PH matters for US: Strong alliance, people-to-people ties hailed

From the Philippine News Agency (Jun 16, 2022): PH matters for US: Strong alliance, people-to-people ties hailed (By Joyce Ann L. Rocamora)

STRONG TIES. (From left) Foreign Affairs Assistant Secretary Jose Victor Chan-Gonzaga, US Embassy Charge d' Affaires Heather Variava, and Department of National Defense Undersecretary Cardozo Luna, lead the launch of the East-West Center publication "Philippines Matters for America, America Matters for the Philippines" at the US Embassy Chancery Ballroom on Wednesday (June 15, 2022). According to the publication, security relations between the two nations "remain strong", with the Philippines continuing to be the US' oldest ally in the Indo-Pacific. (PNA photo by Avito Dalan)

The decades-old alliance and people-to-people ties between the Philippines and the United States have remained strong over the past 75 years despite differences.

This is the message of the "Philippines Matters for America, America Matters for the Philippines” publication, launched at the US Embassy in Manila on June 15, which capped off the yearlong celebration of the 75th anniversary of the Philippines and the US' diplomatic relations.

Published by the East-West Center, the publication sums up important aspects of the two countries' bilateral relations, including security, trade and investments, health and environment, development assistance, culture, and people-to-people ties, among others.

“There is no doubt that the Philippines matters for the United States and the United States matters for the Philippines. As President-elect Ferdinand Marcos Jr. told Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman when they met in Manila recently, the Philippines’ partnership with the United States ‘is not just a memory but a part of us,’" Philippine Ambassador to the United States Jose Manuel G. Romualdez said in his pre-taped remarks.

"This is true not only in terms of our government-to-government relations but in the close ties between our two peoples,” he added.

US Embassy Chargé d'Affaires Heather Variava said the US is ready to take on the challenges and opportunities ahead, relying on the "deep trust and friendship" it has cultivated with the Philippines.

According to the publication, security relations between the two "remain strong", with the Philippines continuing to be the US' oldest ally in the Indo-Pacific.

In addition, Manila has a "major non-NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) ally status" that provides the country benefits not only in defense and security cooperation but also in trade.

Given the changing geopolitical climate in the region, however, East-West Center Director Satu Limaye said Manila and Washington DC should continue to look at opportunities to strengthen this alliance.

This, he said, can include the two-plus-two process to look at "strategic elements in the relationships as well as contingency plans that might be required to protect our perspective security, including in the South China Sea."

"I think secondly, we should continue to look carefully at our Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement, and where there are opportunities to build on that and fully implement that," he told reporters in a presser.

"Third, I think it's really important to recommit to how the alliance, defense, and military security relationship has served both sides over the past 75 years. And to look for new ways in which to manage and to articulate that given the changing circumstances," he added.

But Limaye said what struck him the most about the two partners' 75-year relations was the strong and still growing people-to-people ties.

"Whatever differences have occurred in the official relationship over time, I'm really struck by the growing people-to-people relationship, not the declining. In other words, there's been a consistent upward trend in people-to people-relations, whether that's science, technology, commercial, education, school groups religious groups, civil society groups," he said.

The two currently share "robust educational exchanges," with more than 3,200 international students from the Philippines studying in the US and around 300 Americans in the Philippines during the 2019-2020 academic year alone.

Filipino-Americans are also the third-largest Asian ethnic group in the US, following Chinese and Indian Americans.

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1176793

Creating clarity with truth, NTF-ELCAC sacred duty: spox

From the Philippine News Agency (Jun 16, 2022): Creating clarity with truth, NTF-ELCAC sacred duty: spox (By Lade Jean Kabagani and Marita Moaje)

Presidential Communications Undersecretary Lorraine Marie Badoy, also the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict spokesperson for Social Media Affairs and Sectoral Concerns (File photo)

The National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) "creates clarity with the truth" even as legal communist fronts continue to create "confusion with their lies", NTF ELCAC spokesperson Lorraine Marie Badoy said.

Badoy, reiterating that the term "red-tagging" does not exist, said on Friday members and allies of the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People's Army-National Democratic Front (CPP-NPA-NDF) are using it as a "tool to silence" anti-insurgency advocates to speak up about their deceitful operations.

"Where they are loud and bold about their toxic lies, we are louder and bolder about the truth," she said. "It is precisely because of this deceit and the ignorance of our countrymen that they have committed the most heinous of crimes against our people and our beloved Philippines."

Badoy is reacting to a statement by Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra who recently urged certain individuals associated with the NTF-ELCAC to refrain from “red-tagging" without "solid proof of evidence."

"The NTF ELCAC agrees with Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra when he says that we should not identify people as members of the CPP NPA NDF if we do not have solid proof that they are," Badoy said.

"This, in fact has been our guiding light at the NTF ELCAC: to gird our countrymen with accurate and clear information about the numerous fronts of this terrorist organization and the various modus operandi they employ to hurt and destroy our country for the past 53 years," she added.

Badoy said the party-lists Kabataan, Alliance of Concerned Teachers, Gabriela (for youth and women), as well as progressive organizations like League of Filipinos Students (LFS), Anakbayan, College Editor's Guild of the Philippines (CEGP), Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP), Katribu, Narra Youth, National Union of Journalists in the Philippines (NUJP), National Union of People's Lawyer (NUPL) and Ibon Foundation, were directly identified by the former NPA rebels as front organizations of the communist groups.

She said these groups are the top recruiters of children into violent extremism, labeling them as "protectors and purveyors of terrorism".

Deceitful recruitment has led to an "unbearable number of our children have turned their backs on their bright future to become violent extremists of this terrorist organization and have died fighting the government," she said.

