Tacloban City—Government troops have launched pursuit operations against heavily-armed rebel fighters whom the soldiers engaged in a gunbattle Saturday morning.
Nine Army soldiers were injured in the encounter which occurred in the municipality of San Jorge in Samar.
According to Lieutenant Colonel Rizaldo Laurena, commanding officer of the 63rd Infantry (Innovator) Battalion of the Philippine Army, his troops and a group of fully armed Communist Party of the Philippines-NPA terrorists (CNTs) had a brief firefight when they chanced upon the rebels in a remote area in Barangay Bay-ang at around 6:50 a.m.
The soldiers were injured by shrapnel from a blast.
The Philippine Army’s 803rd Infantry (Peacemaker) Briigade and the 8th Infantry Division said the rebels also suffered casualties but they have yet to determine the exact number.
The injured soldiers were brought to the nearest hospital for treatment.
Brigadier General Ramil M. Bitong, commander of the PA 803rd Brigade, said that according to sources, the rebels “were planning to launch tactical offensives throughout Region 8.”
“Another desperate attempt of the Eastern [Visayas] Regional Party Committee to stay relevant by sowing fear and discontent among the residents of Region 8. This prompted the brigade to launch an offensive against them,” he said.
Bitong said residents of Barangays Bay-ang and Mobo-ob, both in San Jorge, and Barangay Beri in Motiong have been complaining of the abuses allegedly perpetrated by the CNTs.
“The encounters in San Jorge is a significant accomplishment against the CNTs. As of this report, our troops are pursuing the main body of the fleeing CNTs, comprised of the EVRPC leadership,” Bitong said.
He urged NPA members and “all misguided citizens” to “stop their activities and join the rest of society. Don’t be deceived.”
Bitong added that the recent encounter in San Jorge, Samar has derailed the planned attacks of the group in Eastern Visayas.
“This is another desperate attempt of the EVRPC to stay relevant by sowing fear and discontent among the residents of the region,” he added.
The Philippine Army lauded residents of San Jorge and Motiong towns for providing reliable information on the abuses of communist rebels.
As this developed, att least twenty New People’s Army (NPA) cadres, mostly youth, voluntarily surrendered to the police in Kalayaan, Laguna over the weekend even as the communist movement is reportedly coercing students to fill the gap of the depleting complement of the underground organization due to the series of surrender.
Chief Supt Edward Carranza, police director of the Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal, and Quezon (Calabarzon) said the NPA rebels, all operating in the hinterlands of “Bondok Banahaw” surrendered due to widespread demoralization.
Nineteen of the NPA’s all sporting white T-shirts with PNP markings and black face mask were presented by Carranza in Camp Crame Monday.
A certain “Ka Ruben” said he and his group prompted to yield to the authorities as they were already confused and disgusted over the true meaning of the CPP-NPA struggle against the government.
“We pursued this intention to surrender because of the hardship in the mountains. We thought that what we are fighting for is right, but, we finally realized that it just a waist of effort,” Ka Ruben said.
During the interview highlighting their surrender, Ka Ruben validated the emersion of young students from the University of the Philippines and the Polytechnic University of the Philippines (UP-PUP) to their NPA ranks.
He said about seven to eight students trekked to the mountains, especially at night, purposely to survey if they enjoy their life while in the mountains.
“They stayed for a night then trek back the following day. But others are being scare-off to join the movement in duress,” Ka Ruben said.
“Ang mga estudyante dinadaan nila sa dahas para matako po yung isang tao na makisapi na sa kanila. Yun po ang ginagawa nila, tatakutin at hindi na pinababalik ng mga tao sa bayan,” Ka Ruben added.
As to who are recruiting the students, he said the intelligence unit of the NPA are ones going house-to-house to convince the students to join.
“Kung baga sa dalaga liligawan sila hanggang makuha ang loob tapos kapag pumayag doon nila kukuhanin sa dahas,” Ka Ruben said.
PNP chief Oscar Albayalde estimated the NPA strength operating in Calabarzon at 169 armed regular cadres.
This developed as Albayalde and officials of the Department of Education held dialogue informing of the reported emersion of students.
“I think they were already informed and now aware doon sa mga ganyan nangyayari sa atin dahil nga hindi kami nagsabi nyan, sila mismo na they are (dealing) with students,” Albayalde said.
Last year, a female UP student was killed in an encounter between an NPA groups and security forces in Batangas province. With PNA