Rebels raid budget hotel in Mindanao

DAVAO CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / August 19, 2009) – Philippine communist rebels raided a budget hotel and restaurant and seized weapons allegedly being by its owners to threaten peasants in the southern province of Bukidnon.

Isabel Santiago, a spokeswoman for the New People’s Army Herminio Alfonso Command, said rebel forces also ambushed pursuing soldiers and policemen in the village of Kipolot in Kitaotao town, but there were no reports of government casualties.

She said the rebels raided the Travelers Inn and Restaurant on Monday as a punishment for its owner, the Nietes family, for allegedly threatening peasants in the village.

“The Nietes family was disarmed as punishment for keeping high-powered firearms they used to threaten peasant civilians,” Santiago said.

“Violations of regulations on business operations inside guerrilla territories were the reasons for the punitive action on the Nietes establishment. The action was undertaken mainly to confiscate firearms, of which, one Uzi machine pistol was seized,” she added.

But the Army’s 10th Infantry Division said rebels raided the inn and robbed its owners of more than P20, 000 in cash and a pistol.

Captain Rosa Maria Cristina Manuel, an army spokesperson, said the rebels also took a civilian hostage who was later freed. “These people are terrorists who would take advantage of the weak. Troops are tracking down the NPA terrorists,” she said.

The NPA denied Manuel’s accusations and said rebels did not take any money. “As a matter of policy, the NPA do not take cash from punished targets. The allegations of are all lies,” Santiago said.

Major General Reynaldo Mapagu, commander of the 10th Infantry Division, condemned the raid. “The evil tactics employed by these terrorists show their inhuman and ungodly motives. The use of improvised explosive device as landmine and the use of civilians as human shields are clear violations of International Humanitarian law and against every conceivable moral standard worldwide. More so, robbing a fast food is pure felony.”

“We can clearly see that these local terrorists do not have any ideology at all. They are plain criminals who fester on the weak and take advantage of issues to advance their selfish motives,” he said.

He said the rebels last week also held hostage four civilians, including an 11 year-old girl, and used them as shield against government troops before they ransacked a military detachment in the village of Napungas in Davao Del Norte’s Asuncion town.

The NPA is the armed wing of the outlawed Communist Party of the Philippines which is currently negotiating peace with Manila. The rebels have been fighting the past four decades for the establishment of a Maoist state in the country. (Mindanao Examiner)

NPA rebels own up raid in Mindanao

DAVAO CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / August 11, 2009) – Philippine communist rebels on Tuesday claimed responsibility for a raid at a military post in Davao del Norte province in Mindanao.

The New People’s Army said the raiders seized 15 automatic rifles during the raid at the military post on Sunday in the village of Napundas in Asuncion town. It also denied military reports that rebels held hostage four people, including a girl and a government soldier and used them as shield from pursuing troops.

“Nothing is farther from the truth than the worn-out black propaganda of the Armed Forces of the Philippines on this matter. No civilian was used as a shield before, during, and after the swift NPA raid that all took five minutes to complete.”

“No harm of any sort was done to the enemy personnel because they did not offer any armed resistance; this is an affirmation of the NPA’s commitment in upholding its internal rules of discipline and the international rules of war,” said Marcella Valiente, a spokesperson for the NPA’s Armando Dumandan Command.

The Army’s 10th Infantry Division said the rebels used the hostages to shield them from government forces.

“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.

“As the 10th Infantry Division is mired in confusion and desperation, the People’s Army is right on track in forming new and additional platoons of Red fighters, armed by firearms confiscated from the enemy,” said Valiente.

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. Despite the talks, Manila and the NPA have no cease-fire agreement.

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

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)

NPA rebels kill pro-government militia in South RP

DAVAO CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / August 5, 2009) – Communist rebels have seized a pro-government militia and killed him in front of his family in the southern Philippine province of Compostela Valley, the military said on Wednesday.

The military said Benito Goso was seized by New People’s Army rebels in his house in the village

“Goso and his family were about to sleep when fully armed NPAs barged into their house shortly before 10 p.m. and forcibly took the unarmed victim and killed him despite the plea of his crying wife and children,” said Major Genera; Reynaldo Mapagu, commander of the Army’s 10th Infantry Division.

