A military spokesman highlighted the fact that the Communist rebels were recruiting children for their campaign. I was so shocked. Earlier this week, the Philippine defence secretary, Orlando Mercado, held talks in Manila with the visiting head of the United Nations Children's Fund, Carol Bellamy, on what he described as the growing problem of child recruitment by guerrilla groups. The Philippine Government has faced almost continuous insurgencies from both Communist and Muslim rebels for more than 20 years. Clashes At least nine people were killed in fresh fighting in the south of the country on Thursday between government forces and Muslim separatists.
Reports vary as to whether the rebels or the government forces came off worst in the clashes.
According to some reports, a farmer was caught up in the clashes and died. The clashes occurred during a break in peace talks between the two sides aimed at ending a 28-year rebellion. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites Links to other Asia-Pacific stories are at the foot of the page.