NDFP Stands Firm On Protecting Children’s Rights Amid GRP’s Relentless IHL Violations

November 2, 2024 Alan Warsaw

Coni Ledesma | Head | Special Office For The Protection Of Children | National Democratic Front Of The Philippines

November 2, 2024

The National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP) Special Office for the Protection of Children (SOPC) takes exception to the recent report from the United Nations Secretary-General on children and armed conflict in the Philippines, which has raised concerns regarding the treatment and involvement of children in the ongoing civil war. We reiterate that the NDFP and the entire revolutionary movement are committed to upholding and protecting the rights and welfare of children in all aspects of our struggle.

The NDFP’s commitment to the welfare of children is enshrined in its Program of Action and Declaration on the Rights and Welfare of Children, which expressly prohibits the recruitment of children in armed activities. The principles laid out in our Program of Action align with, and often exceed, the standards set by international humanitarian law. In fact, the New People’s Army (NPA) and the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) categorically adopted the policy of prohibiting the recruitment of any person below the age of 18 years in 1988, a year ahead of the creation of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. The NDFP’s policies reflect our steadfast dedication to protect children’s rights and any suggestion to the contrary is a misrepresentation of our stance and practices.

These policies are strictly observed by NPA units in the guerilla zones and local organs of political power across the country. Furthermore, the revolutionary movement strictly adheres to international laws and conventions governing armed conflict, particularly the Geneva Conventions and their Additional Protocols, which the NDFP and the entire revolutionary movement recognizes as binding on all combatants. We uphold the principle of distinction, ensuring that combatants are clearly separated from non-combatants and that children are shielded from the impacts of conflict to the fullest extent possible.

In stark contrast, the Government of the Republic of the Philippines (GRP) has repeatedly violated the rights of children in the context of the ongoing armed conflict in the Philippines, with reports of abuses, abductions and killings of minors:

On June 9, just a few days after the International Day for the Protection of Children, the Armed Forces of the Philippines’s (AFP) 7th Infantry Battalion (7th IB) shot dead a 16-year old Grade 9 student Kuni Cuba in Sultan Kudarat, Mindanao.
On June 2, fascist soldiers of the 74th IB opened fire on and illegally arrested 11 farmers, including 7 minors in Sitio Canonghan, Barangay Osmena, Palapag, Northern Samar province.
On April 25, 2024, elements of the 79th IB arrested Adonis Alforque, 16 and Jonidel Alforque, 17 in Sitio Humayan, Barangay Pinowayan, Don Salvador Benedicto, Negros Occidental province, and falsely claimed the two brothers were “NPA child soldiers.”
On March 28, a drunken soldier of the 59th IB molested and sexually exploited a young girl in Sitio Sales, Barangay Pook, Balayan, Batangas province. Apart from this, the soldier involved also mauled the girl’s 14-year-old boy companion.
On February 23, state forces abducted a father (“Berting”) alongside his two minor children one of whom is four years old in Barangay Campagao, Bilar, Bohol province.

The UN report admits that the AFP and the Philippine National Police (PNP) detained a total of 6 children in the period between January 2022 to December 2023, consistent with the AFP’s pattern of abducting children and using them to force their Red fighter parents to surrender. It can be recalled how in 2021, the reactionary government took Baby Marx, a newborn baby of Red fighters, away from his grandparents in Talisay City, Negros Occidental province. Four years since, Baby Marx remains hostaged by the 79th IB and the NTF-ELCAC in the province. The fascist state forces refuse to give Baby Marx back to his grandparents who have been fighting hard to get him back.

The report further indicates at least 5 cases of attacks on schools and hospitals perpetrated by the AFP, PNP, NTF-ELCAC and the National Intelligence and Coordinating Agency (NICA), again consistent with the AFP’s policy of making a mockery of international humanitarian law in the conduct of their counterrevolutionary war against the Filipino people. These cases not only reflect the GRP’s failure to adhere to international standards for the protection of children, but also highlight an inherent culture of impunity within the ranks of the AFP.

We urge the UN and other international observers to address these grave abuses by the GRP and to hold accountable those who are truly responsible for the violations of children’s rights. The NDFP stresses the importance of thorough, balanced investigations to fully understand the situation on the ground, and to ensure that children’s rights are upheld, protected and promoted.

Source : https://philippinerevolution.nu/statements/ndfp-stands-firm-on-protecting-childrens-rights-amid-grps-relentless-ihl-violations/