Summary Report on the Extrajudicial Killings, Abductions, and Harassment of Activists From January – April 16, 2005

Prepared by Bayan Muna Partylist (People First Party)
April 20, 2005

A new wave of extra-judicial killings, abductions, and harassments combined with the military’s campaign of vilification against activists has swept the country since the January 2005. Thirty-one (31) unarmed civilians have been murdered, nineteen (19) of them were activists identified with progressive parties and organizations and five (5) have been missing as of January-April 16, 2005. There were four cases of assassination attempts. Officials and operatives of the Armed Forces of the Philippines were repeatedly implicated in all the serious crimes committed against political dissenters.

The 2005 armed attacks are a continuation of the series of violent attacks and vilification campaigns directed against legitimate progressive parties and organizations since President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo assumed office in Malacañang in 20 January 2001. However, the violent attacks which started in the middle of January this year have been more frequent and widespread compared to the past three years. The attacks bolster the view that a systematic and coordinated campaign is being launched to violently crush legitimate parties and organizations and any form of political dissent. It appears that the bloody experiment, which murdered scores of activists in Mindoro Oriental from April 2001 to the first quarter 2004, is now being replicated nationwide. The fascist storm, the onslaught on activists, is now being felt in the Ilocos regions, Central Luzon, Southern Tagalog, the Bicol region, and Eastern Visayas.

Bayan Muna (People First Party), which topped the 2001 and 2004 party list elections and got the maximum three seats in Congress, has been the main target of attack with fifty one (51) members and officers killed since 2001 and fourteen (14) are still missing. Just this January-March of 2005, two of its regional heads and national council members, one city and one municipal president, have been shot dead. Three officials of Anakpawis Party (Party of the Toiling Masses), a new party which won two seats in Congress, have also been murdered, bringing to nineteen (19) the total members killed since the party’s formation two years ago. Gabriela Women’s Party, which won a seat in Congress, has had two women martyrs. People’s organizations belonging to the Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (New Patriotic Alliance) are also targets of attack.

The violent attacks directed against activists identified with progressive parties, people’s organizations, and innocent civilians have reached alarming proportions. But what is more disturbing is the government’s deafening silence and continued inaction amidst brazen murders and violence, considering that the military and other armed agents of the state have been consistently implicated in these atrocities. There is no end in sight in the violent attacks of activists and other unarmed civilians.

The eye of the fascist storm hit Central Luzon

The mass murder of seven striking farm workers in Hacienda Luisita in Tarlac on 16 November 2004 was followed by heightened harassments by the military and assassinations victimizing strikers and supporters of Hacienda Luisita. The massacre signaled the escalation of violent attacks on activists and innocent civilians by suspected military men in Tarlac and the rest of Central Luzon. The eye of the fascist storm hit Central Luzon in the first quarter of 2005.

Prominent among those assassinated in Tarlac were the following: Tarlac farmer leader Marcelino Beltran, 53, 8 December 2004, a leader of striking workers and a key witness in the Hacienda Luisita massacre; Tarlac City councilor Abelardo Ladera, 45, 3 March 2005, a strong supporter of striking Hacienda Luisita farm and sugar mill workers; Fr. William Tadena, 37, 13 March 2005, another active supporter of the strike and a Central Luzon peasant leader Victor Concepcion, 17 March 2005. On March 7, an assassination attempt on Justice Romeo Capulong was aborted, thanks to the presence of security personnel detailed at his house.

Central Luzon registered the biggest number of victims of political assassinations and abductions with a total of thirteen people (13) killed and four (4) still missing. Five (5) persons were murdered in the province and city of Tarlac, 5 in Pampanga, 2 in Bataan, and 1 in Bulacan. Nine of those killed were local leaders or active members of a Pampanga peasant association, the Central Luzon Aeta Association, Bayan Muna, Anakpawis, and Bagong Alyansang Makabayan.

Aside from the persons named above, the list of murdered activists in Central Luzon includes: Pablito Ignacio, 44, 11 January 2005, Bulacan; Noel Garcia, 40, 1 February 2005, Pampanga; Rodrigo Lampa, 40, 16 February 2005, Pampanga; Chrispin Amazone, 40, 16 February 2005, Tarlac; Renato Espino, 35, 18 February 2005, Bataan; and Joey Abraham, 28, 20 February 2005, Bataan.

