NPA rebels raid military post in southern Philippines

DAVAO CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / August 10, 2009) – Communist rebels stormed a military post and briefly held hostage four people, including a government soldier before retreating to the hills in the southern Philippine province of Davao del Norte, security officials said Monday.

Officials said the weekend raid occurred in Napungas village in the town of Asuncion where New People’s Army rebels carted 15 automatic rifles and a radio transceiver.

“The rebels held two village officials, a child, and a government soldier and used them as shield against pursuing troops,” said Captain Rosa Maria Cristina Manuel, a spokeswoman for the Army’s 10th Infantry Division.

She said the rebels later freed all the hostages unharmed.

It was unknown why soldiers deployed in the village failed to prevent the raid, but Major General Reynaldo Mapagu, the army division commander, has ordered an investigation into the attack.

Mapagu said that a board of inquiry to be led by the Division Inspector General has been tasked to conduct the investigation.

“This is to determine the background and the cause of the incident, lapses committed by our troops, probable violations of standard operating procedures and to come up with recommendations in order to avoid future occurrence of this sort, specifically to protect noncombatants in such cases without bowing to the terrorists’ demands.” Mapagu said.

The raid came ahead of the resumption of peace talks between rebels and government negotiators in October in Norway. Peace talks collapsed in 2004 after both sides failed to sign a deal that would put an en to more than four decades of bloody fighting in the country.

The rebels are fighting for the establishment of a Maoist state in the Philippines. (Mindanao Examiner)

Spray Plane Crashes In South RP, Pilot Killed

DAVAO CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / Nov. 19, 2007) – A small aircraft crashed and exploded Monday on a remote village in southern Philippines, killing its pilot, officials said.

Emmanuel Antonio, of the Air Transportation Office, said the aircraft crashed while spraying pesticide in the village of Magatos in Davao del Norte’s Asuncion town at around 8 a.m.

“The plane exploded on impact and we have received reports that its pilot, Captain Rico Cajucom, was killed in the crash,” Antonio told the MiThe Manila Times.

He said the spray plane crashed near a farm. “We still don’t know why the aircraft crashed,” he said.

It was not immediately known what company the pilot was working with, but Davao del Norte is the leading producer of bananas and many plantations run by multinationals Dole and Del Monte and local producers such as Lapanday, Marsman and TADECO. (Mindanao Examiner)