CAMP SIONGCO, Dec. 22 -- The military campaign against loose firearms in the hands of civilians is gaining momentum as more residents in Sultan Kudarat province are coming forward to surrender their unlicensed guns, an Army official said Monday.

"The civilians are supporting our campaign; their action is laudable, it is a great help to our campaign against undocumented war materials," Lt. Col. Tristan Rey P. Vallescas, commander of the Army's 7th Infantry Battalion (7IB) based in Sultan Kudarat, said in a statement Monday.

Civilians, mostly farmers, decided to surrender their weapons in support of the government's Small Arms and Light Weapons (SALW) Management Program.

Vallescas said the residents voluntarily turned in their rifles and...