“These people are merciless, such barbaric act has no place in a civilized world. They have been repeatedly violating every conceivable law of the land and they do not respect human rights. The NPAs clearly and totally put the International Humanitarian Law and the International Convention on Armed Conflict in utter disregard.”

“It is unlawful and it is immoral to kill an unarmed individual, much more inside his home and in front of his family. They have not taken into consideration the trauma that the children may suffer. They are plain criminals without any ideology whatsoever,” Mapagu said.

The motive of the killing was unknown and there was no immediate statement from the NPA, which is fighting for the past four decades for the establishment of a Maoist state in the country. (Mindanao Examiner)

Security forces capture bomber in southern Philippines

DAVAO CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / July 30, 2009) – Security forces captured Thursday a suspected bomber tagged as behind the spate of attacks in the southern Philippines, officials said.

Officials said Mohammad Jaafar Maguid was captured after soldiers and policemen raided his hideout in the village of Daliao in Sarangani’s Maasim town at around 1 p.m.

“The arrested terrorist is a member of the lawless MILF group and is reportedly the mastermind of the blast in Maasim a month ago that killed one civilian and wounded 32 others,” said Captain Rose Maria Cristina Manuel, a spokeswoman for the Army’s 10th Infantry Division.

“Maguid is also being tagged as one of those who carried out the series of bombings in Maasim, Kiamba and Maitum towns that killed several civilians and wounded many others,” she added.

She said Maguid is also facing charges of murder, arson and robbery in the province.

Manuel said troops seized from Maguid one anti-tank rocket launcher, an M79 grenade launcher, a carbine rifle and magazine, a rocket-propelled grenade, a fragmentation grenade and a pair of binoculars, including materials and black powder used for the manufacture of improvised explosive devices.

She said security forces also recovered a cell phone which could be used as detonator to trigger explosion of homemade bombs, two cell phone charges, a radio transceiver and two pieces of 9-volt batteries.

Lieutenant Colonel Edgardo de Leon, who led the raid, said Maguid was a follower of wanted MILF leader Ameril Kato, who was behind a deadly attack in the province last year.

“With his arrest, the province would have relative peace and his victims will finally get justice,” he said.

Major General Reynaldo Mapagu, a regional army commander, praised the capture of Maguid and he appealed to citizens to help authorities fight terrorism by providing intelligence about lawless elements.

“The crusade against terrorism does not end here. We must unite as one nation and fight all threats to our national development. We call on our people, Muslims, Lumads (indigenous peoples) and Christians alike to join hands in making our community a safe place to live.”

“There is no better way to fight terrorism than understanding and communicating peacefully with each other. Together, let us create an atmosphere of mutual respect and sympathy so that we may journey towards lasting peace in our country,” Mapagu said.

There was no immediate statement from the MILF, the country’s largest Muslim rebel group which is fighting the past three decades for self-determination. Manila has reopened peace talks with the MILF in an effort to end the bloody hostilities in Mindanao. (Mindanao Examiner)

Philippine Army says 152 rebels surrender in Mindanao

A photo released by the Philippine Army shows Major General Reynaldo Mapagu, commander of the 10th Infantry Division in Mindanao, hands over cheques to New People's Army rebels who surrendered Tuesday, July 28, 2009 to the military after a series of negotiations. The army says a total of 152 NPA rebels have surrendered the past six months in southern Mindanao region. (Mindanao Examiner)

DAVAO CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / July 29, 2009) – Some 152 communist rebels have surrendered to the military in the southern Philippines the past six months after a series of negotiations, officials said Wednesday.

Army Captain Rosa Maria Cristina Manuel, a spokeswoman for the 10th Infantry Division, said the rebels, who were members of the New People’s Army, had also surrendered 32 assorted weapons, mostly rifles, and were provided livelihood aid as part of the government’s amnesty program.

“The former rebels who availed the government’s Social Integration Program ensures them of livelihood benefits that aims to help them return into the mainstream of the society and live with their families,” Manuel told the Mindanao Examiner.

