NPA militiamen surrender to military in Sarangani

By Cathy Apelacio

MALAPATAN, Sarangani (15 November) — At least two hundred sixteen of the New Peoples Army (NPA) militia surrendered to the 57th Infantry Battalion on Saturday ending the hostilities in barangay Kinam, Malapatan, this province.

The militiamen who belong to the Front 71 Regional Command returned 53 high powered and 163 low powered firearms to the military as they burned symbolic effigy “signifying their total denunciation of communist ideology.”

Commander Tiyoy Yaton, who headed the group of surrenderers, in an interview with media said, that he and his group have proved that joining the NPA did not do them any good instead it made them fugitives of law.

He added that their surrender was triggered by the fact that becoming an enemy of the state was not easy. “Lisod ang kinabuhi, wala’y kalinaw sa huna-huna ug gikapoy na mi ug panago gikan sa gobyerno (Life is difficult, there’s no peace of mind and we are fed up of playing hide and seek with government authorities).”

In a statement earlier, Malacanang said the government troops particularly the military and the police are on the ground to ensure that the safety and welfare of conflict-affected communities are served.

57th Battalion Commander Col. Flaviano Sembran, disclosed that most of the 3,000 residents in barangay Kinam represented by 44 sitios have been or under the indoctrination of NPA.

According to him that aside from the miltiamen, he was also expecting some 126 hard core NPA members to join the row of returnees.

Col. Sembran attributed the success of military operations to the continued vigilance and cooperation of some of the civilians in the area.

He urged the surrenderers and the residents to bear in mind that defecting to the communist group cannot make their lives any better because “NPA has no income on its own instead they get their subsistence from the masses; they make people’s life difficult by collecting revolutionary tax against their will; they sow terror as the essence of their existence; and they only have kangaroo court which doesn’t give fair justice.”

Government troops and the media had to cross the same river 30 times and wade through the rough roads for three hours aboard a “weapon” truck, which is the only means of transportation to be able to reach barangay Kinam, approximately 24 kms from the highway.

In a message of unity, Governor Miguel Dominguez stressed that the government can only do so much but it must be the people in the community who should be the one to maintain the peace and order of the area.

“Kamong katawhan dinhi sa barangay Kinam mao ang mohatag ug mag-patunhay sa kalinaw; ang gobyerno igo lang maghatag ug hagdanan ug kamo mismo ang mosaka aron makab-ot ang tinuod nga kalambuan alang sa inyong tagsa-tagsa ka panimalay (More than anyone else, it is you who’s got the responsibility to maintain peace in this community, the government is just there to provide you the necessary ladder, however, you have to climb to the top to be able to realize your own development.)

Meanwhile Cayton said a military detachment in barangay Kinam will be established to secure the area and ensure the returnees’ continued mainstreaming to the fold of law.

The relentless military offensives which led to the recovery of various subversive documents, communication equipment, firearms and ammunition and the seizure of NPA satellite commands here only proved that the government means business in its anti-terrorism campaign and will never “allow evil to instill a climate of fear” among the people, he stressed. (PIA-SarGen)