Armed Forces of the Philippines logo | INQUIRER.net FILE PHOTO
MANILA, Philippines — The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) on Friday called the claim that communist leaders Benito Tiamzon and Wilma Austria-Tiamzon were abducted and tortured by the army “propaganda.”
Communist Party of the Philippines spokesperson Marco Valbuena claimed that the Tiamzon couple were tortured and their remains, along with eight others, were dumped on a motorboat later detonated in Samar last August 2022. Valbuena also stressed that the Tiamzons and eight others were unarmed.
READ: Tiamzon couple, 8 other communists tortured and slain by AFP — CPP
“Their allegations of capture and torture are part of their propaganda and an attempt to deceive the Filipino people,” AFP spokesperson Medel Aguilar said in a statement.
Aguilar further stressed that the operation against the group “was a legitimate encounter.”
Echoing Aguilar’s remarks, AFP’s Visayas Command (Viscom) Commander Lieutenant General Benedict Arevalo said, “The allegations of capture and torture are part of their misinformation to discredit the successful operation of the government against their group.”
Countering CPP’s account, Arevalo said Viscom troops and the passengers in the motorboat figured in a firefight before the vessel exploded.
“The government acted upon the information that several NPA key personalities were escaping from the ongoing focused military operation launched in Northern Samar. Our troops were fired upon while communicating with the operator of the motorboat using a megaphone to halt for visual inspection, and in the middle of the firefight, the boat exploded,” Arevalo said.