Under the program, NPA rebels who surrender to the government will receive P20,000 each on top of P50,000 paid for their M16 rifle. Rebels are also given livelihood skills training and aid worth P50,000 for them to start their own business.

Major General Reynaldo Mapagu, aA regional army commander, urged rebels to surrender peacefully and avail of the government offer of amnesty for them to start a new life.

“We are moving forward towards peace and progress. This is the first step to the healing process and I am sure we are getting closer to achieving our goal of getting our brothers back into the folds of the law so that as one nation, we can jointly step forward to development.”

“We call on our brothers still on the mountains to go back into the folds of the law and give peace a chance. Our government is sincere in reaching out to them and we are waiting to give them the care and necessary help they need in order for them to enjoy a peaceful life with their families. We are all Filipinos and the only way for us to gain progress is to have lasting peace,” Mapagu said.

But Fidel Agcaoli, chairman of the Human Rights Committee of the National Democratic Front of the Philippines, has branded the Social Integration Program as a money-making scheme for corrupt military commanders.

“The so-called Social Integration Program is nothing but a money-making scheme for Armed Forces of the Philippines field commanders to buy their loyalty to the Gloria Arroyo regime and project through press releases the image of making strides in the regime's much vaunted objective of wiping out or rendering irrelevant the New People's Army by 2010,” Agcaoili said.

“These rebel returnees are actually local AFP agents and assets or civilians forcibly conscripted and coerced by the AFP to take part in elaborate surrender ceremonies and SIP graduation rites presided over sometimes by the fake president herself,” he added.

Agcaoili said the government allegedly spent P18.8 million last year for the bogus program. “In truth, the fake surrenderors retain only a little amount of that money while the huge chunk of the bounty goes to the pocket of field commanders and AFP officials," Agcaoili said.

The army spokeswoman denied Agcaoili’s accusation and branded them as propaganda to cover the truth about the surrender of many rebels to the government.

“There are a lot of process and safety measures in the granting of livelihood aid and assistance to the rebels who surrender to the military. We make sure that those who surrender are genuine members of the New People’s Army. All the funding released by the government for the Social Integration Program undergoes strict and regular audit procedures,” Manuel said.

The National Democratic Front of the Philippines is the political wing of the New People’s Army and the outlawed Communist Party of the Philippines. The rebels have been fighting the past for decades for the establishment of a Maoist state in the country. (Mindanao Examiner)

Police shot dead soldier tagged in 3 killings in Davao del Norte

DAVAO CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / July 1, 2009) – Police killed an army soldier who was tagged as one of two motorcycle gunmen who shot dead three people in an attack in the southern Filipino province of Davao del Norte.

The soldier, Corporal Arnold Toriano, shot a policeman and two other civilians Tuesday in the village of Tibal-og in Santo Tomas town. Toriano and his companion escaped, but they were pursued by policemen and engaged them in a running gun battle until the soldier was shot and killed.

Policemen were apparently unaware the slain gunman was a soldier until his unit arrived and clashed with the lawmen. The soldiers took the body of Toriano, a member of the 72nd Infantry Battalion and escaped.

It was not immediately known why Toriano killed the policeman and two other people and whether his companion was also a soldier or not. It was unknown if the soldier had anything to do with killings of many political activists and peasant leaders in the province. Militant groups have repeatedly accused soldiers as behind extrajudicial killings in Davao del Norte.

But Major General Reynaldo Mapagu, commander of the Army’s 10th Infantry Division, ordered an investigation into the involvement of Toriano in the killings and the clash between soldiers and policemen.

Mapagu assured that there will be no cover up in the investigation. He also relieved the commander of the 72nd Infantry Battalion, Lieutenant Colonel Victor Tan and Toriano’s superior, First Lieutenant Heriberto Sangalang, while investigations are going on.

Sangalang led soldiers who took Toriano’s body and eventually clashed with the police. He claimed Toriano called up for back-up before he was killed and said gunmen engaged them in a firefight in the village of Tibal-og.

Sangalang said he was unaware that Toriano was being pursued by policemen for killing three people. “Lieutenant Sangalang, with the desire to provide assistance to the beleaguered Toriano, immediately organized a team composed of soldiers under 60th Infantry Battalion and rushed to the scene.”