"Countless numbers of our youth now lie buried in shallow, unmarked graves all across the archipelago," she added.

The NTF-ELCAC, she said, is doing its best to stop the massive recruitment of youth and vulnerable groups to the communist armed movement.

“We, however, do not agree with Secretary Guevarra when he says that the NTF ELCAC endangers our people when we do our sacred duty of identifying members of the CPP-NPA-NDF. What has grievously endangered our people is all those decades government reneged on its sacred duty, looked the other way and refused to identify members of the CPP NPA NDF–even if they already knew who these terrorists were,” Badoy said, calling it "unfortunate" that Guevarra seemed "ignorant" of the Supreme Court ruling in the Zarate vs. Aquino case that there is no danger to life, liberty and security when one is identified as a member of the CPP-NPA-NDF.

Fight vs. communist terrorists continues

Badoy chided the allied organizations of the communist terrorist groups for trying to overthrow the government.

“The NTF ELCAC has swam against a tide of criticisms and the herculean efforts of this terrorist organization–the CPP NPA NDF– to stop us from defending and protecting our people,” she said.

She assured the public that "there is nothing that can stop" the anti-insurgency advocates and the NTF-ELCAC to continue what should have been ended a long time ago.

Only under the term of President Rodrigo Duterte that the fight against communist terrorism has taken effect, she said, because of his “courage and the political will of steel" to create NTF-ELCAC.

“We will continue to swim against this tide until we meet our goal: the complete destruction of this noxious, virulent terrorist organization THE CPP NPA NDF,” Badoy added. “There is nothing on heaven or earth that can stop us–more so now that the Filipino people are fighting alongside us.”

Joma Sison, master red tagger

For his part, acting spokesperson for Legal Affairs Prosecutor Flosemer Chris Gonzales said the NTF ELCAC has never red-tagged anybody as it is not, and will not be the job of the agency.

In a separate statement, Gonzales assured Guevarra that the task force “has discharged its mandate of unmasking the enemies of the state, and of our people”.

The NTF-ELCAC, he said, could not be accused of doing something that is non-existent under the law, saying that red-tagging is a misnomer.

“The TRUTH has been the best and the most resilient weapon of the NTF-ELCAC,” Gonzales said. “On the other hand, Joma Sison has done a very competent job of tagging his own front organizations that the CPP-NPA-NDF has created to destroy the duly constituted government of the Republic of the Philippines. In the words of a respected journalist and one of the talking heads of the NTF-ELCAC, ‘Joma Sison is the master red-tagger’”.

He agreed with Badoy that “red tagging” is a term that has been conveniently used by the CPP-NPA-NDF and by their allied front groups as a defense mechanism whenever they are exposed, unmasked, and uncovered.

Gonzales reminded Guevarra of a video clip of Sison wherein he identified the very same organizations that compose the united front of the CPP-NPA-NDF as part of their so-called "revolutionary armed struggle".

In the said video, Gonzales said it was Sison himself who tagged the CPP-NPA-NDF affiliated groups.

Following Guevarra’s advice, Gonzales said the NTF-ELCAC has been filing cases against the CPP-NPA-NDF members, leaders, and allied front groups for the past years.

He said Guevarra, as head of the Justice Department, is very much a part of the painful and tedious process undertaken by the Duterte administration, of unmasking the enemies of the state and of the Filipino people.

“The SOJ, in his heart of hearts, knows that the NTF-ELCAC has definitely unmasked, exposed, revealed, and uncovered, the atrocities and the multitude of crimes and abuses committed by the CPP-NPA-NDF against the Filipino people, mostly against children, the indigenous peoples and their communities, the poorest of the poor, and the Filipino families who have lost their children to the godless, wretched, and soulless fake revolution being waged by the CPP-NPA-NDF against the Filipino nation,” Gonzalez said.

The CPP-NPA is listed as a terrorist organization by the United States, European Union, the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the Philippines.

The Anti-Terrorism Council also formally designated the NDF as a terrorist organization on June 23, 2021, citing it as “an integral and separate part” of the CPP-NPA that was created in April 1973.

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1176822

CPP-NPA-NDF plans to muddle in Marcos oath-taking: ex-rebels

From the Philippine News Agency (Jun 16, 2022): CPP-NPA-NDF plans to muddle in Marcos oath-taking: ex-rebels (By Marita Moaje)

DISRUPTION. Former rebels Orlando “Ka Warly” Baluyot, now chairman of Tinang Samahang Nayon Multi-Purpose Cooperative, and Ka Pong Sibayan, a farmer from Hacienda Tinang in Concepcion, Tarlac reveal that the CPP-NPA-NDF are planning to disrupt the oath-taking of President-elect Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. on June 30, 2022. They said legal front organizations have started mobilizing farmers in different areas in Tarlac. (Screengrab from NTF ELCAC Facebook page)

Former members of the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army-National Democratic Front (CPP-NPA-NDF) said the communist terrorist group is planning to muddle the oath-taking ceremony of President-elect Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. on June 30.

During the Tagged media briefing by the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF ELCAC) on Monday, former rebels Orlando “Ka Warly” Baluyot, now chairman of Tinang Samahang Nayon Multi-Purpose Cooperative, and Ka Pong Sibayan, a farmer from Hacienda Tinang in Concepcion, Tarlac said the CTGs have started organizing farmers in their province.

They said aside from Hacienda Tinang, officials and members of CPP-NPA-NDF legal front organizations have also been meeting with farmers from nearby Hacienda Murcia and Barangay Central inside Hacienda Luisita.

