NPA denies casualty in clash against Army in La Libertad

From the Visayan Daily Star (Dec 3): NPA denies casualty in clash against Army in La Libertad

The Leonardo Panaligan Command of the New People’s Army denied that it incurred a casualty in an encounter with the military in La Libertad, Negros Oriental, on Nov. 24, claiming it was possibly a “mis-encounter” with a group of “Greenans,” a religious cult.

Rebel spokesman Ka JB Regalado, said in a statement he issued that the military’s claim of an NPA casualty is more of “pogi points”, and mere “black propaganda.”

The 11th Infantry Battalion, however, maintained that it was an encounter between its Bravo Company troopers and about 10 armed members of the Larangan Gerilya I unit of the NPA, that had resulted in the killing of a suspected NPA member, the recovery of a carbine rifle, and a backpack containing personal belongings and subversive documents.

1Lt. Von Ryan Gomez, 11IB Civil Military Operations officer, yesterday identified the slain rebel as a certain Ranie Garsola of Brgy. Amontay, Binalbagan, Negros Occidental.

Gomez said the body of the slain rebel was claimed and later buried by members of his family.

Regalado, citing their own investigations, however, claimed it was a mis-encounter between the 11IB and a group of Greenans, who had been jointly conducting military operations in the mountainous areas of La Libertad and Guihulngan in Negros Oriental, and Binalbagan, Negros Occidental, since Nov. 22, involving about 100 Army soldiers.

He also claimed that 15 to 19 Greenan members joined the military operations, and called the actuations of the AFP a violation of the provisions of the Comprehensive Agreement on Respect for Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law, that prohibits the issuance of firearms to civilians, and of having them join their military operations.

Brig. Gen. Francisco Patrimonio, 302nd Infantry Brigade commander, had said earlier that the NPA violated its own ceasefire, by firing first at Army soldiers, that had led to the running gunbattle.

http://www.visayandailystar.com/2013/December/03/negor3.htm