From the Philippine News Agency (Jul 7): Gov't to prioritize repair of civilian homes in Marawi - Lorenzana
The government will repair civilian homes which were damaged in the fighting between government troops and the Maute Group in Marawi City once rehabilitation works in the area goes full swing.
Defense Secretary and Task Force "Bangon Marawi" head Delfin Lorenzana made this assurance late Thursday (July 6).
"As the fighting (in Marawi City) winds down, there will be a survey here soon to assess the damage (here) so that we can have a ballpark figure to determine (how much money) we need to restore Marawi," he said in Filipino.
Lorenzana was referring to repair on the damages sustained by various infrastructures, buildings, and civilian homes in the ongoing fighting.
The defense chief said priority in repair and rehabilitation works will be given to civilian homes damaged in the battle.
"We will prioritize civilian homes (damaged in the fighting). The President has promised to help everybody (in Marawi City) to rebuild their homes," Lorenzana disclosed.
As of this posting, Maute Group terrorists killed in the ongoing Marawi City conflict is now at 351, while firearms seized reached 425.
Number of civilians executed by the terrorists is placed at 39, while the number of rescued civilians is placed at 1,723.
Fighting in Marawi City broke out when government security troops tried to arrest Abu Sayyaf leader Isnilon Hapilon and ISIS "emir" in Southeast Asia last May 23.
http://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/999439
Friday, July 7, 2017
AFP assures transparency on Marawi donations
From the Philippine News Agency (Jul 7): AFP assures transparency on Marawi donations
The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) on Friday assured the public that there will be transparency and accountability on the local and foreign donations for those affected by the conflict in Marawi City.
“Accountability and transparency has been a main consideration. Kaya katulad nung mga binuksan nating bank accounts sa amin sa military, transparent tayo dito at nag-create ng committee para ma-address ‘yung paano gamitin ito,” AFP spokesperson Brigadier General Restituto Padilla, Jr. said during the regular Mindanao Hour briefing in Malacañan.
He said the public can be assured that the donations given to fallen soldiers and victims of the Marawi conflict will be reported, noting that foreign donations will be taken care of by the Department of Foreign Affairs, Department of Social Welfare and Development, and Department of Finance.
“There will be appropriate reports to be prepared by the NDRRMC and the Inter-Agency Task Force Bangon Marawi, as a report to the public and to the donor countries on how it was spent. It’s our obligation and we will do that,” Padilla said.
Meanwhile, Padilla said the offensive and clearing operations have been progressing positively in all areas.
“Although still, areas of the four remaining problematic barangays are there, the number of areas held by these terrorists are dwindling by the day and the more we get into the area of these problematic barangays, we are able to clear more of the remaining buildings that have been left,” Padilla explained.
According to the AFP spokesman, the AFP is working overtime to expedite the liberation of Marawi City from the clutches of the terrorists.
“We are ensuring that once a building is cleared, this is guarded to ensure that it is not used as an area of safe haven again by fleeing enemy or hiding enemy in the area,” he said.
As for the recovery, reconstruction and rehabilitation of Marawi, Padilla said the inter-agency task force Bangon Marawi is preparing to set up an initial tent city, which will be converted to a temporary resettlement.
“And as of this morning, we were informed that based on the plans, there will be about 3,000 of these units that will be set up to act as the temporary shelter for our evacuees whose houses have been damaged during the conflict,” Padilla said.
Padilla however said those residents whose homes had not been damaged by the conflict will be assisted in returning to their homes once the hostilities have ended and the all-clear signal has been given.
A temporary area for commercial establishments will likewise be provided to enable the delivery of services and business transactions.
In the same briefing, meanwhile, Presidential Spokesperson Ernesto Abella said that the Palace stands with the people of Leyte following the 6.5-magnitude earthquake in Leyte last Thursday.
“We condole with those who have lost their loved ones and we continue to stand with those who have loved ones who have been hurt,” Abella said.
He also assured that the government is deploying all available resources to rescue survivors and to return normalcy to the place.
“We continue to call on the resilient spirit of the Filipino to close ranks against the vicissitudes confronting our people. No matter what, we will rise again and we will rise into our destined greatness,” Abella said.
Abella, meanwhile, lauded the 2nd Quarter 2017 Social Weather Stations Survey, which showed that President Duterte’s satisfaction rating continues to increase.
“The survey result, 3 percent higher from March 2017’s 75 percent, is a clear indication of the growing confidence in the Chief Executive and his performance as the country’s leader,” Abella said, noting the public’s “tacit support” to President Duterte’s action following the rebellion in Marawi.
“This positive acknowledgement of the Filipino people further motivates the administration to work for the restoration of normalcy in Marawi and to start its rehabilitation as well as bring a comfortable life for all Filipinos, including Muslim Filipinos,” he said.
http://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/999447
The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) on Friday assured the public that there will be transparency and accountability on the local and foreign donations for those affected by the conflict in Marawi City.
“Accountability and transparency has been a main consideration. Kaya katulad nung mga binuksan nating bank accounts sa amin sa military, transparent tayo dito at nag-create ng committee para ma-address ‘yung paano gamitin ito,” AFP spokesperson Brigadier General Restituto Padilla, Jr. said during the regular Mindanao Hour briefing in Malacañan.
He said the public can be assured that the donations given to fallen soldiers and victims of the Marawi conflict will be reported, noting that foreign donations will be taken care of by the Department of Foreign Affairs, Department of Social Welfare and Development, and Department of Finance.
“There will be appropriate reports to be prepared by the NDRRMC and the Inter-Agency Task Force Bangon Marawi, as a report to the public and to the donor countries on how it was spent. It’s our obligation and we will do that,” Padilla said.
Meanwhile, Padilla said the offensive and clearing operations have been progressing positively in all areas.
“Although still, areas of the four remaining problematic barangays are there, the number of areas held by these terrorists are dwindling by the day and the more we get into the area of these problematic barangays, we are able to clear more of the remaining buildings that have been left,” Padilla explained.
According to the AFP spokesman, the AFP is working overtime to expedite the liberation of Marawi City from the clutches of the terrorists.
“We are ensuring that once a building is cleared, this is guarded to ensure that it is not used as an area of safe haven again by fleeing enemy or hiding enemy in the area,” he said.
As for the recovery, reconstruction and rehabilitation of Marawi, Padilla said the inter-agency task force Bangon Marawi is preparing to set up an initial tent city, which will be converted to a temporary resettlement.
“And as of this morning, we were informed that based on the plans, there will be about 3,000 of these units that will be set up to act as the temporary shelter for our evacuees whose houses have been damaged during the conflict,” Padilla said.
Padilla however said those residents whose homes had not been damaged by the conflict will be assisted in returning to their homes once the hostilities have ended and the all-clear signal has been given.
A temporary area for commercial establishments will likewise be provided to enable the delivery of services and business transactions.
In the same briefing, meanwhile, Presidential Spokesperson Ernesto Abella said that the Palace stands with the people of Leyte following the 6.5-magnitude earthquake in Leyte last Thursday.
“We condole with those who have lost their loved ones and we continue to stand with those who have loved ones who have been hurt,” Abella said.
He also assured that the government is deploying all available resources to rescue survivors and to return normalcy to the place.
“We continue to call on the resilient spirit of the Filipino to close ranks against the vicissitudes confronting our people. No matter what, we will rise again and we will rise into our destined greatness,” Abella said.
Abella, meanwhile, lauded the 2nd Quarter 2017 Social Weather Stations Survey, which showed that President Duterte’s satisfaction rating continues to increase.
“The survey result, 3 percent higher from March 2017’s 75 percent, is a clear indication of the growing confidence in the Chief Executive and his performance as the country’s leader,” Abella said, noting the public’s “tacit support” to President Duterte’s action following the rebellion in Marawi.
“This positive acknowledgement of the Filipino people further motivates the administration to work for the restoration of normalcy in Marawi and to start its rehabilitation as well as bring a comfortable life for all Filipinos, including Muslim Filipinos,” he said.
http://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/999447
DND chief denies issuing 'Arrest Order No. 3'
From the Philippine News Agency (Jul 7): DND chief denies issuing 'Arrest Order No. 3'
Department of National Defense (DND) Secretary Delfin Lorenzana on Friday vehemently denied any connections to "Arrest Order No. 3" which is reportedly circulating publicly.
"We have received reports that an Arrest Order No. 3 is currently being circulated," he added.
The DND chief issued this statement after receiving phone calls asking for clarifications on the matter.
Lorenzana, in his capacity as Martial Law Administrator, said he did not issue any Arrest Order No. 3, thus, any copy of the document being circulated is fake.
Martial Law in Mindanao was declared nighttime of May 23 shortly after the Maute Group attack in Marawi City.
"I call on everyone not to share this fake news to avoid confusion, and not to jeopardize our current operations," the DND chief added.
"Any announcement relating to Martial Law will be disseminated officially," Lorenzana pointed out.
http://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/999464
Department of National Defense (DND) Secretary Delfin Lorenzana on Friday vehemently denied any connections to "Arrest Order No. 3" which is reportedly circulating publicly.
"We have received reports that an Arrest Order No. 3 is currently being circulated," he added.
The DND chief issued this statement after receiving phone calls asking for clarifications on the matter.
Lorenzana, in his capacity as Martial Law Administrator, said he did not issue any Arrest Order No. 3, thus, any copy of the document being circulated is fake.
Martial Law in Mindanao was declared nighttime of May 23 shortly after the Maute Group attack in Marawi City.
"I call on everyone not to share this fake news to avoid confusion, and not to jeopardize our current operations," the DND chief added.
