Of all Mindanowan locales Davao City is perhaps the one place alone that is absolutely immune from KFR (Kidnap for Ransom). The island's largest city is ruled by local warlord Rodrigo "Roddy" Duterte who because of a 9 year Term Limit had to step down as mayor in the last election in May of 2010. Currently sitting as the city's Vice Mayor his daughter Sarah Duterte Carpio graciously agreed to keep the Mayoral throne warm for Big Daddy as he sits out the mandatory 3 year cooling off period. Still, no local observer ever doubts who is in charge.
Though having a violent warlord as mayor definitely has its negative consequences...say the Extra-Judicial Execution of 12 year old glue addicts...it also has some very real and tangible benefits. One such benefit is the city's de facto neutral status vis a vis the many insurgencies wracking our beautiful island. Davao City is the only municipality on Mindanao where one finds NPA Committee Secretaries hobknobbing with MNLF Kumanders as the latter chat amicably with counterparts from the MILF, all without a hassle from the AFP (Armed Forces of the Philippines) and the PNP (Philippine National Police). The unusual situation also extends into other spheres...like KFR (Kidnap for Ransom). While KFR is off the charts in four neighbouring regions it is all but unheard of in Davao del Sur Province, Duterte's influence obviously extending past his city's boundries. Foreigners in Davao City don't think twice in terms of personal safety. This in turn leads to beaucoup investment and so Duterte shows us that indeed there is a certain method to his violent madness.
In fact, Duterte's influence is seen as so all pervasive that any reported KFR within the city limits is almost always dismissed out of hand even before a cursory investigation is performed. This condescending attitude is what led a local woman into a shi*storm of controversy recently.
Catherine Graciela Manalo, a registered nurse from the town of San Pablo in Laguna Province on Luzon walked into a Davao City CPO (City Police Office) Santa Ana Station very early Monday morning, May 23rd, 2011, and told a fantastic tale. She reported that she had been party to a large group that included 2 of her brothers:
1) Alexander Ulysis Manalo
2) Benjamin Gabriel Manalo
their girlfriends:
1) Ellaine Fidez Mondejar
2) Bella Marie Labastida
and more importantly for Philippine authorities,2 foreigners:
1) Marco Bennet
2) Graham Walker
both British subjects. Ms.Manalo related that the group had been staying at the city's Grand Regal Hotel before recently transferring to the Pinnacle Hotel, also in the city, on Santa Ana Avenue but that late the evening before, Sunday May 22nd, a man known only as "Remy" had picked the entire group up in a van and transferred them en masse to the Apo View Hotel, also in Davao City. She told police officers that after the group had left the Pinnacle Hotel she had seen them at the popular downtown eatery, "Shakeys" on Governor Duterte Street (named after Vice Mayor Duterte's late father,warlord #1). According to Ms.Manalo Remy had driven them there as a group. Leaving early Ms.Manalo decided to return to her room in a local boarding house on the corner of Gempesaw and Juan Luna Streets.
While retiring in her room Ms.Manalo said she received an SMS (Text) from one of her brothers that simply said,"SOS."Not long after that strange SMS she received a phone call in which the caller demanded a P20 Million ransom (US460,000).At her landlord's insistence she then made her way to the CPO and reported the"crime."
Immediately the Davao City PNP checked with the registars of all three hotels:
1) Grand Regal
2) Pinnacle
3) Apo View
and found that none of the hotels had registered any of the six names Ms.Manalo had provided. More over, none had recently registered any British men. Next the PNP contacted the BID (Bureau of Immigration and Detention, known usually as the"BI") and found that no British men with those names had entered the Philippines, EVER. They then began interrogating the complaintant a tad bit more aggressively. Calling the cellphone numbers of the victims they found that none were working. Trying to bolster her own credibility Ms.Manalo provided 3 photographs of the victims. One of the pictures appeared to have been a still shot from a Hollywood film. By now the CPO was sure that Ms.Manalo had made the whole thing up but they couldn't understand why she would do such a thing. In seeking answers they went to the boarding house and interviewed the owner,Ms.Manalo's landlord.Apparently Ms.Manalo had arrived in Davao City sometime in mid-2010 and had sought to rent a room in that particular boarding house despite her having no money.She had told the landlord that she had come south to await the imminent arrival of a sister who had been working in Canada.She vowed to pay for her room and board as soon as her sister arrived from abroad.Such stories are common enough and so the landlord consented but the"few days"turned into 11 months and so Ms.Manalo's subterfuge became more and more complicated as she sought ways in which to avoid the inevitable"paying the piper."
Finally,on Sunday, May 22nd, 2011 Ms.Manalo's story evolved into the KFR Plot. Having had enough the landlord told Ms.Manalo that she better come up with something concrete to prove her excuse or else she would be reported for fraud.When the story hit the media it turned out that Ms.Manalo was actually named Minelda Que and was not from Luzon but was in fact a local woman.She had reportedly ran out on a string of similar frauds totalling P400,000 (almost US9,000).Ms.Manalo/Que's latest caper carries a fine of P200 (US4.80,that's right,less than 5 US Dollars) and up to 6 months in jail. Realising that the gig was up the forlorn woman admitted to having manufactured the tale in an attempt to avoid Fraud charges over her debt to her landlady.
In fact the sad tale brings to mind the last faked KFR out of Davao City. In early June of 2010 30 year old German citizen Fier Medricat got into a huge row with his father Ralph Medricat. Fier, a Vetinary Assistant had come to Mindanao to try and patch up his spotty relationship with his father.The elder man had been living in Pagadian City with his young Filipina girlfriend, Magdalena Morales. From the start Fier's presence had led to knoch down,drag em' out fights.
Thinking that Fier might calm down a bit if he had a girlfriend of his own Magdalena invited her niece over for a couple of days.Teenaged Crystal Morales Villamor was a native of Toril District in Davao City and had never managed to travel out of her province,Davao del Sur.Arriving in Pagadian City she and Fier got along great and for a few days everybody was happy. When Crystal had to return home though Fier was beside himself.Almost immediately he made plans to take a trip himself and to visit Crystal in Davao City.Worried about his son's safety Ralph forbade it and threatened to make his son return home to Germany.
On June 18th Fier went for broke. Taking a bus he made his way down to Davao.Nearing the city he told a shocked Crystal that he was in Davao City and was coming to see her.A shocked but flattered Crystal gave him directions to Toril District and told him she would be waiting for him. Having taken a jeepney (ubiqitous form of public transportation in the Philippines) to the outlying district of Toril Fier found himself wandering its isolated dirt roads searching for Crystal's Barangay Catigan.
Toril District is 1 of 4 Davao City districts controlled by the NPA, or Maoist New Peoples Army. As ground zero of the Maoist Insurgency it is not a place that sees a lot of wandering foreigners. Were it a pacified area there would still be a rush of attention. As it was absolutely all eyes were riveted on our would be Lothario.Soon 3 teenaged boys came along side and finding that Fier was lost they volunteered to"help"him find his girlfriend's home.Before long,with the 3 teens leading him, Fier was far off the beaten path and well beyond any any chance of genuine help.One of the helpful teens volunteered that the home of his aunt was nearby and that they ought to take shelter there for the evening lest they endanger themselves trying to navigate narrow mountain trails during the thick of the night.Fier had to admit that the suggestion made a whole lot of sense and so it was that his new found"friends"led him to the home of a woman introduced to him as"Mama."
After they ate a small meal of boiled white rice and ampalaya (bitter squash) his new friends began asking him what he was carrying in his fanny pack. Innocently Fier showed them,it was P5,600 (US150).Suddenly his friends stopped talking English and their demeanour changed from friendly to frightening and they grabbed the money.As Fier complained that that was he had and that he needed it for his return to Pagadian City he was told that he was being kidnapped by the NPA.He was then instructed to notify his girlfriend and to tell her to arrange for his ransom.Three days later his father's girlfriend, Magdalena Morales, reported the kidnapping to the Davao City CPO.
This was Fier's account. However the reality was quite different. By June 22nd the Davao City CPO had uncovered a plot by Fier to stick it to his hapless father. He was attenpting to get his father to pony up P500,000 (US11,000) so that he and his young girlfriend Crystal could make a life of their own.After some very high ranking CPO Officers convinced him to reconsider he made his way back to Pagadian City when one hoped that his father gave him the once over.
Of course the Philippine Media was clueless and reported on July 10th of that year,2010,that young Fier had just been released in Pagadian City.
Speaking of silly Germans in Davao, Ms.Manalo's decision to involve the Apo View Hotel in her scheme brings to mind yet another KFR case tied to Davao City.On May 31st, 2007, German citizen Thomas Wallraf hired a van and along with his girlfriend, Sharon Mae Jackson, a Filipina and 2 Indian nationals left the Apo View Hotel for a long drive to the town of Pikit in North Cotabato Province. The group was en route to meet a man with whom Wallraf had been communicating online.