“Iyon ang nakita natin na gagawin nila sa June 30 bago maupo si Pangulong Bongbong Marcos (That is what we see that they will do on June 30, before President Bongbong Marcos assumes the post),” Baluyot said.

He said farmers from these areas are now organized by the front groups.

“Katunayan, nagkaroon na ng mga talakayan sa Hacienda Murcia. Iyong Hacienda Murcia ay part din ng Tarlac City na kung saan malapit na malapit din ito sa Hacienda Tinang (There are meetings in Hacienda Murcia, also in Tarlac City, which is very near Hacienda Tinang),” he added.

Baluyot said these farmers are also having problems with their land and have been allegedly receiving eviction threats.

He added some members of left-leaning organizations are often seen coming to those areas as they want the people to fight the government.

“Talagang ayaw nilang maupo si Bongbong Marcos. Talagang patunay na talagang magkukuwan na naman ang kabilang grupo sa Barangay Murcia at Barangay Central. Kasi sa barangay Central, mayroon ding nagsasabi sa amin na mga Anakpawis na nagkukuwan doon. Sa Barangay Murcia naman ang nagkukuwan sa kanila diyan kaya alam ko na balak ng Anakpawis – si Atty. Jobert Pahilga ang attorney nila diyan – na agawin iyong lupang nabili ng mga mall diyan (They really do not want Bongbong Marcos to sit. We can attest that they are having activities with the other group in Barangay Murcia and Barangay Central. In Barangay Central, some people tell us that there are members of Anakpawis there. In Barangay Murcia, it is Atty. Jobert Pahilga, their lawyer there, because from I know, Anakpawis plans to seize the lands bought by the malls there),” Sibayan said.

He said aside from the areas in Tarlac that they have named, different front organizations are also busy mobilizing groups from various towns even using youth members in their propaganda.

Sibayan said these youth groups, who are “not aware they are only being used”, are actually victims.

With this, he called on the parents to strictly monitor their children.

“Kaya kawawa iyong mga kabataan na dapat ang mga magulang ay bantayan (nila) dahil walang ginagawa itong kabilang grupo dito (kung hindi) ipahamak ang mga kabataan. Dapat maawa sila sa mga magulang nila. Kung gusto nilang tumulong, bakit hindi sila tumulong sa gobyerno para mahinto na ang kaguluhan? Pero sa ginagawa naman nila, ang gusto nila sila iyong gobyerno. Kabaligtaran (I pity these young people thus their parents should watch over them because these groups are putting them in danger. These youth should pity their parents. If they want to help, they should cooperate with the government to stop all these violence. But from what they are doing, it’s the other way around, they want to govern),” Sibayan said.

Meanwhile, former Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile bared on Wednesday there is a conspiracy to pillory Marcos in an attempt to taint his reputation.

Enrile said the information came from “credible” sources, saying certain groups from the United States and the Philippines are allegedly conniving to embarrass Marcos.

“I just picked up what I consider to be credible information that there are groups in America and in the Philippines planning and preparing to cause serious embarrassment and trouble for our newly-elected President,” he said in a Facebook post.

While not elaborating on the alleged plot, Enrile said he would provide further details to the “proper official” of the incoming Marcos administration “in due time.”

“Caution is the name of the game. You are just starting you(r) travel in troubled waters. Your adversaries have not stopped. To borrow a phrase from someone, right now ‘they are hiding their brightness and biding their time’”, he said.

Enrile also advised the incoming security officials of the Marcos administration to intensify and sharpen their intelligence gathering.

Marcos’ inauguration is scheduled to be held on June 30 at the National Museum of the Philippines in Manila.

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1176830

Initial funds for Navy's offshore patrol vessel project released

From the Philippine News Agency (Jun 17, 2022): Initial funds for Navy's offshore patrol vessel project released (By Priam Nepomuceno)

The Department of Budget and Management released the initial funding worth PHP3 billion for the Philippine Navy's (PN)'s acquisition of six offshore patrol vessels (OPVs).

The Special Allotment Release Order (SARO)-BMD-D-22-0004970, was released to the Department of the National Defense (DND) on Thursday, to "cover the funding requirement for the Offshore Patrol Vessel Acquisition of the Philippine Navy under the Revised Armed Forces of the Philippines Modernization Program."

Earlier, DND Secretary Delfin Lorenzana said South Korean shipbuilder, Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI), was selected by the PN's technical working group (TWG) for its OPV project which consisted of six ships.

"At kamakailan lang napili nila (PN TWG) yung Hyundai ng (South) Korea. Sila rin gumawa ng ating dalawang frigate at gumagawa sila ng dalawang corvette. Ang nakita ng Navy na isang advantage dyan ay iisang system yung mga barko na yan, saka kung kailangan natin ng maintenance o whatever, madaling pumunta dito yung mga South Koreans (And recently, the [PN TWG] has selected Hyundai of [South] Korea. They are the ones who built our [Jose Rizal-class missile frigates], they are also the ones building our two [missile-armed corvettes]. The Navy sees that having [HHI] build all these ships is the similarities in their systems, and if we need to do maintenance or repairs, the South Koreans could easily come)," he said during an interview with government media.

Lorenzana hoped that the contract for the OPVs will be signed before President Rodrigo R. Duterte's term ends on June 30.

The DND earlier said it is now looking for new proponents for the PN's procurement of six OPVs due to pricing issues with Australian shipbuilder Austal.

"Pending our approval of the contract for the purchase, they (Austal) said the cost has increased -- materials, labor, and everything. They asked for additional payment. I think our budget is PHP30 billion, they want PHP12 billion more for the six OPVs or they said we can reduce the number from six to five," Lorenzana said.