"Any announcement relating to Martial Law will be disseminated officially," Lorenzana pointed out.
http://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/999464
AFP conducts bomb drill to test HSC response time
From the Philippine News Agency (Jul 7): AFP conducts bomb drill to test HSC response time
In line with efforts to beef up its security, the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) conducted a bomb drill aimed at testing the response capability of the Headquarters Service Command (HSC), the unit tasked to guard the facility.
This was bared by AFP public affairs office chief Col. Edgard Arevalo in a statement Friday.
The drill was spearheaded by the Inspector General, AFP head Major Gen. Rafael Valenecia.
"Near-life scenarios were injected to test the security preparedness and readiness response of HSC as part of the Annual General Inspection (AGI) conducted on the unit by TIG, AFP," Arevalo said.
He said the HSC performed satisfactorily during the drill.
"There were some findings noted nonetheless on how to further improve camp defense and security. And these are what the unit will have to address within 15 days after the Commander, HSC Army Colonel Dominique Pulido was notified of the AGI Findings," the AFP official added.
The TIG, AFP is the office in charge to determine whether or not AFP units comply to established standards and drafts policy recommendations to AFP chief-of-staff Gen. Eduardo Año regarding the AGI findings.
http://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/999468
In line with efforts to beef up its security, the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) conducted a bomb drill aimed at testing the response capability of the Headquarters Service Command (HSC), the unit tasked to guard the facility.
This was bared by AFP public affairs office chief Col. Edgard Arevalo in a statement Friday.
The drill was spearheaded by the Inspector General, AFP head Major Gen. Rafael Valenecia.
"Near-life scenarios were injected to test the security preparedness and readiness response of HSC as part of the Annual General Inspection (AGI) conducted on the unit by TIG, AFP," Arevalo said.
He said the HSC performed satisfactorily during the drill.
"There were some findings noted nonetheless on how to further improve camp defense and security. And these are what the unit will have to address within 15 days after the Commander, HSC Army Colonel Dominique Pulido was notified of the AGI Findings," the AFP official added.
The TIG, AFP is the office in charge to determine whether or not AFP units comply to established standards and drafts policy recommendations to AFP chief-of-staff Gen. Eduardo Año regarding the AGI findings.
http://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/999468
Duterte to CPP: Stop extortion first, then we talk
From Rappler (Jul 6): Duterte to CPP: Stop extortion first, then we talk
The President also likens the New People's Army to a distracting 'mosquito' pulling away much-needed government forces from Marawi operations
President Rodrigo Duterte will only allow the government to resume its talks with communists if the rebels stop imposing revolutionary tax on citizens and businesses.
"I refuse now to resume the talks with them until they stop this extortion," he said on Thursday, July 6, during a media interview in Bukidnon.
He said the communist's term, "revolutionary tax", is just a euphemism for their practice of extortion.
A Bukidnon local reporter said properties of residents and businesses are burned by the New People's Army, armed wing of the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP), if they do not pay revolutionary tax.
"That is just a mattter of semantics. Call it a revolutionary tax, actually, it's extortion. That's why we have this fight," said Duterte.
While he committed at the start of his presidency to end the decades-old fight between government and communists, he said he can only do so much if both sides cannot come to an agreement.
'Mosquito'
"I do not want to continue the fight. It has been there for 50 years. I suppose that everyone’s tired killing people for 50 years but if they want it another 50 years, the government can't do anything," he said.
His statement comes after chief government negotiator and labor chief Silvestre Bello III said the government and communists agreed to resume the 5th round of talks in August.
Informal talks to prepare for the formal meeting could be held in July.
Duterte had previously listed an end to revolutionary tax as among the features of a bilateral ceasefire agreement which he would require before greenlighting peace talks.
Despite this, the government and communist peace panels decided to push through with the 5th round of talks.
However, on the first day of talks, the government pulled out because the CPP issued a statement ordering its forces to intensify attacks against government after Duterte's martial law proclamation on May 23.
Duterte, in his speech to soldiers before the interview, called the NPA a distraction as government forces focus on quelling the Marawi conflict.
"Our focus here in Marawi is distracted. It's like there is a mosquito which went into your ear. That's NPA," he told soldiers.
The other day, he had slammed the CPP for its confusing stance on his martial law declaration – first ordering its forces to ramp up attacks against government and then saying it will help government fight terrorism.
The President also likens the New People's Army to a distracting 'mosquito' pulling away much-needed government forces from Marawi operations
BETTER DAYS. President Rodrigo Duterte shares a light moment with NDF member Wilma Tiamzon in September 2016. Presidential photo
President Rodrigo Duterte will only allow the government to resume its talks with communists if the rebels stop imposing revolutionary tax on citizens and businesses.
"I refuse now to resume the talks with them until they stop this extortion," he said on Thursday, July 6, during a media interview in Bukidnon.
He said the communist's term, "revolutionary tax", is just a euphemism for their practice of extortion.
A Bukidnon local reporter said properties of residents and businesses are burned by the New People's Army, armed wing of the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP), if they do not pay revolutionary tax.
"That is just a mattter of semantics. Call it a revolutionary tax, actually, it's extortion. That's why we have this fight," said Duterte.
While he committed at the start of his presidency to end the decades-old fight between government and communists, he said he can only do so much if both sides cannot come to an agreement.
'Mosquito'
"I do not want to continue the fight. It has been there for 50 years. I suppose that everyone’s tired killing people for 50 years but if they want it another 50 years, the government can't do anything," he said.
His statement comes after chief government negotiator and labor chief Silvestre Bello III said the government and communists agreed to resume the 5th round of talks in August.
Informal talks to prepare for the formal meeting could be held in July.
Duterte had previously listed an end to revolutionary tax as among the features of a bilateral ceasefire agreement which he would require before greenlighting peace talks.
Despite this, the government and communist peace panels decided to push through with the 5th round of talks.
However, on the first day of talks, the government pulled out because the CPP issued a statement ordering its forces to intensify attacks against government after Duterte's martial law proclamation on May 23.
Duterte, in his speech to soldiers before the interview, called the NPA a distraction as government forces focus on quelling the Marawi conflict.
"Our focus here in Marawi is distracted. It's like there is a mosquito which went into your ear. That's NPA," he told soldiers.
The other day, he had slammed the CPP for its confusing stance on his martial law declaration – first ordering its forces to ramp up attacks against government and then saying it will help government fight terrorism.
Duterte pressures Ubial to speed up purchase of AFP medical equipment
From Rappler (Jul 6): Duterte pressures Ubial to speed up purchase of AFP medical equipment
'Kung hindi ninyo palitan 'yang procedure, kayo ang palitan ko,' President Rodrigo Duterte says he told Health Secretary Paulyn Ubial
Speed up the procurement of medical equipment for military hospitals or someone will be axed.
This was supposedly President Rodrigo Duterte's warning to Health Secretary Paulyn Ubial out of his frustration for the delay in purchasing various equipment for hospitals of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP).
"Kaya sinabi ko kay Ubial, 'Do it in 60 days, or do it this month. Kung hindi ninyo palitan 'yang procedure, kayo ang palitan ko.' Si Secretary Ubial mismo," said Duterte on Thursday, July 6. (So I told Ubial, "Do it in 60 days, or do it this month. If you can't replace the procedure, I'll replace you.")
He was speaking to soldiers in Malaybalay, Bukidnon. Duterte had promised to improve military hospitals during his first months into the presidency.
Of late, the delays in acquiring the hospital equipment have been among his usual topics in speeches to military troops, but it's the first explicit warning to a Cabinet secretary.
Previously, Duterte had issued a warning to judges who supposedly issue temporary restraining orders to stop projects after accepting bribes from losing bidders.
It was supposedly this modus operandi which caused the delay of equipment for military hospitals. A losing company protested the winning bid.
Duterte said he didn't care about the steps in a bidding process. What matters to him is that the procurement is done swiftly to address the urgent needs of soldiers, many of whom have been deployed to fight terrorists in Marawi City.
"Don't give me that shit about a bidding process. Eh kung wala namang magnanakaw diyan sumasali, bakit patagalin 'nyo nang gano'n (If no one is stealing from those who joined [the bidding], why delay it)?" he said.
"I said, 'Change the procedure or I will change you,'" he added.
Duterte then promised soldiers they would not be the "last" in his government.
"You are as important as me in this government. Your life is not less important than mine," he said.
He promised to get them the "best" defense equipment and repeated his commitment to stop purchasing secondhand equipment from other countries.
By the end of his term, he might even double the number of fighter jets being used by the Philippine Air Force.
"There are 12 FA-50s there. Maybe when I'm on my way out, probably it will be 24. We will have a credible Air Force for our country," he said.
'Kung hindi ninyo palitan 'yang procedure, kayo ang palitan ko,' President Rodrigo Duterte says he told Health Secretary Paulyn Ubial
SOLDIERS' NEEDS. President Rodrigo Duterte visits wounded soldiers in a military hospital in June 2017. Malacañang file photo
Speed up the procurement of medical equipment for military hospitals or someone will be axed.
This was supposedly President Rodrigo Duterte's warning to Health Secretary Paulyn Ubial out of his frustration for the delay in purchasing various equipment for hospitals of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP).
"Kaya sinabi ko kay Ubial, 'Do it in 60 days, or do it this month. Kung hindi ninyo palitan 'yang procedure, kayo ang palitan ko.' Si Secretary Ubial mismo," said Duterte on Thursday, July 6. (So I told Ubial, "Do it in 60 days, or do it this month. If you can't replace the procedure, I'll replace you.")
He was speaking to soldiers in Malaybalay, Bukidnon. Duterte had promised to improve military hospitals during his first months into the presidency.