As I have noted in a recent KFR entry on an American victim who had arrived on Mindanao in hopes of striking it rich,Treasure Hunting attracts A LOT of foreigners and even a smattering of ignorant locals. Thomas Wallraf, 44, was hoping to uncover a valuable cachet of nickel babbit. Thinking he had hit the motherlode he piled in the van with his lifesavings and drove to Pikit's Barangay Batulawan.Upon arriving at the designated location he was greeted by 9 MNLF/BMA (Moro National Liberation Force/Bangsamoro Army) guerillas. Led by Kumander Datucan Samad the guerillas hogtied and gagged their captives and tied each one to the back of an off road motorcycle.
Leaving the clearing in Barangay Bantulawan the group drove to Barangay Balongis where they crossed into an MILF/BIAF (Moro Islamic Liberation Front/Bangsamoro Islamic Armed Forces) AOR (Area of Responsibility,meaning Area of Operation).The BIAF, under Kumander Moti of the 106 Base Command then ordered the MNLF/BMA to turn the captives over to the BIAF,since foreign captives generate huge ransoms. The MNLF/BMA balked until the BIAF fired a single RPG round right next to MNLF Kumander Datucan Samad's head. The MILF/BIAF then took custody of the 4 captives and withdrew to the 106 Base Command Camp in the municipality of Parang, across the provincial border in Maguindanao. By the afternoon of June 1st, 24 hours after the MILF/BIAF forced the MNLF/BMA into surrendering the victims,the MILF leadership ordered the BIAF to release the captives to the IMT (International Monitoring Team, a Malaysian led force made up of personnel from Brunei, Libya and Japan at that point, tasked with helping to investigate any alleged Ceasefire violations by the MILF/BIAF and the GPH).
Interestingly it was depicted as a BIAF rescue from "cattle rustling gun runners" with the MILF scrambling a BIAF force to chase after the criminals who had kidnapped the group.In reality the BIAF 106 Base Command wanted to earn some money but the GPH-MILF Peace Process was starting up again and the MILF Central Committee couldn't stand to have something weaken their hand or even scuttle the Talks in their entierty. After the 106 Base Command captured the 4 victims and word reached Camp Darapanan (MILF General Headquarters) just down the road the MILF leadership moved to turn a negative into a positive.
I should add that on June 24th, 2008, Kumander Datucan Samad was arrested for this kidnapping. Based upon a warrant issued by the RTC (Regional Trial Court) in Pikit, North Cotabato Province. Taken into custody in the municipality of Malabang in Lanao del Sur Province but released exactly 1 week later. Why? Lack of Evidence. The only other person ever brought to justice was Samad's #2 man,22 year old Saludin Lampangan of Pikit's Barangay Gocotan. On July 8th, 2008zn just 8 days after Samad's aforementioned release, the Chief of Police in Pikit (Sr.Inspector Elias Dandan) saw Lampangan casually sauntering up to a group of youth in the town plaza. The Chief of Police called in the AFP for backup and when the reinforcements arrived took the suspect into custody.He too was released for Lack of Evidence.
Showing posts with label Rodrigo Duterte. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Rodrigo Duterte. Show all posts
Thursday, June 9, 2011
Wednesday, June 1, 2011
NPA Armed Contacts for the Second Quarter of 2011,Part II:Release of 2 Captured Soldiers and the Battle for a 200 Man Camp in Davao Region
Sunday,May 29,2011 was a day to remember for the families of 2 captured AFP (Armed Forces of the Philippines) soldiers.With little warning they found that their loved ones would finally be coming home after a difficult 45 days as"guests"of the NPA.On April 14 Corporal Delfin Largo Sarocam and Private First Class (PFC) Jayson Burgos Valenzuela of the 57IB (Infantry Battalion) were escorting a former Barangay Kagawad (Councillor) Eliory Lastimosa to a community forum to orient the community on the AFP's plans to deploy a PDT (Peace and Development Team,"Hearts and Minds"mechanism that serves as the cornerstone of the present Counterinsurgency (COIN) Programme,"Operational Plan-aka OPlan-Bayanihan") into the community.
As the 3 men entered the barangay in question,Datu Puas Inda,in the North Cotabato Provincial municipality of President Roxas,they came to an NPA checkpoint manned by 20 guerillas in Sitio Dalinding.Having been waiting especially for the 3 the guerillas quickly moved to divest the soldiers of their 45 caliber sidearms and then just as rapidly bundled them off into the jungle as prisoners of Front 53,the Herminio Alfonso Command (SMRC aka Southern Mindanao Regional Committee,1 of 5 NPA Regional Committees on Mindanao).Marched overland on foot they were initially taken to a Front 53 Camp in the neighbouring town of Arakan before later being transferred to Front 20,the Conrado Heredia Command,the custodial unit for the SMRC as a whole.
As has been the case for the last 3 years the capture was almost a non-event.These goings on have become oh so common place and downright predictable.Soldiers or police officers are held for up to 90 days during which the NPA engages in repetitive propaganda exercises and issues grandiose statements to the media about the Hague and the Geneva Conventions.Local politicians and Catholic clergymen participate in this almost surreal psychodrama as the poor families of these captured soldiers lay in bed crying,wondering whether or not they will ever see their husbands,sons and fathers again.Of course they will,it is already scripted but noone outside this very narrow mileu understands that.Indeed,even most within this small world couldn't care less and so it continues.
On April 28th the requisite POL (Proof of Life) was released to the powers that be.An audio tape of each captive telling their loved ones not to worry and that they are getting enough sleep and adequate food was passed out with the de riguer"They are treating me very well."In fact they should just mass produce these POLs and simply leave the names blank,filling them in as they go.The POL package included a photo of each prisoner holding up a recently dated local newspaper so as to verify the POL's currency.Both men asked the AFP to cease and desist in their Search and Rescue Operations.Not even AFP personnel want to be rescued by the AFP.The"shoot first and don't even bother asking questions ever"mentality is enough to make any non-suicidal person nervous.The only unusual aspect was Corporal Sarocam's request that the Iglesia ng Kristo (Church of Christ) negotiate for his release.
Not to be confused with the Western-based denomination"Church of Christ,"this denomination is a homegrown sect that imparts messianic qualities to its late founder.A very rich group,as well it should be since adherants must pay cash fines for every prayer meeting and Bible study they fail to attend (or even arrive late for).Obviously Sarocam is a member and the message is code for,"Pay my fuc*en' ransom FAST."The NPA,like any insurgent organisation is continuously strapped for cash.It isn't easy when you have to pay P45 ($1.05) per 5.56MM bullet when buying from your local IB CO (Commanding Officer).Hey,at 1 US a day combat per diem you can't blame the AFP,they have needs just like the rest of us.
Fast forward to May 29th,North Cotabato Provincial Vice Governor Gregorio Ipong and Catholic Church Negotiator Father Paul Paracha eagerly drove to Barangay Balite in the provincial municipality of Magpet to await directions from Fr.Paracha's NPA contact on where to retrieve the 2 soldiers.Upon entering the barangay they were directed by cell phone to the outlying sitio of Laquiahon where the NPA had prepared its usual circle jer* of a love fest,everyone smiling for the cameras,assigned seats for local politicos and Church"leaders."The 2 soldiers then joined the priest and Vice Governor for the long drive to Kidapawan City in South Cotabato Province where they were reunited with their families at Bishop Romulo de la Cruz's Official Residence in Barangay Balindog.The Kidapawan Diocese needed to get its money's worth of publicity having had to shell out a pretty penny for PFC.Valenzuela's ransom.
On the same day that Valenzuela and Sarocam were enjoying a very brief respite before IS-AFP (AFP Intelligence Service) Debriefing began,their compatriots were busy elsewhere on the island.
The Scout Rangers 2nd Battalion,6th COY (Company) on a Recon (Reconnaisance Op) in the municipality of Cateel in Davao Oriental Province stumbled across a column of NPA guerillas from the aforementioned Front 20 and the 30 minute firefight led to the AFP rushing blindly through the dense jungle in a rarely launched Hot Pursuit Operation (despite the claims of the AFP to undertake such operations under its SOP,or Standard Operating Procedure).Why do it then?As I noted earlier in this entry Front 20,the Conrado Heredia Command,is the custodial unit of that particular NPA Regional Command,SMRC (Southern Mindanao Regional Committee).Though both captured soldiers had already been released in North Cotabato Province the AFP doesn't immediately relay these facts to its field units.The 6th Scout Ranger COY saw an opportunity to earn accolades by"rescuing"2 of their comrades in arms.
How did our fearless defenders of the Philippines aim to conduct their"Rescue Op"?Discovering a huge 200 man camp in the middle of densely packed jungle in Barangay Aliwagwag's Sitio Carampel (Karimpel) the 40 Scouts,under Capt.Aunor Balansi crawled on their bellies to within 30 meters of the camp's outlying bunkers.Setting up a loose perimeter (think of a noose,opened at one end so as to allow a clear avenue of escape).The camp also housed Front 25,the SMRC's Regional Operations Command and also served as a logistical hub for SMRC Fronts at the northern end of the SMRC's area of operations.Therefore,as luck would have it,members of Front 15,the Antonio Nerio Command were also on site.
