By Villamor Visaya, Jr./ Philippine News Agency
CAMP MELCHOR DELA CRUZ, Isabela – They were considered enemies of the State but the military will not deprive them of decent burials that all Filipinos deserve.
Five New People’s Army (NPA) rebels, who were found dead on Sept. 22 after an encounter with government forces the day before, were blessed by a priest and buried in a public cemetery in Santa Teresita, Cagayan on Friday (Sept. 24).
READ MORE: Army soldiers discover 5 bodies of alleged NPA rebels during Cagayan clearing ops
Three were identified only as Titan, Dyosa, and Marlon, while two others were unidentified.
Maj. Jekyll Julian Dulawan, the Philippine Army 5th Infantry Division spokesperson, told the Philippine News Agency (PNA) on Friday night that no relatives claimed the bodies.
The clash between the communist rebels belonging to the NPA-East Front Komiteng Probinsiya Cagayan and soldiers from the 501st Infantry Brigade took place in Barangay Dungeg in Santa Teresita town.
If families would come forward later, the bodies would be exhumed, Dulawan said.
Army soldiers discovered the rebels’ lair with an improvised explosive device-manufacturing site during a reconnaissance patrol.
They asked the Philippine Air Force to launch an airstrike on the lair that lasted 20 minutes.
No military casualties were reported.
The Philippines’ Anti-Terrorism Council has designated the Communist Party of the Philippines, (CPP), NPA, and National Democratic Front as terrorist groups.
The European Union, the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the Philippines also listed the CPP-NPA-NDF as a terrorist organization. (PNA)
