quoting officers of the AFP and PNP who declared that the two agencies do not consider the deployment of the armed forces in communities as part of “internal security” or “counter insurgency operations” inconsistent with the Philippines’ international HR obligations.31 They were quoted to have justified such operations on the basis of RA 8551 of 1998, which gives such mandate to the AFP.32 20. Verily, the issue of militarization may be viewed from the perspectives of the two opposing groups of Lumad, namely, by those who have been accused of being sympathetic to the NPA on the one hand, and by those accused of being on the side of the government on the other. Many among the Lumad who encamped in the Haran Compound firmly asserted that their ancestral domains/communities were being militarized, as evidenced by the military encampment in their public schools and other public facilities. On the other side, the group of Lumad who opposed NPA presence in their communities insist that there was no militarization in their ancestral domains/communities. 21. The SOS Network Position Paper also mentioned that 20 DepEd schools were attacked and used as camps by the AFP in Mindanao, while 214 cases of attacks against Lumad community schools were listed. Most of the recorded incidents took place in 2013 and 2014. 22. Among the documented cases of alleged military encampments and harassments of STTICLC schools in Talaingod are the following: (a) military encampment in the STTICLC school in Sitio Km. 30, Barangay Palma Gil, Talaingod, by elements of the Army’s 60th Infantry Battalion, who allegedly occupied classrooms and the teachers’ staff house from 2630 March 2014; (b) military encampment in the STTICLC school in Purok 12, Sitio Nasilaban, Barangay Palma Gil, Talaingod in April 2014; and (c) indiscriminate firing and strafing of an STTICLC school, also in Sitio Nasilaban, Barangay Palma Gil, Talaingod. Military encampments in STTICLC schools were allegedly not confined to Davao del Norte Province alone, but included those in the neighboring province of Compostela Valley.33 23. The military used schools found within the ancestral domains of the Lumad as military camps and barracks. The various pictures and videos presented by SOS during the public inquiry, together with uncontested testimony in that regard, clearly demonstrated that the AFP used school buildings for military purposes, in direct contravention of existing guidelines, such as DepEd Memorandum No. 221, and Section 22 (e) of RA 761034 prohibiting the use of schools for military purposes.35 24. After carefully reviewing the factual circumstances, testimonies, and evidence gathered during the Inquiry, the Commission concludes that there was, 31 Id. 32 Id. 33 See Video on military encampment in STTICLC School in Purok 4, Brgy. Mangayon, Compostela Valley. 34 “Special Protection of Children Against Abuse, Exploitation and Discrimination Act of 1992” 35 DepEd Secretary Br. Armin Luistro FSC Press Statement cited in News Article Entitled “DepEd affirms “No ‘militarization’ in schools,” dated 6 December 2014. For more details, visit: http://www.deped.gov.ph. 9