The abduction of Mr. Danilo Macapagal, the former secretary general of Bagong Alyansang Makabayan in Nueva Ecija and provincial coordinator of Bayan Muna occurred on 3 March 2005, the same day Councilor Abelardo Ladera was gunned down in Tarlac. His abduction highlighted the enforced disappearance of three more peasant activists in Central Luzon and one in Southern Tagalog. Roger Viray, 42, and Sergio Viray, 32, were abducted on 17 February 2005 in Pampanga. Mr. Esteban Pastor, 53, a member of Bayan Muna had been missing since he was nabbed by armed men on 11 February 2005. Indigenous people’s leader in Mindoro Occidental, Jose Sinad Nayong, 53, had been missing since 3 March 2005.

Ilocos region is not spared

On March 9, Romeo Sanchez, 39, a national council member of Bayan Muna and Ilocos region coordinator of Bayan Muna, was killed in cold blood in Baguio City. Prior to his murder, military officials reportedly threatened his life if he would continue his involvement with the progressive movement. Two weeks after, on March 22, Atty. Charles Juloya, vice mayoral candidate of Bayan Muna in Aringay, La Union, took six bullets while inside his office along McArthur Highway but was lucky to survive the murder attempt.

Progressive groups strongly believe that the Northern Luzon Command (NolCom) of the AFP is behind the rash of political assassinations and abductions in Central Luzon, which is also beginning to be felt in the Ilocos region. Prior to and coinciding with violent attacks, the NolCom has come up with black propaganda materials and has conducted security briefings accusing progressive groups and naming personalities, including Councilor Ladera and four party list representatives as allegedly supporting or acting as fronts of the CPP-NPA.

Attacks continue in Southern Tagalog and Bicol

There is no end to the violent attacks on activists in Southern Luzon. Ronnie Almoete, 38, president of the Bayan Muna chapter in Lucena City, was gunned down by unidentified men on 05 February 2005 right inside his own home. The perpetrators are believed to be members of a “death squad team formed by the Southern Luzon Command (SolCom)”.

On 01 March 2005, four (4) women leaders, all coordinators and organizers of the Gabriela Women’s Party (GWP), were illegally arrested by soldiers and temporarily detained in a police detachment on the Army’s allegation that they were “New People’s Army rebels” and “were spying on troops taking part in the US-RP Balikatan in Luisiana town in Laguna”. No formal charges were filed against the said four, who were eventually released after repeated assertions of innocence.

In Labo, Camarines Norte, Ernesto Bang, 50, officer of the Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas and Anakpawis in the said province, was killed on the spot on 10 March 2005 when “unidentified men visiting him at his residence suddenly opened fire”. A week after, on 16 March 2005, Joel T. Reyes, 33, organizer of Anakpawis in the public transport sector, was shot dead by three unidentified men in Panganiban, Camarines Norte.

The butcher of Mindoro Oriental is wreaking havoc in Eastern Visayas

In his inaugural address on 10 February 2005, Army Major General Jovito Palparan, publicly vowed to crush militant organizations and clear Eastern Visayas of protest rallies in six months. Samar Rep. Catalino Figueroa disclosed in a privilege speech in Congress, that Palparan, his fraternity brother, told him that there was an order for him to crush militant groups in Samar and Leyte within six months. Since Palparan’s inauguration, a series of cold blood murder and harassment by the military of activists and local officials occurred in the region.

It will be recalled that since Palparan, then a colonel, became the army brigade commander in island of Mindoro Oriental in 2001, a wave of killings and abductions of unarmed activists occurred – leaving eighteen (18) Bayan Muna members and scores of innocent civilians dead. The mounting pressure from the public and local officials compelled President Arroyo to relieve Palparan but only to promote him to the rank of a brigadier general and later, major general. In Congressional hearings, he accused Bayan Muna, without giving credible evidence, of diverting funds to and recruiting for the CPP-NPA and labeled militant groups as communist fronts and security problems that needed to be eliminated.

