Released NPA POW Quits Military Service

A paramilitary man who had been held prisoner of war (PoW) by the NPA said upon his release over the weekend he will quit serving the military. He has been disowned by his military superiors and, worse, has been denied payment of his salary. His wife is five-month pregnant.

By Karl G. Ombion
Bulatlat.com  

“Kon amo man lang gali sini ang ila pagtratar sa mga CAFGUs nga amo ang ila pirme ginaprontahe sa inaway, daw parehas lang nga wala pulos ang amon pagsakripisyo kag dedikasyon sa aton gobyerno,” Raya told reporters in his native Bisaya during a news conference held at the Bishop’s Palace. “Maayo pa dulaon na lang ang mga CAFGUs kag sila na mismo ang makig-away sa mga rebelde.” (If this is the way they treat Cafgus who serve as frontliners then we’re just wasting our sacrifices. They better dissolve the Cafgu and fight the rebels themselves.)

The freed 28-year-old PoW was reacting to a statement from Brig. Gen. Jeffrey Sodusta, chief of the Army’s 303^rd Brigade, saying that Raya was not a Cafgu member.  “I am a regular Cafgu for more than a year,” he said. “I was trained, armed and paid to fight the NPA with utmost dedication. I was not even paid yet for my last two months salary of P1,800 per month. This is why I am deeply hurt by General Sodusta’s lies.”

NPA raid

A farmer from Sitio Kulihaw, Barangay (village) Buenavista, Himamaylan City, Raya was taken prisoner by NPA guerrillas who raided a 61^st IBPA detachment in village Mahalang on Feb. 15. But he was ordered released by the NPA on March 8 after a people’s court found him guilty of some crimes but with no blood debt.

A paper read by Fr. Aniceto Buenafe said Raya was charged for serving as guide in the Army raid of an NPA camp in Kulihaw last Nov. 15, 2002 as well as in other military operations.

The NPA command also said that Raya was being released partly on humanitarian grounds. His wife is five-month pregnant.

Fr. Buenafe of the Social Action Center 
with Raya at the press conference

Asked by reporters how he was treated by his captors, the Cafgu member said “mayo ang ila pagtratar sa akon, wala ako ginsakit, ginapakaon mayo, ginpaliguan pa, kag gin-eksplikaran nila ako sg akon mga kinamatarung kag mga bayolasyon” (I was treated well, they did not harass me. they even fed me well, bathed, and given lectures on my rights and violations.)

Asked about his plans after his release, Raya said, “I don’t want to become a CAFGU anymore, and will not return to Mahalang detachment. I will return instead to my place in Sitio Kulihaw, Barangay Buenavista, and live a normal life,by being neutral.”

In the same news briefing, Bishop Navarra expressed elation over the release of Raya and thanked God and the NPA for giving him the chance to return to his family and the mainstream society to rebuild his life.

Bishop Navarra said that “the diocese through its social action will program also discuss ways to help Raya rebuild his life and family, including economic assistance.”

Echoing the bishop’s statement, Fr. Buenafe admonished the military to “give the man respect and pay his dues so he could have something to start with in rebuilding his new life.”

In a separate interview, Fr. Buenafe told Bulatlat.com that officers of the 303rd Brigade came to the Bishop’s Palace hours after the press conference. Bulatlat.com

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