TARLAC CITY – A group of former rebels in Hacienda Luisita here, the Malayang Magbubukid ng Asyenda Luisita (Malaya), inaugurated on Wednesday, Nov. 16, 2022, their agricultural cooperative store in Barangay Ungot, this city.
Malaya chairwoman Florida ‘’Ka Pong’’ Sibayan said the store is the result of their return to mainstream society and thanked the government for their livelihood.
Malaya members received certificates of completion from the Tarlac Center for Learning and Skills Success Assessment Center (TCLASS) of the provincial Technical Skills Education and Development Authority after undergoing community-based livelihood training on basic meat processing on Nov. 14.
The store was constructed with the help of the 522nd Engineering and Construction Battalion of the Philippine Army (Central Luzon Builders).
The Regional Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (RTF-ELCAC) member-agencies present at the event pledged to bringing government services closer to the Malaya.
The provision of livelihood opportunities to former rebels is a part of the government’s whole-of-nation approach to end local communist armed conflict through the RTF-ELCAC.