A high-ranking member of the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army-National Democratic Front (CPP-NPA-NDF) has been convicted of murder committed almost five decades ago.
According to a press briefer released by the Department of Justice-National Prosecution Service (DOJ-NPS), Concha Araneta, alias Maria Concepcion Araneta/Chacon/Jojo/Etang, was sentenced by the Taguig City Regional Trial Court with reclusion perpetua after she was found guilty of murder over the death of Metudio Inisa on Sept. 18, 1975, in Sitio Agbanuod, Barangay Panipiason, Madalag, Aklan.
The DOJ said the promulgation of the judgment was done in absentia on June 28 after Araneta, a National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP) consultant and spokesperson, did not appear before the court since the suspension of the peace negotiations.
The case was handled by the DOJ’s task force on counterterrorism.
The prosecution witnesses had established that the victim was staying with his brother-in-law in September 1975 when two women and seven men carrying firearms arrived at their residence.
One of the men introduced himself as a member of the NPA and asked for Inisa. One of the women later asked Inisa why he joined the Philippine Constabulary.
“And when Inisa was not able to answer, she drew a gun and shot Inisa in the head. After which, the men fired several shots at Inisa,” the DOJ said.
“On the other hand, the other female did not shoot Inisa. The female who shot Inisa was identified as accused Araneta. Thus, the charge of murder,” it added.
Missing
During the arraignment on Aug. 28, 2015, Araneta, assisted by legal counsel, pleaded not guilty to the crime charged.
On April 28, 2022, her counsel filed a motion to withdraw as counsel, saying she has not had communication with Araneta for the last three years and has no information on her last known address.
Araneta, the alleged head of the CPP in Panay, was captured in Iloilo City in 2015. She was allowed to post bail in 2016 as a consultant of the NDFP and joined the peace negotiations between the government and the NDFP in Norway.
Araneta is being sought by the Philippine National Police and the military after she disappeared following the collapse of the peace talks.
Her husband, Reynaldo Bocala, who also allegedly occupied various positions in the rebel movement, including deputy secretary of the CPP in Panay, was killed in a police operation in Barangay Balabag in Pavia town, Iloilo, in May last year.
The Anti-Terrorism Council (ATC) listed the CPP and its armed wing, the NPA, as terrorist organizations.
The NDFP, which represented the communist insurgents in the peace negotiations, has also been designated as a terrorist organization by the ATC, citing it as “an integral and inseparable part” of the CPP-NPA.
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