“Whether they are civilians or combatants, the sheer number of those killed triggers significant questions on the conduct of the operations including use of proportionate force, the steps taken to minimize casualties, and compliance with International Humanitarian Law (IHL) and human rights.”
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Context: Not all the 19 individuals killed in Negros were combatants. The casualties include a community journalist, a student leader, a farmer, and peasant activists. Over 600 individuals were also forcibly displaced.
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Human rights: Civil and political rights, international humanitarian law
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Rights-holder: The people of Negros, civilians
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Duty-bearer: Armed Forces of the Philippines, Administration of Ferdinand Marcos Jr.
MANILA – The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) claimed that all 19 individuals killed in Toboso, Negros Occidental are armed revolutionaries. Human rights organizations, however, reported at least four civilian casualties.
CIVICUS and Karapatan are calling for an immediate and independent investigation into the killings to ensure that the perpetrators are held accountable.
“Whether they are civilians or combatants, the sheer number of those killed triggers significant questions on the conduct of the operations including use of proportionate force, the steps taken to minimize casualties, and compliance with International Humanitarian Law (IHL) and human rights,” said Karapatan Secretary General Cristina Palabay. “The possibility that the military committed a massacre, including in the context of an armed confrontation, should be investigated.”
Community journalist RJ Nichole Ledesma is one of those killed. He was a writer and editor of Paghimutad-Negros Island and regional coordinator of People’s Alternative Media Network (Altermidya).
Human Rights Advocates Negros (HRAN) reported that Ledesma was in another sitio doing field work on the effects of development projects on peasant communities. He was instead attacked during an ensuing military pursuit operation.
“We give the highest honor to our colleague RJ, who until his last breath served marginalized communities by immersing and reporting on their stories,” Altermidya said in a statement.
Read:Altermidya demands justice for journalist killed in Negros Occidental
The National Union of Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP) also emphasized that his death, along with the students, in a military operation illustrates the risks that community journalists, activists, and rights defenders face in doing their work in conflict-prone areas.
Another victim has been identified as Alyssa Alano, an incumbent councilor of University of the Philippines Diliman University Student Council (UPD USC). The UP community, through their student councils and even their administration, condemned the killing.
“Alyssa was widely admired by her peers and teachers as a decisive student leader with a sharp, critical mind that discerned the structure of injustice perpetuating the deep poverty and oppression of the landless farmers and agricultural workers of Negros,” the UP Diliman Committee on the Protection of Academic Freedom and Human Rights said in a statement.
Peasant groups Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP) and Tanggol Magsasaka also reported the killing of peasant organizer Maureen Keil Santuyo and community researcher Errol Wendel. The groups urged the government to respect the international hunanitarian law and end the worsening militarization of Negros island.
Santuyo was first introduced to peasant organizing under the National Network of Agrarian Reform Advocates – Youth (NNARA-Youth) before transitioning to a full-time peasant organizer in Negros Occidental. Meanwhile, Wendel was identified as a community researcher of sugarcane workers and a cultural worker formerly affiliated with Unyon ng mga Manggagawa sa Agrikultura (UMA) and Artista ng Rebolusyong Pangkultura (ARPAK).
“Both took on peasant advocacy after being exposed to the reality of widespread landlessness firsthand in the countryside and the extreme poverty experienced by farmers and rural communities,” KMP and Tanggol Magsasaka said in a statement.
The groups further added that the military’s account of the incident is a “calculated exaggeration and misrepresentation” in an attempt to whitewash the massacre. “The military’s framing of the incident as a conventional clash serves to obscure the reality on the ground, and evade accountability.”
Jake Dela Cruz confirmed to reporters that his 19-year-old brother-in-law, Roel Sabillo, was one of the fatalities. However, he also asserted that Sabillo was not a member of the NPA. The victim, he said, was a farmer.
The Philippine government has ratified the Geneva Conventions, and signed the Comprehensive Agreement on Respect for Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law (CARHRIHL) with the National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP). It also enacted its 2009 domestic law Philippine Act on Crimes Against International Humanitarian Law, Genocide, and Other Crimes Against Humanity.
Under these international and domestic laws, the protection of civilians shall be prioritized. This includes journalists, medical personnel, religious personnel, humanitarian workers, and hors de combat – former combatants who were rendered incapable from participating in hostilities.
There are three important principles in IHL: distinction, proportionality, and precaution. Both parties must distinguish between civilians and combatants.
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Distinction refers to the responsibilities of both parties to distinguish between civilians and combatants, and can only direct its attack to the latter.
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Proportionality rules that the military attacks – while allowed in the armed conflict – should not be excessive.
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Precaution means that parties must take constant care to spare civilians and civilian objectives during military operations. It means double-checking that a target is indeed a military objective before launching an offensive.
Even if the people are found at the site of encounter, civilians are still considered as protected persons. In fact, it is stipulated in the Article 27 of Geneva Convention IV that they are entitled to their rights in all circumstances.
“They shall at all times be humanely treated, and shall be protected especially against all acts of violence or threats thereof and against insults and public curiosity,” the provision stated.
The Global Center for Journalism and Trauma’s definition of massacre is the “deliberate killing of innocent, unarmed civilians. Soldiers and policemen are not massacred.”
This is not the first time that the Negros island suffered a widespread bloodshed. KMP observes that the province is treated like a military encampment where farmers and sugar workers endure constant surveillance, harassment, and forced surrender and vilification campaigns.
It worsened with the implementation of Memorandum Order No. 32 under the administration of Rodrigo Duterte, declaring Negros and other regions in a “state of lawless violence” to justify the deployment of more military troops.
On June 14, 2023, a peasant family was killed in their home in Sitio Kangkiling, Barangay Buenavista, Himamaylan City, Negros Occidental. Spouses Roly and Emelda Fausto, 55 and 50 years old, respectively, were killed along with their two sons. Ben Fausto was 15 years old while Ravin Fausto was 12 years old.
Read:Negros massacre reveals ‘normalization’ of military harassment of children
“Instead of addressing landlessness, hunger and rural poverty, the regime chooses to unleash State violence in the countryside to protect landlords, silence legitimate dissent, and secure the interests of foreign powers and big business,” KMP added in a statement.
NPA-Negros Island spokesperson Maoche Legislador confirmed that among the 19 killed, only a small squad led by Roger “Ka Jhong” Fabillar were revolutionary fighters. The rest were civilians immersing with peasant communities.
The Communist Party of the Philippines, through its chief information officer Marco Valbuena, honors the revolutionary fighters killed in Negros and accuses the AFP of controling the narrative and spreading disinformation.
“The fascist AFP vilify the people’s fallen heroes without end as “terrorists” and “criminals” in their desperation to justify their merciless war of suppression and to bury the gross abuses they inflict on the people,” Valbuena stated. “The people of Toboso would have none of the lies of the AFP.” (RVO)
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