465 ex-rebels in Caraga get P39-M aid from ECLIP in ‘22

From the Philippine News Agency (May 19, 2023): 465 ex-rebels in Caraga get P39-M aid from ECLIP in ‘22 (By Alexander Lopez)

BUTUAN CITY – At least 465 former New People’s Army (NPA) rebels received PHP39,079,957 in financial aid in 2022 through the Enhanced Comprehensive Local Integration Program (E-CLIP).

Based on the 2022 Annual Report by the Department of the Interior and Local Government in the Caraga Region (DILG-13), obtained by the Philippine News Agency on Friday, the agency released PHP12.1 million in livelihood funding for 242 former rebels at PHP50,000; 460 received PHP21,000 each in reintegration assistance, or a total of PHP9,660,000; and PHP15,000 each to 461 surrenderers totaling PHP6,915,000 as immediate assistance.

“Of the 465 former rebels who received benefits in 2022, eight were from Butuan City, 118 from Agusan del Norte, 169 from Agusan del Sur, 25 from Surigao del Norte, and 145 from Surigao del Sur,” the report indicated.

On firearm remunerations, over PHP10.4 million payments were disbursed to 135 former NPA combatants.

“The amount of the remuneration depended on the appraised value of surrendered firearms,” the report said.

The E-CLIP helps surrendered NPA combatants rebuild their lives and their families as they return to their communities.

Reintegration

Meanwhile, 50 former NPA rebels completed a two-day deradicalization activity on Friday, the Police Regional Office in the Caraga Region (PRO-13) said.

In a statement, PRO-13 said the activity forms part of the mainstreaming process that surrenderers need to undergo in preparation for their reintegration into their communities.

The participants are former NPA combatants who turned themselves in to the different units and stations of PRO-13 late last year and during the first quarter of 2023.

Most of the surrenderers are from the weakened NPA Guerrilla Front (GF) 16 of the North Eastern Mindanao Regional Committee, and the dismantled GF 4A and GF 88 under the North Central Mindanao Regional Committee.

Salient points discussed included inputs on psychosocial and mental health; lectures on entrepreneurship and financial literacy; and measures in countering terrorism and the infiltration of the NPA rebels into different sectors.

The ex-rebels were also trained in peacebuilding and in improving their livelihoods.

“Your decision to surrender will benefit you and your family. We welcome you with a happy heart, and thank you for answering our call to leave the armed struggle and embrace the path of peace,” Brig. Gen. Pablo Labra II, PRO-13 director, told the former rebels at the start of the activity on Thursday.

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1201830