Thursday, October 4, 2012

From the Visayan Daily Star (Oct 5): 2 rebels give up

Two more self-confessed members of the New People’s Army surrendered to the 47th Infantry Battalion in southern Negros, bringing to 69 the number of rebels who have abandoned the armed struggle to live a normal life with their families.... The two rebel returnees were identified as Randy Jurolan and Johnny Pablo, both residents of Sipalay City, Negros Occidental. They were accompanied by Barangay Captains Elir Borres and Zyrus Debuyan, to the 47th IB.... Twenty-six former rebels recently received P50,000 cash as livelihood assistance from the Office of the Presidential Adviser on Peace Process.... Lactao said he received reports that more rebels are planning to surrender.

http://www.visayandailystar.com/2012/October/05/topstory10.htm
From the Philippine News Agency (Oct 5): 3 hurt in N Cotabato blast

Three persons, including a village official, were wounded when a fragmentation grenade went off just few feet away from an abandoned Army detachment in Pikit town in North Cotabato, around 8:20 p.m., Thursday. Sr. Insp. Elias Dandan, chief of Pikit PNP, identified the victims as Gilbert Perdida, barangay councilor of Kapinpilan, Midsayap; Renante Duelo of Midsayap; and Datuan Patugkain from Pikit town.... Authorities have yet to find out the motive and those behind the blast....

http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=2&sid=&nid=2&rid=460069
Posted to the Philippine Revolutionary Web Center (PRWC) Blog (Oct 5): CPP denounces docking of another US nuclear submarine

The Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) today denounced as an outright violation of Philippine national sovereignty the docking of another US nuclear attack submarine at the former US naval base in Subic, Zambales…. "The increasingly frequent dockings of American naval warships in the Philippines mark heightened US military presence and intervention in the Asia-Pacific region," said the CPP…. The CPP also denounced the ongoing PHIBLEX exercises being held in various parts of Luzon involving 2,600 US and 1,200 AFP soldiers…. "At any given time, the US military has thousands of military personnel in the Philippines, most of which are permanently stationed in the Joint Special Operations Task Force (JSOTF-Philippines) headquarters inside Camp Navarro in Zamboanga City," said the CPP.
 

Posted to the MILF Website (Oct 5): Cagayan de Oro rep commended

The chair of a militant non-government Moro youth organization has commended Congressman Rufus Rodriguez of the Second District of Cagayan de Oro City for seeking more scholarship grants for poor and deserving Moro students in Mindanao. Arsad Solaiman, chairman of the Youth for Genuine Bangsamoro Empowerment (YGBE), told Luwaran that Rodriguez is one of the few non-Moro political leaders whose heart is clinched of anti-Moro, anti-Muslim and anti-Islam biases and prejudices....

http://www.luwaran.com/home/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=2872:cagayan-de-oro-rep-commended&catid=31:general&Itemid=41
From the MILF Website (Oct 5): Philippine Marines uncoordinated, provocative massing of troops hit

Troops of the Philippine Marines had been massing up at Barangay Napnapin, Palimbang, Sultan Kudarat Province since two days ago, an act deliberately uncoordinated and hit by the highest military leadership of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF). “This uncoordinated massing of troops by the Philippine Marines is indeed unfortunate because it is done in time when the peace negotiations between the Government of the Philippines (GPH) and the MILF are going on in Malaysia,” a member of the General Staff – Bangsamoro Islamic Armed Forces (BIAF) said....

http://www.luwaran.com/home/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=2873:philippine-marines-uncoordinated-provocative-massing-of-troops-hit&catid=31:general&Itemid=41
Posted to the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Movement (BIFM) Website (Sep 30): BIFM Ends Respect

The temporary suspension of BIFF Military Retaliatory Action against the occupation forces of Manila government has begun sometime in the mid of August 2012 in order to give due respect to the on going peace talks between the GPH and MILF per request of the MILF Central Committee leadership. In a special meeting of the Chief of Staff and his field commanders with an agendum of resolving whether to lift or to continue the“Temporary Suspension of the BIFF retaliatory Action” against the Occupation forces of the GPH as requested by the MILF, it was unanimously agreed that subject suspended action against the government forces be lifted. Thus, a letter addressed to MILF Chairman Al-Haj. Murad Ebrahim with copies to MILF Chief of staff, Political Affairs and Hay-atul Ulama were sent with information that the Temporary Respect to MILF-GPH Peace Talks has already been lifted on the following grounds:

1-As agreed, Task Force Al-Ittihad shall (p)ull out its entire forces but up to now some are still in the area;
2-Criminal cases filed against BIFM/BIFF members are still at large;
3-Our camp still occupied by the government forces.
4-MILF leadership released statements which are all destructive to our organization (BIFM/BIFF) as shown here under:
(a).Vice Chairman for Political Affairs, Guiadzali Jafar in a TV Patrol Central Mindanao, reported to the public particularly to the Bangsamoro people that BIFM and BIFF is now under MILF control.
(b).Sheikh Ameril Umra Kato has surrendered the BIFM to the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) due to his physical incapacity.

For the information of everybody, it is the standing policy of the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Movement’s leadership that inclusion of any BIFM member in ordinary criminal offenses and occupation of the BIFM established camp / community, are in fact, tantamount to open and direct-provocative act of the enemies. Therefore it is considered as an intolerable enemy action. Be informed further, that we are fighting for a CAUSE to regain our homeland from the secular and corrupt government.

http://www.alhaqieqiyyah.com/News16.html
From the Manila Standard Today (Oct 5): China expert urges caution on WPH Sea

The Philippines must deepen its knowledge of the maritime system instead of beefing up its facilities or accepting aid from other countries in building up its military capabilities, an expert on Sino-Philippine affairs said. The former Beijing bureau chief of ABC News, Chito Sta. Romana warned the Philippines not to be too dependent on the United States over its disputes with China in the West Philippine Sea.... “We must be very careful and realize the limits [of what the United States can do]. The last thing they [United States] want is to go to war with China on our behalf, or even on their behalf,” he said....

http://manilastandardtoday.com/2012/10/05/china-expert-urges-caution-on-wph-sea/
From the Philippine Star (Oct 5): Major naval assets on standby by for disaster response

The Philippine Navy (PN) today placed five of its disaster task forces as well as its major naval assets stationed in Luzon on standby for possible deployment into areas hit by heavy rainfall spawned by Tropical Storm "Marce." Navy spokesman Col. Omar Tonsay said all its naval Disaster Response Task Units (DRTU) in La Union, Ilocos Norte, Ilocos Sur, Pangasinan as well as those based in the Manila-Cavite areas are now closely monitoring all disaster-prone areas within their respective area of jurisdiction.... Also placed on standby to support any naval disaster response and rescue operations, especially on the high seas of Northern Luzon, are the Navy gunboats BRP Liberato Picar (PG-377) and BRP Manuel Gomez (PG-388). The Navy flagship, BRP Gregorio Del Pilar (PF-15) and the BRP Rajah Humban (PF-11) are also under orders to assist disaster and rescue operations on the coastal waters of Northern Luzon. All of these vessels are currently deployed in different naval stations in Western Luzon....

http://www.philstar.com/Article.aspx?articleId=856145&publicationSubCategoryId=200
From the Manila Standard Today (Oct 5): More US navy ships visit Subic

At least seven United States Navy ships—a submarine, amphibious assault vessels, a helicopter carrier, and destroyers —were expected to arrive in the Philippines in the next few days to take part in a massive joint military exercises involving the two countries, officials said on Thursday. Lt. Cherry Tindog, director of the Philippine Marine Corps Public Affairs Office, said the 10-day exercises will kick-off on October 8 near Palawan and Zambales provinces, a highly strategic area because of the territorial row between the Philippines and China over a group of islands in the West Philippine Sea. During the maneuvers, dubbed the PH-US Amphibious Landing Exercise 2013, a US Marine air-ground task force would link up with 1,200 Filipino troops, Tindog said....

