HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH
Within three days in Northern
Luzon
Peasant Leader Killed; Pastor Survives
Assassination Try
A peasant leader was
shot to death in Baggao, Cagayan (500 kms. north of Manila) on November
11, and a Protestant pastor survived an attempt on his life in Vigan City
(407 kms. north of Manila) last November 9.
By Emily Vital
Bulatlat
Two more cases of
political intimidation have been added to the growing list of human rights
violations believed to be perpetrated by government forces. The two
incidents took place in northern Luzon within three days.
A peasant leader was
killed in Baggao, Cagayan (500 kms. north of Manila) on November 11, and a
Protestant pastor survived an attempt on his life in Vigan City (407 kms.
north of Manila) last November 9.
Joey Javier, leader
of Kagimungan, a local peasant organization affiliated with the Kilusang
Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP or Peasant Movement of the Philippines), was
shot dead in the morning of Nov. 11, by still unidentified assailants in
Baggao, Cagayan.
Details of the
incident are not yet available at press time.
Two days earlier at
around 9:30 p.m, men on board a blue XRM motorcycle fired at Rev. Pastor
Billy Austin of the United Church of Christ in the Philippines and
chairperson of the Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (BAYAN or New Patriotic
Alliance)-Ilocos on Del Pilar Street, Vigan City, Ilocos Sur.
Austin sustained two
gunshot wounds, one in each leg. He is now at the Lahoz Clinic & Hospital.
Austin was with
Avelino Dacanay, a member of Solidarity of Peasants to End Exploitation
(STOP-EX) and three other church workers when the shooting happened. Dacanay
and the three others were unharmed but were traumatized.
Based on a fact sheet
from Karapatan-Ilocos, Austin’s group just concluded a day’s session of an
Ecumenical Human Rights Training at the United Methodist Church in
Florentino St., same city. They were walking toward the Bayan office when
they were shot at.
Karapatan-Ilocos
reported that the motorcycle and a van tailed Austin’s group from the
United Methodist Church. Three men and a woman were observed aboard the
van.
Austin who was
walking ahead of the group noticed the man behind the driver of the
motorcycle raise his gun, aim at them and started to fire continuously.
The Methodist pastor
tried to run away from the direct line of fire. After Austin noticed that
he was hit, he dropped to the ground. The assassin continued firing at
Austin while speeding away.
The sound of the gun
shots was muffled. Witnesses said that a caliber .45 with a silencer
could have used for the assassination attempt. Bulatlat
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