BACOLOD CITY—At least 30 communist rebels raided the compound of Philex Mining Co. in Barangay Nabulao, Sipalay City in Negros Occidental on Wednesday.
No shot was fired but New People’s Army (NPA) rebels burned the firm’s two vehicles and bunk house and took six shotguns from guards, according to authorities.
Lt. Col. Rodrigo Sosmena, 47th Infantry Battalion commander, said the rebels raided the mining compound and the guards’ outpost where they took firearms and two-way radio sets.
The rebels, believed to be members of the Armando Sumayang Command, also burned a cargo truck being rented by the mining firm, a Kia Rio car and the bunk house being used by guards and workers.
The rebels later commandeered the company’s service pickup, said Supt. Milko Lirazan, director of the 6th Regional Public Safety Battalion.
The rebels withdrew toward a runway being used by Philex, and burned the pickup before fleeing on foot, Lizaran said.
This was the second NPA attack on Philex Mining in three years. In 2008, communist rebels torched millions of pesos worth of the firm’s mine drilling and heavy equipment and workers’ barracks.
The raid was supposedly in line with the campaign of priest-turned-rebel leader Frank Fernandez to stop mining in Negros Island.
Late last year, communist rebels also raided the Maricalum Mining Co. compound in Barangay San Jose, Sipalay City and took 20 firearms from guards and policemen, authorities said.
But 1Lt. Rey Balibagoso, 47th IB civil military operations officer, said the NPA was just trying to project the raid as an anti-mining operation, although its real intention was to extort money from the mining firms.
He said the attacks were aimed at forcing the mining companies to pay so-called revolutionary taxes.
The rebels also clashed with militiamen in a Samar town on Thursday but no casualties were reported.
Maj. Gen. Mario Chan, commanding general of the Catbalogan City-based 8th Infantry Division, said members of the Civilian Armed Forces Geographical Unit (Cafgu), a government militia, were on patrol in Sta. Rita town when they encountered the rebels.
A 15-minute gunfight ensued, but no casualties were reported on either side. Chan said one of the ways that government could wipe out insurgency in Samar was to bring development to the province.