By CESAR JOLITO III
The National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) has called on the public to await the complete investigation findings on the April 19 encounter in Negros Occidental’s Toboso town, stressing that conclusions should be based on full forensic and operational evidence.
In a statement, NTF-ELCAC Executive Director Ernesto Torres, Jr. said the preliminary observations made by forensic expert Raquel Fortun should be treated with “sobriety, context and patience,” noting that mass-casualty investigations require extensive procedures before final conclusions can be made.
Torres said these include crime scene processing, body recovery and identification, autopsy examinations, ballistic analysis, witness accounts, and review of operational records and chain of custody.
The task force said the initial findings involving five bodies do not yet establish that a massacre occurred but instead raise questions that should be addressed through the government’s official and comprehensive report.
It also defended the handling of evidence and recovery operations, saying troops and police operated in a hazardous environment where improvised explosive devices, booby traps and armed stragglers remained possible threats following the firefights.
Torres added that the later recovery of a firearm by an independent fact-finding group indicated that the encounter area remained dangerous and unsettled even after the clashes.
The NTF-ELCAC also addressed reports involving the alleged mistaken turnover of a body to relatives, saying available accounts indicate the issue stemmed from the identification and claiming process rather than an attempt to conceal evidence.
The task force maintained that the Toboso incident involved “running firefights” throughout the day, resulting in 19 deaths and the recovery of 24 firearms, based on military reports.
Citing International Humanitarian Law, Torres said individuals actively participating in armed conflict may be considered lawful targets unless they surrender, are captured, or are otherwise incapacitated.
He further claimed that opportunities to surrender allegedly existed during pauses in the fighting, but armed rebels reportedly continued resisting government troops.
The NTF-ELCAC said the complete scientific and official findings should be released first before the public draws conclusions on the incident.
The encounter between government troops and the suspected members of the New People’s Army left 19 individuals dead, including University of the Philippines (UP) – Diliman student leader Alyssa Alano, community journalist and Kabataan party-list nominee RJ Nichole Ledesma, and Filipino-American activists Lyle Prijoles and Kai Sorem.
Partial findings
Earlier, Fortun presented initial autopsy findings during a press briefing at UP-Diliman in Quezon City last week.
She said her team has so far examined five bodies and documented multiple gunshot wounds in several of them.
According to her, X-rays were conducted primarily to identify bullets recovered from the bodies.
“Three of them had multiple gunshot wounds [to the head], really serious injuries. We recovered bullets [from high-velocity rifles],” Fortun said.
All five had wounds to the trunk while some had multiple injuries affecting the head, torso and extremities.
One victim reportedly sustained four gunshot wounds, including a leg injury that struck major blood vessels.
Fortun said the victim may have died from blood loss without receiving medical attention, which advocacy groups claimed could constitute a violation of International Humanitarian Law.
However, Fortun said they are still examining the bodies, as several questions remain unanswered due to lack of proper documentation.
She also questioned the absence of basic homicide investigation procedures, including proper documentation at the scene and the handling of individuals’ clothing.
The autopsy reportedly found discrepancies between the condition of the bodies and photographs earlier released by the Armed Forces of the Philippines./CJ, WDJ