By Priam Nepomuceno
MANILA – The Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army-National Democratic Front (CPP-NPA-NDF) is violating international and local laws for its continued recruitment and use of minors in its ongoing campaign against the Philippine government, a ranking National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) official said Monday night.
NTF-ELCAC executive director Undersecretary Ernesto Torres Jr., in a statement, said the communist insurgents are violating International Humanitarian Law and Republic Act 11188 and RA 7610, and the Philippines’ commitments under the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child, for continuing to recruit minors.
“These are not just tactical decisions. These are criminal acts. The CPP-NPA-NDF must be made to account for these grave violations of both domestic and international law,” he said.
The NTF-ELCAC official cited as example the April 19 encounter in Toboso, Negros Occidental, where 19 NPA fighters were killed.
In the same clash, Torres said two of those killed were minors—16-year-old Jolinda Jimena and 17-year-old Dexter Patoja—whose identities were validated through investigation and claimant relatives.
Last April 17, this time in Samar, another minor identified as alias “John Paul” was killed in an encounter with government troops, bringing to three the number of minors killed in combat within the same month.
He called on families, schools, and communities—both in the Philippines and abroad—to remain vigilant against recruitment efforts that prey on the youth and unsuspecting individuals.
“No legitimate cause will ever justify placing children in the line of fire. This is a gross and inexcusable violation of their rights,” Torres said. (PNA)