On February 18, 205, Fr. Allan Caparro of the Philippine Independent Church, together with his wife were ambushed by armed men aboard a motorcycle in Abuyog, Leyte. The two survived the murder attempt.

Prominent activist lawyer Felidito Cabrigas Dacut, 51 years old, left a meeting to buy milk for his children but was gunned down on 14 March 2005 in Tacloban by two still unidentified perpetrators aboard a motorcycle. Before his murder, Atty. Dacut, being the regional coordinator of Bayan Muna in Eastern Visayas, was among those who initiated a ‘solidarity mission’ to Catarman, Northern Samar to investigate the incident of soldiers harassing Bayan Muna members in the said province.

On March 6, company-size troops led by Col. Manuelito Uzi positioned themselves together with armored personnel in front of the office of Bayan Muna in Catarman and harassed members of the party. A month after, on April 6, armed men wearing bonnets attempted to put the said office on fire by throwing Molotov bombs. It was later found out that the wicks used to ignite the bombs were made from a newsletter issue of the 803rd brigade deployed in the region.

On April 9, Boy Ambida, the provincial coordinator of Bayan Muna in Eastern Samar, was peppered with bullets by unidentified men aboard motorcycles. Two days after, on April 11, Sammy Dote, a rebel returnee working with the district office of Rep. Figueroa, was shot dead by suspected military men. It was learned that military men under the command of Palparan contacted former rebels who had returned to the fold of law and asked them to cooperate with the military as intelligence assets or face threats on their lives if they refused cooperation.

Around five in the afternoon of April 13, Edwin Bargamento, Auditor of the National Federation of Sugar Workers in Negros Occidental was repeatedly shot by two armed men and died instantly. He sustained 24 gunshot wounds including a finishing shot at the back of his head. It is suspected that the killing was the handiwork of the military possibly using the elements of the pro-government Revolutionary Proletarian Army (RPA) as assets or assassin.

On April 16, around 7:45 am two armed men aboard a motorcycle repeatedly shot Alfredo Davis. He suffered five bullet wounds and was declared dead on arrival in a nearby hospital. His wife took a bullet wound on the shoulder and was declared out of danger. Davis was the Bayan Muna Coordinator in Mahaplag, Leyte.

Black propaganda and anti-communist witch-hunt are on the rise

Officials of the AFP denied any hand in the extra-judicial killings and abductions of activists and unarmed civilians. But the military publications, security briefings, and propaganda betray their intention and policy of suppressing and crushing progressive parties and organizations – a policy antagonistic to democracy.

Tala, the official publication of the AFP, published in 2002 an article by a certain Lt. Col. John Bonafos claiming, without giving proof, that the NDF formed Bayan Muna in 1999. The article considered as a national security problem the entry into and growing influence of Bayan Muna in the electoral and parliamentary arena. Thus, the article called on the AFP to (1) form counter-organizations to attack Bayan Muna, (2) deploy military special operations teams in Bayan Muna strongholds, (3) conduct surveillance on the activities of the party, and (4) neutralize active leaders and members of Bayan Muna. In military parlance, the term “neutralization” includes physical elimination or assassination. The said article was first printed in the Northern Command newsletter before it saw publication in the Tala magazine.

Of late, the AFP has been conducting nationwide security briefings via a powerpoint presentation entitled “Knowing the Enemy”. In the said presentation, the AFP lists 32 legitimate progressive parties, people organizations, church and media institutions as fronts or allies of the CPP-NPA. It names Bayan Muna, Anakpawis, Gabriela, Bayan and its several affiliates, Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines, Association of Major Religious Superiors of the Philippines, the National Union of Journalist of the Philippines, and the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism as part of the echelon of alliance which has to be neutralized.

In countless media interviews and radio programs of the AFP, military officials keep on vilifying and demonizing progressive parties and organizations and all their allies in the fashion of anti-communist witch-hunts. Black propaganda materials are being distributed and posted in several regions including Metro Manila. Residences of leaders of legal organizations are vandalized with posters or paintings bearing insinuations such as “Bahay ng NPA” (House of the NPA) and “Tuta ng NPA” (Lapdog of NPA).

