IP leader: Justice for NPA victims with Ocampo, Castro conviction

BUTUAN CITY - The conviction of former party-list congressman Satur Ocampo and incumbent Alliance of Concerned Teachers Party-list Rep. France Castro is a triumph for all Indigenous Peoples (IPs) in Mindanao, especially the victims of the communist New People's Army (NPA). Datu Rico Maca, IP Mandatory Representative (IPMR) of San Miguel, Surigao del Sur, said Tuesday that Ocampo, Castro and other left-leaning organizations orchestrated the establishment of schools in IP villages in Mindanao that served as recruitment grounds for the NPA. On July 3, the Regional Trial Court Branch 2 in Tagum City convicted Ocampo, Castro and 11 others for violating the provisions of Republic Act 7610 or the Special Protection of Children Against Abuse, Exploitation, and Discrimination Act. They were sentenced to four to six years. The case involved the holding and transporting of 14 minors in Talaingod, Davao del Norte in 2018. 'Here in Surigao del Sur, the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) and the NPA established the Alternative Learning Center for Agricultural and Livelihood Development and the Tribal Filipino Program of Surigao del Sur or TRIFPSS schools in the towns of Lianga, Marihatag, and San Miguel,' Maca said in an interview. With the efforts of the tribal leaders, local government units and concerned government agencies, the schools have been shut down, he said. In San Miguel town alone, Maca said NPA-linked groups managed established TRIFPPS schools with 22 classrooms in the villages of Bitaugan, Bolhoon, Libasod, Siagao and Carromata. All were closed in 2021. 'Just like Ocampo and Castro, former Bayan Muna representative Eufemia Cullamat, a Manobo from our province, together with the Save our School Network, established these CPP-NPA-linked schools here in Surigao del Sur, taught our children with false ideas that paved the way for their recruitment to the communist movement,' Maca alleged. Unfortunately, he added, most of the recruited youth ended up dead during encounters, while others surrendered or were captured and are facing charges in court. 'These groups of Ocampo, Castro, and Cullamat destroyed the future of our youth. We struggled to close down these schools and succeeded. We only wanted an education for our children that would provide them a good future,' Maca said. The court's decision, he said, meant that the country's justice system "is genuinely working." Source: Philippines News Agency