By ERWIN ‘AMBO’ DELILAN
NEGROS ain’t “alien” to terroristic doings. During the ‘80s up to mid-‘90s, it savored the “brunt of terror”. That time, insurgency in Negros was at its height.
The Communist Party of the Philippines – New People’s Army (CPP-NPA) and its renegade group Revolutionary Proletarian Army – Alex Bongcayao Brigade (RPA-ABB) were “beyond active”. Common scenarios: Ambushes here, encounters there, killings everywhere. Government soldiers were branded as “bulldogs of the mountain”.
This “depressing epoch”, however, gradually faded when the Army reformatted its anti-insurgency tactics approaching the year 2000. They employed musical bands in almost all their battalions with “good-looking soldiers” as members and singers. So, they’re endeared by people.
Too, soldiers nowadays spend time on community services – medical-dental missions, tree plantings, school activities, etc.
Lately, though remnants of CPP-NPA still have to be contained, peace and order in Negros are relatively okay. Until the infamous “Massacre de Kangkiling” in Sitio Kangkiling, Barangay Buenavista, Himamaylan City midnight of June 14.
Four members of the Fausto family – couple Roly and Emilda and their sons Ben and Raben – were brutally slain. A total of 53 bullets were spent for them.
BLAME GAME
There’s a jumble in the ongoing probe. Blame game follows. The Army accuses the commies as behind the family slay, and vice versa. Negrenses are puzzled.
For Himamaylan City Police Office (HCPO), a certain Fernando Hermino, squad leader of the CPP-NPA Central Negros 2, was the “mastermind”.
Hermino is the father-in-law of Emily Fausto-Hermino, daughter of the Fausto couple. He reportedly got irked with Roly’s move to facilitate their surrender.
Gov. Bong Lacson sounded satisfied with the report of the HCPO’s chief of police, Lt. Col. Reynante Jomocan.
But here comes the National Solidarity Mission (NSM). Such is composed of various progressive groups, including the Catholic Church. NSM is led by Rep. Raoul Manuel of Kabataan party-list.
The group publicly accused the 94th IB troopers as the “executioners”. But 94IB commanding officer, Lt. Col. Van Donald Almonte, vehemently denied such heavy charge. “We can’t do that! Walang basehan!”
INTERNATIONAL PROBE
Rep. Manuel said the Makabayan bloc in Congress filed House Bill No.1091 urging the House’s Committee on Human Rights to conduct an immediate investigation re: “Massacre de Kangkiling”.
Too, the solon bared, they called for an international probe on the matter.
“We’re determined to haul the Fausto family slay case to Congress,” he said in a press conference at the Negros Press Club (NPC) Building in Bacolod City on June 23.
NSM’s Sarah Raymundo, a professor at the University of the Philippines (UP) and of Alyansang Makabayan, said that based on their investigation, Army soldiers were the perpetrators of the heinous crime.
“All our witnesses were pointing to them (soldiers) as suspects,” she said.
Thus, NSM vowed fight for this case purposely to deliver justice to the Faustos and, likewise, to put an end to the “culture of impunity” in Negros.
“Ang sa amin lang ay mapanagot ang may sala sa pamamagitan ng patas na imbestigasyon,” stressed Rep. Manuel.
‘HOWLING WILDERNESS’
Negros seems to be a “howling wilderness” now, Raymundo claimed. Negrenses aren’t safe anymore.
On the other hand, Raul Casilao of UMA (Union ng Manggagawa sa Agrikultura) said, “What we all want is justice for the Faustos via a genuine and impartial probe.”
NSM still trusts the Commission on Human Rights (CHR) on this matter.
But he stressed their truth-seeking and justice-seeking probe showed that the Army’s claims, indeed, were “incredible and ridiculous”.
“Really, there were efforts to coerce the victims,” Rep. Manuel said.
Almonte, thru a phone interview, said, “Nothing new with the claim(s) of the fact-finding mission. Kung baga, expected na against us.”
The Army colonel also remains unfazed in spite of the “derogatory statements” hurled against them by the NSM people.
“We’re innocent, thus we’re confident to surpass the recent challenge,” said Almonte.
SOUND OF NATURE
Now, who should be believe?
The Army? Police? NSM?
Better to listen to the sound of nature?
American writer and humorist Kurt Vonnegut once stressed that in any massacre, just try to ask this question: “And what do the birds say? All there is to say about the massacre are things like poo-tee-weet.”
Poo-tee-weet, in Vonnecut’s novel “Billy Pilgraim” was kinda an idiom. Only the sound of the bird can be heard in the aftermath of any massacre.
And same could be in the case of the Faustos. Poo-tee-weet could be a funny tag, but somehow relatable.
The “Massacre de Kangkiling” is the newest “spark of terror” in Negros. The ending, however, could be poo-tee-weet, tantamount to nothing.
Sad. Bad. Repeat?/PN
