IN GOOD HEALTH | 鈥淢issing鈥� activists Cedric Casa帽o and Patricia Nicole Cierva turn up during a mass surrender of former rebels in Cagayan province on June 2, 2023. (Photo from an NTF-ELCAC video)
TUGUEGARAO CITY, Cagayan, Philipines 鈥� Following calls to release them from being reportedly held captive, two youth activists from Cagayan province surfaced during a mass surrender of former communist rebels facilitated by the local military unit and the Cagayan Provincial Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (PTF-Elcac) last week.
Youth organizer Patricia Nicole Cierva, 23, a former student of the University of the Philippines Manila (UPM), and Cedric Casa帽o, 29, a Kabataan Partylist coordinator in Isabela province and a Polytechnic University of the Philippines (PUP) graduate, belied reports that they were victims of enforced disappearance perpetrated by the military.
At a press briefing in Lal-lo town after taking their 鈥渙ath of allegiance鈥� before Cagayan Gov. Manuel Mamba and other members of the PTF-Elcac to formalize their surrender on June 2, Cierva and Casa帽o asserted that they were 鈥渘ot forcibly taken or arrested by the military.鈥�
Encounter
According to the Army鈥檚 Northern Luzon Command (Nolcom), the two were former members of the New People鈥檚 Army鈥檚 (NPA) East Front under the Cagayan Provincial Committee and were among the 20 rebels who voluntarily surrendered to the government troops.
Cierva graduated with a degree in development studies from the UPM College of Arts and Sciences. She was a former student council leader and secretary general of the student group Kasama sa UP, while Casa帽o had been tagged as a former NPA-East Front secretary.
On May 27, rights group Karapatan claimed that Casa帽o and Cierva were forcibly taken by members of the 501st Infantry Brigade in Cagayan鈥檚 Gonzaga town during a supposed encounter on May 18.
UP also issued a statement on Sunday, expressing 鈥渄eep concern鈥� for Cierva, its alumna, and her fellow activist, Casa帽o.
The university described Cierva and Casa帽o as among those who were 鈥渨rongly taken and arrested鈥� by the government forces.
UP also raised concern about the disappearances of two of its former student leaders turned community organizers: Gene Roz Jamil de Jesus and Dexter Capuyan, both of UP Baguio.
De Jesus and Capuyan went missing on April 28 while on a trip in Rizal province to seek medical assistance. Later, their families discovered that Capuyan, an indigenous leader often accused by Cordillera police of being a communist rebel, had been on a 鈥淲anted鈥� poster released by the Philippine National Police promising rewards for the capture of suspected communist rebels.
In good health
The ecumenical youth group Student Christian Movement of the Philippines had earlier said Cierva and Casa帽o were the 20th and 21st activists allegedly taken by state forces under the administration of President Marcos.
But Cierva and Casa帽o said they were 鈥渋n good health鈥� and that they were 鈥渘ot manhandled or mistreated.鈥�
The two activists said they joined the armed struggle after they were led to believe communism would help them attain 鈥減eace and sustainable development,鈥� but they did not provide details on how they were recruited to join the revolutionary movement.
鈥淲ho doesn鈥檛 want peace and progress? We all have different perspectives, depending on which side you鈥檙e on. Although we鈥檙e taking a different path now, our desire for that will continue,鈥� Casa帽o told reporters.
Army Lt. Gen. Fernyl Buca, Nolcom commander, lauded the surrender of the two former rebels, urging them 鈥渢o help achieve peace鈥� as they return to the fold of the law and back to their families.