Chief Supt. Isagani Cuevas, Western Visayas police director, said yesterday that the Philippine National Police in Western Visayas is waging a legal offensive against the New People’s Army, in support of the counter-insurgency operations of the Armed Forces of the Philippines.

Cuevas said that under Executive Order 546, the PNP is mandated to assist the Armed Forces of the Philippines in investigations, intelligence data gathering and police community relations.

In the absence of soldiers in some areas of the region, Cuevas said the police is actively involved in counter-insurgency operations, especially the 6th Regional Mobile Group in Negros Occidental.

The Police Regional Office 6 recently filed murder charges against suspected New People’s Army who used landmines, during the ambush-slay of soldiers in San Remegio, Antique.

The Inter-Agency Legal Assistance Group, is assisting the Army’s 303rd Infantry Brigade in the filing of cases against insurgents in Negros island.

PNP chief Avelino Razon who is expected to visit Negros Occidental this week has ordered police regional chiefs and directors of various National Support Units to extend maximum police assistance and cooperation to AFP counter-insurgency campaign.

Razon said police Scene of the Crime Operations (SOCO) and criminal investigators will be made available to the AFP, to process and document atrocities committed by the rebels against civilian and military targets.

Police have allegedly noted that some encounters between government security forces and the CPP-NPA, especially in the hinterlands, are often not properly documented and evidence recovered often do not undergo forensic examination.

“Henceforth, scenes of encounter between New People's Army insurgents and government forces will be treated as a crime scene, and all evidence recovered will be subjected to forensic examination,” Razon said in a statement he issued.

Police investigators are also directed to document every insurgency-related incident for the filing of cases based on evidence.

EO 546 also outlines the roles and responsibilities of local government units in security operations against the CPP-NPA.*GPB

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