Naga City, Camarines Sur — Karapatan Sorsogon accused over the weekend elements of the Peace and Development Team (PDT) of the army’s 31st Infantry Battalion based in Barcelona, Sorsogon, of killing Teodoro Escanilla, alias “Tudoy,” 63, spokesperson of the group that touts itself as the “Alliance for the Advancement of People’s Rights.”
Six men in three motorcycles barged into Escanilla’s house at midnight last August 19 and shot him dead.
Karapatan claimed that in a sworn statement, a resident of Barangay San Antonio, Barcelona town, said the PDT arrived in their barangay in October 2014 and engaged in a population survey and interrogation of select residents whom it suspected of either being members, supporters or sympathizers of the New People’s Army (NPA).
The resident supposedly claimed that he was one of the residents “invited” for questioning by a certain Alex Buenaobra, whom he presumed to be the leader of the PDT. Buenaobra interrogated him inside the barangay hall of San Antonio on Nov. 22, 2014.
The affidavit further said: “Buenaobra offered to give the affiant a caliber .45 pistol and the sum of P50,000 to kill Tudoy or Teodoro Escanilla. He refused to do the bidding of Buenaobra. The said affiant was released after suffering long hours of mental and physical torture. He went to Manila for fear for his life and his family’s, and came back on February 21, 2015 when the PDT left their place.”
For Karapatan, there is no lingering doubt about the killers of Ka Tudoy.
“Only the 31st IBPA, based in Rangas, Juban, Sorsogon, have the motive and orientation (Oplan Bayanihan), weaponry, logistics and training to execute the operation to kill Ka Tudoy,” it said in a statement.
Asked to react on the accusations of Karapatan, Captain Mardjorie Panesa, spokesperson of the 9th ID, Phillippine Army said the army welcomes any impartial investigation into the killing of Escanilla and vowed to cooperate and assist authorities in identifying the perpetrators.
“The 9th ID and its subordinate units respect human rights and the international humanitarian law (IHL) all the time. We strictly follow the rules of engagement.
Records show that 9ID has no human rights violations to date and we condemn any form of human rights violation,” Panesa said.
http://www.mb.com.ph/karapatan-accuses-army-of-killing-activist/
Six men in three motorcycles barged into Escanilla’s house at midnight last August 19 and shot him dead.
The resident supposedly claimed that he was one of the residents “invited” for questioning by a certain Alex Buenaobra, whom he presumed to be the leader of the PDT. Buenaobra interrogated him inside the barangay hall of San Antonio on Nov. 22, 2014.
For Karapatan, there is no lingering doubt about the killers of Ka Tudoy.
Asked to react on the accusations of Karapatan, Captain Mardjorie Panesa, spokesperson of the 9th ID, Phillippine Army said the army welcomes any impartial investigation into the killing of Escanilla and vowed to cooperate and assist authorities in identifying the perpetrators.
Records show that 9ID has no human rights violations to date and we condemn any form of human rights violation,” Panesa said.
http://www.mb.com.ph/karapatan-accuses-army-of-killing-activist/
KARAPATAN is the main Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP)-associated human rights front group that is well known for conducting anti-military propaganda activities to include the leveling of often unsubstantiated allegations of HR violations against AFP military units.
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