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Trimmed list? Proven CPP-NPA members may still be ‘covered’ by sought terror tag — DOJ
Despite their removal from the Department of Justice's (DOJ) list of alleged communist rebels, the more than 600 people in the original "terror list" may still be "dealt with" by law if the government succeeds to get the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) outlawed.
They will be "covered" if their alleged connections to the CPP and its armed wing, the New People's Army (NPA), are "established," Justice Undersecretary Markk Perete said Friday.
A petition before a Manila court wants the CPP-NPA judicially declared as terrorist organizations following a prior proclamation by President Rodrigo Duterte, who canceled peace talks with the Left in 2017.
From 649, the list of alleged communist rebels has been drastically cut down to eight alleged leaders, including founding chairman Jose Maria Sison, who is exile in The Netherlands.
Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra said Friday that the hundreds of names were initially included for summons-serving purposes because the CPP and NPA have no known addresses.
The eight remaining respondents were retained for the same reason, according to Perete.
"If the CPP and the NPA are judicially declared as terrorist organizations, any person who is found to be a member or supporter thereof, or associated in any way with said organizations, will be dealt with in accordance with the Human Security Act, the Revised Penal Code, and other related laws pertaining to national security," Guevarra said in a text message.
Perete said "everyone outside the eight named respondents who will be proven to be a member of the organization declared engaged in terror activities will still be covered."
Guevarra said he hopes the case will be decided within the year. It was filed in February 2018.