Of late, the delays in acquiring the hospital equipment have been among his usual topics in speeches to military troops, but it's the first explicit warning to a Cabinet secretary.
Previously, Duterte had issued a warning to judges who supposedly issue temporary restraining orders to stop projects after accepting bribes from losing bidders.
It was supposedly this modus operandi which caused the delay of equipment for military hospitals. A losing company protested the winning bid.
Duterte said he didn't care about the steps in a bidding process. What matters to him is that the procurement is done swiftly to address the urgent needs of soldiers, many of whom have been deployed to fight terrorists in Marawi City.
"Don't give me that shit about a bidding process. Eh kung wala namang magnanakaw diyan sumasali, bakit patagalin 'nyo nang gano'n (If no one is stealing from those who joined [the bidding], why delay it)?" he said.
"I said, 'Change the procedure or I will change you,'" he added.
Duterte then promised soldiers they would not be the "last" in his government.
"You are as important as me in this government. Your life is not less important than mine," he said.
He promised to get them the "best" defense equipment and repeated his commitment to stop purchasing secondhand equipment from other countries.
By the end of his term, he might even double the number of fighter jets being used by the Philippine Air Force.
"There are 12 FA-50s there. Maybe when I'm on my way out, probably it will be 24. We will have a credible Air Force for our country," he said.
2,000 lumad, including students and teachers of tribal school, flee military operations in Surigao del Sur
From InterAksyon (Jul 6): 2,000 lumad, including students and teachers of tribal school, flee military operations in Surigao del Sur
Students begin moving out of Han-ayan in Lianga, Surigao del sur after soldiers were spotted around the community, sending residents fleeing. (photo from TRIFPSS Surigao Sur)
(UPDATE – 2:40 p.m.) More than 2,000 lumad, including students and teachers of a renowned school still traumatized by the grisly murder of their administrator and two tribal leaders in September 2015, fled their communities in Lianga and San Miguel towns in Surigao del Sur after government troops began operating in the area.
In a lumad community in San Miguel town, soldiers also allegedly circulated a list of “enemies of the state” that included four teachers of the school run by the Tribal Filipino Program of Surigao del Sur or TRIFPSS, which operates elementary education centers in lumad communities.
Fr. Raymond Ambray, a Catholic priest who is a director of the award-winning Alternative Learning Center for Agricultural and Livelihood Development (ALCADEV), confirmed that 424 families from 13 hinterland communities in Barangay Diatagon, Lianga, including Han-ayan, which hosts the high school and a TRIFPSS center, and nearby villages in San Miguel began leaving the night of July 4 after what he said were “multiple sightings” by residents of armed men in uniform, some of them wearing hoods, lurking around their villages.
Some farmers later reported seeing around 60 troops of the Army’s 75th Infantry Battalion.
Ambray said the residents decided to flee not because of any actual atrocities committed but because of their past experiences with soldiers and military-backed militiamen.
On September 1, 2015, members of the Magahat militia drove the students and staff of ALCADEV out of the school then hogtied and stabbed dead Emerito Samarca. They also gunned down Dionel Campos, chairman of the Manobo organization Maluhutayong Pakigbisog Alang Sumusunod (Persevering Struggle for the Next Generation or MAPASU) and his cousin Juvello Sinzo, a tribal leader, in front of hundreds of terrified residents, including children.
The killings, which the military admitted took place as a nearby soldiers — also of the 75th IB — did nothing, triggered the exodus of thousands of lumad in Surigao del Sur. To this day, none of the killers have been arrested and prosecuted, although leaders of the militia, under military escort, had testified at a congressional inquiry at which one of them declared that Samarca deserved his fate.
The military, on the other hand, continued to openly accuse the tribal schools of teaching Manobo children to sympathize with and even join the communist revolutionary movement.
It took more than a year before the evacuees finally returned home.
Ambray and Norma Ampis, TRIFPSS executive director, said many of the lumad remain deeply traumatized by the 2015 murders.
The priest confirmed that the residents feared a recurrence of the 2015 murders as well as the bombing of their communities that often accompanied past military operations.
Initially, the evacuees gathered at the center of Han-ayan and the proceeded to the community at “Kilometer 13” but around midnight Thursday, Ambray said they heard a “tora-tora” circling for about an hour.
While “tora-tora” is the term normally used by people in the countryside to describe propeller-driven Air Force planes, Ambray said what they heard was most likely a helicopter.
However, he explained, in the lumad‘s experience, hovering helicopters were invariably followed by artillery bombardments or air strikes.
“Although we advised them to wait for first light, they decided to leave even if it was still dark, they were so afraid,” Ambray said.
Ambray said the evacuation has also disrupted the education of at least 700 students — 199 from ALCADEV, the rest from up to 20 TRIFPSS schools in the lumad communities — which have had to close down.
Some of the evacuees, he said, are staying at the TRIFPSS school in the community known as “Kilometer 9,” the rest in the houses of relatives and friends.
Ambray said they are coordinating for relief assistance from the Lianga municipal government and are also seeking a dialogue with provincial officials to address the concerns of the evacuees who, he stressed, “are safe for now but will pack up and leave again at the first sign that soldiers or militias are heading their way.”
Meanwhile, in Sitio Barbuan, Barangay Carromata, San Miguel, Ampis said eight community leaders were compelled to “surrender” and “clear” themselves after troops of the 36th IB showed their names were included in a list of “enemies of the state.”
And in Sitio Liangabon, Barangay Calatngan, an unidentified armed man handed a teachers of the TRIFPSS school there a “list of targets” that included the names of lumad community organizers and the four teachers of the tribal learning center.
Students begin moving out of Han-ayan in Lianga, Surigao del sur after soldiers were spotted around the community, sending residents fleeing. (photo from TRIFPSS Surigao Sur)
(UPDATE – 2:40 p.m.) More than 2,000 lumad, including students and teachers of a renowned school still traumatized by the grisly murder of their administrator and two tribal leaders in September 2015, fled their communities in Lianga and San Miguel towns in Surigao del Sur after government troops began operating in the area.
In a lumad community in San Miguel town, soldiers also allegedly circulated a list of “enemies of the state” that included four teachers of the school run by the Tribal Filipino Program of Surigao del Sur or TRIFPSS, which operates elementary education centers in lumad communities.
Fr. Raymond Ambray, a Catholic priest who is a director of the award-winning Alternative Learning Center for Agricultural and Livelihood Development (ALCADEV), confirmed that 424 families from 13 hinterland communities in Barangay Diatagon, Lianga, including Han-ayan, which hosts the high school and a TRIFPSS center, and nearby villages in San Miguel began leaving the night of July 4 after what he said were “multiple sightings” by residents of armed men in uniform, some of them wearing hoods, lurking around their villages.
Some farmers later reported seeing around 60 troops of the Army’s 75th Infantry Battalion.
Ambray said the residents decided to flee not because of any actual atrocities committed but because of their past experiences with soldiers and military-backed militiamen.
On September 1, 2015, members of the Magahat militia drove the students and staff of ALCADEV out of the school then hogtied and stabbed dead Emerito Samarca. They also gunned down Dionel Campos, chairman of the Manobo organization Maluhutayong Pakigbisog Alang Sumusunod (Persevering Struggle for the Next Generation or MAPASU) and his cousin Juvello Sinzo, a tribal leader, in front of hundreds of terrified residents, including children.
The killings, which the military admitted took place as a nearby soldiers — also of the 75th IB — did nothing, triggered the exodus of thousands of lumad in Surigao del Sur. To this day, none of the killers have been arrested and prosecuted, although leaders of the militia, under military escort, had testified at a congressional inquiry at which one of them declared that Samarca deserved his fate.
The military, on the other hand, continued to openly accuse the tribal schools of teaching Manobo children to sympathize with and even join the communist revolutionary movement.
It took more than a year before the evacuees finally returned home.
Ambray and Norma Ampis, TRIFPSS executive director, said many of the lumad remain deeply traumatized by the 2015 murders.
The priest confirmed that the residents feared a recurrence of the 2015 murders as well as the bombing of their communities that often accompanied past military operations.
Initially, the evacuees gathered at the center of Han-ayan and the proceeded to the community at “Kilometer 13” but around midnight Thursday, Ambray said they heard a “tora-tora” circling for about an hour.
While “tora-tora” is the term normally used by people in the countryside to describe propeller-driven Air Force planes, Ambray said what they heard was most likely a helicopter.
However, he explained, in the lumad‘s experience, hovering helicopters were invariably followed by artillery bombardments or air strikes.
“Although we advised them to wait for first light, they decided to leave even if it was still dark, they were so afraid,” Ambray said.
Ambray said the evacuation has also disrupted the education of at least 700 students — 199 from ALCADEV, the rest from up to 20 TRIFPSS schools in the lumad communities — which have had to close down.
Some of the evacuees, he said, are staying at the TRIFPSS school in the community known as “Kilometer 9,” the rest in the houses of relatives and friends.
Ambray said they are coordinating for relief assistance from the Lianga municipal government and are also seeking a dialogue with provincial officials to address the concerns of the evacuees who, he stressed, “are safe for now but will pack up and leave again at the first sign that soldiers or militias are heading their way.”
Meanwhile, in Sitio Barbuan, Barangay Carromata, San Miguel, Ampis said eight community leaders were compelled to “surrender” and “clear” themselves after troops of the 36th IB showed their names were included in a list of “enemies of the state.”
And in Sitio Liangabon, Barangay Calatngan, an unidentified armed man handed a teachers of the TRIFPSS school there a “list of targets” that included the names of lumad community organizers and the four teachers of the tribal learning center.