“Lieutenant Sangalang, not aware of the circumstances surrounding the incident, took the cadaver of Corporal Toriano that led to a tense situation between the military and the policemen present in the area. The cadaver was brought to the headquarters of 60th Infantry Battalion based at Dona Andrea Asuncion town in Davao Del Norte,” an army spokesman, Lieutenant Colonel Roland de Guzman, said.

De Guzman said all the soldiers who were involved in the clash with policemen had been apprehended and brought to the police headquarters for further investigations.

“Major General Mapagu also instructed the Inspector General of the 10th Infantry Division to conduct an investigation and look into the administrative liabilities of those involved as the Philippine National Police determines the soldiers’ criminal liabilities,” Bautista said.

He also quoted Mapagu as saying: “Despite my specific guidance of giving utmost importance to discipline and respect for human rights, there are still soldiers who deviate from this instruction resulting to negative perception of the public on the 10ID as a whole. I will not hesitate to discharge those involved if found guilty of violating the provisions under Articles of War.”

Since he assumed as division commander in February, Mapagu - who once headed the elite Scout Rangers - has discharged a total of 29 erring soldiers, including an infantryman who was implicated in a robbery case last month, and also demoted a dozen more for various offenses. (Mindanao Examiner)

Philippine Army presents captured NPA rebel leader in Mindanao

DAVAO CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / June 18, 2009) – The Philippine Army on Thursday paraded a senior communist rebel leader captured by soldiers in Mindanao.

Lieutenant Kurt Decapia, of the Army’s 10th Infantry Division, said rebel leader Felix Capalla was captured on Sunday at a checkpoint in the village of Pulatana in Sarangani’s Malungon town. But his arrest was only announced by the military on Thursday in Davao City.

Capalla is vice commander for regional operations of the New People’s Army, armed wing of the outlawed Communist Party of the Philippines to which he is a politburo member.

Decapia said the rebel leader was in a commuter bus bound for Davao City when he was arrested at the checkpoint.

He said Capalla was behind the series of attacks against military and civilian targets in Mindanao.

Major General Reynaldo Mapagu, commander of the 10th Infantry Division, said the capture of Capalla was a big blow to the CPP and the NPA. “This is another big blow to the CPP leadership. We will continually exert more efforts to arrest more of them and make these criminals responsible before the law for the crimes they have committed,” he said.

Mapagu urged rebels to surrender and return to the folds of the law. “We appreciate it more if the NPAs will voluntarily surrender and return to the mainstream society. We will assure our brothers, who are still in the mountains, that we will assist them to avail of the Social Integration Program of the government,” Mapagu said.

The NPA is fighting for the establishment of a Maoist state in the Philippines and peace talks with Manila had collapsed in 2004. The rebels accused the Arroyo government of reneging on a deal that would free political prisoners and stop extrajudicial killings of activists in the country. (Mindanao Examiner)

2 army officers killed in rebel attacks in Mindanao

DAVAO CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / June 15, 2009) – Communist rebels killed an army officer and wounded an infantryman in a clash Monday in the southern Philippines, officials said.

Officials said the soldiers encountered members of the New People’s Army in Davao del Norte’s Talaingod town and a firefight ensued. “One of our officers was killed and a foot soldier wounded in the fighting,” said Captain Rosa Maria Cristina Manuel, a spokeswoman for the Army’s 10th Infantry Division.

She said the clash erupted in the village of Dagohoy. It was not immediately known if there were enemies killed in the fighting, but it was the second time that NPA rebels attacked and killed an army officer in a span of 24 hours.

On Sunday, communist rebels set off an improvised explosive, killing an army officer and wounding three other soldiers in the village of Bantwan in Davao Oriental’s Baganga town where troops were tracking down NPA fighters.

“The soldiers stepped on a claymore mine while responding from calls by residents that NPA rebels were in the area. One of our officers was killed and three others were wounded,” Manuel said.

Manuel did not release the ranks and names of the soldiers, but other military sources said the slain officer was deployed with the 67th Infantry Battalion. The wounded soldiers were identified as Private First Class Marvin Parreno, Paul John Fornis and Private Jerry Lagayan.