The repeated public accusations of the military linking legal parties and organizations, church and media institutions, and personages to armed rebel groups without providing credible evidence are clear violations of due process and of the rights of persons to the presumption of innocence. But more so the accusations are an attempt to justify the killings, abductions, and the escalation of violent attacks on innocent civilians.

II. Brief Account of Individual Cases of Assasination of Activists from January to April 16, 2005

Below is the list of 19 activists slain from January to April 16, 2005:

Pablito Ignacio – He was a Bayan Muna (BM) member. On January 11, 10:00pm, Ignacio and his wife Aileen were inside their bedroom when they heard a knock on their door. Two armed men wearing bonnets asked the couple to bring out their gun. When Aileen answered that they were not hiding any, the men searched their house. Arvin, their son, was on his way home and rushed upon sighting the commotion inside their house. However, two armed look-outs blocked him, grasped his arms, and pulled him away. Pablito, on the other hand, was forcibly taken from his wife. He was dragged towards the kitchen and there he was shot. Nearby neighbors said they saw some armed men walking towards the direction of Camp Alagao immediately after the shooting. Witnesses believe that elements of 56th IB may be involved in the incident.

Noel Garcia – He was a member of the peasant group organization in Pampanga, Aguman Den Maglalautang Capampangan (AMC). Based on his kin’s testimony, Noel was driving a jeep around 2:30 pm at Brgy. Siran, Guagua when two bonnet-clad men aboard a motorcycle gunned him down. The shooting took place while Noel’s family was on their way to SM Pampanga. Noel’s father, Nicanor sustained a gun shot wound on his arm while Noel’s two-year-old nephew, Loloy Garcia died on the spot also because of a gun shot wound.

Ronnie Almoete – Ronnie, a Bayan Muna president from the Lucena City chapter, was cooking dinner on the night of February 5, when unknown gunmen shot him in front of his family right inside their home at Purok Matahimik, Brgy. Cotta Lucena City. According to Susan, wife of Ronnie, the suspects arrived at their doorstep looking for her husband. Upon seeing him, the suspects pushed Susan aside and called Ronnie. The suspects immediately pulled the trigger. Before the killing took place, Ronnie’s neighbors said the perpetrators had been asking for Ronnie’s whereabouts. He was 38 years-old.

Abe Sungit – He was a member of human rights group Karapatan and was slain on February 5 at Brgy. Malcapo, Roxas, by two unidentified gun men aboard a motorcycle. He used to campaign against mining operations and have led various people’s struggle against human rights violations committed by military personnel.

Rodrigo Lampa – Rod, another member of AMC was driving a tricycle around 8:30 am of February 16, along with his friend, when four armed men aboard a car shot him. He sustained gun shot wounds on his head and knees.

Crispin Amasona – Crispin was a member of the Anakpawis party list group. He was abducted on 16 February 2005 and was found dead the following day in Dingalan town, Aurora. He took one bullet wound on the head and two in his left breast.

Renato Espino – He was a member of AMC, a cause-oriented peasant organization in Mexico Pampanga. Prior to his death, he was seen riding a bicycle to monitor the activities of his fellow workers in Lakeshore. Some of his co-wokers, however, noticed a white L-300 van following the tracks of Espino. Inside the vehicle were four bonnet-clad men. The same men were seen to have shot Espino on the back. Upon falling on the ground, Espino tried to move to reach his bike. The van approached Espino upon seeing him still alive. Espino was repeatedly shot on his head. The killing occurred in broad daylight, February 18.

Rodel Pelayo and Joey Abraham – The victims were members of CLAA-Aeta, an indigenous people’s organization. According to eyewitnesses, Roel Pelayo and Joey Abraham were on a bus when a lone armed man poked a gun on them. When the victims stepped out of the bus, the suspect followed and shot them. The killing took place in broad-day light, February 20, by the roadside of Brgy. Culo and Brgy. Saging, Balanga, Bataan. Prior to the shooting incident, some military men went to the victim’s house. Pelayo and Abraham have taken oaths as rebel returnees at the meeting called by 24th IB of the Philippine Army. The victims went along with the military men. The killing took place while the victims were on their way home.

