VOLUNTARY SURRENDER. Some of the firearms and ammunition surrendered by former rebels to the Philippine National Police in this July 27, 2020 photo. The voluntary surrender of former fighters of the New People’s Army in Eastern Visayas exemplifies how a whole-of-nation approach works to end the local communist armed conflict (ELCAC), an official of the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) said on Wednesday (July 29, 2020). (Photo courtesy of DILG Region 8)
TACLOBAN CITY – The voluntary surrender of former fighters of the New People’s Army in Eastern Visayas exemplifies how a whole-of-nation approach works to end the local communist armed conflict (ELCAC), an official of the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) has said.
DILG regional director Karl Caesar Rimando believes that the stronger ties between the police, armed forces, the intelligence sector, and the community has convinced armed rebels to yield to authorities.
“With the increasing ownership shouldered by local and national governments to identify and resolve festering issues, residents of remote villages will no longer be easily swayed by the lies of communist insurgents,” Rimando said in a statement on Tuesday.
The 11 NPA members recently surrendered to the provincial mobile force company, municipal police stations, and regional mobile force battalion retooled community support program (RCSP) teams are from the provinces of Leyte, Samar, and Eastern Samar.
They also surrendered several firearms and ammunition to the government forces.
The Philippine National Police regional office here presented them to reporters on Monday.
“The turnover to authorities of various high-powered firearms and ammunition will help impair the ability of the outlawed group to initiate extortion, ambushes, and other crimes,” Rimando said.
The official asked former rebels to encourage those still “involved in the fading rebellion to approach local government units or any law enforcement officer who will facilitate their return to a peaceful and productive life.”
The DILG official lauded local government units for joining the drive to wipe out insurgency in their areas through the formation of task force ELCAC.
As of mid-July, all seven cities and 135 towns in the region have formed their task forces. About 30 percent of the region’s 4,390 villages have their task forces, according to the Philippine Army.
The formation of the task force operationalizes Executive Order 70 issued by President Rodrigo Duterte on Dec. 4, 2018. The directive also institutionalizes a “whole-of-nation approach” in attaining an inclusive and sustainable peace.
“The heightened coordination between the government agencies and the community is proof of the effectiveness of the whole of nation strategy under President Rodrigo Duterte’s Executive Order 70,” he added.
The creation of task force ELCAC has contributed to the reduction of the strength of NPA in the region as village officials and residents provide vital information that led to the neutralization of NPA fighters, according to the Philippine Army.
Since 2019, three NPA guerrilla fronts based in some parts of Leyte and Samar provinces fell after combined combat operations and community support programs.
Still ongoing is the dismantling of two guerrilla fronts operating in San Jose de Buan, Matuguinao, Motiong, Paranas, Basey, Marabut, and Sta. Rita in Samar.
The NPA, which has been waging a five-decade armed struggle against the government is listed as a terrorist organization by the United States, the European Union, the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the Philippines. (PNA)
