• GILBERT P. BAYORAN
The Buklod Kapayapaan Federation Inc. (BKFI), a nationwide federation of former members of the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army-National Democratic Front (CPP-NPA-NDF), expressed its support to the conduct of an independent fact-finding mission and a legislative inquiry into the summary executions civilians in Negros Island perpetrated by rebel remnants.
From January 2025 to the present, the BKFI said at least 27 civilians, based on records of the Philippine Army, have been recorded as killed in a series of attacks that have instilled fear and insecurity among communities, particularly in Negros Occidental.
The most recent victim, 74-year-old Leonora Anguit, was brutally killed after being accused of being a military informant in Barangay Tapi, Kabankalan City.
“The killing of an elderly woman — defenseless, unarmed, and within the supposed safety of her home — is a cold-blooded and heartless crime,” the BKFI said in a statement.
The group added that the rampant killings in Negros must be brought to the national spotlight, stressing that the silence surrounding these incidents only enables further violence and normalizes impunity. Civilians should never be treated as targets in any armed struggle, it added.
“In this regard, Buklod Kapayapaan calls on government officials, legislators, the media, and advocacy groups to urgently direct their attention to the ongoing ‘killing spree’ attributed to the NPA in Negros. We urge the media to report these incidents with the seriousness they deserve, and we call on lawmakers to exercise oversight and accountability mechanisms,” the group added. | GB
