Rights group Karapatan-Southern Tagalog is holding the military accountable for the killing of a civilian in Occidental Mindoro, calling it a “clear sign of widespread militarization and grave human rights violations.” 

The group condemned the August 1 killing in Sitio Salidang, Brgy. Naibuan, San Jose, reportedly carried out by members of the 4th Infantry Battalion (4th IB) of the Philippine Army.  

The military initially reported the incident as an armed encounter with the New People’s Army (NPA). 

However, reports and testimonies gathered by Karapatan’s fact-finding team indicated that the victim was a civilian and not a combatant. It said the case reflects what it described as “a pattern of fabricated encounters used by the military to justify violent operations in the countryside.” 

Karapatan linked the incident to previous killings attributed to the 4th IB, including Jay-el Maligday, a Hanunuo-Mangyan youth shot inside his home in Bulalacao, Oriental Mindoro in April 2024, and Hulyo Agtay, a farmer who was allegedly falsely tagged as an NPA fighter. 

Humanitarian team harassed 

The group also reported that its humanitarian team faced surveillance and intimidation from suspected military agents while investigating the incident, which it said shows growing hostility against human rights workers and civilian monitors. 

Karapatan criticized San Jose Mayor Rey Ladaga for failing to initiate an independent probe. Instead of exercising the local government’s jurisdiction and duty to protect his constituents, the group said the mayor “passed the responsibility of investigation to the military.” 

According to the rights group, Mindoro has long been militarized to clear the way for large-scale mining, energy, and ecotourism projects.  

It cited repeated military shelling in several towns between 2022 and 2025, which “disproportionately affected indigenous communities and peasant families and fostered a climate of fear and repression.” 

IHL commemoration 

Karapatan noted that the killing happened on the first day of International Humanitarian Law (IHL) Week, describing it as proof of the government’s “blatant disregard for human rights and humanitarian norms.”  

It also criticized President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s silence on the issue, saying it “is a clear indication of the state’s complicity and continued use of militarization under the counter-insurgency framework to suppress dissent and resistance.” 

“We call for an immediate, independent, and comprehensive investigation into the killing, illegal arrest, and harassment of humanitarian workers in Brgy. Naibuan, San Jose, Mindoro,” the group said, adding that the military is accountable under the Comprehensive Agreement on Respect for Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law (CARHRIHL) and other applicable rights instruments. 

The group urged authorities to ensure the protection of civilians in militarized zones, the safe return of the victim’s remains to the family for proper burial, and an end to “the militarization of rural communities.” #