Family of young rebel massacred, group says

TACLOBAN CITY -- Contrary to military accounts, a fact-finding mission led by the United Church of Christ in the Philippines (UCCP) said the parents and sister of 12-year-old communist fighter Aram de la Cruz were massacred and not killed in a legitimate encounter.

"No encounter happened. It was a barbaric and merciless display of military brutality," said UCCP's Rev. Jean Escabal, who headed the fact-finding mission, during a press conference here last Saturday.

The military earlier had claimed that Aram's father Aniceto, 35, mother Angelita, 31, and sister Deceree, 13, were slain in an encounter in Barangay Pinamigsian in Bontoc, Southern Leyte on the morning of March 12. Aniceto was the Section Committee commander of the New People's Leyte Front Committee.

Aram was captured after the clash in possession of an M-16 assault rifle. When presented at Camp Aguinaldo, he showed his skill in dismantling and assembling a rifle.

But the mission said the incident occurred in the hinterland village of Hitawos, not Pinamigsian, and that only the three De la Cruzes were killed, not five as the military claimed.

"There were some errors in the (military's) report," said Edison Lapuz, Eastern Visayas chairman of Katungod, a human rights group.

Escabal said the members of the Army's 43rd Infantry Battalion did not fire warning shots nor give the De la Cruz family the chance to defend themselves, but instead attacked them with automatic rifles and M203 grenade launchers.

The mission recovered several bullet casings about three meters from the hut of the De la Cruzes. The residents said they found about "two kilos" of empty shells at the area after the incident.

With the hail of bullets, the mission said Aniceto's head was nearly blown off, one arm of Angelita was "skinned" and her right leg "cut off," while Deceree's arms were "slashed off by bullet wounds."

Barangay Hitawos council Fernando Purgatoryo told the mission that the soldiers "admitted they heartlessly fired at young Deceree who was begging them to spare their lives."

The mission learned that Aniceto had reportedly offered to surrender in the presence of authorities, but the soldiers allegedly ignored his offer and instead attacked his family.

For nearly a month now, Aram has been under the custody of the Department of Social Welfare and Development in Palo, Leyte. A local court is hearing the petition for habeas corpus filed by his paternal grandmother Concepcion de la Cruz.

The fact-finding group was composed of 57 representatives from church and human rights groups.