Abelardo Ladera – Or “Ka Abel” is famous to common folk in Tarlac. He was an outstanding government official and a known defender of people’s rights and welfare. He was also a Bayan Muna member. Prior to his assassination, Ka Abel constantly received threats, which he acknowledged seriously. But no security measures kept him safe from being a target. Not even his position as second councilor of Tarlac prevented him from being murdered in cold blood. Reports say Ka Abel was purchasing spare parts for his jeep in a store located less than a kilometer away from the AFP NOLCOM when a sniper pierced a bullet on his heart.

In the security briefing, the AFP - Northern Luzon Command (NOLCOM) named Ka Abel as one of the several personalities who are implementing the CPP-NPA plan of sowing unrest and violence in the hacienda Luisita. The military is covering the fact that it is the mass dismissal of officers and union busting of the management that cause the strike and it is the military and police men who indiscriminately fired and killed striking farmers on the fateful day of November 16, 2004. .

On the same day, Danilo Macapagal, Secretary General of Bayan and provincial coordinator of Bayan Muna in Tarlac was abducted by unknown armed men in Cabanatuan City, Nueva Ecija. Witnesses saw Macapagal resisting the attempt of armed men dragging him inside a vehicle. He remains missing as of this date.

Romeo “Romy” Sanchez – Romy was the secretary general of Bayan and the regional coordinator of Bayan Muna in Northern Luzon. He was also a known broadcaster and a former political detainee. Reports said that Romy was walking inside Kayang Market in Baguio City with two other Bayan Muna members when the lone gunman shot him. The shooting happened on March 10, Thursday. Witnesses said that the perpetrator casually walked out of the market after the shooting incident. Sanchez was a peasant leader in La Union for 10 years. Prior to his murder, he informed his colleagues that military men had threatened to harm him if he did not stop his activity.

Ernesto Bang - He was Anakpawis Public Information Officer of Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas, Camarines Sur chapter. He used to till land for a living, was happily married, and was father to four kids. However, some unidentified gun men took his life on the evening of 10 March 2005, Wednesday, right inside his house in Brgy. Malangkaw Basud, Camarines Norte. Reports say that the anonymous killers casually walked into Ernesto’s house and open fired upon seeing him. The perpetrators were believed to be members of the Military Intelligence Group (MIG).

William Tadena – Fr. William Tadena was a parish priest of La Paz, Tarlac and a member of Iglesia Filipina Indipendiente (IFI) and of Promotion of Church People’s Response (PCPR). He was among the vocal critics of the Cojuangcos and a recognized leader of the four priests in the IFI Diocese of Tarlac. On 13 March 2005, two unidentified armed men aboard a motorcycle shot Fr. Tadena after celebrating mass. He died of multiple gun shot wounds on his head and torso. He was driving his owner-type jeep with three companions at the time of the incident. Prior to his killing, reports say that several unidentified persons, wearing bonnet masks were seen in the vicinity of the parish.

Felicidito C. Dacut – Atty. Dacut was a ‘pro-bono/pro-people’ human rights lawyer. He used to handle various human rights, agrarian, and labor cases. He was the regional coordinator for Bayan Muna party list group. On 14 March 2005 at about 6:45 in the evening, two unidentified armed perpetrators aboard a motorcycle shot him in the upper body. Military men under Maj. Gen. Jovito Palparan are the suspected perpetrator. Prior to Dacut’s death, Maj. Gen. Jovito Palparan publicly announced that he would crush all militant groups and clear the region of protest rallies in six months.

Henry Flores – Henry was 23 years old and a member of Anakpawis party list group. He was murdered in cold blood inside the Land Transportation Office (LTO) in Mandaue.

Victor “Ben” Concepcion – Ben was the Coordinator of Anakpawis party list group in Mexico, Pampanga. He was also the Secretary General of Aguman Dareng Maglalautang Capampangan and Chairperson of the Alyansa Para sa Pagpapataas ng Presyo ng Palay. He was an active supporter and advocate of Hacienda Luisita strikers. While resting at the veranda on the evening of March 17, Ben was murdered in cold blood by unknown armed men. Prior to his killing, Ben noted increasing military surveillance within the vicinity of his home at L&S Subdivision in Angeles City. There was also an instance when suspected agents of NOLCOM surrounded his home in Anao, Mexico, Pampanga.

