• GILBERT P. BAYORAN
The Armed Forces of the Philippines Visayas Command (Viscom) has reported that its incessant local peace engagements continue to deliver irreversible losses to the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army (CPP-NPA).
Records showed the surrender of 293 rebels from January to November this year, of which 88 have yielded in Western Visayas, majority of which in Negros Island, composed of 82 NPA regular members and six militiamen.
In Central Visayas, eight surrendered while in Eastern Visayas, 197.
For the same period, 94 assorted guns were also turned over by the surrenderers.
The former rebels were also enrolled in the Enhanced Comprehensive Local Integration Program of the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict, and received initial assistance from the local government units and the national government.
In a report, Viscom also said that 24 former rebels have been enlisted in the regular force of the Armed Forces of the Philippines while 107 have been integrated to the CAFGU Active Auxiliary, being part of the territorial defense system established in their respective communities.
“Amid our eagerness to end the local communist armed conflict in the region the soonest possible time, we do not discount the fact that we are fighting against our fellow Filipinos who are also victims, having been deceived by the CPP-NPA to fight against our government,” Viscom chief Lt. Gen. Benedict Arevalo said.
“This is the reason why we persistently call upon them to choose the path of peace and return to the fold of the law, as we value their lives and also value their families,” he added.
Within a period of one week, 29 rebels affiliated with the Central Negros 2 under the Komiteng Rehiyonal Negros/Cebu/Bohol/Siquijor surrendered to the 94th Infantry Battalion, in separate ceremonies held in the cities of Himamaylan and Kabankalan.
“As we are highly motivated to sustain our momentum in our focused military operations, we also put equal emphasis to our localized peace engagements,” Arevalo said. | GB
