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Army condemns killing of tribal villager in Agusan Norte

By Alexander Lopez

November 25, 2019, 1:34 pm

<p><strong>SLAIN TRIBAL FARMER.</strong> Authorities recover the body of Roy Olmo Biyog, 23, a farmer and a member of the Mamanwa tribe. Authorities say Biyog was killed on November 18, 2019 by communist rebels who accused him of being a military asset. <em>(Photo courtesy of the Army's 402nd Infantry Brigade)</em></p>

SLAIN TRIBAL FARMER. Authorities recover the body of Roy Olmo Biyog, 23, a farmer and a member of the Mamanwa tribe. Authorities say Biyog was killed on November 18, 2019 by communist rebels who accused him of being a military asset. (Photo courtesy of the Army's 402nd Infantry Brigade)

BUTUAN CITY – The Philippine Army in Caraga Region condemned Sunday (November 24) the killing of a tribal villager in the province of Agusan del Norte by suspected communist rebels.

In a statement, Brig. Gen. Maurito L. Licudine, commander of the 402nd Infantry Brigade, accused the New People’s Army (NPA) of carrying out the killing, denouncing the rebels and describing the act as “an outright disregard to the value of human life”.

The Philippine National Police (PNP) in the town of Kitcharao, Agusan del Norte recovered the body of Roy Olmo Biyog, 23, a member of the Mamanwa tribe and a native of Alegria town, Surigao del Norte.

Police said Biyog and six other tribal members were hunting wild boars in the hinterlands of Kabanikagan in Barangay Hinimbangan, Kicharao, on November 18, when they chanced upon five fully-armed men in the area believed to be NPA rebels.

Police identified the leader of the perpetrators as a certain Roy Forteza of the NPA's Guerrilla Front 16A of the rebels' North Eastern Mindanao Regional Committee (NEMRC).

The rebels tied the hands of the victim, accusing him of being an asset of government forces and was shot to death in front of his companions on the evening of November 18, police said.

Licudine condemned the "cruelty done to the victim," saying the act violated the International Humanitarian Law.

“We will exert all efforts to bring the perpetrators to justice,” the Army official said, adding that NPA atrocities "must be stopped and the perpetrators must be punished for their wanton killing of an innocent civilian."

Licudine also urged the local officials in the area, the government line agencies, and residents to unite and support the continuing efforts of the government to end the local communist armed conflicts in the area. (PNA)

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