NPA refutes claim by Army arrest of Ka Yoyo, high-ranking NPA in Caraga
From InterAksyon (Jul 6): NPA refutes claim by Army arrest of Ka Yoyo, high-ranking NPA in Caraga
An NPA guerrilla of Guerrilla Front 16 operating in Surigao del Norte. Photographed by Erwin Mascariñas, News5 | InterAksyon
The rebel New People’s Army Guerrilla Front 16 operating in Surigao del Norte Province on Thursday refuted a claim by the Philippine Army’s 30th Infantry Battalion that a person arrested by government forces was a high-ranking NPA leader, pointing out that that person had left the revolutionary movement years ago.
Philippine Army’s 30th Infantry Battalion based in Surigao del Norte claimed that the arrested person, identified as Arpel Rabago, also known as Ka Yoyo, allegedly vice commander of an NPA platoon under GF16, was arrested at a joint Philippine National Police (PNP) checkpoint in Surigao City Wednesday afternoon.
2Lt Jonel Castillo, Civil Military Operation Officer (CMO) of the 30IB, said: “Rabago’s arrest was by virtue of an arrest warrant issued by Surigao City Judicial Branch Court for cases of multiple attempted murder and frustrated murder.”
A report provided by the Philippine National Police (PNP) stated that the alleged ranking NPA guerrilla was arrested along the KM14 mark of the national highway in Barangay Trinidad, Surigao City at around 5 o’clock in the afternoon of July 5, 2017.
Additional data about Rabago suggest that Rabago is wanted with an arrest warrant issued by the Regional Trail Court Branch 32 Judge Dan Calderon for frustrated murder on October 21, 2013 and another warrant of arrest for multiple attempted murder issued by the late Judge Victor Canoy of RTC branch 29 on November 27, 2015. Adding to the track record are charges of kidnapping and serious illegal detention.
“Ka Yoyo is responsible for the series of harassments and extortion in certain parts of the province. He led a numerous attacks against government troops conducting peace and development activities in the towns of Malimono, San Francisco and Surigao City during the previous years,” Castillo pointed out.
Lt. Col. Allen Tomas, Commander of 30IB, added that the arrest of Rabago is a wake up call to other NPA members: “It is the right time to lay down your arms and be with the Government.”
The NPA GF16 command pointed out, “Ka Yoyo left the NPA back in October of 2014 for various personal reasons. The person was not even a ranking official as claimed by the army. He is not a so-called vice commander, but he just a squad leader within the GF16-B.
“After Rabago left the NPA, we heard that he went to Manila and then when he returned to his home in Sitio Upper Sangay in Barangay Anomar, he got entangled in several issues in the community related to his drinking habits,” said Ka Oto, spokesperson of the NPA’s GF16.
Ka Oto stated further that he believes that the rank of Rabago was made to appear higher to insinuate a bigger price on his head.
“We don’t even know if the alleged arrest or capture is really true, or if we are being made to believe that he was captured. Rabago has been living with the people in his community for several months and has been the subject of several complaints for his drinking habits. He might have struck a deal with the authorities, so it is really hard to just take these claims as truth,” he concluded.
http://www.interaksyon.com/npa-refutes-claim-by-army-arrest-of-ka-yoyo-high-ranking-npa-in-caraga/
An NPA guerrilla of Guerrilla Front 16 operating in Surigao del Norte. Photographed by Erwin Mascariñas, News5 | InterAksyon
The rebel New People’s Army Guerrilla Front 16 operating in Surigao del Norte Province on Thursday refuted a claim by the Philippine Army’s 30th Infantry Battalion that a person arrested by government forces was a high-ranking NPA leader, pointing out that that person had left the revolutionary movement years ago.
Philippine Army’s 30th Infantry Battalion based in Surigao del Norte claimed that the arrested person, identified as Arpel Rabago, also known as Ka Yoyo, allegedly vice commander of an NPA platoon under GF16, was arrested at a joint Philippine National Police (PNP) checkpoint in Surigao City Wednesday afternoon.
2Lt Jonel Castillo, Civil Military Operation Officer (CMO) of the 30IB, said: “Rabago’s arrest was by virtue of an arrest warrant issued by Surigao City Judicial Branch Court for cases of multiple attempted murder and frustrated murder.”
A report provided by the Philippine National Police (PNP) stated that the alleged ranking NPA guerrilla was arrested along the KM14 mark of the national highway in Barangay Trinidad, Surigao City at around 5 o’clock in the afternoon of July 5, 2017.
Additional data about Rabago suggest that Rabago is wanted with an arrest warrant issued by the Regional Trail Court Branch 32 Judge Dan Calderon for frustrated murder on October 21, 2013 and another warrant of arrest for multiple attempted murder issued by the late Judge Victor Canoy of RTC branch 29 on November 27, 2015. Adding to the track record are charges of kidnapping and serious illegal detention.
“Ka Yoyo is responsible for the series of harassments and extortion in certain parts of the province. He led a numerous attacks against government troops conducting peace and development activities in the towns of Malimono, San Francisco and Surigao City during the previous years,” Castillo pointed out.
Lt. Col. Allen Tomas, Commander of 30IB, added that the arrest of Rabago is a wake up call to other NPA members: “It is the right time to lay down your arms and be with the Government.”
The NPA GF16 command pointed out, “Ka Yoyo left the NPA back in October of 2014 for various personal reasons. The person was not even a ranking official as claimed by the army. He is not a so-called vice commander, but he just a squad leader within the GF16-B.
“After Rabago left the NPA, we heard that he went to Manila and then when he returned to his home in Sitio Upper Sangay in Barangay Anomar, he got entangled in several issues in the community related to his drinking habits,” said Ka Oto, spokesperson of the NPA’s GF16.
Ka Oto stated further that he believes that the rank of Rabago was made to appear higher to insinuate a bigger price on his head.
“We don’t even know if the alleged arrest or capture is really true, or if we are being made to believe that he was captured. Rabago has been living with the people in his community for several months and has been the subject of several complaints for his drinking habits. He might have struck a deal with the authorities, so it is really hard to just take these claims as truth,” he concluded.
http://www.interaksyon.com/npa-refutes-claim-by-army-arrest-of-ka-yoyo-high-ranking-npa-in-caraga/
Thursday, July 6, 2017
10 political prisoners released after presidential pardon
From InterAksyon (Jul 6): 10 political prisoners released after presidential pardon
The first four of the 10 political detainees pardoned by President Rodrigo Duterte are released from the New Bilibid Prison Thursday: (From left) NDFP peace consultant Emeterio Antalan, Josue Ungsod, Joel Ramada and Ricardo Solanon. (photo by Kodao Productions)
Ten political prisoners – National Democratic Front of the Philippines consultant Emeterio Antalan, Ricardo Solangon, Joel Ramada, Apolonio Barado, Jose Navarro, Generoso Rolida, Arnulfo Boates, Manolito Matricio, Josue Ungsod, and Sonny Marbella – were granted presidential pardon and released from New Bilibid Prison (NBP) on Thursday, July 6, 2017.
They will be presented at a press conference by the human rights advocacy group, Karapatan, on Friday, July 7, 1:30pm, at the Bayan Conf. Room, 4F Erythrina Bldg., 1 Maaralin, Brgy. Central, Quezon City.
Fidel Agcaoili, Chair the of the NDFP Peace Panel, said: “It is too few and too late. It is just a fraction of the 409 political prisoners still in detention whose liberty was supposed to have been given through general amnesty as offered by PRRD on 16 May 2016 as part of the package to resume the peace negotiations with the NDFP. Moreover, the release of the 10 through pardon was volunteered by the GRP Panel for the Christmas season last December. It took more than six months for that voluntary offer to happen. This manifests the regime’s total lack of empathy and concern for the plight of political prisoners who are/have been in prison for trumped up charges in violation of the CARHRIHL.”
http://www.interaksyon.com/10-political-prisoners-released-after-presidential-pardon/
The first four of the 10 political detainees pardoned by President Rodrigo Duterte are released from the New Bilibid Prison Thursday: (From left) NDFP peace consultant Emeterio Antalan, Josue Ungsod, Joel Ramada and Ricardo Solanon. (photo by Kodao Productions)
Ten political prisoners – National Democratic Front of the Philippines consultant Emeterio Antalan, Ricardo Solangon, Joel Ramada, Apolonio Barado, Jose Navarro, Generoso Rolida, Arnulfo Boates, Manolito Matricio, Josue Ungsod, and Sonny Marbella – were granted presidential pardon and released from New Bilibid Prison (NBP) on Thursday, July 6, 2017.
They will be presented at a press conference by the human rights advocacy group, Karapatan, on Friday, July 7, 1:30pm, at the Bayan Conf. Room, 4F Erythrina Bldg., 1 Maaralin, Brgy. Central, Quezon City.
Fidel Agcaoili, Chair the of the NDFP Peace Panel, said: “It is too few and too late. It is just a fraction of the 409 political prisoners still in detention whose liberty was supposed to have been given through general amnesty as offered by PRRD on 16 May 2016 as part of the package to resume the peace negotiations with the NDFP. Moreover, the release of the 10 through pardon was volunteered by the GRP Panel for the Christmas season last December. It took more than six months for that voluntary offer to happen. This manifests the regime’s total lack of empathy and concern for the plight of political prisoners who are/have been in prison for trumped up charges in violation of the CARHRIHL.”
http://www.interaksyon.com/10-political-prisoners-released-after-presidential-pardon/
5 NPAs nabbed
From the Mindanao Times (Jul 4): 5 NPAs nabbed
FIVE alleged members of the New People’s Army (NPA), including two women, were arrested after they were reportedly found transporting explosives in a military checkpoint in Barangay Mangayon, Compostela, Compostela Valley Sunday evening.