Manuel has tagged rebel commanders Dominiciano Moya, Floro Mamaumbong and Samay as behind the attack.

Major General Reynaldo Mapagu, a regional army commander, said security forces were pursuing the NPA forces responsible in the two attacks. “The incidents did not affect the morale of the operating troops, but more they became aggressive and committed to punish the perpetrators,” he said.

The NPA broke off peace talks with Manila in 2004 after both sides failed to sign a deal that would put an end to more than four decades of insurgency in the country. (Mindanao Examiner)

Troops kill rebel in Mindanao fighting

DAVAO CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / June 11, 2009) – Government soldiers killed a communist rebel and wounded at least 10 more in a clash Thursday in the southern Philippines, officials said.

Officials said the fighting broke out in the village called Napnapan in Compostela Valley’s Pantukan town where a rebel encampment was overrun by troops shortly before 3 p.m. Troops also recovered weapons and improvised explosives left behind by New People’s Army rebels.

“The troops were able to overrun the harbor site of the NPA which was laid with anti-personnel mines. The encounter was the result of the continuous pursuit operations conducted by the unit after the troops overrun an NPA encampment also in the village of Napnapan on June 2,” said Army Captain Rosa Maria Cristina Manuel, a spokeswoman for the 10th Infantry Division.

“Local residents reported to the troops that they saw more than ten wounded NPA members being carried along by their comrades using three commuter motorcycles,” she said.

Manuel said the rebels were also behind the May 29 raid on Apex Mining in Maco town in Compostela Valley after soldiers found the company’s security tags in the encampment.

Meanwhile, Major General Reynaldo Mapagu, commander of the army division, said civilians played a key role in the success of the government operations against the NPA. “The support of the civilians in the area was the key to our success. This simply means that the general public wants peace and progress, not an armed struggle,” he said. (Mindanao Examiner)

NPA rebels execute captured army soldier in Mindanao

DAVAO CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / May 23, 2009) – Communist rebels fighting for a separate Maoist state in the Philippines have executed a government soldier they captured in the restive region of Mindanao, officials said.

Officials said the body of Staff Sergeant Rolen Maglangit, of the 36th Infantry Battalion, was recovered at around 6.30 p.m. on Saturday, a day after he was seized by New People’s Army rebels in Compostela Valley province.

Two policemen who were also reported taken by the rebels in the town of Monkayo town had been accounted for, said Captain Rosa Maria Cristina Manuel, a spokeswoman for the 10th Infantry Division.

“The abducted soldier is dead,” she told the Mindanao Examiner.

Maglangit was seized by the NPA after he tried to aid villagers being harassed by rebels in the village of Pasian.

“The commotion reached the attention of Maglangit, who was in the area procuring supplies. Maglangit, on civilian attire and unarmed, rushed to the scene to verify the disturbance.”

“He was able to relay the report to his unit when he confirmed the presence of undetermined number of NPAs harassing the civilians. While leaving the area, another group of NPAs suddenly held Maglangit and eventually kidnapped him,” the army spokeswoman said.

Major General Reynaldo Mapagu, commander of the army division, the soldier was brutally killed. His body bore torture marks and several gunshot wounds.

“The brutal murder of Staff Sergeant Rolen Maglangit perpetuated by the NPA last May 22 is enough wake up call for the Mindanaoans to unite and a put to stop their killing spree.”

“They have switched to a mode wherein they are willing to violate human rights and put justice into their own hands,” Mapagu said in a statement.

“We believe that he was murdered immediately after his kidnapping. I am sure that Sergeant Maglangit was not even sentenced by their kangaroo court. He was a brave soldier. He was going around his area of work, checking on the reported harassment of civilians by the NPA, when he was kidnapped,” Mapagu said.

The NPA said the soldier was killed during his attempted escape.

“Consistent with the Standard Operating Procedures pertaining to enemy combatants arrested or captured by NPA units, Sgt. Maglangit was to be subjected to an investigation for possible violations of human rights, other violations of international humanitarian law and crimes against the people particularly owing to the notorious record of the 36th Infantry Battalion versus the masses in the tri-boundaries of Agusan del Sur, Davao Oriental and Compostela Valley provinces.”

