The National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP) urged the United Nations (UN) to conduct “thorough, balanced investigations” in the Philippines to be able to hold accountable those truly responsible for violations of children’s rights in the country. In response to an October 21 report to the UN Security Council, NDFP Special Office for the Protection of Children (SOPC) chief Coni Ledesma said their group is committed to protecting the rights and welfare of children in all aspects of their struggle.
In stark contrast, the NDFP demonstrated the violations committed by the Marcos Jr. administration in the past year:
On June 9, just a few days after the International Day for the Protection of Children, the Armed Forces of the Philippines’s (AFP) 7th Infantry Battalion (7th IB) shot dead a 16-year old Grade 9 student Kuni Cuba in Sultan Kudarat, Mindanao.
On June 2, fascist soldiers of the 74th IB opened fire on and illegally arrested 11 farmers, including 7 minors in Sitio Canonghan, Barangay Osmena, Palapag, Northern Samar.
On April 25, 2024, elements of the 79th IB arrested Adonis Alforque, 16 and Jonidel Alforque, 17 in Sitio Humayan, Barangay Pinowayan, Don Salvador Benedicto, Negros Occidental, and falsely claimed the two brothers were “NPA child soldiers.”
On March 28, a drunken soldier of the 59th IB molested and sexually exploited a young girl in Sitio Sales, Barangay Pook, Balayan, Batangas. Apart from this, the soldier involved also mauled the girl’s 14-year-old boy companion.
On February 23, state forces abducted a father (“Berting”) alongside his two minor children one of whom is four years old in Barangay Campagao, Bilar, Bohol.
The UN report admits that the AFP and the Philippine National Police (PNP) detained a total of 6 children in the period between January 2022 to December 2023, consistent with the AFP’s pattern of abducting children and using them to force their Red fighter parents to surrender. It can be recalled how in 2021, the reactionary government took Baby Marx, a newborn baby of Red fighters, away from his grandparents in Talisay City, Negros Occidental. Four years since, Baby Marx remains hostaged by the 79th IB and the NTF-Elcac in the province. The fascist state forces refuse to give Baby Marx back to his grandparents who have been fighting hard to get him back.
In 2000, the NDFP SOPC released its its Program of Action and Declaration on the Rights and Welfare of Children, which expressly prohibited the recruitment of children in armed activities. According to Ledesma, the principles laid out in the NDFP Program of Action align with, and often exceed, the standards set by international humanitarian law.
“The NDFP’s policies reflect its steadfast dedication to protect children’s rights and any suggestion to the contrary is a misrepresentation of its stance and practices,” the NDFP concluded.