Kalinaw News: NPA continues to recruit minors in Bukidnon

Posted to Kalinaw News (Aug 16, 2021): NPA continues to recruit minors in Bukidnon



Maramag Bukidnon – Two (2) NPA regular members of Guerilla Front (GF) Malayag, Sub-Regional Committee 2 (SRC2) of the North Central Mindanao Regional Party Committee (NCMRC) surrendered to 88th Infantry “MARINGAL” Battalion on 13 August 2021.

The said surrender came as a result of the unit’s continued campaign against the said terrorist group in the mountainous areas of Quezon, San Fernando and Cabanglasan all of Bukidnon.

The minors who surrendered are @RUFFA and @JOB, both 15 years of age. They revealed that they were recruited by a certain @Jun-Jun who befriended them and convinced them to work in a factory in Quezon, Bukidnon. The promised job however never came and instead they were brought to the mountains where armed groups were waiting to receive them. Though afraid of joining the said group, they were left with no other option.

Over fatigue, hunger and lack of sleep are among the reasons why they decided to surrender. They further disclosed that continuous focused military operation by the Philippine Army in their known guerilla bases had caused them to be always on the run which prevented them from doing organizing works in their target barangays.
The two are now in the care of 88IB in coordination with the Department of Social Welfare and Development undergoing interview and stress debriefing for their enrollment to the government’s Enhanced Comprehensive Local Integration Program (E-CLIP) of the government.

The continuous recruitment of our youth to be child warriors is a proof of CTG’s disrespect to Human Rights and a clear violation of IHL. It can be recalled that since 2018 on the data gathered of 88IB, fourteen (14) minors had been saved by our troops from the CTG.

LTC CHRISTIAN JAMES P VINGNO, Commanding Officer of 88IB in his statement said: “The comprehensive conduct of Community Support Program (CSP) and intel ldriven Intensified Military Operation (IMO) by the personnel of 88IB in the CTG’s guerilla zones and bases respectively have been instrumental in the rapid disintegration of the NPA formation in our area of operation. Since January of 2021 to date a total of twenty-five (25) NPA regulars and twenty-seven (27) Militia ng Bayan have surrendered. This is a clear indicator that we are near in ending this 52-year insurgency problem.” I strongly deplore the NPA’s act of recruiting minors to be combatants. This is a clear violation of International Humanitarian Law (IHL). I am also calling the attention of all the parents, let us monitor our children and join together in keeping our children from being recruited by the NPA, Vingno added.

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