‘Number of weakened guerrilla fronts down to 11’

MANILA, Philippines — The decades-old communist rebellion is left with about 1,500 members and 11 “weakened” guerrilla fronts as of the end of 2023, the government’s anti-insurgency task force said.

Citing a report by the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC), the Presidential Communications Office said the number of rebels stood at 1,576 by the end of last year, lower by 21.5 percent than the 2,008 recorded in 2022.

Rebel firearms dropped by 22.6 percent to 1,406 in 2023 from 1,817 two years ago, the PCO posted on Facebook yesterday.

The NTF-ELCAC also claimed that only 11 “weakened” guerrilla fronts remained as of the end of 2023.

“No active guerrilla fronts remain,” the task force said, adding that 78 guerrilla fronts have been dismantled as of 2017.

The updates were presented to President Marcos during the fifth NTF-ELCAC executive meeting at Malacañang last Thursday.

According to the task force, 18 underground mass groups that control 30 communist front organizations have been monitored. The organizations have 574 chapters and 2,330 identified members, it added.

Of the 574 chapters, the peasant sector has the highest number, the NTF-ELCAC reported.

The government has declared “stable internal peace and security” in three regions, nine provinces and eight cities. It has also granted 85,327 hectares to 63,783 agrarian reform beneficiaries and distributed 51,797 certificates of land ownership award.

The NTF-ELCAC also reported that 10,053 former rebels and 579 former violent extremists have been reintegrated while P818.9 million has been distributed under the Enhanced Comprehensive Local Integration Program.

A total of 5,430 barangays have been cleared of communist influence, the task force said. Since 2021, P16.44 billion has been allocated to 4,051 barangays for peace and development projects.

Last week, security officials said the Marcos administration is eyeing to expand the amnesty program for communist insurgents to about 1,500 insurgents who have yet to surrender to the government.

The amnesty program is contained in Proclamation 404 issued last November, which covers some 40,000 former rebels who have committed crimes in furtherance of their political beliefs.

Presidential peace adviser Carlito Galvez Jr. said the new amnesty proclamation would only be released once the government and the communists forge a final peace deal.