“But after being informed of the investigation he needed to undergo and despite repeated warnings from his captors not to run in the course of their trek, Sgt. Maglangit showed clear signs of resistance and eventually tried to escape. He was able to run a distance, but was hit by a burst of gunfire from the pursuing NPA troops. His corpse was left behind so as to be easily discovered by residents for proper disposition,” said Rigoberto Sanchez, a rebel spokesman.

The abduction of Maglangit came barely two weeks after rebels freed a captured government soldier – Private First Class Ronnie Trinidad - in Compostela Valley. The NPA said it freed the soldier on humanitarian grounds.

Rebels captured Trinidad, who belongs to the 66th Infantry Battalion, on April 28 at a checkpoint in the village of Pagsabangan in New Bataan town. Trinidad was seized while on his way to barracks with another soldier, Corporal Japhet Lavid, who had escaped from rebels.

Last week, communist rebels also executed a former army soldier, Dante Villa, they seized May 9 in Davao del Sur province, also in Mindanao. His body was recovered in the village of Dongan Pekong in Matanao town.

Early this month, NPA rebels admitted killing four civilians - Ruben Bitang, Macky Estremos, Marcelino Payot and Bobong Gambuta - they accused of aiding the military in its anti-insurgency campaign. The rebels also tagged the four men as behind the brutal murder of Rebelyn Bitang, a daughter of a senior NPA leader Leoncio Pitao.

Pitao’s daughter was abducted in Davao City on March 4. Her naked body was found the next day floating in a shallow creek in the village of San Isidro in Davao del Norte’s Carmen town. Her family said the woman’s body bore torture marks and was believed raped.

The NPA is the armed wing of the outlawed Communist Party of the Philippines, which has been waging a secessionist war in the country. Peace talks between Manila and the CPP-NPA collapsed in 2004 after both sides failed to sign an agreement to end more than four decades of bloody fighting. (Mindanao Examiner)

Search continues for missing landslide victims in southern Philippines

DAVAO CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / May 19, 2009) – At least 45 people were dead and missing following a landslide at a gold rush site in the southern Philippine province of Compostela Valley, security officials said on Tuesday.

Officials said army soldiers and government militias were sent to help in the search for more than a dozen people reported missing since Monday’s landslide in the village of Napnapan in Pantukan town.

“Heavy rains loosened mud and boulders and the landslide killed at least 26 people and 19 others are still missing. We are searching for them,” Captain Rosa Maria Cristina Manuel, a spokeswoman for the Army’s 10th Infantry Division, told the Mindanao Examiner.

Manuel said at least 16 more were injured in the landslide. More than two dozen houses were either buried or destroyed by the landslide, she said.

She said Maj. Gen. Reynaldo Mapagu, commander of the 10th Infantry Division, ordered more troops in the area to help in the search and rescue operation.

“Soldiers from the 2nd Scout Ranger Battalion are helping rescuers in the area. Government militias are also helping search for those missing,” she said.

Philippine troops were deployed on a remote mountain town in Mindanao to help in search and rescue operation after a landslide buried small houses, officials said Saturday.

Late last year, at least a dozen people, among them children, were also killed in landslides in Monkayo and Maco towns, both gold rush areas in Compostela Valley.

Army soldiers were also sent in the province in the past to help rescuers search for landslide survivors. Many small scale miners put up thatched houses from near where they are digging for gold.

Authorities have previously banned miners from putting up houses and structures on mountain slopes because of the dangers posed by mudslides. Squatters have mushroomed in the area over the years despite similar incidents in the past. (Mindanao Examiner)

Philippine Army accused NPA rebels of violating rights of captured soldier

DAVAO CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / May 10, 2009) – Communist rebels continue to hold a government soldier the Philippine Army claimed was abducted in Mindanao.

It said New People’s Army (NPA) rebels abducted Private First Class Ronnie Trinidad, who belongs to the 66th Infantry Battalion, last month in the village of Pagsabangan in Compostela Valley’s New Bataan town.

