SOUTHERN TAGALOG RISES: A HISTORIC REJECTION OF CPP-NPA-NDF VIOLENCE

17 June 2026

On June 12, 2026, the CALABARZON Region (Region 4-A) was declared in a state of Stable Internal Peace and Security (SIPS). More than a government achievement, this milestone is a victory earned by the people of Southern Tagalog themselves — a moment that calls not only for recognition, but for celebration.

This triumph is part of a nationwide wave of peace. From Kalinga and Apayao to Southern Leyte, Agusan del Norte, Agusan del Sur, and Surigao del Sur, communities once scarred by insurgency are now securing peace. Entire regions — Cagayan Valley, Central Luzon, Western Visayas — are insurgency‑free and under SIPS, while CARAGA is set to make its own declaration on June 18. Since the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) began its work in 2018, 58 provinces have achieved SIPS, joining the earlier trailblazers Regions I, IX, and XI. These declarations tell the story of a nation steadily stepping out of the shadow of one of the world’s longest‑running insurgencies.

Among these victories, Southern Tagalog occupies a special place.

For over fifty years, the provinces of Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal, and Quezon were a key stronghold of the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army-National Democratic Front (CPP-NPA-NDF). Its mountains, farms, towns, schools, and communities became the front lines of recruitment, organization, and armed operations. Insurgent leaders believed the region was indispensable to their revolutionary ambitions.

The human cost was devastating. Families lived under constant threat. Farmers and entrepreneurs were forced to pay “revolutionary taxes.” Infrastructure and development projects stalled. Thousands of young Filipinos were lured into a conflict that promised freedom but delivered only suffering, disillusionment, imprisonment, and death.

This declaration, therefore, is not simply the silencing of guns. It is the restoration of normalcy, the return of opportunity, and the freedom to pursue progress without fear of intimidation or violence. Most importantly, it is the people’s victory — the collective decision of millions of Southern Tagalog residents to reject armed struggle and choose instead the hard, hopeful work of building communities.

Today, we celebrate the barangays that stood firm against intimidation. We celebrate the families who protected their children from recruitment and chose hope over hatred. We celebrate the former rebels who laid down their arms and embraced reconciliation, proving that peace is always possible.

We celebrate the local leaders who brought roads where there were none, schools where opportunities were scarce, and water, electricity, health services, and livelihoods to areas long neglected because of conflict. We celebrate the teachers who shaped young minds, the religious and civil society partners who built bridges of unity, and the soldiers, police officers, and public servants who devoted years — often at great personal sacrifice — to securing lives and advancing development.

Above all, we celebrate the ordinary men and women of Southern Tagalog. Their courage, resilience, and unwavering belief in a better future accomplished what decades of violence could never achieve: the triumph of peace over fear, hope over extremism, and unity over division.

The SIPS declaration is not the finish line. It is the beginning of a new chapter — one where the energy once consumed by conflict can be poured into development, investment, education, tourism, livelihood, and lasting prosperity.

Southern Tagalog’s message to the nation is clear: peace works, development works, and democracy works. Progress is built not by dividing communities along ideological lines, but by bringing people together around shared dreams of security, opportunity, and a better life for the next generation.

For half a century, insurgents saw this region as the pillar of their revolution. History, however, has written a different verdict — and the people themselves have delivered it.

As Southern Tagalog turns this historic page, it sends a powerful message across the country: no insurgency is stronger than a united people determined to build a better future for their children. The violent era of the CPP-NPA-NDF belongs to the past. The future belongs to the people of Southern Tagalog, and it is brighter, more peaceful, and more hopeful than ever before.

USEC ERNESTO C. TORRES JR.

Executive Director

NS, NTF-ELCAC