BAGUIO CITY — The Philippine Army on Thursday identified the three suspected New People’s Army (NPA) rebels slain in an August 4 encounter in Abra, as a Cordillera human rights group questioned delays in the autopsy and release of their remains to their families.
In a statement, the Army’s 5th Infantry Division identified the fatalities as alias Chico or Abdul, whom it described as a former secretary of the North Abra Guerrilla Front; Jony Davide Escobilla, allegedly a former deputy secretary of the Baggas Guerrilla Front; and Eugene Hilaus, also known as Aki, Ken, or Dina, a former organizer of Anakbayan Ilocos and Katribu Youth in the National Capital Region.
The three were killed in Barangay Bonglo in Licuan-Baay, where government troops clashed with about 10 alleged members of the NPA’s Ilocos-Cordillera Regional Committee (ICRC).
Soldiers recovered two M16 rifles, an M14 rifle, and other war materiel at the battle site, the military said.
Maj. Gen. Gulliver Señires, commander of the 5th Infantry Division, extended his condolences to the slain rebels’ families and renewed the military’s call for the remaining ICRC members to surrender, saying the government remains open to peaceful reintegration.
The Army said authorities were still completing the formal identification process and locating the victims’ relatives before releasing the bodies.
But the Cordillera Human Rights Alliance (CHRA) said the bodies have remained under police custody for more than two days after the encounter, with autopsies yet to begin.
The group said its Quick Response Team accompanied Hilaus’ mother to the funeral home on Thursday expecting the medico-legal examination to proceed, but they were told to wait because the Scene of the Crime Operatives (SOCO) team had yet to arrive.
CHRA said the prolonged delay had raised humanitarian and legal concerns, noting that the bodies had remained at the encounter site for more than a day amid heavy rains before being transferred to the morgue.
It also questioned whether proper preservation procedures were observed.
The rights group added that Hilaus’ mother was asked by the police about her son’s background despite having already submitted identification documents. On the advice of paralegals accompanying her, she declined to answer additional questions.
The Aug. 4 encounter was the fourth reported clash between government troops and alleged NPA rebels in Abra since July, despite the military’s declaration in March that the province had been cleared of insurgency.