Philippine Communist Insurgency Continues

Safety & Security

East Asia / Pacific - Philippines
1 Aug 2007

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U.S. Embassy Manila reported the following:

Summary

The Communist insurgency continues to take a deadly toll in the Philippines, with reported deaths in military operations since June 7 of at least 20 military and police personnel as well as approximately 25 Communist insurgents. Many of these incidents took place in Mindanao, but the violence remains a problem virtually nationwide. The new Human Security Act should provide some new tools for the government against the Communist forces and other terrorist groups.

More Attacks

On June 7, an encounter between the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and the New People’s Army (NPA) in Compostela Valley province (southern Mindanao) left two NPA and four AFP personnel dead, with 13 non-fatal casualties. In the same province eight days later, the AFP’s 28th Infantry Battalion engaged an NPA position holding about 70 rebels. Nine NPA and four AFP soldiers reportedly died in the resulting firefight. On June 16, NPA forces murdered a police officer and killed three others in Cataduanes province of the Bicol Region, seizing several weapons in the process. On June 17, at least 10 NPA rebels disarmed two security guards at a local telecom company's site in Iloilo (Western Visayas), later detonating three bombs that destroyed the generator and control panel but did not damage the tower. On June 24, between 20 and 30 NPA guerrillas raided the town hall in Dangcagan, Bukidnon province (northern Mindanao), killing one police officer and seizing eight weapons. On June 29, about 70 NPA rebels attacked a AFP patrol base in Agusan del Norte (northeastern Mindanao). Eight NPA and seven AFP troops died in the confrontation, while the NPA allegedly abducted three additional AFP personnel. In the same province two days later, three communist rebels died in a clash with the Philippine Army’s 30th Infantry Battalion.

Dialogue and Public Statements

Philippine government officials recently hinted that they might be willing to resume long-stalled peace talks with the National Democratic Front (NDF), the political voice of the NPA, if the NPA agrees to a nationwide ceasefire. The NDF has refused so far to do so, reiterating long-standing demands that the Philippine government seek a de-listing of the NPA from U.S. and EU terrorist lists. More recently, NDF officials further warned that any Philippine designation or additional action by the Philippine government under the new "Human Security Act of 2007" will make impossible the resumption of peace talks. National Security Advisor and concurrent officer-in-charge of the Department of National Defense Norberta Gonzales on July 1 publicly reiterated the significance of the Communist threat, noting that he would seek to invoke the Act against the NPA. He added that armed guerrilla groups such as the NPA are "attractive" to international terrorist organizations, which might be interested in collaborating with and/or infiltrating existing networks. A statement by the NDF in late June provocatively vowed that "the NPA have expressed readiness to fight every degree of military intervention and aggression by U.S. imperialism."

Assessment

Despite vigorous Philippine efforts over decades to reduce the Communist threat, NPA attacks continue to occur frequently, with high human and economic costs. The Human Security Act should give the government some new tools to use against the NPA, but the threats from fighting, extortion, and infiltration nationwide will continue to be real and deadly for the foreseeable future.