NPAs raid mining firm’s compound in Negros

Bacolod City, Philippines – Some 30 suspected New People’s Army (NPA) guerrillas swooped down on the compound of Philex Mining Co. in Sipalay City, Negros Occidental Wednes­day afternoon, torching a cargo truck and the bunkhouse of the firm’s workers and security guards, authorities said.

Lt. Col. Rodrigo Sosmeña, commander of the Army’s 47th Infantry Battalion, said the rebels disarmed the guards at their outpost located about three kilometers away from the compound, and took three handheld radios from them.

The rebels, believed to be members of the NPA’s Armando Sumayang Command, torched a cargo truck rented by the mining firm and the bunkhouse before fleeing, Sosmeña said.

In 2008, the insurgents also raided the Philex compound where they torched mine-drilling and heavy equipment worth millions of pesos and the workers’ barracks, military records show.

1Lt. Rey Balibagoso, 47th IB civil-military operations officer, said there was no firefight in Wednesday’s incident and no employee of the mining firm was reported hurt.

Gov. Alfredo Marañon Jr. yesterday said such an attack by NPA rebels could adversely affect the tourism potentials of Sipalay City and the province as a whole, and could scare away prospective investors.

Marañon said he has repeatedly reached out to the insurgents to bring their concerns to the provincial government and work hand-in-hand in improving the countryside.

“There is no progress if there is no peace,” he said.

Senior Superintendent Allan Guisihan, provincial police director, said the NPA has opposed mining in Sipalay and has stepped up its tactical offensives.

Guisihan said Philex and other mining firms in Sipalay should coordinate with the police and military so their security could be beefed up. –Danny Dangcalan The Philippine Star with Jaime Laude