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PNP hails govt’s ‘wise move’ to tag NDF as terror group


The Philippine National Police (PNP) on Wednesday said the designation of the National Democratic Front (NDF) as a terrorist group by the Anti-Terrorism Council was a wise move to defeat communist insurgency.

In a statement, PNP chief Police General Guillermo Eleazar said the designation will pave the way for an “all-out operations” against the group, including a “legal offensive.”

“Sa pagdeklara ng NDF na isang teroristang grupo, mawawalan na ng palusot ang mga taong ito (With the declaration of the NDF as a terrorist group, the rebels will no longer have excuses),” he said.

“Lalo lang mapapalakas ang ating mga operasyon upang tuluyan nang wakasan ang mga grupong ito (It will only strengthen our operation to eliminate these groups),” he added.

According to Eleazar, many members of the communist groups were using the excuse of being  peace talk consultants to circumvent arrest.

On Tuesday, the Department of National Defense (DND) and Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) also expressed support for the designation of NDF as a terrorist group over its links to communist rebels.

According to the ATC, the NDF is “an integral and inseparable part” of the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army (CPP-NPA), which were designated as terror groups last December.

The designation would allow the government to freeze assets of the NDF, which was established in April 1973.

A request for delisting may be filed before the ATC within 15 days from publication of the designation.

In April, the ATC designated as terrorists exiled CPP founding chairman Jose Maria Sison, his wife Julieta, and the rest of the 19-member central committee of the CPP.

Sison dismissed the designation as “arbitrary and dubious.”

Petitions challenging the constitutionality of the anti-terror law are pending before the Supreme Court. -MDM, GMA News

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