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Saturday, May 14, 2005
Families in Surigao Sur villages afraid to return home
By Ben Serrano
SAN AGUSTIN, Surigao del Sur -- Evacuees in five hinterland barangays of this seaside town are afraid of returning back home for fear of being caught in the crossfire as military operations continue.
In last Thursday's meeting of the Municipal Peace and Order Council, evacuees also raised the alleged abuses of armed men believed to be military personnel.
This developed as evacuees continue to increase and are now estimated to reach 1,295 persons most of whom are children scattered in different low lying barangays of this town and adjacent municipalities.
This prompted the local government unit here to seek support from the Surigao del Sur Provincial Government for food, medicine and other relief goods.
Several non-government organizations like those of the community-based resource management projects in the area, the SRDP-PIPESRA and religious groups have already poured in aid despite limited resources.
The aid is intended for the evacuees from hinterland barangays of Buhisan, Pong-on, Kauswagan, Hanipan, Hicogan, all of this town and Barangay Mahaba of the adjacent town of Marihatag, Surigao del Sur.
Military officials said their operations will continue until communist guerillas will be flushed out in the area. The operations ensued following reports of another horde of explosives being kept by the NPA operatives in the area.
Discovery
San Agustin Mayor Manuel Alameda said he is concerned on how to transport the evacuees especially the children in masse to safer place since most of the affected hinterland villages had no passable road.
Complaining relatives and parents of the four missing farmers become emotional as they denounced the abuses supposedly committed by members of the special operations group of the 402nd Infantry Brigade.
They cited the case of the four missing farmers who were designated as guides by the military but never got back home since they left May 6.
Last May 8, the military in their press releases furnished to almost all local media outlets claimed four NPA rebels were killed in an encounter following the discovery of a cache of explosives in a cave at Andap Valley, Barangay Buhisan 40 kilometers away from this Poblacion town.
But in the local peace council meeting, 58th Infantry Battalion commanding officer, Lt. Col. James Jacob said he is confused on the source of the news report, even asking participants in Visayan where they got it.
In a phone interview last May 9 evening, his deputy for operations, Maj. Romeo Migote, told Sun.Star Cagayan de Oro that at least four NPA guerillas were killed.
However, he declined to name the identities of the four casualties saying they still have to verify their names.
(May 14, 2005 issue)
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