MANILA – President Rodrigo Duterte accused the New People’s Army (NPA) of kidnapping children and bringing them elsewhere.
In a briefing on Tuesday evening in Surigao del Sur, Duterte ordered the military to rescue the children who were taken away by the rebels.
“Itong mga NPA, kinukuha nila ‘yung mga anak, dinadala nila sa ibang lugar. Kunin ninyo ‘yung mga anak tapos isauli ninyo sa mga nanay at tatay because a child, a minor, should not be separated from the family home,” said Duterte.
The President stressed that search warrant is not necessary as long as there are children that need to be rescued.
“Puntahan mo sa loob, kuhanin mo ang mga bata, at isauli mo at the earliest opportunity,” he said.
Apart from the kidnapping allegations, he also accuse the group of “collecting taxes” to support themselves.
“‘Yang mga buang na ‘yan, ‘yang NPA, they are collecting taxes everywhere. Everywhere and anywhere. Kaya may pera. May pera talaga ‘yan,” he added.
When Duterte assumed the presidency in 2016, hopes are high for the end of communist insurgency in the country due to his close ties with Communist Party of the Philippines founder Jose Maria Sison.
Peace talks between the government and communist rebels bogged down in 2017 due to alleged continuing rebel attacks on state troops. In November that year, Duterte signed a proclamation declaring the termination of peace negotiations.
A resumption of the peace talks was scheduled in late June 2018 but it was canceled as the government sought to review all agreements the communists signed with past administrations.
In December 2018, Duterte ordered the creation of a national task force to “end local communist armed conflict.” The government also sought the declaration of the communist movement as a terrorist group./PN
