Gov’t all-out-war policy terrorizes Quirino folk

From the often pro-CPP online publication the Northern Dispatch Weekly (NORDIS) (Mar 6): Gov’t all-out-war policy terrorizes Quirino folk

MADDELA, QUIRINO — “Binalot ng takot ang mga mamamayan ng Quirino dahil sa pagdating ng 86th Infantry Battalion ng Philippine Army (IBPA).” (Terror engulfed the people of Quirino when 86th Infantry Battalion of the Philippine Army arrived.)

This was the conclusion of the advance team of a fact-finding mission launched by Karapatan Cagayan Valley and the Cagayan Valley Alliance of Human Rights Advocates (CAHRA) after troops from the 86th IBPA swarmed all over barangays San Martin, Manglad, Cabua-an, and Ysmael in this town as early as February 13.

The military presence in the four barangays forced at least 691 documented residents on February 18 to flee from their homes for almost five days.

Distress among peasants

“Mabutbuteng kami nu adda soldado ditoy,” (We are afraid -in terror- when the soldiers here) said Elena Taguiling, 49, a resident of Barangay Cabua-an.

Elena, is a native of Ifugao who migrated to Maddela in the 70s in search for land to till. She said that this is the first time she and her family had to evacuate.

She, along with 410 others from her barangay, evacuated to the town’s municipal gym, around 10 kilometers and two river crossings away from their village.

“Disturbance isuda a, mabuteng kami a maawan ti daga mi ket gapu ta adda ti militar,” (They are a disturbance, we are afraid that we may lose our lands because of the military’s presence) she said.

State forces entered Cabua-an as part of their all-out-war campaign against New People’s Army (NPA) rebels.

Elena said government soldiers called for a meeting with the residents to explain their presence. “Kunada, adu nga NPA idtoy ayan mi ken in-interrogate da ti maysa a lider ti barangay,” (They, the soldiers, said there were many NPA rebels in our community, they even interrogated one barangay leader). she added.

Other residents said they had difficulty during evacuation, where at least two elderly women, one bed-ridden, had to be carried all the way to the evacuation site.

Civilians under attack

86th IBPA men, meanwhile, also harassed a local community leader in Cabua-an, according to a resident who, in fear, requested anonimity. The resident who witnessed the harassment said three groups of armed soldiers entered the community leader’s house and asked about the NPA’s whereabouts.

“Pinadapa at tinutukan ng baril,” (They made him drop to the ground face down and pointed a gun at him) the witness said.

The soldiers accused the victim to be an NPA sympathizer and asked who were the NPA rebels in their community. The communty leader was a former barangay captain of Cabua-an.

In Barangay Ysmael, the raiding soldiers forcibly took poultry and other produce from the community folk. Some soldiers barged into their homes to cook and badger the household folk with questions if they saw NPA rebels. The soldiers also drank gin at the village sari-sari.

‘No NPAs here’

Residents of the four barangays belied the military’s claim about NPA presence. In reminiscence one resident said that “the last time they ever saw NPA rebels in their villages was way back to the late 1990s.

“Ngayon lang namin naranasan magbakwit, wala kaming engkwentro ng NPA sa lugar namin. Matagal na noong huli,” (This is the first time we experienced an evacuation. We haven’t encountered any NPAs in our area recently.) they said.

That did not stop the entry of military troops to the barangays, however. Residents of barangay Cabua-an and Ysmael said they have heard volleys of gunfire on February 18 and 19.

Norma Bugbog from Cabua-an, said she saw tracer bullets shooting upward on February 19. She chose to stay behind in their village. She said the soldiers even slept in her grandfather’s blacksmith shop on the evening of February 19.

Another resident of Cabua-an also mentioned of a firefight in nearby Barangay Dihobatan that triggered the evacuations from their purok on the morning of February 18.

Locals of Barangay Ysmael said government soldiers in full battle gear aboard a 6×6 army truck arrived in their community the morning of February 18. At around 7:00PM they heard gunshots. Early the next day, Ysmael folk decided to gather in their barangay center for safety.

Calls for peace

According to Karapatan Cagayan Valley, peasants and ordinary people have long borne the brunt of the government’s “all-out war” against the Communist Party of the Philippines-New Peoples Army-National Democratic Front (CPP-NPA-NDF).

In a press statement, Karapatan stressed that waging a war against the communist rebels will never address the roots of the armed revolution the CPP-NPA-NDFP has been waging for more than four decades now.

“Hindi marunong matuto ang gobyernong Duterte sa mga aral ng madugong kasaysayan ng Batas Militar, Total War at Low Intensity Conflict,” (The Duterte administration has failed to learn from the bloody history of Martial Law, Total War and Low Intensity Conflict) the statement read.

There is still room for peace though, the human rights group said.

“Sa kabila ng takot ay batid ng mamamayan ng Quirino at Cagayan ang kahalagahan ng peace talks bilang isa sa mga hakbang upang maresolba ang ugat ng armadong rebolusyon sa bansa,” (Despite their fear, the Quirino and Cagayan people know the importance of the peace talks as a step toward addressing the roots of the armed revolution in the country) the statement ended. # nordis.net

http://www.nordis.net/2017/03/govt-all-out-war-policy-terrorizes-quirino-folk/