MEMBERS of militant organizations belonging to tribal groups refused the relief assistance from the local government unit of Talaingod town in Davao del Norte on Wednesday morning.
The Salugpongan 'Ta Tatanu Ig Kanogon (Unity in Defense of Ancestral Lands), Pasaka (Confederation of Lumad Organizations in Southern Mindanao), and Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP), along with other organizations, including lumads, urged the local government to pull out the military from the communities instead.
"Wala mi nagkinahanglan sa inyong relief goods. Ang among gusto lang ang papahawaon ang mga military sa maong lugara. Dugay na ng yangungo namo sa mga pag-panglapas sa among katungod ug sa among kultura sa wa'y puas na militarisasyon, apan wa mi paminawa (We do not need your relief goods. We want the military to leave our village instead. We have been complaining of their violations against our culture and the never-ending militarization, but government never listened to us)," Datu Duloman Dawsay, spokesperson for Salugpongan, said.
"Daghan nami mga kaso nga giduol sa among mayor (Basilio Libayao) pero wala kini aksyon. Kahibalo sya na nga ginabomba ang among mga komunidad sa mga sundalo. Ginaharas ang among mga katribu apan wala syay aksyon Nagpakabuta, bungol lang ang gobyerno sa Talaingod (We have been seeking audience with our mayor Basilia Libayao, but he never acted on our complaints. He knows that the lumad villages are being bombed by soldiers, that the lumads are being harassed, but he never does anything. The local government of Talaingod is deaf and dumb)," he added.
Sidro Andao, Pasaka spokesperson, described the earlier statement of the Talaingod mayor as “myopic view,” after the municipal government said it may file charges against the organizers who lured lumads to evacuate in Davao City.
"We did not violate any customary tradition of our lumad brothers and sisters in helping them vacate their lands after the military launched aerial bombings in the area. The ones’ who have violated our culture and our human rights are the soldiers and the local government which allows the military to stay in the area," Andao said.
Andao also made it clear that there are only 927 Talaingod–Manobos evacuees seeking refuge at UCCP Haran in Davao City, of which 515 are children. But the Municipality of Talaingod claimed that the actual number of evacuees were around 2,300.
Talaingod town Mayor Basilio A. Libayao, on the other hand, denied the accusations of the militant organizers against the local government unit and government troops. Libayao said there were no reports of harassments or abuses and aerial bombing that has been committed by the military in the area.
"Kay kung naa lang, ako mismo ang mu-protekta sa akong constituents. Hadaw hain ba gud ng ilang ginaingon na helicopter na nay bomba? Wala man. Mas na pa matud-an man gani na dunay rebel encampment sa maong lugar (Had there been, I will be the first one to protect my constituents. Where are the helicopter gunships they speak of? There is none. What’s there is a rebel camp)," Libayao said.
Colonel Harold N. Cabreros, commander of the Philippine Army's 1003rd Brigade, earlier said residents sought the assistance of their troops from the 60th Infantry Battalion (60IB), 68th IB, and Special Forces, following the presence of the New People's Army (NPA) in town.
"Positive nga nay NPA encampment sagad sa barrio sa Barangay Palma Gil. Karon gusto na ninyo papahawaon ang mga military? Naunsa ba? Ug alang sa inyong kasayuran, wala ko'y katakos mupahawa kanila kay di na ko na sila hold kundi sa national government (There is a rebel camp in barangay Palma Gil, now they want me to remove the military there? For your information, I cannot make the military leave, I don’t have power over them, they are under the national government)," Libayao said.
The Municipal Council of Talaingod declared a state of calamity last April 1 and has allotted an initial amount of 500,000 to cater the needs of the evacuees. But the militant organizations had started removing the evacuees after the declaration, which is an act considered by Libayao as an insult to his constituency.
"We are appealing to the organizers... do not exploit the lumads. Kung unsa inyo problema ngadto sa military, sa gobyerno, wala man na sila labot. We are also capable to attend the needs of our constituents, dili ninyo sila kinahanglan dad-on pa sa siyudad sa Davao (whatever your issues are, you do not need to bring them to Davao City)," Libayao said.
Libayao earlier apologized to Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte for any disturbance, in one way or another, which his constituents may have caused. He said the organizers didn’t inform the local government about their plan to bring the evacuees to the city.
The Talaingod government is also seeking assistance to Davao City mayor to bring back the evacuees in town.