COTABATO CITY, Philippines -- Local chapters of the National Union of Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP) and Kapisanan ng mga Brodkaster ng Pilipinas (KBP) have declared an Army colonel "persona non grata" for berating a radio reporter covering a fire in a military camp in Shariff Kabunsuan province.

The two groups also demanded a public apology from Colonel John Oswald Bucu, 6th Infantry Division camp commander, and an impartial investigation into his alleged harassment of Loreto "Lhoy" Rosario, reporter of Catholic church-run radio station dxMS.

The NUJP-Cotabato said its members have agreed to boycott coverage of the division until its commander, Major General Raymundo Ferrer, is replaced.

On the other hand, the NUJP national office is demanding that the Armed Forces of the Philippines impose strong sanctions on Bucu for "his clear assault on press freedom," as it noted it was not the first time the offcer has targeted journalists.

"Harassing members of the media while performing their work is suppression of the people's right to information, the right to be informed of the goings-on in their communities," the NUJP national office said in a separate statement.

"Hurting the press is also hurting the people," the NUJP-Cotabato said.

The groups described Bucu’s treatment of Rosario, who was covering the fire that struck an ammunition dump inside the division headquarters late last week, as "an affront to the Fourth Estate."

While inside the camp, Rosario was accosted by Bucu, took his press card and mobile phones and berated him, calling him "intruder."

"We also question the silence of supposed peacemaker, Major General Ferrer, who had studied conflict resolution and management at the Asian Institute of Management, on the issue," the NUJP-Cotabato said.