Cebu declared insurgency-free

MANILA, Philippines - The Armed Forces of the Philippines has declared the province of Cebu as insurgency-free and has turned over the lead role in maintaining its internal security to its local executives and police.

In a statement, the AFP Civil Relations Service said the internal security operations of Cebu was handed over to its peace and order council in a formal ceremony held in the municipality of Balamban on March 1.

AFP-CRS said local officials of Cebu as well as representatives from the AFP and the Philippine National Police signed a resolution stating that all of its 44 municipalities and eight cities are now free from the influence of the New People’s Army (NPA).

“The communist rebels ceased to function effectively as an organized insurgent movement, its threat to stability, peace and order, and development in Cebu is significantly reduced and relegated to inconsequential,” the resolution read.

“Its (communist rebels) actual and potential support systems are cut and its capabilities substantially degraded making them incapable of resurging and waging isolated armed incidents,” it added.

Encourage rebels to surrender

AFP-CRS Commander Brig. Gen. Francisco Cruz said they will continue to coordinate with local leaders to encourage rebels to surrender and to return to the fold of law.

“The objective of this collaboration was to encourage rebels to lay down their arms and start their lives anew, with the help of government programs,” he said.

“We take pride in bringing the NPAs back to the folds of the law, and giving them the opportunity to be productive in their communities. As soldiers of all Filipinos, we recognize that their welfare is also our concern,” he added.

For his part, Col. Raymundo Bañares, Commanding Officer of the 78th Infantry Battalion, said they will sustain community development programs such as medical and dental missions to address the roots of insurgency in the countryside.  

Cebu is among the 23 provinces that the military is aiming to declare insurgency-free before President Arroyo steps down from office on June 30.

The other provinces are Tarlac, Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Ilocos Norte, Apayao, Ifugao, Quirino, Pangasinan, Pampanga, Nueva Ecija, Southern Leyte, Northern Leyte, Ilocos Sur, Benguet, Cagayan, Isabela, Bulacan, Bataan, Zambales, Misamis Oriental and Sarangani.

Aside from Cebu, other provinces deemed free from the influence of communist rebels are Guimaras, Siquijor, Biliran, Marinduque, Romblon, La Union, Bohol and Aurora.

The military has said that an area can be declared insurgency-free if the communist movement there is already non-existent or is too insignificant to affect the lives of the residents there.

The AFP has claimed that the membership of the communist movement in the country has dropped to just 4,702 last year from a peak of 25,000 in 1987. 

The government has set a June 30, 2010 deadline for ending communist insurgency in the country.