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Friday, November 26, 2004 9:12 PM
National

Tarlac mayor slams report raising Luisita death toll to 14

Tarlac City Mayor Genero Mendoza on Friday slammed a newspaper report saying the death toll from the bloody dispersal of striking workers of Central Azucarera de Tarlac on Tuesday has reached 14.

"The official count stood at seven, and we are certain there were no additional fatalities from the incident," Mendoza told DZMM's "Tambalang Failon at Sanchez" program.

Mendoza did not single out the newspaper that reported that the number of the dead in the Tuesday bloodbath has swelled but abs-cbnNEWS.com obtained a copy of the Philippine Daily Inquirer Wednesday edition that splashed the headline, "Hacienda Luisita death toll now 14."

The report said: "Seven more people, including two children, were reported killed in Tuesday's dispersal of striking workers of Central Azucarera de Tarlac, raising the death toll to 14.

"The children -- aged 2 and 5 -- died of suffocation when tear gas used by the police and military during the dispersal drifted to their quarters, according to the workers. Two other bodies were found in nearby sugarcane fields a day after the clash."

The report, which had the bylines of Russell Arador, Ronald Dizon, and Jo Clemente, mentioned no source of the information on the additional fatalities.

The mayor, short of saying that the report was overblown, said that he personally saw and counted the bodies of the victims from the riot that also injured 100 persons.

Mendoza also disputed the newspaper report that two children were among the additional fatalities.

"Ngayon doon po sa sinasabi nilang may mga bata na namatay...well nag-check na po kami sa mga punerarya at sa mga ospital, there were no additional dead victims (As to their report that children were also killed, we checked several hospitals and funeral parlors but there were no additional fatalities)," the mayor said.

Mendoza said the 110 people arrested and detained by the police during the riot were freed Thursday.

"The police treated them well. The women were separated from the men and they were given food and water," Mendoza said.


abs-cbnNEWS.com/DZMM

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Editorials

Transport strike brains
Whether the transport strike is really motivated by a desire to ease the plight of jeepney drivers or to simply cause trouble is still unclear at this point. However, the support that the NPA has expressed for the protest hints loudly of who is really behind this mass action.

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