5 provinces in PNP watchlist for 4 straight election years

MANILA, Philippines – Five provinces in the Philippines have consistently been prone to election-related violence and politically motivated incidents in the last 4 election years, records of the Philippine National Police (PNP) show.

The provinces of Abra and Nueva Ecija in Luzon, Masbate in the Visayas, and Maguindanao and Lanao del Sur in Mindanao have been included in the PNP watchlist since the 2007 elections.

For the 2016 elections, the PNP named 9 provinces that are considered “high-risk” areas for possible violence in this year’s election

• Abra
• Pangasinan
• Lanao del Norte
• Lanao del Sur
• Masbate
• Negros Oriental
• Nueva Ecija
• Maguindanao
• Western Samar

A total of 23 provinces have been included in the police watchlist in the past 4 elections. Below is a map that illustrates where these provinces are and the years they were declared as police hot spots.

Five of the 6 provinces that make up the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) were repeatedly placed in the watchlist – Basilan, Lanao Del Sur, Maguindanao, and Sulu. Only Tawi-Tawi has been spared the list since 2007.

All the provinces in the Ilocos region – Ilocos Norte, Ilocos Sur, Pangasinan, and La Union – have been placed in the police watchlist. Pangasinan appeared twice in 4 election years.

Have you noticed any incidents of election-related violence in these areas? Or do you have any election-related complaints in these areas? Tell us about it in our #PHVoteWatch map. – Renz Paolo Regis/Rappler.com