But a human rights group said those arrested, all farmers, were just framed-up as the military officers only planted the evidence.
Capt. Andrew Linao, the civil-military operation officer (CMO) of the 701st Infantry Brigade, identified the suspects as Rolan Segovia, Estanislao Talledo, Alexir Mata, Jhona Rose Baugto and Alicia Tidasan, all residents of Barangay Ngan, Compostela.
But a human rights group said those arrested, all farmers, were just framed-up as the military officers only planted the evidence.
Capt. Andrew Linao, the civil-military operation officer (CMO) of the 701st Infantry Brigade, identified the suspects as Rolan Segovia, Estanislao Talledo, Alexir Mata, Jhona Rose Baugto and Alicia Tidasan, all residents of Barangay Ngan, Compostela.
Linao told TIMES yesterday that troopers of the 72nd Infantry Battalion intercepted the five suspects in a detachment checkpoint in Mangayon around 8:10 p.m. Sunday for transporting Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs).
Five IEDs and six blasting caps were allegedly placed in sacks of rice.
Linao said the suspects are members of NPA’s Milisyang Bayan, but they are still establishing what unit the arrested suspects belong.
Five IEDs and six blasting caps were allegedly placed in sacks of rice.
Linao said the suspects are members of NPA’s Milisyang Bayan, but they are still establishing what unit the arrested suspects belong.
“They are laying and detonating IEDs,” he said.
The army captain said the apprehension was a result of the Martial Law imposed in Mindanao as NPAs are now pressured.
The Anakpawis Party-list, in its facebook post, is calling for the release of the five farmers.
The army captain said the apprehension was a result of the Martial Law imposed in Mindanao as NPAs are now pressured.
The Anakpawis Party-list, in its facebook post, is calling for the release of the five farmers.
Human rights group Karapatan in Southern Mindanao Region said the five arrested were farmers who are members of the Compostela Farmers Association (CFA).
The CFA, in its statement, said the five were supposed to attend a barangay-wide assembly of the local peasant organization in Purok 4B, Mangayon.
The statement said soldiers under the 66th IBPA held them around 2 p.m. on Sunday.
Karapatan said the farmers visited a lumad school when they were intercepted.
The CFA, in its statement, said the five were supposed to attend a barangay-wide assembly of the local peasant organization in Purok 4B, Mangayon.
The statement said soldiers under the 66th IBPA held them around 2 p.m. on Sunday.
Karapatan said the farmers visited a lumad school when they were intercepted.
Eight military agents interrogated and vilified them, the Karapatan said.
The explosives, the human rights group said, were just planted.
During the interrogation, “another seven military soldiers arrived and brought with them a sack of rice with a bomb inside.”
“They accused us that we were the ones who brought the bomb, they put it beside our bags,” Karapatan quoted Tindasan as saying.
Baugto’s mother, Rosalina, has sought the help of town council of Compostela for the release of her daughter and the four other farmers.
“It’s not strange to all of you the detained members of CFA, they are in fact, known defenders of peasant and lumad rights, that’s why I am asking all of you to help them be released immediately,” Rosalina appealed to the town councilors.
‘NPA rebels’ face rap for planting landmine
Meanwhile, the four suspects who reportedly planted a landmine at the roadside of Purok 2, Km. 26, Barangay L.S. Sarmiento, Laak, Compostela Valley on June 27 were already brought to the Nabunturan trial court for inquest proceedings.
The explosives, the human rights group said, were just planted.
During the interrogation, “another seven military soldiers arrived and brought with them a sack of rice with a bomb inside.”
“They accused us that we were the ones who brought the bomb, they put it beside our bags,” Karapatan quoted Tindasan as saying.
Baugto’s mother, Rosalina, has sought the help of town council of Compostela for the release of her daughter and the four other farmers.
“It’s not strange to all of you the detained members of CFA, they are in fact, known defenders of peasant and lumad rights, that’s why I am asking all of you to help them be released immediately,” Rosalina appealed to the town councilors.
‘NPA rebels’ face rap for planting landmine
Meanwhile, the four suspects who reportedly planted a landmine at the roadside of Purok 2, Km. 26, Barangay L.S. Sarmiento, Laak, Compostela Valley on June 27 were already brought to the Nabunturan trial court for inquest proceedings.
2nd Lt. Amadeuz Vincent John Celestial, civil-military operations (CMO) officer of 60th IB, identified the suspects as Junrex Mission, Jimmy Adlin, Romar Ruales and Ronel Tonlay, all residents of the barangay.
All four face charges for violating Republic Act 9516 or the law on the illegal possession, manufacture, dealing, acquisition or disposition of firearms, ammunition and explosives.
Accordingly, they were caught around 6 a.m. by joint forces of Charlie Company of the 60th IB and L.S. Sarmiento Cafgu detachment under the Delta Company of the 72nd IB.
They were turned over to the police. Other explosive paraphernalia were also seized from the suspects upon their arrest.
Celestial told TIMES that the military has been conducting security operations in the area because of reports from residents and concerned citizens of NPA presence.
Earlier, around 10:25 p.m. of June 26, the military encountered around 10 armed men believed to be NPA members.
All four face charges for violating Republic Act 9516 or the law on the illegal possession, manufacture, dealing, acquisition or disposition of firearms, ammunition and explosives.
Accordingly, they were caught around 6 a.m. by joint forces of Charlie Company of the 60th IB and L.S. Sarmiento Cafgu detachment under the Delta Company of the 72nd IB.
They were turned over to the police. Other explosive paraphernalia were also seized from the suspects upon their arrest.
Celestial told TIMES that the military has been conducting security operations in the area because of reports from residents and concerned citizens of NPA presence.
Earlier, around 10:25 p.m. of June 26, the military encountered around 10 armed men believed to be NPA members.
Military nabs 2 suspected Maute supporters in Cagayan de Oro
From the MindaNews (Jul 5): Military nabs 2 suspected Maute supporters in Cagayan de Oro
Military arrested in Cagayan de Oro City Wednesday morning two suspected supporters of the terrorist Maute Group, both relatives of Farhana Romato-Maute, mother of the Maute leaders Omar and Abdullah who was arrested last month in Lanao del Sur.
In a statement, the Martial Law Special Action Group (MLSAG) of the Army’s 4th Infantry Division apprehended Farhana’s niece, Monaliza Solaiman Romato, and her daughter, Tahera Romato Taher, at 4:30 a.m. in Barangay Macasandig in Cagayan de Oro in a search, arrest and seizure operation.
Monaliza Solaiman Romato, in a photo released by the EastMinCom.
Upong the issuance of a warrant by Regional Trial Court Branch 18 executive judge Dennis Z. Alcantar, the authorities, who were accompanied by barangay officials, searched the house rented by a certain Irene Romato Idris at Residencia Apartment, Aluba, Brgy. Macasandig where they found the two suspects.
Authorities recovered from their possession four M203 grenades, one blasting cap, nine-volt battery with battery holder, one piece C4 explosive, eight detonating cords, 19 pieces 100-watt incandescent bulbs, jungle knife, suspected ammonium nitrate placed inside a plastic bag, and suspected red colored ammonium nitrate placed inside a plastic bottle.
The confiscated items were immediately brought to the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) for proper filing of case and disposition.
According to a report from the Eastern Mindanao Command (EastMinCom), Monaliza allegedly took over the role of her aunt, Farhana, after she was arrested last month, providing “financial and logistical support to the Maute Terrorist group and her house in Cagayan de Oro served as a sanctuary and transit point for Maute terrorist members.”
It said Monaliza is the mother of a certain “Colingling” who serves as “intel/liaison” of the Maute Group in Cagayan de Oro and provided sanctuary to Maute members such as Farida Romato, Al Majid Romato and Al Jadid Romato during their stay in the city before they were arrested in Iloilo Port last June 18.
“Her link with Maute was likewise traced to Mohammad Noaim Maute alis ‘Abu Jadid/Majid’, a trained Maute terrorist bomber tasked to conduct bombing in Cagayan de Oro City during the previous Ramadan when she supported her stay in the city.”
http://www.mindanews.com/top-stories/2017/07/military-nabs-2-suspected-maute-supporters-in-cagayan-de-oro/
Military arrested in Cagayan de Oro City Wednesday morning two suspected supporters of the terrorist Maute Group, both relatives of Farhana Romato-Maute, mother of the Maute leaders Omar and Abdullah who was arrested last month in Lanao del Sur.
In a statement, the Martial Law Special Action Group (MLSAG) of the Army’s 4th Infantry Division apprehended Farhana’s niece, Monaliza Solaiman Romato, and her daughter, Tahera Romato Taher, at 4:30 a.m. in Barangay Macasandig in Cagayan de Oro in a search, arrest and seizure operation.
Monaliza Solaiman Romato, in a photo released by the EastMinCom.
Upong the issuance of a warrant by Regional Trial Court Branch 18 executive judge Dennis Z. Alcantar, the authorities, who were accompanied by barangay officials, searched the house rented by a certain Irene Romato Idris at Residencia Apartment, Aluba, Brgy. Macasandig where they found the two suspects.
Authorities recovered from their possession four M203 grenades, one blasting cap, nine-volt battery with battery holder, one piece C4 explosive, eight detonating cords, 19 pieces 100-watt incandescent bulbs, jungle knife, suspected ammonium nitrate placed inside a plastic bag, and suspected red colored ammonium nitrate placed inside a plastic bottle.
The confiscated items were immediately brought to the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) for proper filing of case and disposition.