The AFP's official narrative claims that its men crawled on their bellies to within 30 meters of the camp's large bunkers.This is not the usual AFP way in which to launch an attack but the locale is so deeply forested as to be inaccessible even to fast roping infiltration by helicopters (as IF the AFP EVER does THAT),meaning it is incredibly thickly covered with rain forest flora.So,the 30 meters bit is absolutely believable.Likewise so is the AFP boast that they opened fire on what would have been unarmed guerillas.However,to assault a 200 man camp under the element of full suprise and still fail to retrieve a single captured prisoner or even a single KIA (Killed in Action,as in dead guerillas) just defies belief.
The usual AFP "assault"involves an opened perimeter.As I noted just above,picture an open noose,laid around a camp.Now,if you are a capable officer you deploy a Blocking Force along that open end of the"noose"which serves as an avenue of escape,if not actually tying the noose shut to prevent any escape to begin with.The Blocking Force serves to mop up those guerillas rushing headlong out of the camp hoping to avoid capture or annihilation.Imagine 200 dead or captured guerillas?What a coup that would be for the AFP.In reality the AFP almost always leaves a clear avenue for escape sans Blocking Force.The camp is the prize,not its personnel.
To show you how worthless the AFP mindset is,that very same camp had been captured in June of 2010.
The 25IB had been on a Search and Rescue Op for...deja vu...2 captured AFP soldiers:
1) Staff Sergeant Bienvenido Arguelles
2) CAFGU Job Latiban
who like the soldiers mentioned at the beginning of my post had been captured at an NPA checkpoint in ComVal's (Compostela Valley Province) Monkayo,a town immediately adjacent to Cateel despite the provincial border.In that"assault"a 30 minute firefight ended with Front 20,Front 25 and Front 3,the Alejandro Lanaja Command,escaping down that requisite unmolested avenue.
In the May 29th"capture"the AFP was able to claim an actual victory in the caprure of 5 rifles:two M16s,two M14s and one M4.The June,27,2010 capture resulted in 4 IEDs (Improvised Explosive Devices,as in homemade bombs) and 6 rifles whose make and variation I noted in the NPA Armed Contact/Tactical Offence entry for the relevant time period.This latest camp"capture"resulted in 3 AFP WIAs (Wounded in Actions) though the NPA is ALSO claiming to have killed 8 men there as well,including 2 junior officers.
In terms of NPA casualties there were 2 guerilla KIAs and 4 WIAs,3 of which are extremely critical.Interestingly the Front 20 contact person contacted everybody's favourite mass murderer,Vice Mayor Rodrigo"Roddy"Duterte and asked him for assistance in saving the lives of those 3 critically injured insurgents.As I noted recently Duterte long ago entered into a working relationship with the NPA's Leonicio"Ka Parago"Pitao in which Duterte"sold"him the right to operate in 4 of the city's outlying districts.
The 3 wounded guerillas:
1) Jason"Ka Jerome"Casilum,of Davao City's Calinan District
2) Ariel"Ka Diwa"Haducala,of Dinagat Island which may or may not be a province of its own depending upon the day you read this.If it isn't it will still be Surigao del Norte Province.The Supreme Court can't make up its mind on the issue.
3) Vanessa"Ka Enching"Tropico de los Reyes,also of Calinan District,Davao City
were retrieved on Wednesday,June 1st by a Davao City helicopter in which Duterte personally rode shotgun (the same copter which he openly brags about having used it to drop people head first into the ocean).The 3 were then airlifted to Davao City where Duterte has personally vowed to protect them from apprehension (hope his vow means more than it did this past Christmas when it led to Edwin Brigano's capture).The 3,along with the 4th wounded guerilla were originally taken to an NPA-friendly hospital in Bislig,Surigao del Sur Province.Virtually all NPA-friendly hospitals are in deplorable condition so that Front 20 Secretary,known by the nom de guerre"Ka Jess,"felt compelled to call in a big favour to Vice Mayor Duterte.This would never have happened had the female guerilla,Ms.de los Reyes not been Ka Jess' lover.Sadly she is now parapelgic since a bullet severed her spinal cord.She also lost 1 kidney so that her condition is extremely grave.Her shocked mother believed her daughter had been teaching Political Science at a public university in Davao City,suprise...suprise...suprise.
Touching down at 3AM on June 2nd the 3 were rushed to Southern Philippines Medical Center in Davao City where they remain as of this posting.
As the 3 men entered the barangay in question,Datu Puas Inda,in the North Cotabato Provincial municipality of President Roxas,they came to an NPA checkpoint manned by 20 guerillas in Sitio Dalinding.Having been waiting especially for the 3 the guerillas quickly moved to divest the soldiers of their 45 caliber sidearms and then just as rapidly bundled them off into the jungle as prisoners of Front 53,the Herminio Alfonso Command (SMRC aka Southern Mindanao Regional Committee,1 of 5 NPA Regional Committees on Mindanao).Marched overland on foot they were initially taken to a Front 53 Camp in the neighbouring town of Arakan before later being transferred to Front 20,the Conrado Heredia Command,the custodial unit for the SMRC as a whole.
As has been the case for the last 3 years the capture was almost a non-event.These goings on have become oh so common place and downright predictable.Soldiers or police officers are held for up to 90 days during which the NPA engages in repetitive propaganda exercises and issues grandiose statements to the media about the Hague and the Geneva Conventions.Local politicians and Catholic clergymen participate in this almost surreal psychodrama as the poor families of these captured soldiers lay in bed crying,wondering whether or not they will ever see their husbands,sons and fathers again.Of course they will,it is already scripted but noone outside this very narrow mileu understands that.Indeed,even most within this small world couldn't care less and so it continues.
On April 28th the requisite POL (Proof of Life) was released to the powers that be.An audio tape of each captive telling their loved ones not to worry and that they are getting enough sleep and adequate food was passed out with the de riguer"They are treating me very well."In fact they should just mass produce these POLs and simply leave the names blank,filling them in as they go.The POL package included a photo of each prisoner holding up a recently dated local newspaper so as to verify the POL's currency.Both men asked the AFP to cease and desist in their Search and Rescue Operations.Not even AFP personnel want to be rescued by the AFP.The"shoot first and don't even bother asking questions ever"mentality is enough to make any non-suicidal person nervous.The only unusual aspect was Corporal Sarocam's request that the Iglesia ng Kristo (Church of Christ) negotiate for his release.
Not to be confused with the Western-based denomination"Church of Christ,"this denomination is a homegrown sect that imparts messianic qualities to its late founder.A very rich group,as well it should be since adherants must pay cash fines for every prayer meeting and Bible study they fail to attend (or even arrive late for).Obviously Sarocam is a member and the message is code for,"Pay my fuc*en' ransom FAST."The NPA,like any insurgent organisation is continuously strapped for cash.It isn't easy when you have to pay P45 ($1.05) per 5.56MM bullet when buying from your local IB CO (Commanding Officer).Hey,at 1 US a day combat per diem you can't blame the AFP,they have needs just like the rest of us.
Fast forward to May 29th,North Cotabato Provincial Vice Governor Gregorio Ipong and Catholic Church Negotiator Father Paul Paracha eagerly drove to Barangay Balite in the provincial municipality of Magpet to await directions from Fr.Paracha's NPA contact on where to retrieve the 2 soldiers.Upon entering the barangay they were directed by cell phone to the outlying sitio of Laquiahon where the NPA had prepared its usual circle jer* of a love fest,everyone smiling for the cameras,assigned seats for local politicos and Church"leaders."The 2 soldiers then joined the priest and Vice Governor for the long drive to Kidapawan City in South Cotabato Province where they were reunited with their families at Bishop Romulo de la Cruz's Official Residence in Barangay Balindog.The Kidapawan Diocese needed to get its money's worth of publicity having had to shell out a pretty penny for PFC.Valenzuela's ransom.
On the same day that Valenzuela and Sarocam were enjoying a very brief respite before IS-AFP (AFP Intelligence Service) Debriefing began,their compatriots were busy elsewhere on the island.
The Scout Rangers 2nd Battalion,6th COY (Company) on a Recon (Reconnaisance Op) in the municipality of Cateel in Davao Oriental Province stumbled across a column of NPA guerillas from the aforementioned Front 20 and the 30 minute firefight led to the AFP rushing blindly through the dense jungle in a rarely launched Hot Pursuit Operation (despite the claims of the AFP to undertake such operations under its SOP,or Standard Operating Procedure).Why do it then?As I noted earlier in this entry Front 20,the Conrado Heredia Command,is the custodial unit of that particular NPA Regional Command,SMRC (Southern Mindanao Regional Committee).Though both captured soldiers had already been released in North Cotabato Province the AFP doesn't immediately relay these facts to its field units.The 6th Scout Ranger COY saw an opportunity to earn accolades by"rescuing"2 of their comrades in arms.
