Stable Internal Peace and Security’ declaration mulled for Negros Island

From the Visayan Daily Star (Feb 3, 2024): Stable Internal Peace and Security’ declaration mulled for Negros Island (By GILBERT P. BAYORAN)

The Army’s 3rd Infantry Division is eyeing to recommend declaring Negros Island in a state of “Stable Internal Peace and Security,” by the end of the first quarter.

The 3ID earlier declared having dismantled all five existing New People’s Army guerrilla fronts in Negros Island.

However, the focused military operations against remnants are still ongoing, to prevent them from recovering lost territories and the recruitment of new members, Lt. Col. J Jay Javines, 3ID spokesperson, disclosed earlier.

First to be declared dismantled by 3ID more than two years ago was the South East Front, followed by Northern Negros Front in 2022, and then the Central Negros 1 and 2 guerilla fronts, as well as South West Front in 2023.

In a statement, Maj. Gen. Marion Sison, 3ID commander, said the series of surrenders in Negros Island since the creation of the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict in December 2018, is a testament to the government’s efficiency in addressing the root causes of insurgency.

“The series of surrenders by both CTG top cadres and members in Negros strongly manifests that the collaborative efforts of various government instrumentalities and the strong support of civil society organizations are effective in resolving the root causes of the insurgency problem,” Sison added.

If we can maintain this trend and with the commitment and cooperation of our partners and stakeholders, we can already recommend the declaration of Negros Island in a state of “Stable Internal Peace and Security’ by the end of this quarter,” he further said.

Two rebel remnants died, while another one surrendered, following a recent encounter in La Castellena, which led to the recovery of six high powered firearms, as well as explosives.

Lt. Gen. Benedict Arevalo, commander of the AFP Visayas Command, disclosed that the devastating blows delivered by Army units to the CPP NPA “is a manifestation of how serious we are in sustaining our gains and in preventing the CPP-NPA from recovering their loss mass bases in the Visayas region.”

“Our mission is definitely not over. Though we made significant progress in our campaign in the previous year, still there are issues in the community that we must address and remnants of the CPP-NPA lurking in the hinterlands that we need to neutralize. If these are not addressed, these could cause a resurgence of the terrorist group here in the region,” Arevalo added.*

https://visayandailystar.com/stable-internal-peace-and-security-declaration-mulled-for-negros-island/