Army: Volunteer teacher for Lumad kids among 5 slain in Davao de Oro clash

ILIGAN CITY — A volunteer teacher for Lumad kids in the Davao region was among five killed in a clash between Army troopers and New People’s Army (NPA) rebels in Davao de Oro province early morning Thursday, the military said.

Citing a report from the Army’s 10th Infantry Division, the Civil Relations Service of the Armed Forces of the Philippines said the 15-minute gunfight with the troops of the 1001st Infantry Brigade happened in Barangay Andap of New Bataan town.

The Army said those killed were Chad Booc alias Chad, Jojarain Alce Nguho II alias Rain, one identified only as alias Daday, and two still unidentified men.

Booc was among those who filed the 24th petition against the Anti-Terrorism Act last year, signing on as a volunteer teacher of the Alternative Learning Center for Agricultural Development (Alcadev) which caters to Lumad children.

In February last year, he was among seven volunteers of a Lumad ‘Bakwit School’ in Cebu City who were arrested by police in a supposed operation to rescue 19 children inside the University of San Carlos retreat house.

They were accused of bringing to Cebu City the Lumad children from Talaingod, Davao del Norte, without the consent of their parents, and indoctrinating them to become members of the Communist Party of the Philippines and its armed wing, the NPA.

The children were taken custody by government social workers while Booc and the six others were detained in Cebu City and slapped with charges of kidnapping, trafficking and child abuse before the Davao del Norte prosecutor’s office.

The charges were dismissed more than two months later due to “insufficiency of evidence” and “lack of probable cause” and the seven accused were ordered to walk free.

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