links: http://www.afp.mil.ph/index.php/19-afp-data-articles/latest-news/1113-number-of-npa-surrenderees-rose-by-56-npa-violence-drops-by-21
Number of NPA Surrenderees Rose by 56%, NPA Violence Drops by 21%
- Published on Monday, 04 March 2013 12:22
- Written by PAO, AFP
Camp Aguinaldo, Quezon City—The Armed Forces of the Philippines reported the number of New People’s Army (NPA) rebels that returned to the government fold last year rose to 367 from 235 recorded in 2011. This accounted for the successful implementation of the Internal Peace and Security Plan (IPSP) Bayanihan particularly the Localized Integration Program (LIP).
Also,
the number of NPA-initiated violent incidents (NIVIs) dropped by 21%
from 473 in 2011 to 374 in 2012. This shows the continuing decline of
NPA-initiated violent incidents during the implementation of IPSP
Bayanihan. Before it was launched in 2011, the AFP recorded 501 NIVIs in
2010.
The violent armed group
continues to attack civilians and non-combatants as demonstrated in
their recent attack in Negros Occidental that killed nine civilians and
their raid of the DOLE Philippines and Del Monte Plantation. Such modus
of force and intimidation to coerce civilians including private firms
and individuals to give in to their demands are desperate moves by the
NPA who continue to lose their mass base support.
Meanwhile,
the Bishop and Clergy of the Diocese of Kabankalan City, Negros
Occidental condemned the NPA’s attack on civilians that also wounded 12
people on January 27.
“Those lucky
ones, who narrowly escaped death from the bursts of gunfire randomly
aimed at them as passengers of the truck and who repeatedly identified
themselves as civilians, witnessed how the killers cold-bloodedly and
heartlessly ‘finished off’ some of the wounded one by one by firing at
their heads at close range and in some instances, in spite of pleadings
to be spared,” said the statement.
The
statement further denounced the distortion of facts when the NPAs
admitted the massacre. “Not only that this admission came almost after a
week had elapsed, it came with distortions of the facts, a bundle of
justifications and promises of indemnification which were meant to
sanitize the barbarity of the act and impress the world of the group’s
faithful adherence to agreements it signed with the government,” the
statement said.
On the other hand,
the Peace Advocates of Negros also slammed the execution of pleading
survivors of the ambush, saying that “no motive is so compelling, no
cause so demanding and no ideology so righteous that it will justify the
murder of so many innocent [civilians].”
“While
we support the initiatives of the government to talk peace with the
communist group in pursuit of just and lasting peace for our country,
the Armed Forces of the Philippines will continue to sustain its gains
from the IPSP Bayanihan in our operations against the violent armed
rebels through focused and intelligence-based security operations. We
will continue in our effort to convince the NPA to abandon the armed
violence that continues to hamper growth and development in our
country,” Gen Bautista said.
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