RESCUED. Former communist rebel 'Lina' was rescued by the Army's 23rd Infantry Battalion troopers on April 29, 2020 in Barangay Nongnong, Butuan City, after she was abandoned by the New People’s Army. Lina also expressed concern over the fate of her husband, who is still inside the movement. (Photo courtesy of23IB)
A former fighter of the communist New People’s Army (NPA) who was rescued by the Philippine Army expressed concerns over the fate of her husband inside the rebel movement.
“Lina"--not her real name--told the Philippine News Agency on Monday (May 4) that the last time she had a phone conversation with her husband was sometime in March this year.
“Before I was rescued by the Army, I had a phone conversation with one of the companions of my husband. When I asked him on my husband’s whereabouts, he said he did not saw him for more than two weeks,” Lina said.
Lina, who was rescued by the Army's 23rd Infantry Battalion troopers on April 29 in Barangay Nongnong here, said her husband--identified only as “Yao” for security reasons--had been under disciplinary action by the leaders of Guerrilla Front 4A (GF-4A) of the NPA's North Central Mindanao Regional Committee (NCMRC).
“He was accused of wrongdoing he did not commit. The fact was, Yao has been asking that he be allowed to go out to rest but several times he was refused by the leaders,” Lina said.
According to Lina, her husband used to be a team leader but was removed after NPA leaders expressed doubts about his loyalty following his repeated requests to take a break.
Lina said she and Yao were married by the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) on February 3, 2017. They have two children who were left under the care of Yao’s parents.
Lina was recruited by the NPA at 17 sometime in 2014 in Sta. Rita, San Luis, Agusan del Sur. She was assigned as squad medic for the Guerilla Front 88 (GF-88) until she was transferred to GF-4A before her marriage to Yao in 2017.
On February 5, 2020, Lina said she was brought to a house of a mass supporter in Sitio Bulihon, Barangay Sangay, Buenavista, Agusan del Norte. She was six months pregnant then and was advised by the leaders of GF-4A to stay outside the movement.
She said the NPA gave her PHP2,500, half of which she used to pay for the long motorcycle drive to a residence of an NPA supporter.
“My money was not enough to sustain my food and vitamins. Oftentimes, I was ashamed of our mass supporter because he also experienced difficulties in providing food to his family,” Lina said.
On the eight-month of her pregnancy, Lina was transferred to Barangay Nongnong with the purpose of getting her nearer to Butuan City where she would give birth.
Lina said the NPA left no financial assistance for her when she was turned over to another "mass supporter" in Nongnong. Life in Nongnong was more difficult, Lina recalled, as there were times she would only eat cooked bananas.
Aside from the worries she had with her husband, she was also concerned about the situation of her children.
“I want to see and hug them. I have not seen them since 2018,” Lina said, as she broke down and cried.
While staying in Nongnong, her younger sister had been calling to convince her to go back to the fold of the law.
“I’m so tired now. All I want is to see my children. I want to be with them,” Lina said.
1Lt. Roel Maglalang, 23IB civil-military operations officer, said concerned civilians in Nongnong tipped them on the presence of a pregnant NPA rebel in the area.
“The civilians were so concerned about her situation, especially that the lockdown was still in effect and that securing food was difficult then,” Maglalang said in an interview with PNA Monday.
Maglalang added that residents wanted the military to take the pregnant NPA for her own good and for the health of her baby.
Lina said she "felt afraid at first. The NPA leaders said the military will torture us if we are caught. But I have already decided to end my miserable life with the NPA movement. So I went with the military who fetched me in Nongnong."
She said her stay at the “Happy House” inside the headquarters of 23IB is "very different" from what the NPA leaders had warned them about.
“The Army took care of me. They brought me to a doctor to check my condition being pregnant. They also provided me with healthy food, medicines, and vitamins. The NPA leaders are liars. Now I realize the true faces of the Army troopers. Their faces are completely different from what the NPA leaders had told us,” Lina said.
Lt. Col. Francisco Molina, 23IB commander, commended the efforts of the concerned citizens in Barangay Nongnong for ensuring the welfare of Lina and the baby she carries in her womb.
“It is indeed heartwarming that another victim of the CPP-NPA is saved. This pregnant woman, abandoned by her comrades, manifest how the NPA rebels disregard human rights, especially on pregnant women,” Molina said.
