A ranking official of the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) said Saturday that Filipina-American activist Chantal Anicoche has left the country and returned to the United States.
NTF-ELCAC Executive Director Undersecretary Ernesto C. Torres Jr. said Anicoche, a U.S. citizen and Filipino-American community leader from Maryland, departed the Philippines following an Order to Leave issued by the Bureau of Immigration, after what he described as lawful processing and inter-agency coordination.
“This development concludes the Philippine government’s security and administrative handling of her situation,” Torres said.
Militant and left-leaning organizations had earlier reported Anicoche missing and accused the Philippine military of holding her. Authorities later said she was found alive near the site of the 1 January 2026 armed encounter between government forces and remnants of the New People’s Army in Barangay Cabacao, Abra de Ilog, Occidental Mindoro, where a young student was killed and another person was reported missing.
“She was accounted for, medically attended to, and processed in accordance with our laws. Her departure from the Philippines reflects the collective determination by concerned agencies that her continued presence in the country was no longer necessary under immigration and security considerations,” Torres said.
He stressed that the decision was neither arbitrary nor political, and was based on information that emerged during lawful processing, including Anicoche’s own disclosures regarding her activities and affiliations.
“She said that she traveled to the Philippines with the intention of linking up with the New People’s Army and that she was in an NPA camp in Abra de Ilog, Occidental Mindoro, at the time of an armed encounter where two government soldiers were wounded,” Torres said.
The NTF-ELCAC official added that Anicoche also acknowledged involvement with organizations abroad that form part of the Communist Party of the Philippines’ international political and support network.
“Taken together, these circumstances are clear security and immigration concerns that warranted decisive administrative action,” Torres said.
“The Order to Leave is an immigration measure grounded in law. It is not a declaration of innocence, nor an endorsement of narratives that try to portray this case as political persecution or heroism,” he added, noting that both the CPP and the NPA are designated terrorist organizations under Philippine law and are similarly recognized by other governments, including the United States.
Torres said Anicoche’s case underscores the risks faced by young people, including foreign nationals, who are drawn into armed conflict zones under the guise of advocacy or international solidarity.
“On the ground, however, these pathways intersect with recruitment, radicalization, and direct exposure to armed violence that place lives at serious risk,” he said.
“With Ms. Anicoche’s departure, responsibility for any further engagement now properly rests with her home country and her family. The Philippine government has fully discharged its obligation to handle the matter lawfully, transparently, and humanely,” Torres said.
He added that the task force remains committed to exposing recruitment networks linked to armed groups, protecting communities, and promoting peace through accountability and development.
“No political narrative is worth a life, and no ideology justifies placing young people in harm’s way,” Torres said.