PRESS RELEASE
Information Bureau
Communist Party of the Philippines

Additional clarifications on the meting of revolutionary justice on the PNOC
April 8, 2004

Fr. Santiago Salas, spokesperson of the National Democratic Front-Eastern Visayas, today thanked the mass media for paying attention to the April 4 NDF-EV press release, simultaneous with a press statement from the Efren Martires Command (EMC). He, however, took exception to the wild and irresponsible statements of a radio broadcaster on April 7, in response to which he is clarifying certain issues.

The NDF-EV spokesperson made clear that "the revolutionary movement is not in any way trying to justify or wash its hands of the death of three innocent civilians when the NPA meted revolutionary justice on the PNOC last March 26. Why else would the EMC and NDF-EV through their spokespersons express their deep regret, sympathy and willingness to extend assistance to the families of the victims?"

In addition, Fr. Salas reiterated that "the NDF-EV condemns in the strongest terms, as should all media practicioners and human rights advocates, the Philippine National Police-Regional Mobile Group (PNP-RMG) for using civilians as human shields in the March 26 incident." He slammed the PNP-RMG for forcing civilians to go with them to the PNOC drilling site though they knew that it was already in NPA hands. "The police were fully aware they were proceeding to a dangerous combat situation," Fr. Salas stressed.

He maintained that the PNP-RMG reinforcement troops were definitely in the wrong whether or not the civilians went willingly with them. He declared that the PNP-RMG elements were in charge of the situation as combatants in a circumstance within the internal armed conflict. Thus, according to standard operating procedures and the rules of engagement, they could have and should have disallowed the civilians to accompany them. "Such premeditated and irresponsible use of civilians in combat is reprehensible and in gross violation of the Comprehensive Agreement on Respect for Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law (CARHRIHL) between the NDF and the government," Fr. Salas said.

The NDF-EV encouraged the families of the victims to file a case and demand an investigation into the March 26 incident through the Joint Monitoring Committee, which is tasked to implement the CARHRIHL and which will be set up this month. "The EMC has already expressed its readiness to submit to the JMC," Fr. Salas emphasized. "I challenge the PNP-RMG to do the same."

According to the NDF-EV, the NPA takes the greatest care to safeguard the lives of civilians in any military action. Fr. Salas pointed out that when the raiding team of the NPA took control of the PNOC drilling site, not a single shot was fired and all PNOC employees, even the security guards, were unharmed. He said further that the NPA team assigned to block off reinforcements from the PNP or AFP only used a command-detonated land mine, which is actually a bomb set off from a distance and not just arbitrarily left around. The NPA team made sure that vehicles carrying civilians - and there were several of them - were able to safely pass through the "killing zone" of the road. The Red fighters only detonated the mine as an offensive weapon against a legitimate military target, the PNP-RMG contingent.

Fr. Salas deplored that the blocking team of the NPA did not know early enough that the armed police reinforcements had brought civilians along with them. As CPP spokesperson Gregorio "Ka Roger" Rosal stated last April 4, it is the policy of the NPA to call off tactical offensives if there were any indication of civilians getting caught in the crossfire.

Citing the April 1 statement of the Efren Martires Command as an official report, Fr. Salas said that the NDF-EV stands by the account of the EMC that eight elements of the PNP-RMG were killed in action (KIA) in the March 26 incident. The police spot report stating only two KIA on the side of the PNP-RMG is thus erroneous and misleading. "The NPA blocking team was able to fully control the PNP-RMG reinforcement troops," Fr. Salas affirmed. "Thus the Red fighters were able to confiscate firearms and ammunition from the police. This could not have been possible unless the said troops had been annihilated or no longer in a position to fight back."

Lastly, Fr. Salas clarified that the NDF-EV did not issue any statement denying the death of one Red fighter in the March 26 incident. "To our knowledge, the EMC as well did not deny this fact in any of its statements," he said. " One only has to carefully read the press statements of EMC spokesperson Jose Sumuroy dated April 1 and April 4 to know this."

Fr. Salas commended the mass media for pro-people and hard-hitting commentaries, especially if these are balanced and objective, and backed by well-grounded facts and careful research. He said that, "The people deserve no less than the truth, and the media profession and any radio station or media outlet should not let them down." #

Reference:
Roy Santos
NDF-EV Media Liaison Officer
Cellphone No. 0918-3112138
E-mail: [email protected]


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