According to a report from the Eastern Mindanao Command (EastMinCom), Monaliza allegedly took over the role of her aunt, Farhana, after she was arrested last month, providing “financial and logistical support to the Maute Terrorist group and her house in Cagayan de Oro served as a sanctuary and transit point for Maute terrorist members.”
It said Monaliza is the mother of a certain “Colingling” who serves as “intel/liaison” of the Maute Group in Cagayan de Oro and provided sanctuary to Maute members such as Farida Romato, Al Majid Romato and Al Jadid Romato during their stay in the city before they were arrested in Iloilo Port last June 18.
“Her link with Maute was likewise traced to Mohammad Noaim Maute alis ‘Abu Jadid/Majid’, a trained Maute terrorist bomber tasked to conduct bombing in Cagayan de Oro City during the previous Ramadan when she supported her stay in the city.”
http://www.mindanews.com/top-stories/2017/07/military-nabs-2-suspected-maute-supporters-in-cagayan-de-oro/
BTC to submit draft BBL to President Duterte on July 18
From MindaNews (Jul 6): BTC to submit draft BBL to President Duterte on July 18
The Bangsamoro Transition Commission (BTC) will submit its draft Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL) to President Rodrigo Duterte in Malacanang on July 18, a month and two days after completing it and six days before the President delivers his second State of the Nation Address (SONA) where he is expected to certify the bill as urgent.
BTC chair Ghazali Jaafar said he does not know if the President will still review the draft as he had repeatedly said he would, or hand it over immediately to Senate President Aquilino Pimentel III and House Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez on the same day it is submitted to him in Malacanang.
The Bangsamoro Transition Commission completed on Friday, 16 June 2017, its draft Bangsamoro Basic Law, and is now ready to submit it to President Rodrigo Duterte. Photo courtesy of BTC Facebook
“That we don’t know. Depende na sa President yan” (That depends on the President), Jaafar, concurrent 1st Vice Chair of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) told MindaNews in a text message.
The submission of the draft BBL was initially set for June 28 but Secretary Jesus Dureza, Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process told MindaNews on June 23 that it was reset because Pimentel and Alvarez would not be available by then. The plan, he said then, was “after PRRD receives it (draft BBL), he hands it over immediately to Congress.”
“We should not commit the mistakes of the past. We should learn from them,” Dureza told MindaNews.
Dureza explained that the lesson learned from the previous administration was: “dili gipasa ug dili pud gidawat sa Bangsamoro ang Palace-tweaked version” (the draft law was not passed and the Bangsamoro did not accept the Palace-tweaked version.”
“Agreed version”
The then 15-member BTC under the Aquino administration, chaired by MILF peace panel chair Mohagher Iqbal, submitted its draft BBL to the Office of the President on April 22, 2014 since the OP said it will review it first before its submission to Congress. The review took two months and when handed back to the MILF-led BTC, it rejected the Palace version of the BBL, claiming it was a “watered down version” that would render the future Bangsamoro less autonomous than the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) that it sought to replace.
A series of meetings followed between the government and MILF peace panels but they ended in an impasse until then Executive Secretary Paquito Ochoa took over in August 2014.
Another series of meetings ensued between the team of then BTC chair Mohagher Iqbal, concurrent MILF peace panel chair, until an “agreed version” was finalized in the first week of September 2014 and submitted to Senate President Franklin Drilon and tSpeaker Feliciano Belmonte in the presence of President Benigno Simeon Aquino III on September 10, in rites held in Malacanang.
The original draft BBL submitted to Aquino in April 2014 was a 97-page, 18-article document. The “agreed version” submitted to Congress in September that year was a 119-page draft law containing articles and an additional three-page appendix on a proposed ordinance providing for the “parliamentary districts composing the provinces, cities, municipalities and geographic areas of the Bangsamoro.”
After the committee hearings, the Senate and House committees tackling the draft BBL submitted substitute bills both titled “Basic Law for the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region” or BLBAR.
The two BLBARs were also criticized for rendering the future Bangsamoro less autonomous than the ARMM.
Congress adjourned under the Aquino administration without passing the Bangsamoro law.
New draft
The new draft BBL crafted by the BTC chaired by Jaafar, consists of 114 pages and 18 articles.
Duterte had earlier said he would wait for the submission of the draft BBL, study it along with the draft amendatory law of the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) under Nur Misuari. Misuari’s faction has a separate five-member peace implementing panel but the faction headed by Yusoph Jikiri (formerly by Muslimin Sema) has three representatives in the current BTC.
The 21 members of the Bangsamoro Transition Commission (BTC) with President Rodrigo Duterte (center) at the launch on 24 February 2017 at the Garden Pavilion of the Waterfront Insular Hotel. TOTO Lozano / Presidential Photo
The 21-member BTC is less than one member now with the resignation in late May by Marawi City-based Commissioner Samira Ali Gutoc. Gutoc cited personal reasons and policy questions in her resignation.
Sail on still waters
In his speech at the inauguration of the PTV Cordillera hub in Baguio City on March 11, Duterte said of the draft BBL: “I will study it before we submit it to Congress and pray that it would sail on still waters.”
“Maybe the Senate would have a more or less rigorous opposition, that’s expected. This is a democracy,” he said.
A month later, on April 10, at the Davao International Airport before departing for the Middle East, he told reporters he would call all Moro revolutionary leaders to a meeting to come up with a consensus on how to move forward in implementing the legislation aspect of their peace agreements as he acknowledged he will certify for urgent passage in Congress only one draft Bangsamoro law.
President Rodrigo Roa Duterte presides over a meeting with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) delegation led by its chairman Al-Hajj Murad Ebrahim and Presidnetial Peace Adviser Jesus Dureza at the Matina Enclaves in Davao City on December 2, 2016. ROBINSON NIÑAL/Presidential Photo
“That is what we want,” Duterte said.
Duterte inherited from previous administrations since Marcos four major peace agreements with the Moro revolutionary fronts — the MNLF’s Final Peace Agreement (FPA) of 1996 which is a continuation of the Tripoli Agreement of 1976 and the MILF’s Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro (CAB) of 2014 which is a continuation of the Framework Agreement on the Bangsamoro in 2012.
These peace agreements are on their implementation phases — the MNLF on its latter stage although the government maintains the 1996 peace pact has been fully implemented; and the MILF on its early stage of implementation.
The MNLF under Misuari is drafting a law to amend RA 9054, the law governing the ARMM, to ensure the provisions of the 1996 FPA that were not included in the law are included while the MILF, along with other MNLF factions drafted the BBL that, in accordance with the 2014 CAB, will pave the way for the creation of the Bangsamoro, a new autonomous political entity that will replace the ARMM.
Both drafts — amendatory law for the MNLF-Misuari and the BBL for the MILF and other factions of the MNLF — are to be submitted to the President who will study them. Duterte on April 10 said he will certify for urgent passage in Congress only one draft Bangsamoro law.
President Rodrigo Duterte meets with Moro National Liberation Front founding chair Nur Misuari at the Presidential Guest House in Panacan, Davao City on June 3, 2017. Accompanying Misuari is his wife Tarhata and son Abdulkarim. No details of the meeting were released. PRESIDENTIAL PHOTO
The government and MNLF-Misuari Peace Implementing Panels have yet to meet formally but they have had at least five informal meetings.
Undersecretary Nabil Tan, Deputy Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process and chair of the GPH Peace Implementing Panel told MindaNews on Tuesday that they have finished discussing the proposed amendatory law and the formal meeting will just be a confirmation of what has been agreed upon.
He said they are also eyeing the submission of the draft amendatory law on the same day of the submission of the BBL, but in another area in Malacanang.
Convergence
Under the Bangsamoro Peace and Development Roadmap presented by the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process and approved by the President in July last year, the BTC membership was expanded from 15 to 21 supposedly to make it more inclusive and to ensure the MNLF factions are represented there.
The expected outcome was supposed to be the convergence of the GPH-MILF and GPH-MNLF peace tracks into one draft Bangasmoro law.
In November last year, however, Dureza announced there would be a separate peace implementing panel for the MNLF-Misuari faction and that Congress will converge the peace tracks.
Lawyer Randolph Parcasio, chair of Misuari’s Peace Implementing Panel, told a forum on Bangsamoro and federalism in early December that letting Congress do the “convergence” of the draft laws “would be a disaster.”
He said there must be “one common proposal of the MNLF and MILF” but how that can be done, “yan dapat natin pag-isipan” (that we should think about).
Convergence
Dureza in an interview with MindaNews in April said he does not think convergence of the two peace tracks — one to set up a new entity to replace ARMM and the other to strengthen ARMM — would be problematic.
Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process Jesus Dureza says in this April 2017 interview that the GPH-MILF and GPH-MNLF peace tracks “will have to meet somewhere in Congress” because Congress cannot pass a law for the MILF and another for the MNLF. MANMAN DEJETO
“I don’t think it’s a problematic situation because I know for a fact that all factions of the Bangsamoro would like to see a more empowered governance unit for the Bangsamoro. So if the convergence of all these to-be-crafted draft bills can all the more provide and respond to this so- called aspiration of the Bangsamoro which up to now — we still get their messages that under the present existing law that it has not fully responded to their aspiration as a Bangsamoro people — then an output of what could come out of this convergence of these two tracks that we hopefully converge somehow — in Congress — will come out in a better and a more responsive law to govern the Bangsamoro,” Dureza said.