He added that he can no longer ask the DBM for additional funding.

However, he also said reducing the number of OPVs to be acquired is not an option for the PN.

Lorenzana said shipbuilders from France, Sweden, South Korea, Japan, Turkey, and India have expressed interest in the PN's OPV project.

Initially, Austal was believed to be the frontrunner in the OPV project.

The OPV project is expected to replace the World War II surface assets decommissioned by the Navy.

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1176903

PH Army's Armor Division hailed for counter-terror efforts

From the Philippine News Agency (Jun 17, 2022): PH Army's Armor Division hailed for counter-terror efforts (By Priam Nepomuceno)

Photo courtesy of AFP

Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) chief Gen. Andres Centino lauded Thursday the Philippine Army's Armor (Pambato) Division for its efforts against local communist and terrorist groups and modernization efforts.

Among the accomplishments of the Capas, Tarlac-based Armor Division was the neutralization of key target personalities, surrender of several Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters, and the capture of numerous firearms both from communist and local terrorist groups.

The Armor Division also reactivated its 1st Tank Battalion in anticipation of the completion and delivery of more modern armor assets.

“With the development of our modernization program, the Armor Division translated its vision into tangible actions in preparation for its complete transformation or transition into becoming a modern and highly competent Armor Division of the Philippine Army," Centino said in a statement as the unit celebrated its 46th founding anniversary.

The Armor Division's 46th-anniversary theme was “Makabagong Armor sa Pagsulong ng Kapayapaan at Kaunlaran.”

“This year, we will realize our aspiration to become a more modernized, reliable, capable and decisive armor unit, through the delivery of the state-of-the-art armored assets that will increase our capability against both local and external threats," Armor Division commander Maj. Gen. Efren Baluyot said.

Some of the major equipment acquired for the Armor Division included15 M125A2 armored mortar carriers (AMCs), which are equipped with 120mm mounted mortar systems (MMS) and acquired from Israeli defense company Elbit Systems.

The AMCs were also delivered to the PA last December and are also part of Horizon Two of the AFP Modernization Program and acquired under the Army's mounted mortar acquisition project.

These AMCs will capacitate the country's land force's credible defense posture from various threats.

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1176915

Faustino capable of continuing DND momentum: Lorenzana

From the Philippine News Agency (Jun 17, 2022): Faustino capable of continuing DND momentum: Lorenzana (By Priam Nepomuceno)

Retired AFP chief and incoming DND officer-in-charge Jose Faustino Jr. (File photo courtesy of Philippine Army)

Outgoing Department of National Defense (DND) Secretary Delfin Lorenzana on Friday said he is confident that former Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) chief, Gen. Jose C. Faustino Jr., is capable of continuing the gains achieved by the agency in its various initiatives.

"I am confident that with his years of dedicated service as a military officer, General Faustino will continue the Department's momentum in our internal security and external defense operations, as well as the modernization of the armed forces and the entire defense organization," he said.

Lorenzana also expressed confidence that Faustino will be updated on all of his tasks as officer-in-charge (OIC) of the DND, as he retired only on November 12 last year.

Also, Lorenzana said he welcomes President-elect Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr.'s decision to select Faustino as the incoming OIC of the DND.

"I look forward to working with General Faustino and his team in the transition period leading up to June 30," he added.

Faustino will assume as Defense Secretary on November 13, after the one-year appointment ban on retired military officials.

Faustino took over the AFP leadership from Gen. Cirilito Sobejana who retired from military service on July 31, 2021.

Prior to his assumption as the 56th AFP chief-of-staff, Faustino was the head of the Joint Task Force Mindanao and has also served as the acting commanding general of the Philippine Army.

He is a member of the Philippine Military Academy Class of 1988. Faustino likewise held various military positions such as battalion and brigade commander in Western Mindanao and chief of the Eastern Mindanao Command among others.

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1176920

Ex-MILF combatants ditch aliases for legal identities

From the Philippine News Agency (Jun 17, 2022): Ex-MILF combatants ditch aliases for legal identities (By Lade Jean Kabagani)

LEGAL. Decommissioned Moro Islamic Liberation Front combatants avail of civil registration services through Access to Legal Identity and Social Services for Decommissioned Combatants project at Camp Darapanan, Sultan Kudarat on Wednesday (June 15, 2022). More than 31,000 decommissioned fighters will benefit from the project. (Photo courtesy of OPAPRU)

Decommissioned Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) combatants will now be recognized by their real names as they gave up their nom de guerre or aliases as part of their full integration into mainstream society.

The Office of the Presidential Adviser on Peace, Reconciliation, and Unity (OPAPRU) shared Friday that former fighters participated in the civil registration initiative called Access to Legal Identity and Social Services for Decommissioned Combatants (ALIAS DC) project that started at Camp Darapanan, Simuay, Sultan Kudarat on Wednesday.

The ALIAS DC project, co-funded by the European Union (EU), Australian Department of Foreign Affairs, and The Asia Foundation, was implemented by Initiatives for Dialogue and Empowerment through Alternative Legal Services, Inc. and supported by the OPAPRU, MILF, Joint Normalization Committee, and Task Force for Decommissioned Combatants and their Communities.

More than 31,000 decommissioned fighters are expected to benefit from the project, the OPAPRU said in a statement.

ALIAS DC will facilitate the processing of the beneficiaries’ civil registry documents such as birth certificates.

The United Nations Development Programme and the EU likewise co-financed the Programme on Assistance for Camp Transformation through Inclusion, Violence Prevention, and Economic Empowerment to transform six former MILF camps into peaceful and productive communities.