How did our fearless defenders of the Philippines aim to conduct their"Rescue Op"?Discovering a huge 200 man camp in the middle of densely packed jungle in Barangay Aliwagwag's Sitio Carampel (Karimpel) the 40 Scouts,under Capt.Aunor Balansi crawled on their bellies to within 30 meters of the camp's outlying bunkers.Setting up a loose perimeter (think of a noose,opened at one end so as to allow a clear avenue of escape).The camp also housed Front 25,the SMRC's Regional Operations Command and also served as a logistical hub for SMRC Fronts at the northern end of the SMRC's area of operations.Therefore,as luck would have it,members of Front 15,the Antonio Nerio Command were also on site.
The AFP's official narrative claims that its men crawled on their bellies to within 30 meters of the camp's large bunkers.This is not the usual AFP way in which to launch an attack but the locale is so deeply forested as to be inaccessible even to fast roping infiltration by helicopters (as IF the AFP EVER does THAT),meaning it is incredibly thickly covered with rain forest flora.So,the 30 meters bit is absolutely believable.Likewise so is the AFP boast that they opened fire on what would have been unarmed guerillas.However,to assault a 200 man camp under the element of full suprise and still fail to retrieve a single captured prisoner or even a single KIA (Killed in Action,as in dead guerillas) just defies belief.
The usual AFP "assault"involves an opened perimeter.As I noted just above,picture an open noose,laid around a camp.Now,if you are a capable officer you deploy a Blocking Force along that open end of the"noose"which serves as an avenue of escape,if not actually tying the noose shut to prevent any escape to begin with.The Blocking Force serves to mop up those guerillas rushing headlong out of the camp hoping to avoid capture or annihilation.Imagine 200 dead or captured guerillas?What a coup that would be for the AFP.In reality the AFP almost always leaves a clear avenue for escape sans Blocking Force.The camp is the prize,not its personnel.
To show you how worthless the AFP mindset is,that very same camp had been captured in June of 2010.
The 25IB had been on a Search and Rescue Op for...deja vu...2 captured AFP soldiers:
1) Staff Sergeant Bienvenido Arguelles
2) CAFGU Job Latiban
who like the soldiers mentioned at the beginning of my post had been captured at an NPA checkpoint in ComVal's (Compostela Valley Province) Monkayo,a town immediately adjacent to Cateel despite the provincial border.In that"assault"a 30 minute firefight ended with Front 20,Front 25 and Front 3,the Alejandro Lanaja Command,escaping down that requisite unmolested avenue.
In the May 29th"capture"the AFP was able to claim an actual victory in the caprure of 5 rifles:two M16s,two M14s and one M4.The June,27,2010 capture resulted in 4 IEDs (Improvised Explosive Devices,as in homemade bombs) and 6 rifles whose make and variation I noted in the NPA Armed Contact/Tactical Offence entry for the relevant time period.This latest camp"capture"resulted in 3 AFP WIAs (Wounded in Actions) though the NPA is ALSO claiming to have killed 8 men there as well,including 2 junior officers.
In terms of NPA casualties there were 2 guerilla KIAs and 4 WIAs,3 of which are extremely critical.Interestingly the Front 20 contact person contacted everybody's favourite mass murderer,Vice Mayor Rodrigo"Roddy"Duterte and asked him for assistance in saving the lives of those 3 critically injured insurgents.As I noted recently Duterte long ago entered into a working relationship with the NPA's Leonicio"Ka Parago"Pitao in which Duterte"sold"him the right to operate in 4 of the city's outlying districts.
The 3 wounded guerillas:
1) Jason"Ka Jerome"Casilum,of Davao City's Calinan District
2) Ariel"Ka Diwa"Haducala,of Dinagat Island which may or may not be a province of its own depending upon the day you read this.If it isn't it will still be Surigao del Norte Province.The Supreme Court can't make up its mind on the issue.
3) Vanessa"Ka Enching"Tropico de los Reyes,also of Calinan District,Davao City
were retrieved on Wednesday,June 1st by a Davao City helicopter in which Duterte personally rode shotgun (the same copter which he openly brags about having used it to drop people head first into the ocean).The 3 were then airlifted to Davao City where Duterte has personally vowed to protect them from apprehension (hope his vow means more than it did this past Christmas when it led to Edwin Brigano's capture).The 3,along with the 4th wounded guerilla were originally taken to an NPA-friendly hospital in Bislig,Surigao del Sur Province.Virtually all NPA-friendly hospitals are in deplorable condition so that Front 20 Secretary,known by the nom de guerre"Ka Jess,"felt compelled to call in a big favour to Vice Mayor Duterte.This would never have happened had the female guerilla,Ms.de los Reyes not been Ka Jess' lover.Sadly she is now parapelgic since a bullet severed her spinal cord.She also lost 1 kidney so that her condition is extremely grave.Her shocked mother believed her daughter had been teaching Political Science at a public university in Davao City,suprise...suprise...suprise.
Touching down at 3AM on June 2nd the 3 were rushed to Southern Philippines Medical Center in Davao City where they remain as of this posting.
Friday, December 24, 2010
NPA,Last Quarter of 2011:The Xmas Ceasefire Struggles On and Two Cases of Poetic Justice
In my most recent NPA entry I discussed the acceleration of NPA Tactical Offencives that always takes place during the interim period between the announcement of their annual,unilaterally declared holiday season ceasefire and its commencement.I mentioned that the weeks during that short window are usually extra bloody.The bad news of course is that I was correct,people died and were otherwise maimed.The good news,if there can indeed be any good news when non-combatants lose their lives,is that none of it took place here on Mindanao.
The AFP has screamed to anyone willing to listen that the engagement in Las Navas,Northern Samar Province, Samar Island, on Tuesday, December 14,2010 was a blatant violation of that afore mentioned ceasefire,despite the ceasefire not beginning until Thursday,December 16.A 12 man detachment from the 63IB (Infantry Battalion) was en route to its garrison when ambushed by the NPA .Of the 12 men,10 died almost immediately from the IED (Improvised Explosive Device, i.e. "Bomb") which precipitated the by the books ambush while the 2 survivors were badly wounded. Perhaps the saddest part is that a 9 year old boy was also killed.The boy,Joven Cabe,died from shrapnel generated by the IED.The NPA captured 10 M16s,every weapon in that detachnent.
0n December 10,just 4 days before this ambush the NPA ambushed a pump boat (local type of small inter-island ferrying craft) with a detachment of 6 soldiers aboard from the 83rd CMOU (Civil-Military Operations Unit) who boarded in Barangay Poblacion and were en route to Barangay Poponton. After the craft had just crossed the border of Barangays Taylor and Victory along the Hinaga River it was ambushed by the NPA. 5 soldiers immediately dived into the river as civilian passengers aboard the small craft took the brunt of the attack.2 of those non-combatants were killed,1 of which,Edward Gugdad,was a 15 year old young man.
In July the AFP proudly announced that pacification of Northern Samar was rolling right along and recommemded that the provincial government launch a tourism campaign.Less than a month later,on August 21,2010,the NPA slaughtered an 8 man PNP (Philippine National Police) detachment.As a rule I only discuss Mindanao but the last attack on Samar,2 days prior to commencement of the ceasefire,became a major issue with regard to AFP Propaganda that accuses the NPA of"violating"a ceasefire that IT conceived and implemented.
Although nobody was killed on Mindanao during the interim,the NPA here was by no means dormant (and neither was the AFP). On the same day that those 10 soldiers in Northern Samar were killed,Tuesday,December 14,the NPA again dressed in AFP uniforms and by subterfuge,and without firing a shot,were able to capture 2 M16s, 2 pump shotguns and 2 45 pistols.Clad in their army fatigues the 30 guerillas made their way to Barangay San Ignacio in Manay,Davao Oriental Province.Approaching an IFM (Integrated Forest Management) office the disguised guerillas managed to wrangle a truck.Using the truck they made their way to Barangay Old Macopa in that same town and split into 2 smaller detachments and then approached the home of Barangay Captain Romeo Antoling.Upon their arrival at the Antoling home the guerillas announced that their detachment was on a Hot Pursuit Operation in search of an NPA detachment.Simultaneously,the 2nd NPA detachment did the very same thing at the home of the Barangay Captain's son,Romeo Antoling Jr.,who lost 1 40 caliber pistol and two 12 gauge shotguns.
Romeo Antoling Sr.is lucky not to have been executed given his personal history.On June 13, 2010 Antoling Sr.had invited local radio commentator Desidario "Jessie" Camangyan to emcee a barangay kareoke contest.At 11PM that evening as the finalists were giving it their all his live-in girlfriend (the Philippines does not recognise Common Law Marriage) was holding their baby and watched in horror as a man stepped out of the crowd,raised his 45 caliber pistol and shot Jess to death.
