Gen. Palparan and the 8th ID PA, the genuine terrorists

Gen. Palparan and the 8th ID PA are the genuine terrorists who are wreaking havoc on the lives and well-being of the people of Region 8. The blind and berserk "counter-insurgency" campaign of the general is the leading cause of turmoil among the masses of Samar and Leyte.

Gen. Palparan is sending death squads into the cities and towns to eliminate one by one the known leaders of militant groups or those they suspect of supporting the revolutionary movement. The newest victim is Rev. Edison Lapuz of UCCP and Katungod regional chairperson, who was shot to death last May 12. They also shot dead a leader of the peasant association, Alfredo Malinao, in San Isidro, Leyte. Fourteen victims have fallen in the killings done by the military since February.

Military operations are rampaging in the countryside and abusing the human rights of the people. Only recently, almost 1,000 peasants from nine barrios of Calbiga, Western Samar were forced to evacuate because of the chaos and fear caused by military operations and the abuses by the soldiers. For the same reason, there were also 600 peasants who evacuated from San Jorge.

In a mere three months since Palparan's arrival, the military has committed nearly 200 cases of human rights violations in our region and these continue to accumulate.These violations by the military against the civilian populace include arbitrary arrest, torture, arson, food blockade, strafing, killings and abductions of many who remain missing. The past three months show a horrific leap in human rights violations compared to the more than 80 cases of human rights violations in 2004.

The general's avowal that the armed force of the New People's Army (NPA) is their principal target is a monstrous lie. In truth, the civilian populace bear the brunt of military operations. This is part of Palparan's "game plan" to "shock and awe" the people so they will not support the NPA. It is also his mode of "winning the hearts and minds" of the people against the revolutionary movement. This is the military's way of "draining the water to catch the fish" that has been already disproven in the past as inutile.

The military is the genuine terrorist in being the leading destroyer of the people's lives, work and quiet existence here in our region. Because of this, the Efren Martires Command (EMC) calls on the people to expose and oppose the unjust and anti-people "counter-insurgency" campaign of Palparan.The NPA strongly supports the anti-fascist and anti-militarist struggles of the people through the steadfast advancement of the armed struggle, and the meting of punishment on those guilty of grave crimes against the people, based on the revolutionary justice system and the decision of the proper revolutionary people's court.#

For confirmation::
Roy Santos, NDF-EV Media Liaison Officer
Cellphone No. 0918-3112138