Philippines: 1) Information on New People's Army (NPA), Bontok tribe, Quezon and Sagoda Mountain Province, in The Philippines, 1980-present; 2) Copy of "Salvaging Democracy," chapter 9 "Vigilantes in the Philippines," chapter 1, section B; Asian Human Rights Commission report, January 1988, pages 63-65
| Publisher | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada |
| Author | Research Directorate, Immigration and Refugee Board, Canada |
| Publication Date | 1 June 1989 |
| Citation / Document Symbol | PHL1253 |
| Cite as | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, Philippines: 1) Information on New People's Army (NPA), Bontok tribe, Quezon and Sagoda Mountain Province, in The Philippines, 1980-present; 2) Copy of "Salvaging Democracy," chapter 9 "Vigilantes in the Philippines," chapter 1, section B; Asian Human Rights Commission report, January 1988, pages 63-65, 1 June 1989, PHL1253, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/3ae6ac2134.html [accessed 4 June 2023] |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
Please find attached the requested documents, which contain information on the NPA. For additional information on the group, please see the attached copies of Revolutionary and Dissident Movements, (London: Longman Publishing Group, 1988), pages 297-299, page 75 of the Asian Human Rights Commission Report and pages 15-17 of Philippines: Unlawful Killings by Military and Paramilitary Forces, (London: Amnesty International, March 1988).
There is no province listed as Sagoda Mountain among the sources presently available to the IRBDC. However, the province named Mountain in the available sources, is located in the northern region of the island of Luzon, its capital being Bontok. [Encyclopedia of the Third World, (New York: Facts on File, Inc., 1987), p. 1619]. Quezon is also located in the island of Luzon; although The Encyclopedia of the Third World indicates Lucena is its capital, the available atlas presents it as Quezon City (see attached map, taken from The Times World Atlas, third edition). The only anti-communist vigilante group reported to operate in Quezon province is called "Citizens' Army". [Death Squads in the Philippines, (San Francisco: Alliance for Philippine Concerns, 1987), various pages.]
Bontok is also the name of an ethnic group which numbered 78,000 individuals in 1987. [Encyclopedia of the Third World, (New York: Facts on File, Inc., 1987), p. 1614.] The group reportedly adheres to pagan religions. [Ibid, p. 1614.] No additional information on the ethnic group could be found among the available sources.