At a meeting about the death days later at the Manay town hall, his grieving lover looked up as the municipality's PNP (Philippine National Police) officers entered the room to update the gathering on the nascent investigation.All of a sudden a shriek pierced the room as she became hysterical.When she had sufficiently re-gained her composure she pointed to 1 of the PNP officers,PO1 Dennis"Jess"Esteban Lumikid and said that he was the killer she had personally witnessed.The deceased radio commentator had been critical of both illegal logging and illegal gambling and Antoling Sr.,who has his own small paramilitary to protect his illegal logging operation,decided to silence the 52 year old broadcaster.Knowing that the deceased was in dire straits since his station,"Sunshine FM,"in the neighbouring town of Mati placed him on hiatus,he offered him 3,000 Pesos for a nights works ($70,half a months pay for a labourer) along with a pump shotgun (aaaaaah, "guns and Mindanao," I think it would make a bloody good tourism slogan).
Officer Lumikid was formally charged on July 05,2010 by a dedicated (in the sense that they were especially empanelled to investigate only this case) task force but had been detained since June 23 when the investigatory panel,Task Force Camangyan,initially filed the charges with the Davao Oriental Provincial Prosecutor.Since June 23rd he had been kept in the custody of his superiors at PNP Provincial Personnel Holding and Accounting Unit (where he had been transferred since June 24).Antoling was charged by the Task Force on that same day, June 23rd.On November 10, 2010,Lumikid was finally arraigned but Antoling had his charges dismissed for lack of evidence,at the end of August.
Ergo, having your weapons stolen instead of being shot to death for being the loser you are COULD be seen as a stroke of luck.Just depends on perspective I guess.
The love affair between Vice Mayor Rodrigo Duterte of Davao City and Leonicio"Ka Parago"Pitao,CO (Commanding Officer) of the NPA's Merardo Arce Command continues this holiday season.As I had written in at least one recent NPA-themed entry, Duterte and his daughter,Mayor Sarah"Inday"Duterte Carpio have been whispering sweet nothings to Ka Parago as they practically beg the guerilla leader to come out of the mountains and enjoy Xmas in the city.Parago of course refused the kind offer and instead invited both father AND daughter up to his mountain lair.Sunday,December 26 will mark the 42nd Anniversary of the CPP (Communist Party of the Philippines) and all NPA Regional Commands hold large gatherings.The 2 strongest Regional Commands,NEMR (North East Mindanao Region) and Parago's,SMR (Southern Mindanao Region) have the largest of these get-togethers.Indeed,on December 20th as Vice Mayor Duterte ordered Davao City PNP not to arrest Parago,et al the Vice Mayor announced he WOULD in fact be going to Parago's camp to be spending at least a part of the Xmas holiday.
Speaking of Ka Parago's Merardo Arce Command,on December 17,1 day after the ceasefire began,the NPA was forced to very quickly re-position itself when the 1003Bde (Brigade) began heavy troop movements as it Forward Deployed in Davao City's Paquibato District.The AFP is feigning innocence,claiming it was NOT a tactical deployment at all but rather a large logistical shift to ready the district for CMO/PDT actions (Civil-Military Operations such as medical outreaches and the cobstruction of school buildings,and of course the latest Hearts and Minds weapon,"Peace and Development Teams".PDTs as they are called in military shorthand are day-to-day CMO liasons and actors who spend weeks in a given barangay.On the other hand,CMO elements rarely spend a single week in 1 locale).
Parago is on everbody's mind these days...On Friday,December 17,2010,Sheriff Abe Andress told a Davao City Court that try as he might,he just could not find Parago's camp (riiiight, as if he even entered an NPA held district).Sheriff Andress had been"looking"to serve a subpoena to Ka Parago over a Writ of Amparo filed by local woman,Juanita Gomez.Juanita's husband,Jerry Gomez,had been selling ice cream for 4 years in an NPA controlled area when Merardo Arce Command's PBC1 (Pulang Bagani Command #1, the company sized element that Parago personally comands) abducted him in late August,2010.A Writ of Amparo is designed to offer families relief in cases of enforced disappearances.Primarily designed to be utilised by people having good cause to believe the GOVERNMENT has abducted a loved one,the Writ,if granted by a court,compels the entity so charged to produce the missing person post haste.It can also be utilised by the family to gain protection from retaliatory intimidation and/or violence.To my knowledge this is the first attempted utilisation of a Writ of Amparo against a non-governmental entity.Ms.Gomez says she received a phone call on December 01,from the NPA telling her not to worry,that her husband is OK and will be returning home shortly.
That same day,December 17,one day after the ceasefire began,a joint AFP/PNP checkpoint in Barangay Pili,Bayugan,Agusan del Sur Province,a car carrying 5 men was flagged for inspection and searched.Upon identifying the 5 men in the vehicle it was discovered that all 5 were NPA guerillas from NCMR (North Central Mindanao Region).1 of the 5 is a High Value Target, 67 year old Pedro"Ka Gonyong"Codaste.Codaste was en route to Butuan City in Agusan del Norte Province to spend Xmas with his family.Codaste was nabbed on a Warrant out of Regional Trial Court,Branch 8,in Malaybalay City,Bukidnon Province.The charges,Multiple Murder and Frustrated Multiple Murder,stem from tactical operations.The NPA,CPP and NDF (National Democratic Front) each condemned the arrests,especially Codaste's,as a violation of the ceasefire.The AFP maintains that since he had a Warrant it was an act of Law Enforcement.By the end of he week the NDF claimed Codaste was a member of the NDF negotiating team though they didn't specify as to when he joined that effort (seeing as how his name has never appeared on any NDF lists submitted to either GRP OR Norway,the Facilitating Nation.The claim of an arrestee being from either the NPA OR CPP belongs to the NDF Peace Process is extremely relevant since any person belonging is automatically imbued with immunity from arrest,detention and prosecution.
On December 18,2010 an ex-NPA guerilla who withdrew from the movement in 2006 was shot to death by a SPARU (Special Partisan Armed Revolutionary Unit,3 to 5 person assasination squads) for being an IS-AFP (AFP Intelligence) asset.Randy Acao Umpo,a farmer,was alone and listening to the radio at his home in Sitio Mamaon,Barangay Sibula,Toril District,Davao City when shot on the right side of his chest and died instantly.Ironically he had belonged to a SPARU Team himself.
The AFP has screamed to anyone willing to listen that the engagement in Las Navas,Northern Samar Province, Samar Island, on Tuesday, December 14,2010 was a blatant violation of that afore mentioned ceasefire,despite the ceasefire not beginning until Thursday,December 16.A 12 man detachment from the 63IB (Infantry Battalion) was en route to its garrison when ambushed by the NPA .Of the 12 men,10 died almost immediately from the IED (Improvised Explosive Device, i.e. "Bomb") which precipitated the by the books ambush while the 2 survivors were badly wounded. Perhaps the saddest part is that a 9 year old boy was also killed.The boy,Joven Cabe,died from shrapnel generated by the IED.The NPA captured 10 M16s,every weapon in that detachnent.
0n December 10,just 4 days before this ambush the NPA ambushed a pump boat (local type of small inter-island ferrying craft) with a detachment of 6 soldiers aboard from the 83rd CMOU (Civil-Military Operations Unit) who boarded in Barangay Poblacion and were en route to Barangay Poponton. After the craft had just crossed the border of Barangays Taylor and Victory along the Hinaga River it was ambushed by the NPA. 5 soldiers immediately dived into the river as civilian passengers aboard the small craft took the brunt of the attack.2 of those non-combatants were killed,1 of which,Edward Gugdad,was a 15 year old young man.
In July the AFP proudly announced that pacification of Northern Samar was rolling right along and recommemded that the provincial government launch a tourism campaign.Less than a month later,on August 21,2010,the NPA slaughtered an 8 man PNP (Philippine National Police) detachment.As a rule I only discuss Mindanao but the last attack on Samar,2 days prior to commencement of the ceasefire,became a major issue with regard to AFP Propaganda that accuses the NPA of"violating"a ceasefire that IT conceived and implemented.
Although nobody was killed on Mindanao during the interim,the NPA here was by no means dormant (and neither was the AFP). On the same day that those 10 soldiers in Northern Samar were killed,Tuesday,December 14,the NPA again dressed in AFP uniforms and by subterfuge,and without firing a shot,were able to capture 2 M16s, 2 pump shotguns and 2 45 pistols.Clad in their army fatigues the 30 guerillas made their way to Barangay San Ignacio in Manay,Davao Oriental Province.Approaching an IFM (Integrated Forest Management) office the disguised guerillas managed to wrangle a truck.Using the truck they made their way to Barangay Old Macopa in that same town and split into 2 smaller detachments and then approached the home of Barangay Captain Romeo Antoling.Upon their arrival at the Antoling home the guerillas announced that their detachment was on a Hot Pursuit Operation in search of an NPA detachment.Simultaneously,the 2nd NPA detachment did the very same thing at the home of the Barangay Captain's son,Romeo Antoling Jr.,who lost 1 40 caliber pistol and two 12 gauge shotguns.
Romeo Antoling Sr.is lucky not to have been executed given his personal history.On June 13, 2010 Antoling Sr.had invited local radio commentator Desidario "Jessie" Camangyan to emcee a barangay kareoke contest.At 11PM that evening as the finalists were giving it their all his live-in girlfriend (the Philippines does not recognise Common Law Marriage) was holding their baby and watched in horror as a man stepped out of the crowd,raised his 45 caliber pistol and shot Jess to death.