EU Delegation to the Philippines head Luc Véron, Australian Ambassador to the Philippines Steven Robinson, and UN Resident Coordinator in the Philippines Gustavo Gonzalez have previously visited the camps.

Gonzales cited the effectiveness of the strong collaboration and partnership of the government and the international community in pushing for a peaceful Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM).

“We are gathering the resources and capacities of the international community to support the Philippines and to support BARMM in this history of the Philippines. The presence of Australia, of the European Union, the presence of the OPAPRU, the presence of other international organizations, and the UN is a clear demonstration that we are working together here to support this very complex and important process,” he said in a previous statement.

OPAPRU said the project is a “ticket” for decommissioned combatants to easily access important government services and benefits such as education, health, livelihood opportunities, and other social services.

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1176966

PH rises in Global Peace Index ranking

From the Philippine News Agency (Jun 18, 2022): PH rises in Global Peace Index ranking (By Lade Jean Kabagani)

Decommissioned Moro Islamic Liberation Front - Bangsamoro Islamic Armed Forces fighters; February 2020 (Photo courtesy of OPAPRU)

The Office of the Presidential Adviser on Peace, Reconciliation and Unity (OPAPRU) said the Philippines’ improvement in the Global Peace Index (GPI) this year is a result of a collaborative push for a comprehensive peace process.

The latest GPI data by the Institute for Economics and Peace showed the Philippines moved up four places to rank 125 among 163 countries.

The report noted that the Philippines registered its best score in peacefulness in a decade, “largely driven by significant improvements in political stability, impact of terrorism, and homicide rates.”

The GPI recognized the Philippines as one of the five countries with the largest improvements in peace and security, along with Libya, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and Algeria.

The report said the Philippines had the biggest improvement within the Asia-Pacific region, "driven by changes in the country’s safety and security, and ongoing conflict domains".

Iceland, New Zealand, and Ireland occupied the top three spots while Afghanistan, Yemen, and Syria were the least peaceful nations.

GPI 2022 likewise revealed that the average level of global peacefulness deteriorated by 0.3 percent, noting an 11th instance of deterioration in the past 14 years.

OPAPRU Secretary Carlito Galvez Jr. said on Saturday that the improved GPI ranking is a testament to the national government’s steadfast commitment to achieving peace and order.

“We are very happy with the results of the latest GPI. This is an affirmation that all the peacebuilding efforts of the Duterte administration over the last six years are now bearing fruit,” Galvez said in a statement.

“This also proves that the Philippine peace process is moving toward the right direction. The results of GPI 2022 should encourage the incoming administration to build upon and sustain the gains of peace,” he added.

GPI, which measures global peacefulness, collected 23 qualitative and quantitative indicators to measure the peace situations of countries worldwide.

Peace is identified and scored through major domains such as safety and security; ongoing domestic and international conflict; and the degree of militarization.

“Now that our global ranking has improved, we must continue to work harder so that these peace gains will be reflected in our regional rankings," Galvez said.

Galvez credited the whole-of-nation and whole-of-society approaches implemented during the administration of President Rodrigo Duterte.

To realize the government’s goals, the OPAPRU pushed major programs focused on the implementation of peace agreements with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, Moro National Liberation Front, Rebolusyonaryong Partido Manggagawa ng Pilipinas/Revolutionary Proletarian Army/Alex Boncayao Brigade-Tabara Paduano Group (now known as Kapatiran), and the Cordillera Bodong Administration - Cordillera People's Liberation Army.

Galvez said that as Filipinos reap the dividends of peace, "we shall also be strengthening our international partnerships so that we can create a ripple effect across the globe".

“The OPAPRU, together with the security, justice, and peace cluster, is committed to help raise the level of peacefulness globally. We remain open to working with more peace partners that share the same vision of advancing peace throughout the world,” he said.

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1177018

Faustino to defend ‘every single square inch of the PH territory’

From the Philippine News Agency (Jun 20, 2022): Faustino to defend ‘every single square inch of the PH territory’ (By Priam Nepomuceno)

Jose Faustino Jr. (Photo courtesy of the Philippine Army)

Incoming Department of National Defense (DND) officer-in-charge Jose Faustino Jr. has vowed to enhance the military's defense capabilities and ensure that "not a single square inch of the [Philippine] territory is surrendered" once he takes over the post in November.

This aligns with the vision of the President-elect Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. of a stronger and better Philippines, he said.

"National security is synonymous to human security. That is why we will do our best that all programs of the department will focus on protecting and defending the sovereignty of the country, to respect human rights and international humanitarian law, address the root causes of internal conflict, and make sure to implement the order of the President that 'not a single square inch of the territory is surrendered’," Faustino said.

The Revised Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Modernization Program is divided into three tranches. The first was implemented from 2013 to 2017, the second from 2018 to 2022 and the third from 2023 to 2028.

Equipment acquired in these programs are aimed at beefing up the country's external defense capabilities.

"We are now on the Third Horizon of the AFP modernization -- building a more reliable and credible AFP in strengthening territorial or external defense capability. We will ensure the smooth implementation of the AFP Modernization (Program) and will even enhance our capability in defending our territory," he said in a message to reporters Sunday.

The DND will also address the country's major concerns and security challenges, such as climate change and natural disasters, terrorism, support to law enforcement to address criminality, illegal drugs and cyber security.

He assured the public that the campaign to end the local communist armed conflict, started by the Duterte administration, would continue under Marcos.

"We will likewise continuously support the successful programs of the peace agreement with the MILF (Moro Islamic Liberation Front) and MNLF (Moro National Liberation Front)," Faustino said.