Joel Toliao Reyes – Joel was happily married and had worked as a tricycle driver. He was an active member of Anakpawis party list group in his barangay. It was on the morning of 16 March 2005 when two unknown gun men aboard a motorcycle shot him while driving his tricycle. The bloodshed took place at Brgy. Calero, Jose Panganiban, Camarines Norte.

Edwin Bargamento – 46 year-old Bargamento was an Auditor and a Regional Executive Committee member of the National Federation of Sugar Workers in Negros Occidental. His killing took place on April 13, around 5:00-5:20 in the afternoon. He was walking home to Hacienda Emma when two armed men repeatedly shot him. He sustained 24 gunshot wounds including a finishing shot at the back of his head. Vicenta, the wife, said that the perpetrators were seen waiting for Bargamento since 2 pm of the same day. Nearby neighbors also testified that the same men have been conducting surveillance in the area. Colleagues of Bargamento believed that the killing was the handiwork of the military possibly using the elements of the pro-government Revolutionary Proletarian Army (RPA) as assets or assassin.

Alfredo Davis – was a Bayan Muna coordinator at Tacloban Leyte. On April 16, around 7:45 am two armed men aboard a motorcycle repeatedly shot Davis. Davis was driving his multi-cab with his wife, Imelda when the shooting happened. He suffered five bullet wounds and was declared dead on arrival in a nearby hospital. His wife took a bullet wound on the shoulder and was declared out of danger.

III. Select Cases of Extrajudicial Killings in 2001-2004

From 2001-2004, at least 110 have been victims of politically motivated assassinations and mass murder. Women, children, and some local government officials were not spared. Sixty-four members and leaders of progressive party list groups were killed in cold-blood. Bayan Muna death toll reached 51. Anakpawis, 18. Gabriela, 2.

However, the killings have not been limited among the known members of militant party list organizations. Even human rights organizations, people’s organizations and individuals accused of supporting the left movement has been constant target of armed attacks. Below are brief descriptions of the killings that took place from 2001-2004. Some of these repelling issues have been subject to congressional inquiry.

Juvy Magsino was a farmer’s daughter. She completed her bachelor’s degree at the University of the East and worked her way to a law degree in another university in downtown Manila. She was a member of the League of Filipino Students (LFS) and was among the demonstrators of the gory Mendiola Massacre. During her stint as vice-mayor of Naujan, Mindoro Oriental, Juvy upheld her commitment to the farmers and small fisher folk. She was also a vocal critic of the Naujan mayor and was among those who opposed the deployment of two Army battalions in the island in 2001.
In 2002, Col. Jovito Palparan, head of the Army’s 204th Brigade accused Magsino of supporting the NPA. Palparan even told the media that the Army would watch Magsino’s every move. On 13 February 2004, Magsino was assassinated together with 27 year-old Leima Fortu, a public school teacher and officer of Karapatan - Mindoro Oriental. It was hitting two birds with one stone for the assassins. They were able to gun down two key persons of militant progressive groups at a single moment. Aside from being Naujan’s vice-mayor, Magsino chaired Mindoro for Justice and Peace and was also an honorary member of Gabriela. She was the first woman in Mindoro politics ever killed in a politically-related assassination. She was 34 years-old.

Leima Fortu – Leima was an elementary public school teacher in Brgy. Maidlang, Calapan City, Mindoro Oriental. She was also the acting Secretary General of KARAPATAN in the island, a member of Bayan Muna Calapan City chapter, and a volunteer staff member of Mindoro for Justice and Peace. She was gunned down together with Magsino on 13 February 2004. She was 27 years-old.

Apolinar Family – On the evening of 20 May 2002, in Barangay Ilag, San Teodoro, Oriental Mindoro, Ruben and Rodriga Apolinar and their daughter Nina Angela were massacred inside their own home. Prior to the gruesome incident, neighbors claimed that they saw military men prowling the area. The neighbors, without a tinge of doubt, believed that no other group was responsible for the indiscriminate shooting other than the same troops they saw. Ruben then was Bayan Muna coordinator in the area, while his wife Rodriga was a member of the militant women’s group Gabriela. Their daughter Nina Angela was eight years-old.