http://manilastandardtoday.com/2012/10/05/more-us-navy-ships-visit-subic/
From the Mindanao Examiner (Oct 4): Philippine troops kill 2 civilians, says NPA rebels
Communist rebels on Thursday accused the military of killing two innocent civilians in an alleged gun battle in the southern Philippines. Ka Efren, a spokesman for the NPA in Mindanao, said the Philippine Army’s 27th Infantry Battalion, killed a 24-year old farmer, Andy Datuwata, and 16-year old Ronald Malley, a freshman student in Telafas National High School in the town of Columbio in Sultan Kudarat province.... Ka Efren said the soldiers also arrested another civilian - Tata Malley, 22 - on suspicion he was a rebel and mauled him before handing him to the local police. He said all the victims belong to the indigenous Tiruray tribe.... “The executors of these crimes, the 27th Infantry Battalion led by Lt. Col. Bravo, the AFP, and the US-Aquino regime who is the real tyrant behind these ploys, are accountable and must be punished for the recurring offenses, injuries, and injustices they wreak onto the innocent civilians,” Ka Efren said in a statement sent to the regional newspaper Mindanao Examiner....

http://mindanaoexaminer.com/news.php?news_id=20121004113114
From the Philippine Star (Oct 4): AFP welcomes freezing of Islamic group's bank accounts

The military welcomed the order yesterday of the Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) to immediately freeze the property and bank accounts of the International Islamic Relief Organization (IIRO) after the United Nations included the group in the list of al-Qaeda affiliates. IIRO, an international organization supposed to address the needs of displaced Muslims in the country, was found to be channeling funds from al-Qaeda to local and foreign terrorists operating in the Philippines. The IIRO had reportedly stopped operations in the country after the arrest of its key leaders and members in 2006, but the organization revived its activities in 2009. In resolution no. TF-0, the AMLC likewise ordered the freezing of assets and bank accounts of members of the Abu Sayyaf, Jemaah Islamiyah (JI), and the Rajah Solaiman Movement (RSM) that were identified in UN Security Council Resolution No. 1267 as part of the al-Qaeda terror network....

http://www.philstar.com/Article.aspx?articleId=855703&publicationSubCategoryId=63
Posted to Faces, Places & Voices (Ranger Cabunzky) Blog (Oct 02-04): Philippine Army News Clippings

October 2: http://www.scribd.com/doc/108825872/02-Oct-2012-Newsclippings#page=1

October 3: http://www.scribd.com/doc/108826153/03-October-12-Clippings#page=1

October 4: http://www.scribd.com/doc/108952742/04-Oct-2012-Newsclippings#page=1
From the Daily Tribune (Oct 4): AFP braces for possible attacks from BIFF amid peace talks

The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) is bracing for possible attacks coming from saboteurs, particularly the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF), of the peace negotiations between the Government of the Philippines (GRP) and the secessionist Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF).... Burgos said the military is not discounting the possibility of attacks coming from anti-peace process, like the BIFF led by rogue MILF commander Ameril Umbra Kato.... Actually, Burgos said that there are continuing ongoing operations against the BIFF for the August atrocities. “We will still pursue all our operations in support of the PNP considering that is a law enforcement operations in putting behind bars these personalities wanted by law,” said Burgos....

http://www.tribune.net.ph/index.php/nation/item/5145-afp-braces-for-possible-attacks-from-biff-amid-peace-talks
From the Daily Tribune (Oct 4): Another US nuclear attack submarine docks at ex- naval base

Despite the clear constitutional ban on the entry of nuclear-armed vessels, the Aquino government again allowed, without question, another United States nuclear attack submarine to dock at a former US naval base in Zambales today as part of the continuing routine port calls of US naval assets in the country amid the tension with China over the disputed West Philippine Sea. In a statement, the US Embassy announced that USS Olympia (SSN-717), a Los Angeles-class nuclear attack submarine, will arrive Thursday at Subic Bay, Zambales, for a routine port call....

http://www.tribune.net.ph/index.php/headlines/item/5157-another-us-nuclear-attack-submarine-docks-at-ex-naval-base
From the Philippine Star (Oct 4): Gov't employees' partylist appeals Comelec decision