Faustino will assume as Defense secretary on November 13, after the one-year appointment ban on retired military officials.

Faustino took over the AFP leadership from Gen. Cirilito Sobejana who retired from military service on July 31, 2021.

He retired as AFP chief after reaching the mandatory retirement age of 56 on November 12 of the same year.

Prior to his assumption as the 56th AFP chief-of-staff, Faustino was the head of the Joint Task Force Mindanao and has also served as the acting commanding general of the Philippine Army.

He is a member of the Philippine Military Academy Class of 1988.

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1177053

Land, poor road afflict N. Samar’s conflict-stricken villages

From the Philippine News Agency (Jun 16, 2022): Land, poor road afflict N. Samar’s conflict-stricken villages (By Sarwell Meniano)

MUDDY ROAD. The muddy road in a remote village in Palapag, Northern Samar in this Oct. 29, 2021 photo. Land distribution and poor road networks were the two top issues raised by conflict-stricken communities in seven Northern Samar towns, the Philippine Army said Thursday (June 16, 2022). (Photo courtesy of Philippine Army 20th Infantry Battalion)

Land distribution and poor road networks are the two top issues raised by conflict-stricken communities in seven Northern Samar towns for the crafting of the Barangay Development Program (BDP), the Philippine Army said on Thursday.

These two key issues were presented during the four-day pre-area clearing evaluation led by Philippine Army 8th Infantry Division commander Maj. Gen. Edgardo De Leon and 20th Infantry Battalion commander Lt. Col. Joemar Buban.

2nd Lt. Joyce Ann Bayron, the Army’s 20th IB spokesperson, said land distribution is on the top of the list of issues identified in 32 out of 39 villages previously infiltrated by the New People’s Army (NPA) citing the findings of the Community Support Program (CSP) teams.

The CSP teams bared 29 out of 39 villages from the seven towns badly needing farm-to-market roads and bridges, Bayron said in a message to the Philippine News Agency (PNA).

CSP is the military's people-centered program to bring peace and development to conflict-affected barangays and to bring the government closer to the people through an immediate delivery of basic services.

“The main purpose of the said evaluation activities is to verify the accuracy of the findings of every CSP team in the conflict-affected villages. Likewise, identified issues were presented to the local officials for resolution crafting,” Bayron said.

Other issues raised are crop harvest sharing, low wages for farm workers, high farm production cost, the low buying price of farm produce, absence of potable water, lack of medical facilities and personnel, latrines, and irrigation systems.

These issues will be highly considered in the BDP, a hallmark program of the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC), which brings progress to former conflict-prone communities.

The activity also highlighted the role of town and village officials in crafting the BDP, annual investment programs, and local peace and order public safety plan that will highly contribute to the peace and development within their respective communities.

“During the said engagement, the said activity has motivated and enlightened the local task force-ELCAC in taking necessary actions to build essential picture of peace and order through the denouncement of the atrocities made by the communist NPA terrorists,” Bayron added.

Northern Samar is considered the hotbed of the communist terrorist group due to its thick forest and poor road networks.

The high incidence of poverty in Northern Samar makes people in upland communities vulnerable to the persuasion of the Communist Party of the Philippines-NPA-National Democratic Front (CPP-NPA-NDF).

The CPP-NPA is listed as a terrorist organization by the United States, European Union, the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the Philippines.

The Anti-Terrorism Council also formally designated the NDF as a terrorist organization on June 23, 2021, citing it as “an integral and inseparable part” of the CPP-NPA that was created in April 1973.

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1176824

MSMEs in insurgency-free areas in Iloilo get DTI livelihood kits

From the Philippine News Agency (Jun 16, 2022): MSMEs in insurgency-free areas in Iloilo get DTI livelihood kits (By Perla Lena)

LIVELIHOOD SUPPORT. Recipients of the Pagbangon at Ginhawa Program livelihood kits in Iloilo City in this undated photo. This year, the Department of Trade and Industry has allocated 40 livelihood kits for barangays that have been cleared from insurgents. (Photo courtesy of DTI Iloilo)

ILOILO CITY – The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) this year has allocated 40 livelihood support under its Pangkabuhayan sa Pagbangon at Ginhawa (PPG) program for micro, small and medium entrepreneurs (MSMEs) operating in insurgency-cleared areas.

DTI is a member of the Poverty Reduction, Livelihood and Employment Cluster (PRLEC) of the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC).

“This is a convergence of several government agencies to provide livelihood assistance in the economic sector including the areas under armed conflict,” said DTI Iloilo director Felisa Judith Degala in an interview on Thursday.

She said the recipients are entitled to a package of assistance like information materials on entrepreneurship, enterprise development training, business counseling and mentoring, and provision of livelihood kits for them to recover or restart their livelihood,” she added.

The kits worth PHP8,000 each contain goods depending on their kind of business such as liquefied petroleum gas for their carinderias (eateries), stocks of rice if they are in the rice retailing business, and feeds if they are raising poultry, among others.

“They are already existing businesses so it is an enhancement,” the director added.

Of the 40 allocations, 31 recipients have been identified coming from the municipality of Calinog and Igbaras in Iloilo and Jaro, Iloilo City.

Other recipients are from the towns of Pototan, Batad, Pavia, Dingle, Badiangan, Oton, Cabatuan and Guimbal.

Degala added that while last year’s recipients can still be part of the beneficiaries this year, the DTI is trying to reach out to different areas.

Currently, they are in the process of profiling the target recipients in partnership with their local government units.

“Included in the profiling is the identification of the kit that we will procure for them,” she said.

