ESCORT. Members of the New People’s Army escorted Duterte as he walks toward the gymnasium in Barangay Lumiad, Paquibato during the NPA’s release of the police officers it captured as prisoners-of-war in April. Duterte vowed to pursue talks with the Communist Party of the Philippines and declared a unilateral ceasefire during his first State of the Nation Address on July 25. (Earl O. Condeza/davaotoday.com)
DAVAO CITY — The New People’s Army said the Armed Forces of the Philippines has “twisted” the facts it presented to President Rodrigo Duterte and claimed that it was the government troops who violated the unilateral ceasefire declared by the President.
A day after Duterte issued a warning against the Communist Party of the Philippines, the NPA released a statement on Friday, July 29, saying the Army “deceived its own Commander-in-Chief by saying that the (NPA) violated the unilateral ceasefire when it waylaid the Peace and Development Outreach Program troops who were returning to their detachment in Sitio Patil, Barangay Gupitan.”
During his speech at the Armed Forces of the Philippines Southern Luzon Command in Lucena City, Quezon Province on Thursday, July 28, Duterte said he was informed of the NPA’s attack against five Cafgu Active Auxiliary killing one of them. The President demanded an explanation from the CPP and warned that he might end the unilateral ceasefire.
Aris Francisco, spokesperson of the NPA’s Comval North Davao South Agusan Subregional Command in an emailed statement said the Army and the paramilitary group, Alamara “have been on active operation” in Kapalong, Davao del Norte province. He said this has resulted in several engagements including its July 5 ambush that wounded one Red fighter.”
Francisco said the same troops ignored the ceasefire declaration and “again took off for combat operation from their detachment in Barangay Patil on July 26.”
He said guerrilla fighters detected their movement enroute to what the military and the paramilitary purported to be fixed NPA targets some 20 kilometers away from their detachment.
“Had the Red fighters not taken the initiative to actively defend itself by intercepting the 72nd Infantry Battalion Alamara troops, the operating AFP troops would have carried out its own combat action and inflicted damage against the NPA unit,” Francisco said.
Army spokesman Capt. Rhyan Batchar of the 10th Infantry Division said that the NPA attacked the CAA who were “on their way back to their camp in Barangay Gupitan, Kapalong, Davao del Norte on Wednesday morning, July 27, 2016.” One CAA was killed while four others were wounded.
“The CAAs from 72nd Infantry Battalion under the operational control 60th Infantry Battalion were on their way back to their camp at Sitio Patil, Barangay Gupitan in compliance to the unilateral ceasefire declared by the President during his SONA last July 25. The CAAs were already several days out of their camp on security patrol when the ceasefire was declared,” Batchar said.
He said they were already on their way from Sitio Kapatagan to Sitio Patil when ambushed by a group of NPAs at Sitio Kamunoan.
But Francisco said, the Army has “twisted the facts” given to Duterte.
“Its troops were clearly on combat operation and not engaged in “civilian” activities, in direct violation to Pres. Duterte’s ceasefire order,” he said.
Francisco said they abide with the spirit of the resumption of the peace negotiations in addressing the roots of the civil war and that they respect Duterte’s ceasefire order.
“We strictly adhere to the directive of the national leadership and the CPP. It is the militarist clique in the AFP and its paramilitaries like the Alamara that ridicule their Commander In Chief in virulently sabotaging the peace process,” he said.
After Duterte’s declaration of a unilateral ceasefire, the NPA said their fighters were ordered to stay on active defense mode as they await the reciprocal unilateral ceasefire declaration by the CPP.
Government negotiating panel chair Secretary Silvestre Bello III, who expressed sadness over the ambush of government troops, called on the CPP/NPA/NDF to reciprocate government’s ceasefire declaration “in order to immediately stop violence on the ground, protect our communities from conflict and provide an enabling environment for the resumption of formal peace negotiations”.
In a statement on Thursday, Bello said “it is best that the government’s ceasefire is reciprocated unconditionally by the NDF to build trust and confidence on the peace process and more importantly bring peace in our communities for the good of the people.”
The government and the NDF is scheduled to resume the formal talks on August 20-27 in Oslo, Norway. (davaotoday.com)