At a meeting about the death days later at the Manay town hall, his grieving lover looked up as the municipality's PNP (Philippine National Police) officers entered the room to update the gathering on the nascent investigation.All of a sudden a shriek pierced the room as she became hysterical.When she had sufficiently re-gained her composure she pointed to 1 of the PNP officers,PO1 Dennis"Jess"Esteban Lumikid and said that he was the killer she had personally witnessed.The deceased radio commentator had been critical of both illegal logging and illegal gambling and Antoling Sr.,who has his own small paramilitary to protect his illegal logging operation,decided to silence the 52 year old broadcaster.Knowing that the deceased was in dire straits since his station,"Sunshine FM,"in the neighbouring town of Mati placed him on hiatus,he offered him 3,000 Pesos for a nights works ($70,half a months pay for a labourer) along with a pump shotgun (aaaaaah, "guns and Mindanao," I think it would make a bloody good tourism slogan).
Officer Lumikid was formally charged on July 05,2010 by a dedicated (in the sense that they were especially empanelled to investigate only this case) task force but had been detained since June 23 when the investigatory panel,Task Force Camangyan,initially filed the charges with the Davao Oriental Provincial Prosecutor.Since June 23rd he had been kept in the custody of his superiors at PNP Provincial Personnel Holding and Accounting Unit (where he had been transferred since June 24).Antoling was charged by the Task Force on that same day, June 23rd.On November 10, 2010,Lumikid was finally arraigned but Antoling had his charges dismissed for lack of evidence,at the end of August.
Ergo, having your weapons stolen instead of being shot to death for being the loser you are COULD be seen as a stroke of luck.Just depends on perspective I guess.
The love affair between Vice Mayor Rodrigo Duterte of Davao City and Leonicio"Ka Parago"Pitao,CO (Commanding Officer) of the NPA's Merardo Arce Command continues this holiday season.As I had written in at least one recent NPA-themed entry, Duterte and his daughter,Mayor Sarah"Inday"Duterte Carpio have been whispering sweet nothings to Ka Parago as they practically beg the guerilla leader to come out of the mountains and enjoy Xmas in the city.Parago of course refused the kind offer and instead invited both father AND daughter up to his mountain lair.Sunday,December 26 will mark the 42nd Anniversary of the CPP (Communist Party of the Philippines) and all NPA Regional Commands hold large gatherings.The 2 strongest Regional Commands,NEMR (North East Mindanao Region) and Parago's,SMR (Southern Mindanao Region) have the largest of these get-togethers.Indeed,on December 20th as Vice Mayor Duterte ordered Davao City PNP not to arrest Parago,et al the Vice Mayor announced he WOULD in fact be going to Parago's camp to be spending at least a part of the Xmas holiday.
Speaking of Ka Parago's Merardo Arce Command,on December 17,1 day after the ceasefire began,the NPA was forced to very quickly re-position itself when the 1003Bde (Brigade) began heavy troop movements as it Forward Deployed in Davao City's Paquibato District.The AFP is feigning innocence,claiming it was NOT a tactical deployment at all but rather a large logistical shift to ready the district for CMO/PDT actions (Civil-Military Operations such as medical outreaches and the cobstruction of school buildings,and of course the latest Hearts and Minds weapon,"Peace and Development Teams".PDTs as they are called in military shorthand are day-to-day CMO liasons and actors who spend weeks in a given barangay.On the other hand,CMO elements rarely spend a single week in 1 locale).
Parago is on everbody's mind these days...On Friday,December 17,2010,Sheriff Abe Andress told a Davao City Court that try as he might,he just could not find Parago's camp (riiiight, as if he even entered an NPA held district).Sheriff Andress had been"looking"to serve a subpoena to Ka Parago over a Writ of Amparo filed by local woman,Juanita Gomez.Juanita's husband,Jerry Gomez,had been selling ice cream for 4 years in an NPA controlled area when Merardo Arce Command's PBC1 (Pulang Bagani Command #1, the company sized element that Parago personally comands) abducted him in late August,2010.A Writ of Amparo is designed to offer families relief in cases of enforced disappearances.Primarily designed to be utilised by people having good cause to believe the GOVERNMENT has abducted a loved one,the Writ,if granted by a court,compels the entity so charged to produce the missing person post haste.It can also be utilised by the family to gain protection from retaliatory intimidation and/or violence.To my knowledge this is the first attempted utilisation of a Writ of Amparo against a non-governmental entity.Ms.Gomez says she received a phone call on December 01,from the NPA telling her not to worry,that her husband is OK and will be returning home shortly.
That same day,December 17,one day after the ceasefire began,a joint AFP/PNP checkpoint in Barangay Pili,Bayugan,Agusan del Sur Province,a car carrying 5 men was flagged for inspection and searched.Upon identifying the 5 men in the vehicle it was discovered that all 5 were NPA guerillas from NCMR (North Central Mindanao Region).1 of the 5 is a High Value Target, 67 year old Pedro"Ka Gonyong"Codaste.Codaste was en route to Butuan City in Agusan del Norte Province to spend Xmas with his family.Codaste was nabbed on a Warrant out of Regional Trial Court,Branch 8,in Malaybalay City,Bukidnon Province.The charges,Multiple Murder and Frustrated Multiple Murder,stem from tactical operations.The NPA,CPP and NDF (National Democratic Front) each condemned the arrests,especially Codaste's,as a violation of the ceasefire.The AFP maintains that since he had a Warrant it was an act of Law Enforcement.By the end of he week the NDF claimed Codaste was a member of the NDF negotiating team though they didn't specify as to when he joined that effort (seeing as how his name has never appeared on any NDF lists submitted to either GRP OR Norway,the Facilitating Nation.The claim of an arrestee being from either the NPA OR CPP belongs to the NDF Peace Process is extremely relevant since any person belonging is automatically imbued with immunity from arrest,detention and prosecution.
On December 18,2010 an ex-NPA guerilla who withdrew from the movement in 2006 was shot to death by a SPARU (Special Partisan Armed Revolutionary Unit,3 to 5 person assasination squads) for being an IS-AFP (AFP Intelligence) asset.Randy Acao Umpo,a farmer,was alone and listening to the radio at his home in Sitio Mamaon,Barangay Sibula,Toril District,Davao City when shot on the right side of his chest and died instantly.Ironically he had belonged to a SPARU Team himself.
Monday, December 13, 2010
The Annual NPA Dog and Pony Show
Here on our tropical isle of Mindanao some might think that we aren't as blessed as many Westerners are when it comes to the Xmas Season. Those living in colder climes for example, can very easily make do without their calendars and simply observe the changing colours of the leaves, or fill the air grow nippier. No, we may not be able to enjoy THOSE seasonal changes but we likewise have some peculiarly all our own. When one hears the NPA announce a Ceasefire they can fire up that jeepney and race to Swiss Market for some eggnog because you can bet a plethora of Pesos that its time for old Saint Nick to make his presence known. Those that are in the know however will always wait fir the Ceasefire to commence before rushing anywhere since the days leading up to the implementation of the Ceasefire are always the bloodiest of the preceeding year.
Speaking of "implementation," when will this year's quiet time begin? On December 07th the NPA unilaterally announced that this year's Xmas Ceasefire will begin at 6AM, on December 16th and will last (one hopes) until January 03rd. The date of commencement was by no means arbitrary in that December 16th marks the beginning of the Philippine Xmas Season. The duration of 17 days makes the 2010 Ceasefire the longest in a decade. Again, not an arbitrary fact given the fact that almost immediately after the end of the cessation the resumption of the long stalled GRP-NDF Peace Process takes place in Oslo, Norway.
The Ceasefire Announcement took place after a fortuitous week for the NPA and its political facet, the CPP (Communist Party of the Phillipines). On December 01 and 02 in Hong Kong, long time Chairperson of the NDF Peace Panel, Luis Jalandoni met with his GRP counterpart, Alexander "Alex" Padilla in an informal tet a tet. Also present was Jalandoni's wife and #2 on the NDF Panel, Coni Ledesma. Joining Padilla was GRP Panel member Pablito Sanidad and both sides were joined by attorney Rachel Pastores who is consulting for the overall Peace Process. As was expected both Padilla and Jalandoni got along quite well and dates for both Informal Talks (January 14 through January 18) and the First Round of Formal Talks (February 19 through February 25) were tenatively agreed upon pending formal approval by their respective entities.
