Thwarted attack

From the Manila Bulletin (Sep 25): Thwarted attack

Joint operatives of the Army’s 57th Infantry Battalion (57IB) and the Philippine National Police (PNP) prevented a group of some 200 armed men from attacking a banana plantation at a remote village in Tulunan, North Cotabato, a military official said.

Lt. Manuel Gatus, commander of the Charlie Company of the 57IB, said the attackers left the area after sensing that they were outnumbered.

Gatus identified the armed group as under a leader he identified as “Sukarno Kusain,” a resident of a town in Maguindanao who was among the claimants of a parcel of land formerly owned by the Delinanas Banana Company, now under the management of the Del Monte Philippines.

Kusain and other members of his group who are mostly his relatives want to get a share from the income of the company, Gatus said.

“Kusain and his relatives used to get a share from this land. But they already sold their lots to the company. Now, they are claiming it back. This is about land conflict that must be addressed by government agencies, like the Department of Agrarian Reform,” the military official said.

http://www.mb.com.ph/thwarted-attack/