The army accused the rebels of violating Trinidad’s human rights by holding him against his will.

“This is a clear violation of law. The longer that they will hold our soldier, the more pain that they will inflict to him and his family as they continuously hold him against his will,” said Major General Reynaldo Mapagu, the commander of the army division.

Mapagu said Trinidad’s family fears for his life and agonizes over his continuing captivity. He also quoted the solder’s mother, Juliet Trinidad, as saying: “He is our only hope in life. He is a good soldier whose only dream is to serve other people.”

Rebels seized Trinidad on April 28 while on his way to barracks with another soldier, Corporal Japhet Lavid, who was able to escape.

In January, NPA rebels freed a captured Special Forces commander, First Lieutenant Vicente Cammayo after holding him as prisoner of war for two months in Compostela Valley.

Cammayo was captured November 7 after rebel forces attacked his unit and killed two soldiers and a government militia in a fierce firefight in Casoon village in the town of Monkayo.

Last year, the rebels also released a policeman Eduardo Tumol, who was seized November 5 at a checkpoint in the village of Baogo in Davao Oriental's Caraga town.

The NPA said that both Tumol and Cammayo were investigated for possible human rights violations and other crimes related to the operations of the Special Forces and the Provincial Police Mobile Group in Mindanao.

The rebels said Trinidad also faces the same investigation. The NPA assured the soldier’s family that they will respect his rights as a prisoner of war.

“They claim to be vanguards of justice and people’s rights, but they have a record of violating the rights of the people with impunity. In the absence of due process, how can they say that justice is best served in the eyes of our people who recognize only the legitimate court of law?” Mapagu asked.

The NPA, armed wing of the outlawed Communist Party of the Philippines, is fighting the government for the establishment of a Maoist state in the country.

Peace talks between Manila and the CPP-NPA collapsed in 2004 after both sides failed to sign an agreement to end more than four decades of bloody fighting. (Mindanao Examiner)

Gunman kill anti-mining activist in Mindanao; military denies hand in murder

DAVAO CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / Apr. 30, 2009) – An unidentified gunman killed a militant leader who opposed mining operations in the southern Philippines.

Ludinio Monson was shot in the town of Boston in Davao Oriental province on Wednesday afternoon and the military has quickly denied any involvement in the killing and condemned the attack.

Militant groups and leftist organizations have blamed the military for the murder of Monson, who led anti-mining protests and rallies in the past in Mindanao.

“The news linking the military to the killing is no surprise. It became the practice of militant groups to attribute the killing and use the issue in discrediting the Armed Forces of the Philippines and the government,” said Maj. Gen. Reynaldo Mapagu, a regional army commander.

He said Monson, chairman of the militant group called “Negkahiusa Koy Mag-uuma to Boston,” could have been killed by people he wronged in the past.

Mapagu said it is not the military policy to target innocent civilians in its campaign against communist insurgents. He ordered army commanders in the province to work closely with the police and cooperate with government agencies investigating the killing.

Lt. Col. Rolando Bautista, a spokesman for the Army’s 10th Infantry Division, the accusations against the military linking soldiers to the murder was baseless.

“It is our best interest to seek the truth and find out the real culprits so that we can clear the name of the organization from the accusations of some individuals who maliciously link us to the crime even without any solid basis or evidence,” he said.

Militant groups have linked the military in extrajudicial killings of political activists and civilians suspected as supporters of the communist New People’s Army. 

Leftist organizations and human rights groups also implicated government soldiers in the abduction and brutal killing of Rebelyn Pitao, daughter of a senior NPA leader in Mindanao, Leoncio Pitao alias Kumander Parago.

Pitao, 20, was abducted in Davao City on March 4 and her naked body was found the next day floating in a shallow creek in the village of San Isidro in Davao del Norte’s Carmen town. Her body bore torture marks and was believed raped before she was stabbed in the chest.

Pitao tagged 11 military agents as behind the murder of his daughter, a teacher by profession, who led a simple and quiet life with her family in Davao City. 

Communist rebels broke off peace talks with Manila in 2004 after the United States listed the communist groups as foreign terrorist organizations and froze their assets abroad on government's prodding. (Mindanao Examiner)