MANILA, Philippines – The Philippine Catholic Church rejected a proposed $137.8-million budget to “reward” villages that have “cleared” themselves of communists, saying that the government should address the “structural roots of poverty” instead.

Caritas Philippines, the social action arm of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines, demanded a “moral scrutiny” of this proposed $137.8-million allocation for the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC).

The NTF-ELCAC is the anti-communism task force that was created by then-president Rodrigo Duterte in December 2018 to stamp out the five-decade-old communist insurgency. It came a year after Duterte ended peace talks with communist rebels.

The task force, however, was criticized by the Church and human rights groups for alleged red-tagging, the practice of falsely tagging activists as communists.

A number of those red-tagged were Catholic missionaries who worked with the poor in the countryside.

The huge allocation for NTF-ELCAC, therefore, alarmed Church leaders who have long emphasized the need for long-term peace instead of violence. The Church is one of the advocates of peace talks between the Philippine government and communist rebels.

“Precisely because we seek genuine and lasting peace, we raise grave concern over this allocation, which is presented as a ‘reward’ for local government units and barangays (villages) declared ‘cleared’ of insurgency,” Caritas said in a pastoral statement posted by its president, Bishop Gerardo Alminaza, on Tuesday.

“Peace is not a prize to be handed out, nor a favor to be earned. Peace is the fruit of justice,” it continued. “We recognize the desire of government to bring peace and development to conflict-affected areas. Yet good intentions cannot justify approaches that undermine justice, human dignity, and democratic participation.”

Caritas said it was wrong to frame development assistance as a form of “reward.” Otherwise, the government “converts public funds into instruments of patronage rather than tools of empowerment.” Aid, then, “becomes associated not with people’s inherent dignity and rights, but with compliance, silence, and political favor.”

Caritas also challenged the government to confront the “structural roots of poverty” rather than be content with infrastructure projects such as farm-to-market roads, health stations, and water systems.

“The harder questions remain unanswered: Why do communities remain poor? Why do farmers remain landless? Why does public wealth continue to be concentrated in the hands of a few political families?” said Caritas.

“Without confronting political dynasties, corruption, landlessness, insecure work, and weak accountability, development initiatives, no matter how well-intentioned, will not bring lasting peace,” it added.

The Church called for “a justice-centered path to peace” that is consistent with Catholic social teaching. They urged Filipino leaders to invest in eradicating political dynasties, advancing agrarian reform, and pursuing dialogue for the sake of peace, among other things.

“In addressing political and religious leaders in conflict-affected regions, Pope Leo XIV once warned against confusing order with peace. Silence enforced by fear is not peace. Peace requires justice that heals wounds and restores dignity,” Caritas said.

NTF-ELCAC, however, swiftly reacted to the Caritas statement. The agency’s executive director, Undersecretary Ernesto Torres Jr., said the $138 million refers to the barangay development program (BDP) that is meant to be implemented by various government agencies, not NTF-ELCAC alone.

“The ₱8.08 billion ($138 million) is not an NTF-ELCAC fund in the way it is being portrayed. It is not a discretionary pool, not a patronage fund, and not an ‘ayuda’ (dole-out) dispensed in exchange for compliance or silence,” Torres said on Thursday.

He added that the funded projects “are not cash handouts but consist of basic, long-overdue infrastructure and social services such as farm-to-market roads, water systems, health stations, schools, and electrification.”

Torres said the agency welcomes the NTF-ELCAC’s criticism as a part of democracy, but accuracy and context were also needed. “We welcome continued engagement so that truth — not disinformation — guides our shared pursuit of building better peace grounded in justice,” Torres explained.