Clashes in CamSur, Samar kill 8 rebs

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LEGAZPI CITY — Eight suspected communist rebels were killed in clashes in the provinces of Camarines Sur and Samar on Tuesday and Wednesday, military reports said.

In Camarines Sur, government soldiers were patrolling the remote village of Tierra Nevada when they chanced upon a group of suspected New People’s Army (NPA) rebels at 6 a.m. Wednesday, said 1st Lt. Felise Solano, spokesperson for the military’s Southern Luzon Command (Solcom).

Guns recovered

Solano said the bodies of six rebels killed in the 20-minute gunfight were taken to the Tinambac town police station. Soldiers also recovered four M-16 rifles, a grenade launcher and personal belongings from the clash site.

Capt. Joash Pramis, spokesperson for the Army’s 9th Infantry Division (ID), said a woman was among the six slain in the clash.

Pramis said their reports indicated that the rebels belonged to the NPA’s Larangan 1 Guerrilla Front operating in Camarines Sur, under the Bicol regional party committee.

In Samar province on Tuesday, two suspected NPA rebels were killed in a clash with soldiers in Matuguinao town.

In a statement, Brig. Gen. Ramil Bitong, commander of the Army’s 803rd Brigade, said soldiers clashed with at least 10 rebels at Barangay Carolina.

Bitong said residents earlier informed soldiers that the rebels were conducting “extortion activities” in the area.

Soldiers recovered three firearms after the 20-minute firefight.

Campaign fees

“We cannot let this bandits get away with the atrocities they committed against helpless civilians. I’ve said many times that we will not rest until these bandits are banished or killed,” Bitong said.

In Lucena City, Maj. Gen. Gilbert Gapay, Solcom commander, said NPA rebels started approaching candidates in the May elections to seek “permit to campaign” and “permit to win” fees in areas supposedly under their control.

‘Project proposals’

Gapay, in a press conference on Tuesday, said the rebels or their emissaries would present to the candidates “project proposals” containing data on the number of voters in particular areas and the number of votes that the group would deliver.

“What comes next is their demand for cash, guns, vehicles and other materials. Other candidates in the past won but until the end of their terms, they were giving at least 3 percent of their internal revenue allotment to the NPA,” he said. —Reports from Mar Arguelles, Delfin Mallari Jr. and Robert Dejon