Filing of charges ordered vs NPA for child recruitment in Sultan Kudarat

GENERAL SANTOS CITY (MindaNews / 24 June) — Two alleged child warriors of the New People’s Army (NPA) were apprehended by the military after getting wounded during a clash in Sultan Kudarat province, military officials said.

The alleged child warriors apprehended by the military. Photo from 6th Infantry Division

Owing to this, Lt. Gen. Antonio Nafarrete, Western Mindanao Command chief, ordered the filing of legal cases against the NPA rebels for allegedly recruiting the minors into their ranks.

He said in a statement that the NPA child combatants were captured in a follow-up operation launched in the early hours of June 21 in Sitio Muagan, Barangay Datu Ito Andong in Kalamansig town.

Lt. Col. Christopher Capuyan, 37th Infantry Battalion commander, said troops from the Alpha Company arrested the minors based on information provided by concerned residents following the firefight between the soldiers and NPA rebels last June 19.

The two apprehended indigenous people or Lumads were identified as alias Digbay, 16, who sustained a gunshot wound to the right shin, and alias Mario, 17, who suffered a spinal injury. 

Capuyan said they were among the NPA elements left behind by fleeing comrades and were later treated at the Kalamansig Rural Health Unit before being transferred to Camp Siongco Station Hospital in Datu Odin Sinsuat, Maguindanao del Norte for further care.

Troops recovered an M16 rifle and three magazines at the site of the arrest, he said.

In a statement on Monday, Nafarrete strongly denounced the continued recruitment and use of minors as combatants by the NPA, which is classified by the military as a “communist terrorist group” (CTG).

“The employment of child warriors is a blatant violation of the International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights Law. It perpetuates the cycle of violence by normalizing the exploitation of the young and blurring moral boundaries in conflict zones,” Nafarrete said.

He directed the Joint Task Force Central, headed by Maj. Gen. Donald M. Gumiran, also the commander of the 6th Infantry Division, to file charges against the NPA rebels.

Nafarrete said the recruitment of indigenous peoples “into the armed struggle is an inhumane and deceptive tactic that destroys communities and deprives the youth of their future.”

He called on the communities to remain vigilant and report any signs of child recruitment or suspicious militant activity that lures the youth into joining the NPA.

“Our government forces, in partnership with relevant agencies, are committed to protecting vulnerable sectors, especially our youth and ending armed conflict through law enforcement and peace-building efforts,” Nafarrete said. (Bong S. Sarmiento / MindaNews)