Pregnant rebel reunites with kids after leaving armed struggle

From the Philippine News Agency (Jan 9, 2024): Pregnant rebel reunites with kids after leaving armed struggle (By Mary Judaline Partlow)

BRIGHTER FUTURE. A 29-year-old pregnant former rebel is reunited with her two children after she left the New People's Army and surrendered to the military and police in Siaton, Negros Oriental on Dec. 18, 2023. “Ka Aubrey” celebrated her birthday on Sunday (Jan. 6, 2024) with her two daughters, whom she did not see for three years. (Contributed photo)

DUMAGUETE CITY – A 29-year-old former New People’s Army (NPA) Southeast Front rebel sees hope for a new life after she was reunited with her two children.

“Ka Aubrey,” who hails from Bantayan Island, Cebu province, said in an interview Tuesday that she dreams of a normal family life with her children and hopefully with their father, who remains with the NPA organization in southern Negros Oriental.

Pregnant with her third child which is due in two months, she celebrated her on Jan. 6 with her two daughters, aged 5 and 2, whom she did not see for three years.

“My dream is to have a normal life with my children and my husband, who I convince to also come down from the mountains and surrender peacefully to authorities so we can all be reunited,” she said in Cebuano.

She said she joined the armed struggle about 10 years ago when she was still 18 after an organizer came to their island and recruited her with false promises of a better life.

The young mother said she was on and off an "amazon" (lady fighter) in between her pregnancies.

Her first child was left in the care of her mother immediately after her delivery.

A local villager in Barangay Talalak, Sta. Catalina in southern Negros Oriental looked after the second child.

“Life was harsh in the mountains and there was barely enough to eat, except for root crops and sometimes food given by residents,” Ka Aubrey said.

On Dec. 18 last year, she and another pregnant rebel surrendered to the Army’s 11th Infantry Battalion, the 705th Mobile Company of the Regional Mobile Force Battalion 7, and the local police in Siaton.

They are currently staying in a safehouse while their applications are being processed for the government’s Enhanced Comprehensive Local Integration Program (E-CLIP) for former rebels.

Meanwhile, the guardian of the younger child has agreed to return full custody to Ka Aubrey.

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1216649