Antipas villagers leave homes

FLEEING FOLKS --- Residents from Barangay Camutan in Antipas, North Cotabato evacuated to safer areas after communist rebels occupied their villages and forced them to leave. (Contributed by media partner – MINDANAO EXPOSE’)

NORTH COTABATO ---Communist rebels occupied an upland barangay in Antipas town of North Cotabato on Thursday last week and forced hundreds of villagers to leave at gunpoint.

Provincial and municipal education officials immediately decided to shut down all schools in Barangay Camutan in Antipas and evacuated school children to safer areas.

Antipas Mayor EgidioCadungon confirmed the occupation of Barangay Camutan by hundreds of New People’s Army (NPA) guerrillas who arrived there at past 6:00 a.m. that Thursday.

Barangay officials said the NPAs immediately looted houses, collected money from villagers, and took their farm animals.

Army and police intelligence units have to validate reports purporting that the NPAs are holding 70 residents captive, to be used as “human shields” if the military will drive them away.

Barangay Camutan is a hinterland barangay close to mountain ranges where there is heavy NPA presence.

The first to evacuate immediately after the NPAs arrived in Barangay Camutan were 47 families driven away at gunpoint after having been robbed of their money, wristwatches, farm tools, clothes, and livestock in their yards.

The rebels also ransacked and took goods for sale in sari-sari stores abandoned by owners.

Cadungon said the attack also caused panic in neighboring barangays.

Barangay officials sent emissaries to the rebels to convince their commanders to set their hostages free.

Clearing operation

As of Friday last week, government troops have been clearing a village of Antipas town in Cotabato province that communist rebels had occupied and where they supposedly held civilians hostage.

Senior Inspector Rolando Dillera, police chief of Antipas, said the military “is pushing away the rebels and clearing the area (of) landmines” the New People’s Army guerrillas may have planted as they withdrew.

Dillera said a total of 181 families from SitiosMalapangi, Embagan, and Matias in Barangay Camutan and SitioPatot, Barangay DatuAgod have fled to evacuation sites in the center of Antipas.

There was no word on whether this number included the estimated 100 residents of Malapangi authorities earlier accused the rebels of holding as “human shields.”

Nevertheless, he said no civilian or government casualties have been reported since the rebels occupied Camutan at dawn Thursday.

Dillera said fighting marked by grenade explosions broke out around 7 p.m. Thursday after what he described as failed efforts by local government officials to secure the alleged hostages’ release.

Mayor EquidioCadungon, who temporarily suspended classes in the affected communities, said he was still awaiting clearance from security officials before sending the evacuees home.

A military report said a Commander Joel of the NPA’s Guerilla Front 53 led the occupation of Camutan. (Media partner & PNA– MINDANAO EXPOSE’)