‘Dramatic decline’ sees only 5 active fronts
The Armed Forces of the Philippines on Monday projected the eventual collapse of the Communist Party of the Philippines and its military arm the New People’s Army with its “dramatic decline” in strength, guerilla fronts, and firearms.
In a press briefing, AFP Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Bartolome Bacarro revealed that the NPA’s manpower has dropped to only 2,112 from a high of over 4,000 in recent years.
Presently, Bacarro said the NPA has only five active guerilla fronts left out of 24 total, from a high of 89 following relentless military operations.
The remaining active guerilla fronts are in the areas of Northern Samar and South Cotabato provinces.
“We foresee that these 19 guerilla fronts will be dismantled the soonest possible time, so we are left with only five guerrilla fronts right now, so that is the challenge that we have right now,” Bacarro said.
According to the AFP, there are only around 2,100 communist rebels holding arms.
The communist insurgency movement in the country was established in 1969 and continues to be an internal security concern of the government, with its armed fighters attacking police stations, military outposts, other government facilities, and private companies.
The NPA strength reached more than 20,000 in the 1980s. While the number has dwindled over the years, various administrations failed to realize their pronounced goals of crushing the armed movement. The military estimated the number of armed communist rebels at 3,500 as of November 2021.
Peace talks between the group and the government have been on and off, with President Rodrigo Duterte finally terminating the negotiations in 2019.
“Those are the things that we need to address right now and we do believe that with the collaboration of the different agencies we will be able to successfully address these problems,” Bacarro said.
He said that a thousand cadres have already yielded to the mainstream as he foresees a continued surrender of more NPA fighters.
The neutralization of key leaders of the CPP-NPA was interpreted as a vital factor in the diminishing cause of the underground movement, Bacarro said.
“The CPP/NPA/NDF is losing not just in tactical battles, but in relevance as well. With the relentless efforts of the government security forces to subdue insurgency, the CPP found its lower politico-military organs on the run, therefore incapable of implementing party programs, the lifeblood of its existence,” Bacarro said.
He then called on the remaining NPA operatives to yield as the communists “cannot win their battle with the government, which is dedicated to protect the citizenry from the evil-minded cause of the CPP-NPA.”
“As the AFP calls for the remaining NPA members to return to the folds of the law, it also commits itself to sustain the offensive against lawless violence. With no mass bases to hide them, in no time the NPA will be destroyed by the combined strength of the government security forces,” Bacarro said.
“The CPP should accept that the battle is lost, that its programs need not be imposed with violence, and that it has the moral responsibility of saving its fighters from death and destruction,” he said.