He also urged the remaining NPA rebels in Agusan del Norte to "think about their present situation. While you still have the time, please go back to the folds of the law. Go back and be with your family,” Molina said.
https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1101813
“Lina"--not her real name--told the Philippine News Agency on Monday (May 4) that the last time she had a phone conversation with her husband was sometime in March this year.
“Before I was rescued by the Army, I had a phone conversation with one of the companions of my husband. When I asked him on my husband’s whereabouts, he said he did not saw him for more than two weeks,” Lina said.
Lina, who was rescued by the Army's 23rd Infantry Battalion troopers on April 29 in Barangay Nongnong here, said her husband--identified only as “Yao” for security reasons--had been under disciplinary action by the leaders of Guerrilla Front 4A (GF-4A) of the NPA's North Central Mindanao Regional Committee (NCMRC).
“He was accused of wrongdoing he did not commit. The fact was, Yao has been asking that he be allowed to go out to rest but several times he was refused by the leaders,” Lina said.
According to Lina, her husband used to be a team leader but was removed after NPA leaders expressed doubts about his loyalty following his repeated requests to take a break.
Lina said she and Yao were married by the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) on February 3, 2017. They have two children who were left under the care of Yao’s parents.
Lina was recruited by the NPA at 17 sometime in 2014 in Sta. Rita, San Luis, Agusan del Sur. She was assigned as squad medic for the Guerilla Front 88 (GF-88) until she was transferred to GF-4A before her marriage to Yao in 2017.
On February 5, 2020, Lina said she was brought to a house of a mass supporter in Sitio Bulihon, Barangay Sangay, Buenavista, Agusan del Norte. She was six months pregnant then and was advised by the leaders of GF-4A to stay outside the movement.
She said the NPA gave her PHP2,500, half of which she used to pay for the long motorcycle drive to a residence of an NPA supporter.
“My money was not enough to sustain my food and vitamins. Oftentimes, I was ashamed of our mass supporter because he also experienced difficulties in providing food to his family,” Lina said.
On the eight-month of her pregnancy, Lina was transferred to Barangay Nongnong with the purpose of getting her nearer to Butuan City where she would give birth.
Lina said the NPA left no financial assistance for her when she was turned over to another "mass supporter" in Nongnong. Life in Nongnong was more difficult, Lina recalled, as there were times she would only eat cooked bananas.
Aside from the worries she had with her husband, she was also concerned about the situation of her children.
“I want to see and hug them. I have not seen them since 2018,” Lina said, as she broke down and cried.
While staying in Nongnong, her younger sister had been calling to convince her to go back to the fold of the law.
“I’m so tired now. All I want is to see my children. I want to be with them,” Lina said.
1Lt. Roel Maglalang, 23IB civil-military operations officer, said concerned civilians in Nongnong tipped them on the presence of a pregnant NPA rebel in the area.
“The civilians were so concerned about her situation, especially that the lockdown was still in effect and that securing food was difficult then,” Maglalang said in an interview with PNA Monday.
Maglalang added that residents wanted the military to take the pregnant NPA for her own good and for the health of her baby.
Lina said she "felt afraid at first. The NPA leaders said the military will torture us if we are caught. But I have already decided to end my miserable life with the NPA movement. So I went with the military who fetched me in Nongnong."
She said her stay at the “Happy House” inside the headquarters of 23IB is "very different" from what the NPA leaders had warned them about.
“The Army took care of me. They brought me to a doctor to check my condition being pregnant. They also provided me with healthy food, medicines, and vitamins. The NPA leaders are liars. Now I realize the true faces of the Army troopers. Their faces are completely different from what the NPA leaders had told us,” Lina said.
Lt. Col. Francisco Molina, 23IB commander, commended the efforts of the concerned citizens in Barangay Nongnong for ensuring the welfare of Lina and the baby she carries in her womb.
“It is indeed heartwarming that another victim of the CPP-NPA is saved. This pregnant woman, abandoned by her comrades, manifest how the NPA rebels disregard human rights, especially on pregnant women,” Molina said.
He also urged the remaining NPA rebels in Agusan del Norte to "think about their present situation. While you still have the time, please go back to the folds of the law. Go back and be with your family,” Molina said.
https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1101813
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