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Monday, October 17, 2005
Soldiers ‘ignored’ warnings on communist rebels
By Mia E. Abellana
CEBU CITY -- Hours before they were attacked, soldiers assigned in Barangay Sumon, Tuburan town were mingling with their would-be killers.
It was market day in Barangay Sumon and the soldiers joined the activities surrounding the barangay hall, said resident Jesus Burlas Sunday.
Though they noticed new faces in the crowd at the market, residents and the six soldiers did not think this was odd because they thought the strangers merely came to see what goods Sumon had to offer.
Jesus, husband of Sumon Barangay Captain Norma Burlas, said they saw only about 15 suspected New People’s Army (NPA) rebels, contrary to initial reports stating some 50 rebels stormed the area.
Jesus, though, could not be sure if there were more of the rebels hiding in the woods.
They all used short firearms, which was why they were undetected.
The rebels killed team leader Sergeant Orlando Luna (not Rolando as earlier reported), Corporal Bobby Oscar Licono and Private First Class Joseph Bingil, all of the 78th Infantry Battalion (IB).
The rebels also shot but failed to hit Private First Class Roger Dagundon, who fled on foot to the town proper to report the incident to the Tuburan Police Station more than 10 kilometers away.
They did not see Private First Class Merayo hiding in the shrubs.
It was not clear whether a certain soldier identified only as Ramirez was the sixth soldier who escaped.
2 on leave
Initial reports said Ramirez earlier asked for permission to leave the detachment because he wanted to see his pregnant wife in Tuburan proper, which is 96 kilometers from Cebu City.
Luna’s second in command, a certain Sergeant Biyaya, also filed for leave.
Luna’s wife, Amelia, assailed the manner her husband was killed, saying he was unarmed. Reports said Luna was shot in the back of the head.
"Sakit kaayo, gi-una gyod nila ug pusil ang akong bana sa likod sa iyang ulo (They had to shoot him in the back of the head)," she said in between sobs.
Amelia told Sun.Star Cebu that she could only think of her mother and in-laws to help her children finish elementary and high school, now that her husband, their breadwinner, is dead.
The rebels took off with five M14 rifles, three M16 rifles and bags of ammunition from the detachment, which was located near the barangay hall.
Looting
Only Merayo’s firearm remained because he took it with him when he hid.
He had wanted to fight back, but decided against it when he saw children running around in the commotion.
The rebels also helped themselves to the soldiers’ personal belongings, such as boots, uniforms, clothes and cell phones.
There were reports that they also took the bag belonging to Merayo’s wife, Leah, who was in the barangay to visit her husband.
Leah told residents that before the incident, an old man approached her and shook her hand.
"Condolence na lang daan kay patyon namo ang imong bana (Just accept our condolences because we’re going to kill your husband)," she quoted the man as saying.
Before that, her husband told her that he felt anxious but could not say why.
Surprise
The soldiers and the residents were enjoying themselves when the rebels suddenly pulled out their handguns and shouted.
"Hapa! Hapa! Mga NPA mi! (Drop to the ground, we’re NPA rebels!)" Jesus quoted them as saying.
One of them shot Luna, who was cooking outside the barangay day care center.
Licono, who was outside, ran to the daycare center to get his Armalite rifle.
However, the rebels chased him inside and overpowered him.
They used his Armalite to shoot him dead.
Bingil, who was playing basketball, managed to run downhill beyond the day care center, but the rebels caught up with him.
Several meters away, Dagundon was watching a card game when the commotion took place.
When he noticed that some men around him were pulling out their firearms, he fled.
Instead of using the road, Dagundon took off his fatigues and made his way through the thick shrubs until he found his way to the main highway.
Wounded
There, he hailed a motorcycle-for-hire and asked to be brought to the police station.
When he arrived, he told the police to flash the alarm to their headquarters while he borrowed a cellular phone to alert his colleagues at the 78th IB headquarters in the neighboring town of Asturias.
Tuburan Police Chief Crisanto Duque said that Dagundon wore nothing but shorts and was full of scratches because of the rough branches of the shrubs.
He had to take off his fatigues to avoid getting spotted.
Shortly after the attack, the rebels assured residents that they were only after the soldiers, Jesus said.
One of the rebels told them they were only after Luna, but had to kill the others because they fought back.
The rebels said Luna killed many of their members in Barangay Calangahan, Jesus said.
Warning
But Amelia told Sun.Star Cebu that the rebels should not have killed her husband, who was very friendly to the residents of Sumon.
She said her husband has been in the army for 17 years, and she could not recall her husband being accused of any abuse.
Norma, the village chief, said the soldiers were not abusive and were always welcome to join gatherings in the barangay.
Norma said, however, that Luna once told her that he got angry with another barangay captain because he lied about not knowing of the presence of NPA rebels.
Luna told her that his men would have been slaughtered had they not noticed their presence in the area.
Norma had warned the soldiers last week that rebels were planning to attack them. The soldiers thanked her and said they would be careful. (With AIV/Sun.Star Cebu/Sunnex)
(October 17, 2005 issue)
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