“They will have to meet somewhere in Congress. Because there’s no other way but Congress to enact the implementing law. So we have two tracks because we have two factions that cannot yet reconcile with their differences, personally or in principle. We’d like to see how that is going to be resolved in the end but there is no other way but when Congress acts on outputs coming from the MNLF or from MILF peace tables. There’s no other way but to converge it because Congress cannot pass a law for the MILF and another law for the MNLF. It will have to be one law, best case scenario,” Dureza added.
http://www.mindanews.com/peace-process/2017/07/btc-to-submit-draft-bbl-to-president-duterte-on-july-18/
The Bangsamoro Transition Commission (BTC) will submit its draft Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL) to President Rodrigo Duterte in Malacanang on July 18, a month and two days after completing it and six days before the President delivers his second State of the Nation Address (SONA) where he is expected to certify the bill as urgent.
BTC chair Ghazali Jaafar said he does not know if the President will still review the draft as he had repeatedly said he would, or hand it over immediately to Senate President Aquilino Pimentel III and House Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez on the same day it is submitted to him in Malacanang.
The Bangsamoro Transition Commission completed on Friday, 16 June 2017, its draft Bangsamoro Basic Law, and is now ready to submit it to President Rodrigo Duterte. Photo courtesy of BTC Facebook
“That we don’t know. Depende na sa President yan” (That depends on the President), Jaafar, concurrent 1st Vice Chair of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) told MindaNews in a text message.
The submission of the draft BBL was initially set for June 28 but Secretary Jesus Dureza, Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process told MindaNews on June 23 that it was reset because Pimentel and Alvarez would not be available by then. The plan, he said then, was “after PRRD receives it (draft BBL), he hands it over immediately to Congress.”
“We should not commit the mistakes of the past. We should learn from them,” Dureza told MindaNews.
Dureza explained that the lesson learned from the previous administration was: “dili gipasa ug dili pud gidawat sa Bangsamoro ang Palace-tweaked version” (the draft law was not passed and the Bangsamoro did not accept the Palace-tweaked version.”
“Agreed version”
The then 15-member BTC under the Aquino administration, chaired by MILF peace panel chair Mohagher Iqbal, submitted its draft BBL to the Office of the President on April 22, 2014 since the OP said it will review it first before its submission to Congress. The review took two months and when handed back to the MILF-led BTC, it rejected the Palace version of the BBL, claiming it was a “watered down version” that would render the future Bangsamoro less autonomous than the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) that it sought to replace.
A series of meetings followed between the government and MILF peace panels but they ended in an impasse until then Executive Secretary Paquito Ochoa took over in August 2014.
Another series of meetings ensued between the team of then BTC chair Mohagher Iqbal, concurrent MILF peace panel chair, until an “agreed version” was finalized in the first week of September 2014 and submitted to Senate President Franklin Drilon and tSpeaker Feliciano Belmonte in the presence of President Benigno Simeon Aquino III on September 10, in rites held in Malacanang.
The original draft BBL submitted to Aquino in April 2014 was a 97-page, 18-article document. The “agreed version” submitted to Congress in September that year was a 119-page draft law containing articles and an additional three-page appendix on a proposed ordinance providing for the “parliamentary districts composing the provinces, cities, municipalities and geographic areas of the Bangsamoro.”
After the committee hearings, the Senate and House committees tackling the draft BBL submitted substitute bills both titled “Basic Law for the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region” or BLBAR.
The two BLBARs were also criticized for rendering the future Bangsamoro less autonomous than the ARMM.
Congress adjourned under the Aquino administration without passing the Bangsamoro law.
New draft
The new draft BBL crafted by the BTC chaired by Jaafar, consists of 114 pages and 18 articles.
Duterte had earlier said he would wait for the submission of the draft BBL, study it along with the draft amendatory law of the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) under Nur Misuari. Misuari’s faction has a separate five-member peace implementing panel but the faction headed by Yusoph Jikiri (formerly by Muslimin Sema) has three representatives in the current BTC.
The 21 members of the Bangsamoro Transition Commission (BTC) with President Rodrigo Duterte (center) at the launch on 24 February 2017 at the Garden Pavilion of the Waterfront Insular Hotel. TOTO Lozano / Presidential Photo
The 21-member BTC is less than one member now with the resignation in late May by Marawi City-based Commissioner Samira Ali Gutoc. Gutoc cited personal reasons and policy questions in her resignation.
Sail on still waters
In his speech at the inauguration of the PTV Cordillera hub in Baguio City on March 11, Duterte said of the draft BBL: “I will study it before we submit it to Congress and pray that it would sail on still waters.”
“Maybe the Senate would have a more or less rigorous opposition, that’s expected. This is a democracy,” he said.
A month later, on April 10, at the Davao International Airport before departing for the Middle East, he told reporters he would call all Moro revolutionary leaders to a meeting to come up with a consensus on how to move forward in implementing the legislation aspect of their peace agreements as he acknowledged he will certify for urgent passage in Congress only one draft Bangsamoro law.
President Rodrigo Roa Duterte presides over a meeting with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) delegation led by its chairman Al-Hajj Murad Ebrahim and Presidnetial Peace Adviser Jesus Dureza at the Matina Enclaves in Davao City on December 2, 2016. ROBINSON NIÑAL/Presidential Photo
“That is what we want,” Duterte said.
Duterte inherited from previous administrations since Marcos four major peace agreements with the Moro revolutionary fronts — the MNLF’s Final Peace Agreement (FPA) of 1996 which is a continuation of the Tripoli Agreement of 1976 and the MILF’s Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro (CAB) of 2014 which is a continuation of the Framework Agreement on the Bangsamoro in 2012.
These peace agreements are on their implementation phases — the MNLF on its latter stage although the government maintains the 1996 peace pact has been fully implemented; and the MILF on its early stage of implementation.
The MNLF under Misuari is drafting a law to amend RA 9054, the law governing the ARMM, to ensure the provisions of the 1996 FPA that were not included in the law are included while the MILF, along with other MNLF factions drafted the BBL that, in accordance with the 2014 CAB, will pave the way for the creation of the Bangsamoro, a new autonomous political entity that will replace the ARMM.
Both drafts — amendatory law for the MNLF-Misuari and the BBL for the MILF and other factions of the MNLF — are to be submitted to the President who will study them. Duterte on April 10 said he will certify for urgent passage in Congress only one draft Bangsamoro law.
President Rodrigo Duterte meets with Moro National Liberation Front founding chair Nur Misuari at the Presidential Guest House in Panacan, Davao City on June 3, 2017. Accompanying Misuari is his wife Tarhata and son Abdulkarim. No details of the meeting were released. PRESIDENTIAL PHOTO
The government and MNLF-Misuari Peace Implementing Panels have yet to meet formally but they have had at least five informal meetings.
Undersecretary Nabil Tan, Deputy Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process and chair of the GPH Peace Implementing Panel told MindaNews on Tuesday that they have finished discussing the proposed amendatory law and the formal meeting will just be a confirmation of what has been agreed upon.
He said they are also eyeing the submission of the draft amendatory law on the same day of the submission of the BBL, but in another area in Malacanang.
Convergence
Under the Bangsamoro Peace and Development Roadmap presented by the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process and approved by the President in July last year, the BTC membership was expanded from 15 to 21 supposedly to make it more inclusive and to ensure the MNLF factions are represented there.
The expected outcome was supposed to be the convergence of the GPH-MILF and GPH-MNLF peace tracks into one draft Bangasmoro law.
In November last year, however, Dureza announced there would be a separate peace implementing panel for the MNLF-Misuari faction and that Congress will converge the peace tracks.
Lawyer Randolph Parcasio, chair of Misuari’s Peace Implementing Panel, told a forum on Bangsamoro and federalism in early December that letting Congress do the “convergence” of the draft laws “would be a disaster.”
He said there must be “one common proposal of the MNLF and MILF” but how that can be done, “yan dapat natin pag-isipan” (that we should think about).
Convergence
Dureza in an interview with MindaNews in April said he does not think convergence of the two peace tracks — one to set up a new entity to replace ARMM and the other to strengthen ARMM — would be problematic.
Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process Jesus Dureza says in this April 2017 interview that the GPH-MILF and GPH-MNLF peace tracks “will have to meet somewhere in Congress” because Congress cannot pass a law for the MILF and another for the MNLF. MANMAN DEJETO
“I don’t think it’s a problematic situation because I know for a fact that all factions of the Bangsamoro would like to see a more empowered governance unit for the Bangsamoro. So if the convergence of all these to-be-crafted draft bills can all the more provide and respond to this so- called aspiration of the Bangsamoro which up to now — we still get their messages that under the present existing law that it has not fully responded to their aspiration as a Bangsamoro people — then an output of what could come out of this convergence of these two tracks that we hopefully converge somehow — in Congress — will come out in a better and a more responsive law to govern the Bangsamoro,” Dureza said.
“They will have to meet somewhere in Congress. Because there’s no other way but Congress to enact the implementing law. So we have two tracks because we have two factions that cannot yet reconcile with their differences, personally or in principle. We’d like to see how that is going to be resolved in the end but there is no other way but when Congress acts on outputs coming from the MNLF or from MILF peace tables. There’s no other way but to converge it because Congress cannot pass a law for the MILF and another law for the MNLF. It will have to be one law, best case scenario,” Dureza added.
http://www.mindanews.com/peace-process/2017/07/btc-to-submit-draft-bbl-to-president-duterte-on-july-18/
Lorenzana admits gov’t underestimated Maute Group
From MindaNews (Jul 6): Lorenzana admits gov’t underestimated Maute Group
Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana (left) in the press briefing Thursday (6 July 2017) in Marawi City. With him is Acting Local Government Secretary Catalino Cuy and PNP chief Director General Ronald dela Rosa. MindaNews photo by H. MARCOS C. MORDENO
Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana on Thursday said the government underestimated the strength of the Maute Group.
