Moro villagers surrender 17 more combat weapons to Army

COTABATO CITY — Residents of Mamasapano town in Maguindanao del Sur surrendered assault rifles, B40 rocket launchers, and mortars on Thursday, March 26, as part of a disarmament program led by the Army and the Office of the Presidential Adviser on Peace, Reconciliation, and Unity in the province.

The combat weapons were surrendered by two former enemy groups that recently reconciled through the joint efforts of local executives, officials from the Maguindanao del Sur Provincial Police Office, the Army’s 34th and 38th Infantry Battalions, and Brig. Gen. Edgar Catu, commander of the Army’s 601st Infantry Brigade.

Major Gen. Jose Vladimir Cagara, commander of the Army’s 6th Infantry Division, told reporters on Friday, March 27, that the 17 weapons were voluntarily handed over by their owners to Catu and municipal officials, led by Mayor Akmad Ampatuan Jr., during a symbolic rite on Thursday in Mamasapano, one of the 24 towns in Maguindanao del Sur.

The cache, which included assault rifles, long-range bolt-action sniper rifles, anti-tank rocket launchers and 60- and 81-millimeter mortars, was surrendered by owners in compliance with the Small Arms and Light Weapons Management Program, jointly implemented since 2024 by the OPAPRU and all units of the 6th Infantry Division across six provinces in Central Mindanao.

Cagara said that Lt. Col. Edgardo Batinay, commanding officer of the 34th Infantry Battalion, and his counterpart in the 38th Infantry Battalion, Lt. Col. Erwin Felongco, were both instrumental in facilitating the voluntary turnover of the combat weapons by Mamasapano residents through backchannel dialogues.

Units of the 6th ID in the provinces of Maguindanao del Sur, Maguindanao del Norte, Cotabato, Sultan Kudarat, South Cotabato and Sarangani, as well as in Cotabato City, have collected over the past 26 months a total of 2,532 assorted firearms, 40-millimeter grenades, B40 rocket launchers, mortars, and M60, .30, and .50-caliber machine guns. These were voluntarily surrendered by owners in recognition of the SALW Management Program.

The SALW Management Program is designed to support Malacañang’s peace initiatives with southern Moro communities.