NPA rebels raid fish and crab farm in Negros

MANILA, Philippines — Communist rebels raided last weekend a fish-and-crab farm in Escalante City in Negros Occidental after the owner failed to pay revolutionary taxes, a report said on Tuesday. Online news site Visayan Daily Star (www.visayandailystar.com) cited belated police reports that 20 New People's Army (NPA) guerrillas entered the bangus and crab farm owned by one Mr. Javellana on Oct. 30 and opened the culvert of the fishpond, releasing about 40,000 bangus fingerlings and cultured crabs to the sea. The farm of Javellana, who is based in Iloilo, is located in Alimango village in Escalante City. Escalante police director Chief Insp. Santiago Rapiz said the raiders also divested fishpond overseer Nelson Coni-endo of his cell phone, a two-way radio handset, and an unserviceable.38-caliber homemade revolver. Rapiz said the armed men told Coni-endo they were also responsible for the burning of three Tanduay delivery trucks at the port of Escalante, and the recent disarming of PO2 Louie Maluya of his M-14 rifle and service firearm. Police learned of the incident only after the owner reported it belatedly. Two weeks ago, rebels inflicted more than P1 million in damage on the properties of businessman Raul Santa Ana in Andres Bonifacio village in Cadiz City, also due to his failure to pay revolutionary taxes. Maj. Nathaniel Villasor, 303rd Infantry Brigade Civil Military Operations chief, condemned the series of economic sabotage activities committed by rebels in Negros island. Villasor said the rebels were demanding P3,000 per hectare from Santa Ana on his 157-hectare property in barangay Andres Bonifacio, Cadiz City, and he ignored them. "They (rebels) resort to the use of terror in order to survive," he added. - GMANews.TV