THE National Amnesty Commission (NAC) yesterday said 578 applicants, most of them from the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army-National Democratic Front of the Philippines (CPP-NPA-NDFP), have availed of the national amnesty program of the Marcos Administration.
As of July 12, 2024, the NAC said the applicants include 497 members of the CPP-NPA-NDFP, 46 from the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF), 33 from the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), and two from the Rebolusyonaryong Partidong Manggagawa ng Pilipinas/Revolutionary Proletarian Army/Alex Boncayao Brigade (RPMP-RPA-ABB).
The NAC and its Local Amnesty Boards (LABs) are verifying the information provided by the applicants to determine the merit of their applications.
The NAC will submit its recommendations to the President once it has completed the verification process.
Nine LABs have been activated nationwide to receive amnesty applications in response to the amnesty program offered by the Marcos administration under Proclamation Nos. 403, 404, 405 and 406 for members of the RPMP-RPA-ABB, CPP-NPA-NDFP, MILF, and MNLF, respectively. Nineteen more LABS are being set up.
President Marcos Jr. in issuing the proclamation orders on November 23, 2023, gave former rebels two years to apply for amnesty.
The amnesty proclamations became effective following the concurrence of the House of Representative in December 2023, and the Senate in March 2024.
The Office of the Presidential Adviser on Peace, Reconciliation and Unity (OPAPRU) had estimated that around 5,000 to 8,000 rebels from the CPP-NPA-NDFP would avail of the program, along with less than 5,000 former MNLF combatants; 40,000 decommissioned MILF combatants, and less than 900 RPMP-RPA-ABB.
Under the proclamation orders, amnesty may be granted to those who, prior to the issuance of the proclamation orders in November 2023, committed crimes or omissions in pursuit of political belief, including those detained, charged, or convicted for such acts or omissions.
Amnesty may also be granted to those who committed crimes punishable under the Revised Penal Code and Special Penal laws in furtherance of their political beliefs, including but not limited to rebellion or insurrection, conspiracy and proposal to commit rebellion or insurrection, disloyalty of public officers or employees, inciting to rebellion or insurrection, sedition, conspiracy to commit sedition, and inciting to sedition.
Amnesty also applies to offenses such as illegal assembly, illegal association, direct assault, indirect assault, resistance and disobedience to a person in authority or the agents of such person, tumults and other disturbances of public order, unlawful use of means of publication and unlawful utterances, alarms and scandals, and illegal possession of firearms, ammunition or explosives, provided that these crimes or offense were committed in furtherance of, incident to, or in connection with the crimes of rebellion or insurrection.
The amnesty, however, does not cover cases of kidnap for ransom, massacre, rape, terrorism, crimes committed against chastity as defined in the Revised Penal Code, violation of RA No. 9165, otherwise known as the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002, grave violations of the Geneva Convention of 1949, genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes, torture, enforced disappearances, and other gross violations of human rights.