In a press briefing here, Lorenzana said he thought government forces would resolve the conflict in three days.
The siege by the ISIS-inspired Maute Group of the country’s lone Islamic city entered its 45th day on Thursday.
Lorenzana said they initially placed the militants’ number at around 200. He said the estimate increased to between 400 and 500, and later to 700.
“That’s why they’re still there. Nag-iimbak sila ng bala, baril (They’re amassing ammunition, guns),” he said.
The secretary said government fatalities had reached at least 90 and the wounded over 400.
Military figures placed casualties from the Maute Group at close to 300. Meanwhile, civilian deaths had reached around 30.
Since May 25, the military has launched artillery bombardment, aerial bombing and ground assault against the armed group in downtown Marawi.
In a press conference in Cagayan de Oro City on June 11, Armed Forces Chief-of-Staff Eduardo Ano said that the recovery of Marawi was “just a matter of time”.
“Konting pasensiya lang ito (This needs a little more patience),” Ano said in the same press conference.
Rehabilitation
Lorenzana, who was appointed by President Rodrigo Duterte to head the rehabilitation program, announced in the briefing that government was already preparing a rehabilitation plan for Marawi.
He said the rehabilitation plan includes the repair of infrastructure and homes of civilians.
“The President promised to help everybody,” he said.
http://www.mindanews.com/top-stories/2017/07/lorenzana-admits-govt-underestimated-maute-group/
Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana (left) in the press briefing Thursday (6 July 2017) in Marawi City. With him is Acting Local Government Secretary Catalino Cuy and PNP chief Director General Ronald dela Rosa. MindaNews photo by H. MARCOS C. MORDENO
Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana on Thursday said the government underestimated the strength of the Maute Group.
In a press briefing here, Lorenzana said he thought government forces would resolve the conflict in three days.
The siege by the ISIS-inspired Maute Group of the country’s lone Islamic city entered its 45th day on Thursday.
Lorenzana said they initially placed the militants’ number at around 200. He said the estimate increased to between 400 and 500, and later to 700.
“That’s why they’re still there. Nag-iimbak sila ng bala, baril (They’re amassing ammunition, guns),” he said.
The secretary said government fatalities had reached at least 90 and the wounded over 400.
Military figures placed casualties from the Maute Group at close to 300. Meanwhile, civilian deaths had reached around 30.
Since May 25, the military has launched artillery bombardment, aerial bombing and ground assault against the armed group in downtown Marawi.
In a press conference in Cagayan de Oro City on June 11, Armed Forces Chief-of-Staff Eduardo Ano said that the recovery of Marawi was “just a matter of time”.
“Konting pasensiya lang ito (This needs a little more patience),” Ano said in the same press conference.
Rehabilitation
Lorenzana, who was appointed by President Rodrigo Duterte to head the rehabilitation program, announced in the briefing that government was already preparing a rehabilitation plan for Marawi.
He said the rehabilitation plan includes the repair of infrastructure and homes of civilians.
“The President promised to help everybody,” he said.
http://www.mindanews.com/top-stories/2017/07/lorenzana-admits-govt-underestimated-maute-group/
JTG “Deter” pushes for interagency TF in Siquijor amid terror threats
From the Philippine Information Agency (Jul 6): JTG “Deter” pushes for interagency TF in Siquijor amid terror threats
Siquijor province is insurgency-free but it is not exempted from terror threats, said Philippine Navy Capt. Jorge Ibarra, commander of the Joint Task Group Deter of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP).
Ibarra further said he is pushing for the creation of a joint interagency task force to secure the province and prevent the spillover of terrorist groups from Mindanao to enter Siquijor.
This was said during the interagency workshop on Security held on Tuesday, July 4 at Salagdoong Beach Resort in Maria, Siquijor.
The workshop sought to review and evaluate the different law enforcement agencies structure and its operating concepts in the province of Siquijor; establish command and support relationship of the interagency structure on security; and to establish an effective interagency communication network.
Ibarra said Siquijor can be the eyes and ears of terrorism so that the best effort we can do is to secure the area and keep it free from terrorism, he said.
Ibarra however, assured the public that Siquijor is currently part of the areas being patrolled by Navy vessels with its 24/7 seaborne patrols even prior to the Inabanga, Bohol incident.
The Siquijor Police Provincial Office (SPPO) also lent its support as even before the clash between the government troops and ASG in Bohol happened, the Regional Public Safety Battalion (RPSB) had sent two teams composed of 15 augmented personnel who were deployed to beach resorts particularly in San Juan which is right across Mindanao.
Aside from the RPSB team, another platoon from the AFP was deployed which is enough to protect the island, SPPO Deputy Director for Operations Enrique Belcina said.
Despite the terror threats, Siquijor generally remains peaceful and safe, Belcina said.
While pushing for the creation of a joint task force on security in Siquijor, Ibarra also asked the support of the local communities particularly in the information collection.
Ibarra added that priority efforts with a series of meetings with stakeholders are made to secure the island and deter possible attacks.
He said all Philippine Navy vessels are seen patrolling the sea at all times. They only dock at the port at certain times to re-fuel or get provisions, he said.
http://news.pia.gov.ph/article/view/1131499267298/jtg-deter-pushes-for-interagency-tf-in-siquijor-amid-terror-threats
Siquijor province is insurgency-free but it is not exempted from terror threats, said Philippine Navy Capt. Jorge Ibarra, commander of the Joint Task Group Deter of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP).
Ibarra further said he is pushing for the creation of a joint interagency task force to secure the province and prevent the spillover of terrorist groups from Mindanao to enter Siquijor.
This was said during the interagency workshop on Security held on Tuesday, July 4 at Salagdoong Beach Resort in Maria, Siquijor.
The workshop sought to review and evaluate the different law enforcement agencies structure and its operating concepts in the province of Siquijor; establish command and support relationship of the interagency structure on security; and to establish an effective interagency communication network.
Ibarra said Siquijor can be the eyes and ears of terrorism so that the best effort we can do is to secure the area and keep it free from terrorism, he said.
Ibarra however, assured the public that Siquijor is currently part of the areas being patrolled by Navy vessels with its 24/7 seaborne patrols even prior to the Inabanga, Bohol incident.
The Siquijor Police Provincial Office (SPPO) also lent its support as even before the clash between the government troops and ASG in Bohol happened, the Regional Public Safety Battalion (RPSB) had sent two teams composed of 15 augmented personnel who were deployed to beach resorts particularly in San Juan which is right across Mindanao.
Aside from the RPSB team, another platoon from the AFP was deployed which is enough to protect the island, SPPO Deputy Director for Operations Enrique Belcina said.
Despite the terror threats, Siquijor generally remains peaceful and safe, Belcina said.
While pushing for the creation of a joint task force on security in Siquijor, Ibarra also asked the support of the local communities particularly in the information collection.
Ibarra added that priority efforts with a series of meetings with stakeholders are made to secure the island and deter possible attacks.
He said all Philippine Navy vessels are seen patrolling the sea at all times. They only dock at the port at certain times to re-fuel or get provisions, he said.
http://news.pia.gov.ph/article/view/1131499267298/jtg-deter-pushes-for-interagency-tf-in-siquijor-amid-terror-threats
US turns over 12 trucks to AFP
From the Philippine Information Agency (Jul 6): US turns over 12 trucks to AFP
The United States (US) has officially turned over on Thursday 12 Ford F-550 trucks to the Armed Forces of the Philippines’ (AFP’s) Naval Special Operations Group (NAVSOG) at the Naval Base Heracleo Alano, Sangley Point in Cavite.
Security cooperation manager for the Joint US Military Assistance Group Frederick Riker handed over the ceremonial truck key to Philippine Navy Capt. Alfonspin P. Tumanda Jr.
The said trucks will help ease the mobility of the NAVSOG troops spread throughout the Philippines including units located in Tawi-Tawi, Zamboanga and Davao. It will also aid in the transport and deployment to critical areas of rigid-hulled inflatable boats that were previously delivered by the US to the AFP.
Through a variety of assistance packages over the past three years, the US has also provided the Philippines with over 200 million dollars of grant assistance to assist the partner forces in building the required capabilities for success.
Present also during the ceremony were other representatives from the Joint US Military Assistance Group, as well as Capt. Alfonspin P. Tumanda Jr. and Cmdr. Jim P. Razo, the Commander and Deputy Commander of Philippine NAVSOG.
http://news.pia.gov.ph/article/view/2761499240077/us-turns-over-12-trucks-to-afp
The United States (US) has officially turned over on Thursday 12 Ford F-550 trucks to the Armed Forces of the Philippines’ (AFP’s) Naval Special Operations Group (NAVSOG) at the Naval Base Heracleo Alano, Sangley Point in Cavite.
Security cooperation manager for the Joint US Military Assistance Group Frederick Riker handed over the ceremonial truck key to Philippine Navy Capt. Alfonspin P. Tumanda Jr.
The said trucks will help ease the mobility of the NAVSOG troops spread throughout the Philippines including units located in Tawi-Tawi, Zamboanga and Davao. It will also aid in the transport and deployment to critical areas of rigid-hulled inflatable boats that were previously delivered by the US to the AFP.
Through a variety of assistance packages over the past three years, the US has also provided the Philippines with over 200 million dollars of grant assistance to assist the partner forces in building the required capabilities for success.
Present also during the ceremony were other representatives from the Joint US Military Assistance Group, as well as Capt. Alfonspin P. Tumanda Jr. and Cmdr. Jim P. Razo, the Commander and Deputy Commander of Philippine NAVSOG.
http://news.pia.gov.ph/article/view/2761499240077/us-turns-over-12-trucks-to-afp
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)