The PPG, which has been given since 2020, aside from providing livelihood to insurgency-free areas, is also extended to other MSMEs affected by calamities such as floods and fire and to those who are "killed (to be given to immediate family members) or wounded in action (K/WIA)".

This year, DTI has extended a total of 429 kits including the 40 for ELCAC areas and nine for the K/WIA.

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1176879

Ex-rebel's role cited in tearing down last NPA front in Samar

From the Philippine News Agency (Jun 17, 2022): Ex-rebel's role cited in tearing down last NPA front in Samar (By Sarwell Meniano)

LEAVING THE NPA. Ka Dori standing on a farm near their old encounter sites with government forces in Villareal, Samar in this undated photo. His decision to surrender after two decades of fighting the government has been instrumental in crippling the New People’s Army’s rebellion in the southwestern part of Samar Island. (PNA photo by Sarwell Meniano)

VILLAREAL, Samar – A one man's decision to turn his back from violence and harassment after two decades of fighting the government has been instrumental in crippling the New People's Army's (NPA) armed rebellion in the southwestern part of Samar Island.

As a fighter and an officer tasked with soliciting support from Samar’s poor communities, Ka Dori recruited dozens to join the armed struggle and encouraged villagers to provide food supplies to fighters.

But, when he surrendered to soldiers last March, he disclosed the location of 30 high-powered firearms hidden by the NPA.

After a few weeks, nine other fighters yielded to the government through Dori’s persuasion.

Dori, 49, belonged to the NPA’s guerilla front Gamol, the last band of armed rebels who actively fought the government until 2021.

Their areas of operation included the remote communities of Villareal, Sta. Rita, Basey, Pinabacdao, and Calbiga towns.

The former rebel recalled how the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP)-NPA repeatedly failed to send logistics when it needed most as the government intensified combat operations in 2021.

“The increased presence of the military in villages conducting the community support program was also a turning point to me. Those communities where we expected to get food supplies have already withdrawn their support to us. It has lowered the morale of NPA fighters,” Dori said in an interview with reporters in Plaridel village here on Thursday.

He recalled how difficult life was being chased by soldiers and dealing with sleepless nights and days without anything to eat.

“The years' hardship and awareness of the government’s good intention to help former rebels gave me the courage to voluntarily showed up at the Army’s 46th Infantry Battalion headquarters in Calbiga, Samar,” he added.

At the age of 27, Dori joined the CPP-NPA in 2000 to run part-time errands for rebels in Tacloban City.

Among his first tasks were to transport supplies and accompany NPA members to their hideouts in the city.

His recruiter was Ka Mayang, who happened to be a friend of his mother and a leader of the terror group's front organization in the Eastern Visayas.

The NPA leader frequently visited Dori’s family and persuaded the latter to join the communist terrorist group through indoctrination.

“After I surrendered, Ka Mayang visited me inside the army headquarters. She’s very pleased with my decision,” Dori added.

His decision to abandon the fight was earlier made by his recruiter when soldiers captured Mayang twice between 2006 to 2007.

It was under the custody of soldiers, she contemplated abandoning the communist organization.

Col. Lenart Lelina, commander of the Army’s 801st Infantry Brigade, said the early dismantling of the remaining guerilla front in Samar can be attributed to Dori’s participation in the anti-insurgency drive.

“The surrender of more NPA rebels here paved the way for the easier delivery of basic services here since there are no more combat operations in these areas,” Lelina said.

On Thursday, hundreds of residents from previously NPA-influenced communities in Villareal trooped to Plaridel village here to avail of services from various national government agencies and the local government.

Free medical checkups, dental services, civil registration, haircut, appliance repair, shoe and umbrella repair, and circumcision were offered.

There was also the distribution of medicines and vitamins, seeds and other farm inputs, toys, slippers, food packs, and emergency kits, among others.

The activity is a joint project of the regional, provincial, municipal task forces to end local communist armed conflict (ELCAC).

The task force-ELCAC, created under Executive Order 70 issued on Dec. 4, 2018, “provides an efficient mechanism and structure for the implementation of the whole-of-nation approach to aid in the realization of collective aspirations for inclusive and sustainable peace.”

Samar Island used to be one of the strongholds of armed rebels due to the densely forested mountainous areas, high poverty incidence, and issue of widespread landlessness, based on a 2013 study by William Norman Holden of the University of Calgary in Canada.

The NPA launched its first tactical operation in the country in Calbiga, Samar in 1974, when its members ambushed an Army scout patrol and seized several weapons.

In 1976, the NPA gained popular support among the inhabitants of Samar following its actions against cattle rustling gangs.

The NPA, which has been engaged in a five-decade armed struggle, is listed as a terrorist organization by the United States, the European Union, the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the Philippines.

The National Democratic Front has been formally designated as a terrorist organization by the ATC on June 23, 2021, citing it as “an integral and inseparable part” of the CPP-NPA created in April 1973.

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1176898

ELCAC programs reduce NorMin guerrilla fronts to 3

From the Philippine News Agency (Jun 17, 2022): ELCAC programs reduce NorMin guerrilla fronts to 3 (By Nef Luczon)

REBEL REDUCTION. Maj. Gen. Wilbur Mamawag, commander of the Philippine Army's 4th Infantry Division shares updates Thursday (June 16, 2022) of their anti-communist strategies in the Northern Mindanao. He said the creation of the Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict reduced guerrilla fronts in the region, from 12 to three. (PNA photo by Nef Luczon)

The formation of Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (TF-ELCAC) has reduced New People’s Army (NPA) guerrilla fronts in Northern Mindanao from 12 to three, a top military official here said.

