The combined forces of the police and military deliberately killed two senior citizens in Barangay Coto, Lambunao, Iloilo, on the night of October 5. State forces claimed that the victims resisted arrest by allegedly firing their guns while being served arrest warrants. Reports said that more than ten vehicles full of police and soldiers conducted the operation against the two.
The victims were identified as Mateo Suarez, 71, and Roberto Cabales, 68. Cabales was initially reported to have suffered multiple gunshot wounds to the abdomen. The Panay Alliance Karapatan condemned the ruthless killing of the two and demanded justice and accountability from the Marcos regime.
According to the group, the police and military’s claim that the victims resisted is pure fabrication, especially as witnesses stated that there was no indication that any “encounter” occured in the area. “The deliberate targeting of elderly and defenseless individuals constitutes a grave violation of international humanitarian law and human rights,” it said.
The military and police justified this heinous crime by alleging that Cabales carried a bounty of ₱3.1 million for a rebellion case. He was also accused of being the Communist Party of the Philippines Panay Regional Committee secretary and leader.
The Panay Alliance Karapatan stated that both Suarez and Cabales were former political prisoners who had already suffered military fascism. Cabales was arrested and detained by the Military Intelligence Group (MIG) on June 11, 1999, and was released five days later after being wrongly arrested. On November 22 of the same year, he was again abducted along with Ruben Saluta by the MIG and secretly detained. He was surfaced three days later.
Suarez was imprisoned at the Capiz Rehabilitation Center in 2012 and was released after two years in detention when a court dismissed the murder and illegal possession of firearms charges against him. After his release, he lived in Barangay Coto but the military continued to harassed and even coerced him to join the government’s “balik-loob” (return to the fold) program.
“The AFP units involved must be held directly responsible for this grave violation, and measures must be taken to ensure immediate accountability.,” Panay Alliance Karapatan said. The group also called for the protection of the victims’ families, especially against state forces’ threats and attacks that could obstruct a proper investigation of actual events.
“Karapatan Panay stands with the families of Suarez and Cabales and vows to pursue justice for the victims of this latest atrocity,” the group said.
