to 'spread more of the lies and disinformation' being peddled by the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF ELCAC) during a forum organized by the National Union of People’s Lawyer (NUPL) and the Movement Against Tyranny (MAT) in Quezon City on Wednesday," Major General Antonio Parlade, Jr. said in a statement Monday.
Parlade, who is also Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Deputy Chief-of-Staff for Civil-Military Operations, also called it ironic that these militant groups claim to talk of the truth and yet cannot directly answer issues about New People's Army (NPA)'s "child warrior" and why minors were rescued from underground safehouses of communist rebels in Bacolod City and other areas in recent operations by security forces.
"What an irony that they are talking of the truth? So tell me Kamatayan (Makabayan) bloc why can’t you answer the issue on child warriors? Planted din ba ang mga bata dun sa Bacolod City raids? Sa Escalante City? Sa Samar encounter? Surigao, Bicol, Northern Luzon? Lies?," he said. “Check the CPP (Communist Party of the Philippines) documents of arrested National Democratic Front consultant Vic Ladlad and explain why it said 8,635 children aged 12-17 were recruited by Anakbayan.
He also scored claims that the NTF ELCAC is using propaganda to demonize militant allies of the CPP-NPA by portraying these dissenters as terrorists.
Communist rebels, he said, only have themselves and their doctrines to blame as the Communist Party of the Philippines’ "Limang Taong Programa (2017-2021) is calling for the recruitment of activists into full time service with their armed components.
"Propaganda? Explain what the CPP’s 'Limang Taong Programa (2017-2021)' meant when it said 'Hikayatin ang mga AKTIBISTA na maging PULTAYM na sa HUKBO'. Isn’t it that the document is talking about YOU? Which you say are simply DISSENTERS? We are not stupid not to discern who are legit dissenters from outright terrorists," Parlade said.
He also dared the CPP-NPA to explain their concept of "ligal" (legal) and "iligal" (illegal) movements to the public and its consequences.
"Explain as well what the CPP document means when it said "ligal at iligal. litaw at lubog na organisadong masa". Di ba kayo yon? Legal front organizations at illegal underground mass organizations tulad ng Kabataang Makabayan na nakatago sa Anakbayan, Katipunan ng Gurong Makabayan (KAGUMA) na baon sa Alliance of Concerned Teaahers (ACT), LUMABAN na nakahalo sa NUPL(National Union of Peoples Lawyers)?" Parlade said.
Gov't not suppressing truth about Reds
The government, he said, is not hiding the truth about the CPP-NPA's efforts to recruit innocent minors to bolster their depleted ranks.
"So who is hiding and suppressing the truth? The person who walks in to explain to future CPP recruits the communist terrorist group’s methods? Or the forum organizers who do not want a lone attendee to be heard, send him out for them to be able to continue their agitation and propaganda?" he asked, referring to the November 27 forum on the weaponization of the law and crackdown on dissenters, held at the Quezon City Sports Club, where he attended in his personal capacity.
Parlade was reportedly allowed to ask questions but he was immediately prevented from doing so and asked to leave and escorted outside.
"Let the people judge. But at least allow your paid media propagandists to get the response of the other side unless you are confirming that is the 'raison d'etre'," he said.
No HR violations by military forces
He also dismissed the incessant claims of human rights abuses by the CPP-NPA and its allies, adding that for the past seven years, the AFP has yet to record or verify cases of atrocities committed by its troops.
Parlade earlier said the arrest of Jaime Padilla, spokesperson of the Southern Tagalog Region and member of the CPP Central Committee, cannot be considered as "hors de combat" as the former was not apprehended during combat operations.
"Right, he merely orders his NPAs to attack troops and civilians from his exclusive and comfortable hospital bed, so he is not a party to the conflict? Just like top CPP boss 'Joma' (Jose Maria Sison) when he orders attacks from Utrecht? And they are old so we should pity them?" he said, referring to the claims of communist rebels that Padilla should be freed due to his old age.
He also scored allegations that the government is weaponizing the law as part of its efforts to criminalize dissent when it is the CPP-NPA and its allies in the House of Congress who have been hijacking development, creating chaos and disorder all over the country, clipping the powers of the state to pursue criminals and terrorists and threatening government forces of human rights and other harassment cases for the past 50 years for doing their mandate.
"That is weaponizing the law on the pretext of protecting the poor, vulnerable, and marginalized sectors," he added.
Such actions are called law warfare or law warfare in socialist countries, he said.
Red allies weaponizing the law
"Kamatayan (Makabayan) bloc, including NUPL, has been employing this since time immemorial. Hence, we have a government that is unable to evict squatters from private and government property, easements along roads, rivers, railways. Clearly, a criminal act has been tolerated," he said.
Parlade also cited incidents of peddling of illegal drugs where authorities seemed to loath to arrest the suspects as these individuals are poor and only out to make to a living --- at the expense of the public, who are victimized by whenever these addicts resort to crime to feed their addiction.
"We see radical strikers, destroying property, stopping other workers who do not want to join labor unions, and illegally closing factories, and let them get away with it because they are simple dissenters?" he said.
Another example is policemen discouraged from arresting suspects and doing their jobs lest they are fined PHP500,000 a day for wrongful detention of a suspect.
"Yes, the CPP weaponized the law so here we are in chaos. Nobody wants to obey the laws anymore. The CPP destroyed our justice system yet now claims to be defenders of the weak and oppressed," Parlade added.
The weaponization of the law, he said, is part of the communist rebels' so-called Revolutionary Dual Tactics and they don't want to know the general public to know as this would expose their designs against the country and its democratic way of life.
"That is evidently duplicity. That is your Revolutionary Dual Tactics, and you do not want this truth known and understood by your prey in the forum so you threw me out," he added.
The CPP-NPA is listed as a terrorist organization by the United States, United Kingdom, European Union, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the Philippines.
https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1087703
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