NPA violates human rights, says AFP
The AFP said a total of 1,886 violations to human rights and international humanitarian law from 2010 to present — which have been submitted to the Commission of Human Rights and were subjected to investigations
Daily TribuneThe AFP said a total of 1,886 violations to human rights and international humanitarian law from 2010 to present — which have been submitted to the Commission of Human Rights and were subjected to investigations
The Armed Forces of the Philippines recently blasted the narratives of communist terrorist groups that the soldiers are committing human rights violations for the death of alleged activists and progressive militants subjected to military operations, saying it is "the other way around."
AFP Center for Law of Armed Conflict director Bgen. Joel Alejandro Nacnac stressed that it was the insurgents who perpetrated a total of 2,443 human rights violations from 1968 to 2009 which includes deaths of 1,943 civilians and soldiers.
"These violations have huge destructive effect in the community, but not everything has been recorded," he said in vernacular during a radio interview on Monday, in time of the International Human Rights Day celebration.
Nacnac lamented thousands of abuses to women and children, exploitation of indigenous peoples as well as killing of civilians and military were put to record since the New People's Army was created in 1968.
He stressed that these are the reasons why some parts of society are not improving and developing as the NPA opted to recruit child combatants in the armed struggle, destroying civilian properties and the use of landmines — which is a strong violations on international conventions on human rights.
The AFP said a total of 1,886 violations to human rights and international humanitarian law from 2010 to present — which have been submitted to the Commission of Human Rights and were subjected to investigations.
The violations were recorded separately after the IHL was created in 2009. Since then, the NPA attacks have killed 172 military personnel and 345 civilians
The number also does not include unrecorded violations of NPA led to the deaths abuses and exploitation of their comrades inside the armed movement.
Nacnac said the AFP has been enforcing accountability mechanism against soldiers who commit violations to human rights.
He added that human rights officers are strictly probing the incidents involving any military personnel.
Nacnac urged the public to report any violations committed by the non-State actors for proper accountability.
The AFP was established on 21 December 1935 through the National Defense Act of 1935.
