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Thursday, November 18, 2004

 

Wake for dispersal victims 
held at Tarlac City plaza

By Len Espinosa , Central Luzon Bureau

TARLAC CITY—Less than 24 hours after the bloodiest strike dispersal in Central Luzon, workers of the sugar mill owned by the family of former President Corazon Aquino marched to the Plazuela in front of the city hall here bearing the coffins of some of the 14 hacienda hands who were killed by soldiers and riot policemen on Tuesday.

Shouting invectives at the Cojuangco family that owns the Hacienda Luisita sugar estate and Labor Secretary Patricia Sto. Tomas, hundreds of hacienda workers marched to the city square at high noon bearing the coffins of Jhaivie Basilio, Jess Valdez, John David and Jesus Laza, all workers of the Hacienda Luisita and the Central Azucarera de Tarlac.

Leaders of the United Luisita Workers’ Union and CAT Labor Union said they plan to hold a common wake for the four casualties with the 10 others who were killed in the violent strike dispersal that also injured  scores of others.

Union leaders were arranging to transfer the coffins of Juancho Sanchez, Jimmy Pastidio, Boy Versola, Neng Manalo, Adriano Cabalero, a certain Sosa, two babies and two other unidentified dead to the city square, but they have not agreed with the victims’ families who want to grieve for their loved ones in private.

While militant union members continued to lambaste the hacienda management and the Department of Labor and Employment during the wake, the speeches were interspersed with somber silence as the hacienda hands pondered their loss and their future.

“Reassess muna kami kasi mukhang pumapasok ang Congress,” said one union leader, referring to the visit of party-list Representatives Satur Ocampo of Bayan Muna, Joel Virador of Bayan Muna, Rafael Mariano of Anakpawis and Liza Maza of Gabriela, who went to Hacienda Luisita to investigate the violent dispersal.

The union leaders have no immediate plans, because they still have to attend to the burial of those who were killed as well as legal representation for the 116 who were arrested at the dispersal and are now facing charges.

Moreover, the whispered conversations at the Plazuela focused not so much on the politicians as on what happened during the dispersal, which appeared to have changed the mood of the workers despite the half-bold speeches.

Foremost in the conversations were the questions why the DOLE assumed jurisdiction over the strike when it was about to be resolved by labor conciliators in San Fernando, Pampanga, on Friday and why the military had to be involved in the dispersal.

The death toll is still expected to rise, union leaders said, because many workers who suffered gunshot wounds during the dispersal were still being treated at  hospitals in the city. They said eight people have been reported missing since the riot broke out.

It was past 3 p.m. on Tuesday when the 4,000 protesters were dispersed with water cannon and tear gas by military and police. Hundreds were injured including government personnel due to the warning shots that were fired by the Civil Disturbance Management units of the PNP.

However, Col. Preme Monta, spokesman for the Armed Forces’ Northern Luzon Command, insisted that the gunshots were first fired by the workers and not the CDM.

“Our frontline men were only bearing truncheons and shields, and security forces were at the back of the organized troops, so there is no way the police and military could have initiated the shots,” Monta explained.

But Ocampo and the other congressmen found dozens of spent shells of 5.56mm bullets used for the M-16 rifles that are issued to the military and the police.

   
 
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Harold Mejilla, Alan Zoilo Belizario, Errol Laciste
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