Indigenous peoples in Natonin, Mountain Province suffered military atrocities from May 9 to 13 as shown in the report of a recently-concluded fact-finding mission (FFM) here.

BY KIM QUITASOL
Northern Dispatch
Posted by Bulatlat

NATONIN, MOUNTAIN PROVINCE (394 km. north of Manila) – Indigenous peoples in Natonin, Mountain Province suffered military atrocities from May 9 to 13 as shown in the report of a recently-concluded fact-finding mission (FFM) here.

The indigenous peoples of Barangay (village) Tonglayan, Natonin recounted their ordeal in the hands of Philippine Army soldiers who passed through their village to the FFM team led by the Cordillera Human Rights Alliance (CHRA).

Residents identified the latest batch of Army soldiers as members of the 77th Infantry Battalion (IB), which conducted operations in the area and stayed in the village from May 9 to 13. They added that earlier, in November last year, elements of the 54th IB passed through their village and destroyed everything along the way.

One of the victims, Tonglayan Barangay Captain Alex Pocasan, told Nordis that elements of the 77th IB destroyed his abong (farm house) and stole eggplants from his uma (swiddern farm), as well as rice and a large pot. He added that the soldiers even took a blanket he left in his abong.

Tonglayan villagers added they later found the large pot at the riverbank but it was already badly dented and useless.

Another victim, a village council member of Tonglayan recounted that soldiers took his cooking pot and even defecated in it. He also complained that the soldiers harvested his crops and destroyed it.

In November last year, Liwan Lappao, Samson Bangloy and Charlie Ficcayo were interrogated at gun point and psychologically tortured by elements of the 54th IB.

Lappao later told Nordis they were in the mountains that day to tend to their carabaos and gather firewood when they chanced upon two soldiers who immediately pointed their guns at them. He said the soldiers forcibly searched their pasiking (woven rattan or bamboo backpack) while forcing them to admit they are New People’s Army (NPA) guerrillas.

Lappao said when the soldiers found no incriminating items in their pasiking, they were forced to go to the nearby abong where the interrogation continued.

“They were telling us to tell the truth but what truth do they want?” Lappao said in the local language. “What else can we say but assert (that) we are civilians who were feeding our carabaos and gathering firewood in the mountains when chanced upon by the soldiers who were conducting military operations.”

“One of the soldiers drew the bolo of one of my companions and threatened to kill us with it without anybody knowing,” Lappao added.

He further said the soldiers destroyed the door of the abong and used the lumber as beds. “They used the abong and all the things in it without permission as if it were theirs (and) made a mess at the abong and did not fix it and even stole the water container,” he said.

Lappao also said the soldiers harvested vegetables from the uma and bargained to pay P11 ($0.24 at an exchange rate of $1=P45.96)) for the vegetables they took. “We did not accept their payment because first, P11 is not enough to pay the goods they took and second, long firearms were pointed at us all the time. Who would dare tell them the vegetables costs more than P11?” he explained.

The FFM team documented all the said cases with the victims signing affidavits.

Jude Bago of the Cordillera Human Rights Alliance (CHRA) told Nordis the documented cases are to be submitted to the Commission on Human Rights (CHR) and the Joint Monitoring Committee (JMC) on the Comprehensive Agreement on Respect for Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law (CARHRHIL).

Participating organizations in the FFM were the Cordillera Peoples Alliance (CPA)-Mountain Province, Alyansa dagiti Pesante iti Taeng Kordilyera (Apit Tako or Alliance of Peasants in the Cordillera Homeand), Binnadang-Mt. Province, Montañosa Relief and Rehabilitation Services (MRRS) and Community Health Education Services and Training in the Cordillera Region (Chestcore). The CHRA led the mission. Northern Dispatch / Posted by (Bulatlat.com)

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