From the Visayan Daily Star (Sep 13): 4 arrested ‘rebels’ are farmers: group
Jose Luis Blanco of Karapatan-Negros Oriental, in a statement, he issued, denounced what he calls the latest attacks against the civilian population, referring to the four suspected New People’s Army rebels arrested by Army’s Scout Rangers after two recent encounters in the hinterlands of Guihulngan City, Negros Oriental.
Blanco claimed they are ordinary farmers, and that the incident also led to the serious injury of another civilian.
The suspected rebels, identified as Ricardo Seniagan, 37, of Linantuyan and Thomas Carello Isugan, “alias Jamis”, 19, of Barangay Buenavista, all in Guihulngan City; Jessie Gamay Bongcawil, 19, of Barangay Nasunogan, La Libertad, Negros Oriental; and Dandy Manuling Pemerin, “alias Daniel”, 18, of La Castellana, Negros Occidental, are now in jail and have already been charged by the police with illegal possession of firearms and explosives.
The arrest of the four who were left behind by their fleeing comrades after an encounter with Army Rangers in Brgy. Plagatasanon, Guihulngan City, yielded an M14 assault rifle, two fragmentation grenades, combat packs containing subversive documents and medical equipment, among others.
Blanco, however, said the four civilians were arrested separately in locations far from the supposed encounter site.
Pursuit operations against the fleeing rebels also led to another encounter in Brgy. Linantuyan, Guihulngan City, military records show. Several days after the gun-battles, suspected rebels also harassed a military outpost in Brgy. Sandayao, Guihulngan City. However, no casualty was reported on the government side.
Blanco alleged that Ricanillo complained to Karapatan that he was manhandled by Scout Ranger troopers, while Demerin claimed he was forced to admit his involvement with the NPA, ands threatened with more criminal charges, if he refuses to cooperate with the military.
Karapatan has demanded the release of the four alleged civilians, and is scheduled to send a fact-finding team at Brgy. Plagatasanon, Guihulngan, to investigate the alleged abuses of the military.
http://www.visayandailystar.com/2013/September/13/negor1.htm
This propaganda activity in defense of captured NPA rebels is classic KARAPTAN.
ReplyDeleteKARAPATAN is a Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) human rights front organization. Its mission is to come to the defense/aid of captured/detained members of the underground movement and to discredit state security forces on the issue of human rights.
In this instance, KARAPATAN asserts that those captured are not rebels but are just simple farmers who were threatened and tortured into admitting their association with the New People's Army, the military wing of the CPP.
Of course, KARAPATAN conveniently fails to address the fact these "farmers" were captured while in possession of weapons, explosives, and subversive documents.