AFP record of 532 NPA property attacks ‘highly dubious’ – CPP

MANILA, Philippines — The Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) on Saturday called “highly dubious” the report of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) showing 532 property attacks launched since 2010 by the New People’s Army (NPA), the communist armed wing.

“We would not be surprised if their report is dotted with false information or ‘fake news’ which the AFP [Armed Forces of the Philippines] is notorious for,” Mark Valbuena, information officer of CPP, said in a statement.

According to Valbuena, the NPA “gives primordial concern to the protection of the interests and welfare of the oppressed masses.”

He also pointed out that the report was an attempt to show that CPP and NPA as terrorists, as already labeled by the Anti-Terrorism Council.

“However, by holding the NPA to high standards of human rights and international humanitarian law (HR/IHL), the AFP is actually unintentionally recognizing the NPA as being revolutionary and having a status of belligerency that should be made to account to standards HR/IHL. If the NPA were terrorists, you do not demand it be accountable to HR/IHL,” Valbuena said.

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