Military human rights office sends to UN list of NPA attacks on civilians, private property
COMBAT-READY In this 2016 photo, New People’s Army rebels gather in Misamis Oriental province to celebrate the group’s founding anniversary. —JIGGER J. JERUSALEM
MANILA, Philippines—The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) has submitted to the United Nations a list of 532 “violent incidents” attributed to New People’s Army (NPA) and targeting civilians and their property in the past 10 years
The list of attacks since 2010 was prepared by the AFP Human Rights Office (AFP HRO), citing reports from the military’s field units, according to AFP public affairs chief Capt. Jonathan Zata in a statement.
NPA had attacked mining and logging companies in the past and burned heavy equipment being used to extract mineral ore or transport felled trees in what guerrillas had described as ancestral domain of indigenous peoples.
Heavy equipment and trucks being used for road construction projects had also been burned by rebels in the past years.
The details of these attacks were submitted to Signe Poulsen, representative to the Philippines of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, and Gustavo Gonzales, UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in the Philippines, on Tuesday (Jan. 12).
Copies were furnished to Undersecretary Severo Catura, executive director of Presidential Human Rights Committee, and Assistant Secretary Noralyn Jubaira-Baja, Office of the United Nations and International Organizations, Department of Foreign Affairs.
The submission came a few days after the AFP HRO submitted a similar list to the Commission on Human Rights.
AFP chief Gen. Gilbert Gapay lauded efforts of the AFP HRO for its continued work in raising awareness of what the military described as rebel atrocities and bringing these to the attention of international human rights bodies. Gapay said this would shed light on the “persistent disregard of human rights and international humanitarian law” by rebels through destruction of civilian property.