During their 2 day meeting in Hong Kong Padilla formally handed Jalandoni a copy of the HDO (Hold Departure Order) had been in effect with GRP's Bureau of Immigration since June 29, 1992. HDOs are issued by the DOJ (Department of Justice) and enforced by the Bureau of Immigration when a targeted individual attempts to leave via a commercial flight. Prior to leaving Manila Padilla had been instructed to hand over the official notification by Malacanang's Chief Counsel Ricardo Paras III. In addition, Padilla also handed Jalandoni an official notification that JASIG (Joint Agreement on Safety and Immunity Guarantees) was still viable. JASIG was a product of a 1995 Round in the Peace Process. It allows for NDF Panel members and other NDF members closely involved in the Process to freely enter and leave the Philippimes as well as to remain unmolested during visits. JASIG had been suspended by former-President Arroyo during the 2004 meltdown following the US and EU classification of the CPP-NPA as "Terrorist Organisations." President Arroyo had lobbied hard for the groups' inclusion in an irrational bout of egotism. Her theatrics then derailed the Process until the present.
JASIG is an extremely relevant issue for the entire NDF but more so for Jalandoni on a personal level given that his aged mother, still in tje Philippines, is quite ill. Jalandoni had wanted to visit his mother for perhaps the last time but the questuin of JASIG's viability loomed large. Jalandoni et al had been informed that President Arroyo had actually lifted her own Suspension Order on July 17, 2009 but without an official notification that fact didn't mean much. On December 04, official notifications in hand, Jalandoni and his wife arrived in Manila aboard a Cathay Pacific flight out of Hong Kong.
As I mentioned, the days leading up to the annual Xmas Ceasefires are inevitably filled with the blood and gore of increasingly bold tactically offencive operations. Case in point? Ka Parago's evening visit to the CAFGU post in Davao City's Barangay Mapula. The post is located in the city's Paquibato District, 1 of 4 city districts in which former Mayor (and current Vice Mayor under his daughter Sarah Duterte Carpio) Rodrigo "Roddy" Duterte had given the NPA free reign.
When Vice Mayor Duterte was stlll a Davao City Prosecutor he had come to a working arrangement with the Maoists.
By 1984, not long after Ka Parago had moved his family from Laak in Davao del Norte Province (the town is now within Compostela Valley Province, aka ComVal, the province later carved out of the northwest corner of Davao del Norte) to the coastal bsrangay of Isla Verde in Davao City the NPA was so deeply ensconced in the poorer barangays that ring Mindanao's largest city that authorities all but conceeded it as NPA territory. From 1979 until that point the organisation had been exponentially all over the Central and Southern Philippines. As so often happens in such situations this uber-rapid expansion severely weakened the NPA's ideological foundation. Forget about Mao, most NPA regulars of the era had no idea who Marx was (granted that today that things have not progressed all that much).
As with any base of power people were joining the NPA for a variety of reasons and virtually none of them were good. Among them were a group of petty criminals in the city's Agado District, an area encompassing some of the city's most depressed barangays.By mid-1984 the NPA began cleaning house, deploying SPARU Teams (Special Partisan Armed Revolutionary Units, often mis transliterated as "Sparrow") to publicly murder NPA members that ran afoul of their hierarchy (in addition to the assasinations of PNP, government officials, informers and non-combatants the group erroneously marked as informers). As SPARU operations became much more frequent elements like those petty criminals abandoned ship. Knowing that withdrawing from the NPA not only did nothing to alleviate their vulnerability but actually made them much more probable targets they banded together and formed an anti-NPA organisation called "Alsa Masa" (Masses Arise).
A lot has been said, erroneously, about Vice Mayor Duterte's suuport of Alsa Masa. Indeed it is claimed often enough that he led the organisation! Duterte did reluctantly develop a working relationship with the group after intially targetting them for prosecution. He really did not have a choice in the matter after the AFP officially sanctioned the group as an integral cog in its Force Multiplication scheme in the Davao Region. By the time the late President Corazon Aquino came to town amd vowed to support Alsa Masa in a nationally televised speech Duterte had long been in bed with the group.
Alsa Masa was the tip of the iceberg in the AFP's anti-Communist Force Multiplication so that by the start of 1989 the NPA was relegated to the city's hinterlands, where it has remained ensconced ever since. The afore mentioned 4 NPA controoled districts, Paquibato, Tugbok, Marilog and Toril (Calinan and Baguio also have a moderate presence if not used tactically), have been consigned to the NPA with understanding that they will refrain from re-entering (or entering as the case may be) the city's other districts. One could say Duterte has merely been a pragmatist but others (the brave and the few) say a lot worse.
The AFP almost always refrains from publicly commenting on Duterte's self-described "Back Door Policy" (aaaah, is THAT what they are calling it these days?) though that nearly changed when current Mayor Sarah Duterte Carpio actually crossed the line and withdrew the city's support for AFP operations within the city's borders.Following through on a threat her father had been making for years Carpio severed municipal support while accusing the AFP of disregard for non-combatants in those 4 NPA controlled districts. The 2 sides have since made uo with Carpio giving the keynote speech at the Commencement Ceremony for a
P and D Mission (Peace and Development, civic oriented projects such as infrastructural improvements or MEDCAPS, aka medical and dental fairs...though in this case the operation merely involved the recently arrived 84 Infantry Battalion doing a house by house census in Toril District). In her speech Carpio lauded the non-combative nature of the current operation and pledged Davao City's assistance.
When one mentions the NPA and Davao City in the same sentence it is a fair assumption that Leonicio "Ka Parago" Pitao's name will soon be following. Pitao is the CO (Commanding Officer) of the Merardo Arce Command, a battalion sized entity that while primarily operating within the 4 districts I mentioned also inclucludes Davao del Sur (the province in which Davao City sits) as well as parts of Davao del Norte and Davao Oriental Provinces. Comprised of 5 COYs (Companies, a "COY" generally contains 90 to 110 riflemen) of which only 4 are currently operational. Of these COYs, Pulang Bagani Company 1 through 5 (Red Warriors Company 1 through 5), Pitao personally commands Coy 1. Known as Pulang Bagani Company 1, or PBC1, it perhaps the best equipped of all NPA elements on Mindanao, if not the entire nation.
In a long and often brutal relationship the AFP hace. Been at each others' throats. Aside from capturing him at his family home after his sister Evelyn tipped authorities, he has never been caught and this fact cause an extreme amount of consternation. The capture I just mentioned took place almost immediatel after PBC1 released s Brigadier General it captured along with other AFP personnel. That capture was an amazing propaganda coup for the Communist and so it really msade Pitao the highest value target. In the end he spent just over a year incarcerated before being freed sans pre-conditions as President Estrada sought to jumpstart the GRP-NDF Peace Process.
From 2000 onwards Pitao loomed extremely large in AFP sights.
In June of 2008 Pitao's younger brother Danilo was abducted and summarily executed. Unlike his older brother Danilo not only stayed on the right side of the law but actually worked as a Provincial Guard in the Davao del Norte Provincial Capitol Complex in Tagum City. With a sister turned informer and a brother murdered, both because of his role in the insurgency Pitao might have re-thought his long involvement with the organisation...but in fact it seems to have only strengthened his resolve.
After a series of stunning tactical operations in early 2009, Pitao's youngest daughter, Rebelyn "Ivy" Maasin Pitao was kidnnapped as she returned to the family's home in Bago Gallera in Davao City. Found the next day,in Davao del Norte Province, her corpse half naked, physically tortured (including sexually), the 20 year old paid the highest price for her father's membership in the NPA. The AFP denied all involvement but despite its initial reluctance to do so, opened an internal investigation into the matter. Predicting correctly that the military would do nothing the NPA conducted its own investigation and pointed the finger at an AFP Intelligence detachment ensconced in the town of Carmen, Davao del Norte Province and even listed involved personnel by name. After placing the personnel on Restriction to Barracks for almost 3 months the investigation was swept under the rug...though the NPA deployed SPARU Teams who killed a number of the listed men.
Fast forward to December 10, 2010 and Leonicio "Ka Parago" Pitao's PBC1 abducted the Barangay Captain of Barangay Mapula and a well known local datu (tribal chief) and while wearing AFP uniforms had the Barangay Captain and datuaccompany them to the Barangay Mapula's CAFGU (Citizen Armed Force Geographical Unit), an official paramilitary under direct supervision of the AFP) post. Using the Barangay Captain and datu to infiltrate the post compound. Once inside they disarmed all personnel and made off with a nice haul. I am sure that they will look great under the tree...
Not a single shot fired, Ka Parago strikes again.
Speaking of "implementation," when will this year's quiet time begin? On December 07th the NPA unilaterally announced that this year's Xmas Ceasefire will begin at 6AM, on December 16th and will last (one hopes) until January 03rd. The date of commencement was by no means arbitrary in that December 16th marks the beginning of the Philippine Xmas Season. The duration of 17 days makes the 2010 Ceasefire the longest in a decade. Again, not an arbitrary fact given the fact that almost immediately after the end of the cessation the resumption of the long stalled GRP-NDF Peace Process takes place in Oslo, Norway.