Government employees whose partylist group was rejected by the Commission on Elections to run in the 2013 polls on Thursday called on the poll body to reconsider its decision.Members of the partylist group Courage Government Employees said the Comelec 2nd Division made a mistake in its decision to bar the organization from running in next year's elections.... The group filed a motion for reconsideration to the Comelec’s 2nd Division, ruling that government rank-and-file employees whether presently employed or retired are not marginalized or underrepresented, and is in fact already overly-represented....

http://www.philstar.com/nation/article.aspx?publicationsubcategoryid=200&articleid=855899
From the Philippine Star (Oct 4): 'Abu Sayyaf, JI Sulu operations already crippled'

The activities of the militant Abu Sayyaf Group and Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) in Sulu province and nearby areas have already ceased with the military's relentless operations to cut down logistic and financial support to the terror groups, a military official said Thursday. “Since the February operation that hit their main enclave in the mountains of Parang, things changed and the group’s operations have been crippled,” said Lt. Col. Randolf Cabangbang, spokesman of Armed Forces of the Philippines' Western Mindanao Command (Westmincom). Five militant leaders were killed in the military offensive, which was believed to be backed by US military technology. Among those killed were Abu SAyyaf leader Umbra Jumdail alias Dr. Abu Pula and two JI personalities Marwan and Mawiyah....

http://www.philstar.com/nation/article.aspx?publicationSubCategoryId=200&articleId=855911
From the Philippine News Agency (Oct 4): Two NPAs in Negros return to folds of law

The Philippine Army in Negros Occidental continues to receive rebel returnees belonging to the New People's Army (NPA) who opted to have a peaceful life and live with the mainstream society. In an E-mail dispatch, Camp Peralta, Jamindan, Capiz-based 3rd Infantry (Spearhead) Division (3ID) spokesman Maj. Enrico Gil Ileto, said a certain Johnny Pablo, alias Ryan of Sipalay City surrendered to the "Bayanihan Team" under 1Lt. Rommel Callejo of 47th Infantry Battalion (47IB) on Sept. 27.... On Wednesday, Randy Jurolan of Sipalay City also surrendered to the Bravo Company of 47IB. He was accompanied by Barangay Captain Zyrus Debuyan and his parents....

http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=2&sid=&nid=2&rid=459796
Editorial from the Mindanao Examiner (Oct 4): 'Is Peace Really At Hand?'

Is it peace really at hand?  All news releases of the Philippine government about the peace negotiations with the country's largest Muslim rebel group, Moro Islamic Liberation Front - always say that a peace pact is expected sooner...and this every time the negotiations end in Kuala Lumpur. Everything the Aquino government and his peace panel say is the same and over and over again, but nothing has been achieved as far as the Muslim sub-state is concerned.  If there is really a breakthrough, it would be the MILF the first to say so, but all we hear is total silence. The MILF has said it many times that it would not sign the peace accord unless the Muslim sub-state is granted.  And yet, the government peace panel and its propagandists continue to sing in a different tune. And forcing their propaganda - as if peace is just around the corner - to the throat of journalists and media outfits, and make it appear that peace is at hand....

http://www.mindanaoexaminer.com/news.php?news_id=20121004035618
Posted to the CPP Website (Oct 4): NDFP condemns Aquino regime's violations of human rights and international humanitarian law

Extrajudicial killings, enforced disappearances, demolitions of homes, military operations and forced evacuations, soaring prices and low wages – these are the marks of the Aquino regime’s “tuwid na daan”. No matter how hard the administration tries to spin Aquino’s “tuwid na daan” (straight path) and that the people are his “bosses”, these weavers of lies can’t hide the fact that the masses continue to suffer under the Aquino regime....

http://www.philippinerevolution.net/statements/ndfp-condemns-aquino-regime-s-violations-of-human-rights-and-international-humanitarian-law
From the CPP Website (Oct 4): CPP joins protests against Aquino's E-Martial Law

The Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) and all revolutionary forces in the country support the groundswell of protests against the Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012, signed by Benigno Aquino III last September 12. It went into effect yesterday after the Supreme Court denied Tuesday petitions for a temporary restraining order filed by oppositors questioning the law’s constitutionality.,,,

http://www.philippinerevolution.net/statements/cpp-joins-protests-against-aquino-s-e-martial-law