AR-HR ALERT: Harassment and destruction of property of a tenant in Batuan, Masbate city Philippines

F A C T S H E E T

Victim: Maria P. Mailo, 63 years old

Alleged Perpetrator: Darly Delara, Rodrigo Ariscon, Rene Ariscon, Roldan Delara,
Louie Nieva, a certain Juan, Boboy, Ontoy and
2 unidentified men

Date of Incident: 22 January 2009 between 9:00 AM to 10:00 AM

Place of Incident: Barangay Gibraltar Batuan Municipality, Masbate Province

Motive: Agrarian- related conflict

ACCOUNT OF INCIDENT:

On January 22, 2009 at about 9 o ’clock in the morning, the house of Maria Mailo, a tenant-farmer in Hacienda Batuan was demolished by ten security guards and workers of Hacienda Batuan which is co-owned by Rafael Resurrecion and Lydia Honasan.

The suspects known as Darly Delara, Rodrigo Ariscon, Rene Ariscon, Roldan Delara, Louie Nieva, a certain Juan, Boboy, Ontoy and two other unidentified men went to the Barangay hall of Gibraltar, Batuan that morning and ask for Javier Mailo (husband of Maria Mailo). When Javier arrived at the Barangay Hall he was forced to sign a document stating that he is an illegal squatter in the area where he and his family were living and that they will immediately demolished their house. Due to his fear, Javier Mailo signed the document and leaved the Barangay hall teary eyed.

Only an hour passed, the suspects went to Mailo’s house and demolished their house immediately and leaved the hapless family.

It was reported that Javier and Maria Mailo was living with their daughter-in-law Jennifer Pagaspas, widow of late Junrie Pagaspas who was brutally killed on July 6, 2008 by seven unidentified armed men together with Rene Llabres. Junrie and Rene were both tenant in Hacienda Batuan and active leader in farmer’s organization in the area.

From then, Jennifer Pagaspas stand as one of the witness on the killings of both Rene Llabres and his husband.

Maria and Javier Mailo is active member of the Samahang Magsasaka ng Hacienda Batuan (SMHB). The said organization has been petitioning the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) and demand that the 1,419 hectares of Hacienda Batuan be placed under the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP). The hacienda covers five villages namely; Sawang, Burgos, Royroy, Gibraltar and Panisihan.

The 1,419 hectare estate has 300 hectares planted by palay (rice), 400 hectares devoted to coconut trees and the rest is allotted for cattle raising. Around 200 tenants are currently working in the coconut lands. Before, they were also tilling the rice lands but the landowner had stopped them from working in the said rice lands.

Prepared By:

Rural Poor Institute for Land and Human Rights Services, Inc.

(RIGHTS Network)

29 January 2009

AR-HR ALERT: Farmer leader and Municipal Councilor got death threats in Masbate city Philippines

Victim: Salvador “Boyet” Vale Jr.

Alleged Perpetrator: 3 unidentified men

Date of Incident: 16 January 2009 between 1:30 PM to 2:00 PM

Place of Incident: Barangay Poblacion Batuan Municipality, Masbate Province

Motive: Agrarian- related conflict

ACCOUNT OF INCIDENT:

Batuan Municipal Councilor Salvador “Boyet” Vale Jr. who once abducted last November 30, 2007 by seven armed men who claimed they were members of the New People’s Army (NPA), has received death threats again from unidentified men.

January 16, 2009 he was informed by his friend, Ruben Nieva that around 2:00 o ’clock in the afternoon, three unidentified men posing as buyer of old coins and dollar currency went to their house and approached him showing a 9mm bullet saying in tagalog “ANG BALANG ITO AY PARA KAY KAGAWAD SALVADOR VALE JR” (this bullet is for Councilor Salvador Vale Jr.) and ask him to give it to Vale.

Immediately, Ruben Nieva went to Kagawad Boyet Vale and gave the said bullet intended for him. Boyet Vale got nervous and worried of the obvious message of those threatening him following his horrible experience in the hands of unidentified men who abducted him in November 2007.

On November 30, 2007, Boyet Vale was intercepted on his way to the farm, and was made to descend from his horse with the use of an armalite. He was forcibly dragged to a nearby house where he was tied up with heavy rope. Bound and gagged, the men took turns hitting him repeatedly with their armalites and punching him in his chest, back, shoulders and ears. After three hours of repeated abuse, he was fed two spoonfuls of rice. Before he was released, he was warned that the members of his organization should
not pursue their desire to own the land that they till.

Just one month later, on December 22, 2007, his brother Mark Anthony “Butchoy” Vale, Barangay Captain and farmer-leader of Samahang Magsasaka ng Hacienda Batuan in Masbate, was killed by armed men and women at Sawang Batuan around 1 in the afternoon. His desecrated corpse, seen by his wife, was a gruesome mess and there was
a total of three gunshot wounds on his body, and one on his head. His permit to carry firearms bore a bullet hole and was found next to his body, leading to the conclusion that the piece of paper was brought close to his head and the bullet was made to pass through it in a final act of mockery.

Boyet Vale is an active leader of the Samahang Magsasaka ng Hacienda Batuan which has demanding that the 1,419 hectares of Hacienda Batuan be placed under the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP).

Prepared By:

Rural Poor Institute for Land and

Human Rights (RIGHTS) Network, Inc

January 28, 2009