Eden Marcellana and Eddie Gumanoy – On 21 April 2003, some 20 bonnet-clad men abducted four members of the quick reaction team in Maibon, Naujan, Oriental Mindoro. Among them was Eden Marcellana. The following day she was found dead together with Eddie Gumanoy, the Chairperson of the regional peasant alliance Katipunan ng Samahang Magbubukid Timog Katagalugan (KASAMA-TK). According to reports Marcellana’s head was smashed beyond recognition. The bruises on her body indicated she suffered severe torture from the abductors. Marcellana was the Secretary General of Karapatan Southern Tagalog.

Masimid Family – 1:00pm , 25 April 2003, 80 elements of the 30th Special Forces Company of the 8th Infantry Battalion indiscriminately fired at the house of the Masimid family. Killed on the spot were 27-year-old William Masimid, his three-year-old son Wilmer, and a certain Elmo Dayaon. Lt. Col. Agane Adriatico of the Civil Relations Group of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) immediately asserted that the incident was a legitimate encounter with members of the New People’s Army (NPA). However, eyewitnesses testified that no encounter took place in that incident. They stressed that William was an innocent civilian.William who worked as a farmer in a nearby field was resting after a hard day’s work. His son Wilmer was playing by the staircase. It was a peaceful afternoon until the troops came.

Maco Four – On the morning of 23 September 2003, the bodies of four youth activists were found dumped in a quarry site in Barangay Osmeña, Compostela Valley Province. They were Lito Dodoy, 24; Marjorie Reynoso, 18; Jonathan Benaro, 16; and Ramon Regase, 17. Lito was a community organizer of the progressive youth group Anakbayan, while Marjorie and Jonathan were active members of the Anak ng Bayan party list and were officers of Sangguniang Kabataan in their respective barangays. Ramon, on the other hand, worked as a driver of local public transport called “skylab”.
According to eyewitness accounts, the four were on board Ramon’s motorcycle when armed men blocked their path and forced them to come along. The abduction happened around 5 p.m. on 19 September 2003 in Villa Consuelo, Lower Apokon, Tagum City. Some witnesses recognized the abductors; one of them was recognized as Willy Javier, a known asset of the Military Intelligence Group (MIG). Four days after the abduction, Javier was spotted by witnesses among those cast off in the quarry area.

According to human rights group Karapatan, the victims’ bodies were found piled one upon the other. Marjorie sustained two gunshot wounds on the left side of her head. There were contusions around her neck, indicating the possibility of strangulation. There were also signs that she was raped. The male victims, on the other hand, bore several stab wounds and bruises on various parts of their bodies.

Monsalud Family – It was 4:30 a.m. of 4 December 2004 when five men in military uniform and one man in civilian clothes sprayed bullets on the Monsalud family right in their home in Purok 3, Lower Calabat, Josefina Zamboanga del Sur. Among the casualties was Charlie, a ten-year-old boy. He sustained seven gunshot wounds. Charlie’s father Eliasar Monsalud, a peasant, and mother Concepcion were former rebels in Lanao Del Norte who joined mainstream society in 2001. The two had since been active in legal peasant struggles in their barangay.

According to Barangay Captain Manase Orzais, the slain couple was respected community members in their area and neither had bad records nor questionable reputations. Before the massacre took place, Eliasar was said to have unexpectedly met a soldier who recognized him while in the underground armed movement. After that, the Monsalud couple learned that they were being hunted down by the said soldier.

In an effort to clear their names and prevent any untoward incident against them, Eliasar and Concepcion went to the Josefina police headquarters to clear their names. They were then brought to the headquarters of TABAK 1st Infantry Division of the Philippine Army in Pulacan, Labangan, Zamboanga del Sur. Cheryl, the daughter of the slain couple, was the lone survivor. She was spared during the massacre since she happened to be in a Girl Scout Camp during the incident. She is 11 years-old.