"WE
were threatened by Marcos Bocales that if things get worse, he will liken the
bakwit to that of Marawi," said Rene, an evacuee. Marcos Bocales is a
leader of the paramilitary group Magahat-Bagani, the group which committed the
September 1, 2015 Lianga massacre. Bocales join the military in their
activities outside the evacuation center.
Meanwhile,
teachers of Lumad schools TRIFPSS and ALCADEV continue to receive threats.
"I got a text saying that I am already being targeted. They warned me that
they'll blow my head off," Aya, a volunteer teacher at TRIFPSS reported.
Other
teachers are also being threatened by the military face to face. "A
military agent told me to stop what I was doing or something bad will happen to
me," Dondon Gultia, OIC at TRIFPSS narrated.
The
same military agent who threatened Gultia also threatened the community
leaders. "Umayos kayo kundi sasampolan ko kayo," the agent told the
leaders.
The
Lumad evacuees who evacuated last July 16, 2018, and are staying at the gym of
Brgy. Diatagon, Lianga, Surigao del Sur are now seeking help after threats,
harassments, and intimidation from the military escalated since they fled from
their homes.
Not
only evacuees are being harassed and threatened by the 75th Infantry Battalion.
Local government officials are also being pressured against helping the Lumad.
"I was berated by the military after I let the evacuees get in the
gym," a barangay official told the Bishop of Tandag during a visit.
Priests
and church people are also intimidated by the military and told not to help the
evacuees. Fr. Lacal, a Carmelite priest, who was supposed to donate food to the
evacuees was told by the military, "You should not tolerate the evacuees
so they will return to their communities." Other priests and nuns who were
visiting the evacuees were blocked by the military and were escorted to a
different venue instead.
The
Lumad evacuees who wished to transfer to another evacuation site on July 23
were also blocked by the military, the vehicles that would transport them were
held at military checkpoints.
Around
1,600 individuals evacuated from 15 Lumad communities in Lianga and San Agustin
in Surigao del Sur, due to military abuses. The AFP is building detachments in
their communities to provide security to coal mining companies raring to start
operations in the Andap Valley Complex.
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