Press Release
July 30, 2019

BATO MOVES TO INVESTIGATE ALLEGED RECRUITMENT OF MINORS BY LEFTIST GROUPS

SENATOR RONALD 'BATO' DELA ROSA is seeking to conduct a thorough probe on the case of missing minors who were allegedly recruited by leftist groups to be part of their activities as members and fighters.

In his Resolution No. 38 filed on Monday, Dela Rosa is asking his committee, the Senate Committee on Public Order and Dangerous Drugs, and the Committee on National Security and Defense to conduct an inquiry on the said issue.

"We really wanted to know the real score behind this issue. An investigation on this case could ferret out the truth and in the end we could also recommend actions that will ensure the peace in the country as well as protect and preserve the welfare of our children," Dela Rosa said.

The neophyte senator said that on July 23, parents of the "victims" visited his office to relay their predicament regarding their respective children. Dela Rosa added that the parents even reported incidents of alleged indoctrination and recruitment of their missing children by members of the left-leaning organizations.

The parents, Dela Rosa further noted, stated that due to the alleged recruitment, their children, all minors, were purportedly induced to leave and abandon their homes permanently. One of the parents claimed that his 16-year old daughter left their home for almost a week for a leadership training without their consent. Concerned for the safety of his child, he searched for her and found her in a political rally in Quezon City.

Another parent claimed that his child was convinced to leave their home for three days to attend a seminar in a state university. When the mother checked on the child's whereabouts, she failed to locate her and the said seminar did not exist.

"There was an alarming report that communist terrorists are recruiting minors as their fighters as young as 10 years old. Same news report also claimed that the communist group has been doing this for decades but their recruitment efforts were intensified now because their armed group have been depleted due to frequent clash with government troops," Dela Rosa explained.

Recent statement by Interior and Local Government Secretary Eduardo Año claimed that "The Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) / National Peoples' Army (NPA) / National Democratic Front (NDF) are poisoning the minds of the children to take up arms against the government. They teach the innocent how to use a gun, how to fight in armed combat, how to gain people's sympathy, to sing a different version of the national anthem and to join rallies calling for the overthrow of government." Año further claimed that a 15-year-old child who was fighting for the NPA was killed in a clash between government troops and communist rebels.

Dela Rosa stressed that the Constitution mandates educational institutions and the Commission on Higher Education to inculcate patriotism and nationalism, foster love of humanity, respect for human rights, appreciation of the role of national heroes in the historical development of the country, teach the rights and duties of citizenship,

strengthen ethical and spiritual values, develop moral character and personal discipline, encourage critical and creative thinking, broaden scientific and technological knowledge, and promote vocational efficiency.

The concerned parents alleged that the educational institution where their child has been enrolled as well as CHED failed their duty to protect their children to the alleged recruitment and indoctrination. The parents further alleged that the educational institution has been mum on the issue despite the use of their facilities in the recruitment of the minors.

In efforts to protect the interest and welfare of the children, Dela Rosa underscored the urgent need to investigate the disturbing reports of the alleged recruitment of minors as fighters of the CPP / NPA / NDF. He also noted that the said allegations against CPP / NPA / NDF would be detrimental to the efforts of the government and the concerned groups in achieving lasting peace in the country.

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