The Ceasefire Announcement took place after a fortuitous week for the NPA and its political facet, the CPP (Communist Party of the Phillipines). On December 01 and 02 in Hong Kong, long time Chairperson of the NDF Peace Panel, Luis Jalandoni met with his GRP counterpart, Alexander "Alex" Padilla in an informal tet a tet. Also present was Jalandoni's wife and #2 on the NDF Panel, Coni Ledesma. Joining Padilla was GRP Panel member Pablito Sanidad and both sides were joined by attorney Rachel Pastores who is consulting for the overall Peace Process. As was expected both Padilla and Jalandoni got along quite well and dates for both Informal Talks (January 14 through January 18) and the First Round of Formal Talks (February 19 through February 25) were tenatively agreed upon pending formal approval by their respective entities.
During their 2 day meeting in Hong Kong Padilla formally handed Jalandoni a copy of the HDO (Hold Departure Order) had been in effect with GRP's Bureau of Immigration since June 29, 1992. HDOs are issued by the DOJ (Department of Justice) and enforced by the Bureau of Immigration when a targeted individual attempts to leave via a commercial flight. Prior to leaving Manila Padilla had been instructed to hand over the official notification by Malacanang's Chief Counsel Ricardo Paras III. In addition, Padilla also handed Jalandoni an official notification that JASIG (Joint Agreement on Safety and Immunity Guarantees) was still viable. JASIG was a product of a 1995 Round in the Peace Process. It allows for NDF Panel members and other NDF members closely involved in the Process to freely enter and leave the Philippimes as well as to remain unmolested during visits. JASIG had been suspended by former-President Arroyo during the 2004 meltdown following the US and EU classification of the CPP-NPA as "Terrorist Organisations." President Arroyo had lobbied hard for the groups' inclusion in an irrational bout of egotism. Her theatrics then derailed the Process until the present.
JASIG is an extremely relevant issue for the entire NDF but more so for Jalandoni on a personal level given that his aged mother, still in tje Philippines, is quite ill. Jalandoni had wanted to visit his mother for perhaps the last time but the questuin of JASIG's viability loomed large. Jalandoni et al had been informed that President Arroyo had actually lifted her own Suspension Order on July 17, 2009 but without an official notification that fact didn't mean much. On December 04, official notifications in hand, Jalandoni and his wife arrived in Manila aboard a Cathay Pacific flight out of Hong Kong.
As I mentioned, the days leading up to the annual Xmas Ceasefires are inevitably filled with the blood and gore of increasingly bold tactically offencive operations. Case in point? Ka Parago's evening visit to the CAFGU post in Davao City's Barangay Mapula. The post is located in the city's Paquibato District, 1 of 4 city districts in which former Mayor (and current Vice Mayor under his daughter Sarah Duterte Carpio) Rodrigo "Roddy" Duterte had given the NPA free reign.
When Vice Mayor Duterte was stlll a Davao City Prosecutor he had come to a working arrangement with the Maoists.
By 1984, not long after Ka Parago had moved his family from Laak in Davao del Norte Province (the town is now within Compostela Valley Province, aka ComVal, the province later carved out of the northwest corner of Davao del Norte) to the coastal bsrangay of Isla Verde in Davao City the NPA was so deeply ensconced in the poorer barangays that ring Mindanao's largest city that authorities all but conceeded it as NPA territory. From 1979 until that point the organisation had been exponentially all over the Central and Southern Philippines. As so often happens in such situations this uber-rapid expansion severely weakened the NPA's ideological foundation. Forget about Mao, most NPA regulars of the era had no idea who Marx was (granted that today that things have not progressed all that much).
As with any base of power people were joining the NPA for a variety of reasons and virtually none of them were good. Among them were a group of petty criminals in the city's Agado District, an area encompassing some of the city's most depressed barangays.By mid-1984 the NPA began cleaning house, deploying SPARU Teams (Special Partisan Armed Revolutionary Units, often mis transliterated as "Sparrow") to publicly murder NPA members that ran afoul of their hierarchy (in addition to the assasinations of PNP, government officials, informers and non-combatants the group erroneously marked as informers). As SPARU operations became much more frequent elements like those petty criminals abandoned ship. Knowing that withdrawing from the NPA not only did nothing to alleviate their vulnerability but actually made them much more probable targets they banded together and formed an anti-NPA organisation called "Alsa Masa" (Masses Arise).
A lot has been said, erroneously, about Vice Mayor Duterte's suuport of Alsa Masa. Indeed it is claimed often enough that he led the organisation! Duterte did reluctantly develop a working relationship with the group after intially targetting them for prosecution. He really did not have a choice in the matter after the AFP officially sanctioned the group as an integral cog in its Force Multiplication scheme in the Davao Region. By the time the late President Corazon Aquino came to town amd vowed to support Alsa Masa in a nationally televised speech Duterte had long been in bed with the group.
Alsa Masa was the tip of the iceberg in the AFP's anti-Communist Force Multiplication so that by the start of 1989 the NPA was relegated to the city's hinterlands, where it has remained ensconced ever since. The afore mentioned 4 NPA controoled districts, Paquibato, Tugbok, Marilog and Toril (Calinan and Baguio also have a moderate presence if not used tactically), have been consigned to the NPA with understanding that they will refrain from re-entering (or entering as the case may be) the city's other districts. One could say Duterte has merely been a pragmatist but others (the brave and the few) say a lot worse.
The AFP almost always refrains from publicly commenting on Duterte's self-described "Back Door Policy" (aaaah, is THAT what they are calling it these days?) though that nearly changed when current Mayor Sarah Duterte Carpio actually crossed the line and withdrew the city's support for AFP operations within the city's borders.Following through on a threat her father had been making for years Carpio severed municipal support while accusing the AFP of disregard for non-combatants in those 4 NPA controlled districts. The 2 sides have since made uo with Carpio giving the keynote speech at the Commencement Ceremony for a
P and D Mission (Peace and Development, civic oriented projects such as infrastructural improvements or MEDCAPS, aka medical and dental fairs...though in this case the operation merely involved the recently arrived 84 Infantry Battalion doing a house by house census in Toril District). In her speech Carpio lauded the non-combative nature of the current operation and pledged Davao City's assistance.
When one mentions the NPA and Davao City in the same sentence it is a fair assumption that Leonicio "Ka Parago" Pitao's name will soon be following. Pitao is the CO (Commanding Officer) of the Merardo Arce Command, a battalion sized entity that while primarily operating within the 4 districts I mentioned also inclucludes Davao del Sur (the province in which Davao City sits) as well as parts of Davao del Norte and Davao Oriental Provinces. Comprised of 5 COYs (Companies, a "COY" generally contains 90 to 110 riflemen) of which only 4 are currently operational. Of these COYs, Pulang Bagani Company 1 through 5 (Red Warriors Company 1 through 5), Pitao personally commands Coy 1. Known as Pulang Bagani Company 1, or PBC1, it perhaps the best equipped of all NPA elements on Mindanao, if not the entire nation.
In a long and often brutal relationship the AFP hace. Been at each others' throats. Aside from capturing him at his family home after his sister Evelyn tipped authorities, he has never been caught and this fact cause an extreme amount of consternation. The capture I just mentioned took place almost immediatel after PBC1 released s Brigadier General it captured along with other AFP personnel. That capture was an amazing propaganda coup for the Communist and so it really msade Pitao the highest value target. In the end he spent just over a year incarcerated before being freed sans pre-conditions as President Estrada sought to jumpstart the GRP-NDF Peace Process.
From 2000 onwards Pitao loomed extremely large in AFP sights.
In June of 2008 Pitao's younger brother Danilo was abducted and summarily executed. Unlike his older brother Danilo not only stayed on the right side of the law but actually worked as a Provincial Guard in the Davao del Norte Provincial Capitol Complex in Tagum City. With a sister turned informer and a brother murdered, both because of his role in the insurgency Pitao might have re-thought his long involvement with the organisation...but in fact it seems to have only strengthened his resolve.
After a series of stunning tactical operations in early 2009, Pitao's youngest daughter, Rebelyn "Ivy" Maasin Pitao was kidnnapped as she returned to the family's home in Bago Gallera in Davao City. Found the next day,in Davao del Norte Province, her corpse half naked, physically tortured (including sexually), the 20 year old paid the highest price for her father's membership in the NPA. The AFP denied all involvement but despite its initial reluctance to do so, opened an internal investigation into the matter. Predicting correctly that the military would do nothing the NPA conducted its own investigation and pointed the finger at an AFP Intelligence detachment ensconced in the town of Carmen, Davao del Norte Province and even listed involved personnel by name. After placing the personnel on Restriction to Barracks for almost 3 months the investigation was swept under the rug...though the NPA deployed SPARU Teams who killed a number of the listed men.
Fast forward to December 10, 2010 and Leonicio "Ka Parago" Pitao's PBC1 abducted the Barangay Captain of Barangay Mapula and a well known local datu (tribal chief) and while wearing AFP uniforms had the Barangay Captain and datuaccompany them to the Barangay Mapula's CAFGU (Citizen Armed Force Geographical Unit), an official paramilitary under direct supervision of the AFP) post. Using the Barangay Captain and datu to infiltrate the post compound. Once inside they disarmed all personnel and made off with a nice haul. I am sure that they will look great under the tree...
Not a single shot fired, Ka Parago strikes again.
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