Maj. Gen. Wilbur Mamawag, the Army’s 4th Infantry Division commander, attributed the success of the government's anti-insurgency body to President Rodrigo Duterte's Executive Order (EO) 70, which institutionalize the “whole of nation approach” to end the decades-old Maoist insurgency in the countryside.

“The primary aim (of ELCAC) is to stop the violence; the real intention is to settle the armed conflict through peaceful means,” he said during a press forum Thursday.

Mamawag noted that under ELCAC, all government agencies from the national level to the barangay level are onboard to accept NPA surrenderers than engage them in combat.

“We have a bigger door for them (rebels), in accepting them (to surrender) and be given benefits and livelihood,” he said.

Since the signing of EO 70 in 2018, Mamawag said there have been more than 3,000 NPA rebels who surrendered in the region, including 800 mass supporters and were given assistance.

The latest surrender took place last month when an NPA commander, Ka Jayto, 26, yielded to the Army's 6th Infantry Battalion in Malitbog, Bukidnon.

Jayto was an officer of the NPA's Northern Central Mindanao Regional Committee for four years, and was considered a high-value individual due to his position in the local communist group.

Jayto’s then-pregnant wife, a medic in the same rebel unit, left the NPA group ahead of him on May 12.

The Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP)-NPA is listed as a terrorist organization by the United States, the European Union, the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the Philippines.

The Anti-Terrorism Council also formally designated the National Democratic Front as a terrorist organization on June 23, 2021, citing it as “an integral and inseparable part” of the CPP-NPA that was created in April 1973.

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1176917

2 notorious ASG bandits yield in Sulu

From the Philippine News Agency (Jun 17, 2022): 2 notorious ASG bandits yield in Sulu (By Teofilo Garcia, Jr.)

NOTORIOUS BANDITS. Two 'notorious' members of the Abu Sayyaf Group surrender to the Joint Task Force (JTF)-Sulu Friday (June 17, 2022). One of the two surrenderers says they decided to lay down their arms as they no longer have the support of their former strongholds in the island-province. (Photo courtesy of JTF-Sulu)

Two notorious Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG) members, one of whom was involved in the beheading of two foreign hostages, surrendered to military authorities in Sulu province on Friday.

Major Gen. Ignatius Patrimonio, Joint Task Force (JTF)-Sulu commander, said Mujer Yadah, 55, and Ben Tatto, 41, both based in Indanan, Sulu, surrendered in the provincial capital of Jolo.

“The ASG surrenderers also brought with them two M-16 rifles,” Patrimonio said in a statement.

Patrimonio said Yadah admitted his link with the group of ASG senior leader Majan Sahidjuan alias "Apo Mike” since 2002, and was involved in kidnappings for ransom, bombings, and beheading of two Canadians in 2016.

The two Canadians together with a Norwegian and a Filipina were kidnapped in September 2015 by the ASG while the victims were on vacation at a resort in Samal Island, Davao del Norte.

After the death of Apo Mike in March last year, Yadah claimed they were always on the run, exhausted, and often experienced starvation.

He also bared they no longer have the support of locals, prompting them even further to lay down arms.

Colonel Jaime Mojica, Sulu police director, said the ASG surrenderers have pending warrants of arrest for kidnapping for ransom (KFR) with homicide and kidnapping and serious illegal detention.

“As the military formally handed the ASG surrenderers to us, they will properly undergo the legal process,” Mojica said.

Patrimonio said the surrender of the two ASG bandits showed the government's “successful peace and security campaign” in Sulu.

Since January this year, a total of 67 ASG members voluntarily surrendered to the military-led JTF-Sulu bringing along with them 44 assorted firearms.

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1176947

Armed group members killed in Maguindanao clash

From the Philippine News Agency (Jun 18, 2022): Armed group members killed in Maguindanao clash (By Edwin Fernandez)

EVIDENCE. A firearm and ammunition are among the items recovered after a clash between state forces and an armed group in Matanog, Maguindanao on Friday (June 17, 2022). Two were killed, including the group leader who was to be served a warrant of arrest for murder and frustrated murder. (Photo courtesy of Joint Task Force Central)

CAMP SIONGCO, Maguindanao – The serving of warrant of arrest on the leader of an armed group leader turned into an encounter, resulting in the killing of the suspect and his companion in Barangay Bugasan Sur in Matanog, Maguindanao province on Friday morning.

Maj. Melchor Gonzaludo, Marine Battalion Landing Team-5 (MBLT-5) commander, on Saturday identified the fatalities as Norodin Guimad, the leader who has standing warrants of arrest for murder and frustrated murder, and Puti Sumanday, one of his followers.

“Combined troops of MBLT-5 together with Matanog policemen were to serve the warrant of arrest against Guimad,” Gonzaludo said in a statement.

Instead of surrendering peacefully, Guimad and about 10 others opened fire, triggering a firefight that lasted for about an hour.

The remains of the two were discovered during a clearing operation, according to Col. Eric Macaambac, 1st Marine Brigade commander.

Recovered at the clash site were one M-16 Armalite rifle, one caliber .45 pistol, bandolier, ammunition, drug paraphernalia, and other evidence that the Marines have turned over to the police.

“Team from JTF (Joint Task Force) - Central and our partners from the police and other security forces are always on the job. We are maximizing our joint efforts to eliminate the threats to society,” Macaambac said in a statement.

Maj. Gen. Roberto Capulong, acting commander of 6th Infantry Division and JTF-Central, said that with the neutralization of Guimad and his cohort, it is expected that the armed group will weaken.

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1176995