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Paper short abstract:

Philippine insurgency demands governance-centric solutions. This study analyzes how RCSP integrates human security principles through local empowerment and development. Using Negros as a case study, we show sustainable peace requires institutionalized resilience frameworks within military planning.

Paper long abstract:

The persistence of insurgency in the Philippines stems from endemic socioeconomic disparities, institutional fragility, and systemic political marginalization. This study critically analyzes the Retooled Community Support Program (RCSP) as a counterinsurgency framework that integrates security imperatives with human security principles. Transcending conventional militarized paradigms, the RCSP operationalizes a Whole-of-Nation approach through three interdependent pillars: empowering local governance structures, catalyzing inclusive economic development, and fostering multi-stakeholder peace infrastructures. Through empirical analysis of Negros’ conflict ecology, this research demonstrates how the RCSP’s governance-centric model enhances community resilience by addressing root causes of insecurity while creating adaptive capacities and resilience.

The findings underscore the strategic imperative of aligning counterinsurgency operations with sustainable development objectives, particularly given unstable USAID allocations, climate change pressures, and evolving Asia-Pacific security dynamics. The paper contends that effective counterinsurgency requires institutionalizing the humanitarian-development-peace nexus within military doctrine, arguing for the Armed Forces of the Philippines’ (AFP) transition from territorial pacification to conflict-sensitive governance partnerships. Specific policy prescriptions include decentralizing resource allocation to LGUs, mainstreaming social cohesion metrics in security evaluations, and establishing civil-military development task forces.

By demonstrating how security actors can operationalize resilience frameworks in contested territories, this research advances theoretical debates on post-liberal peacebuilding. It provides empirical evidence for conflict transformation models that prioritize participatory governance over kinetic dominance, offering replicable insights for hybrid warfare contexts across the globe.