Re: Another Country, Another War, Same Problems and Politics

Date: March 21, 2004

"NPAs release captured gov't soldiers' photos

By Delfin T. Mallari Jr. Inquirer News Service

NEW PEOPLE'S Army rebels in Bicol under the Romulo Jallores Command have released photos of the two government soldiers who, they claimed, they are holding as "prisoners of war."

The military has rejected the POW tag on the captured soldiers, preferring that they be called instead as "missing in action."

"With the release of these (photos), the NPA-Romulo Jallores Command assures the families and loved ones of the POWs as well as the general public that POWs Lt. Ronaldo Fedelino and Pfc. Ronel Lemeno are treated with leniency, respect of their human rights and concern for their safety and well-being amidst relentless massive military operations and wanton human abuses by the Armed Forces of the Philippines in several towns and barrios of Camarines Sur," the Party Information Bureau said in a statement Wednesday.

One of the photos shows Fedelino with two NPA guerrillas after his capture.

Other photos show the two prisoners partaking food with their custodians, and an NPA paramedic getting Fedelino's blood pressure.

The rebels said the soldiers had surrendered in a battle with the NPA on March 1 in Barangay Bataan, Tinambac, Camarines Sur.

"They are being kept in good condition under NPA custody while terms for their release have yet to be negotiated with the National Democratic Front of the Philippines upon the initiative of the Philippine government," the statement said.

The Communist Party of the Philippines and the NPA have called on the government to order the immediate cessation of military operations in Camarines Sur and surrounding areas to ensure the safety of the POWS and pave the way for negotiations for their safe and orderly release.

The NPA said that in adherence to the Geneva Convention, the prisoners will be released and repatriated upon the cessation of active hostilities in Bicol.

But Major General Alfonso Dagudag, the chief of the Army's Southern Luzon Unified Command dismissed the NPA's invitation to start negotiations for the prisoner's safe release.

Manila"